Sense of Community Supports US Muslims During Ramadan...
September 02, 2010 Sandra LeMaire | Washington Midway through the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims gather at the All Dulles Area Muslim Society, or ADAMS Center, mosque to pray. Located in Reston, Virginia, the center was formed 25 years ago to attend to the needs of the Muslim community. Deputy Director Khalid Iqbal says people from 15 different countries, including the United States, participate in the center’s wide range of activities. During this time, ADAMS sees a spike in attendance. “During the month of Ramadan, we also serve meals every evening for breaking fast for almost four to five hundred people,” Iqbal explains. “I think because of the hardship and tough economic times more and more people are coming...
Ramadan Tests US Teen Athletes
September 01, 2010 Dora Hasan Mekouar | Washington, DC When the George C. Marshall High School cross country team assembles each day for practice in Falls Church, Virginia, Maha Hassan is not among the runners. Instead, the 16-year-old athlete walks around the school track on her own to try to keep her conditioning up. Hassan is not running this summer because she is observing the Ramadan fast, which means she abstains from all food and drink during the daylight hours. Added challenge The timing of the Muslim fast changes each year. It occurs during the ninth lunar month of the year and begins with the sighting of the new moon. This year the holiday began on August 11,...
Muslim Holy Month of Ramadan Begins
Muslims around the world are observing the holy month of Ramadan, while sweltering heat in the Middle East is putting an extra strain on those who are fasting. Ramadan started earlier than usual this year, although there is some disagreement between the two main sects of Islam on the exact starting date. Sunni Muslims began fasting at dawn Wednesday, while Shi’ites are expected to start Thursday. The discrepancy is due to differing interpretations of the lunar calendar. High heat across much of the Arab world has raised concerns for families, particularly in places like Baghdad and the Gaza Strip, where electricity is routinely cut off for hours at a time. To mark the month of Ramadan, U.S. President Barack...
Muslims find new Ramadan fast partners: Christians...
Associated Press Saturday, Sept. 19, 2009 Like Muslims worldwide, Ben Ries has refrained from food and drink from sunrise to sundown in an act of self-restraint during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan, which ends this weekend. Each evening, the 31-year-old Ries joins Muslim families in a room above a hardware store in Bellingham, Wash., to find fellowship and break the fast with a handful of dates and a welcome glass of water. Only Ries is not a Muslim. He is pastor of 70-member Sterling Drive Church of Christ and a self-described committed Christian who just a few weeks ago had to turn to Google to find a Muslim in his community. Ries is among a small group...
Islamic Traditions Influence Lent in Senegal...
March 09, 2007 Dakar The population of the West African nation of Senegal is mostly Muslim, but people of different faiths intermingle freely, and their religious traditions have become intertwined as well. As Naomi Schwarz reports from Dakar, religious celebrations, like the Christian observance of Lent, have been influenced by Muslim traditions. In a noisy cement-walled classroom next to Dakar’s main cathedral, a local choir is rehearsing a song for an upcoming concert. Although the choir is Catholic, the song is in Arabic. It focuses on the continuing dialogue between Muslims and Christians in Senegal, says Jean-Paul Sombou, a member of the choir. More than 90 percent of the country is Muslim, while only about five percent are...
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