| Daáwah in Canada ...
.... By Syed Asif Ali Shah
I
came to Canada in the year 2010 for my higher studies after the
completion of my Engineering degree in Computer Sciences Alhumdulillah
with one of the main intensions of doing da’wah Alhumdulillah. Western
World was a new world for me with different people from all sorts of
backgrounds , cultures , faiths , languages, colors and all , it is a
land of immigrants which actually gives you more opportunities of doing
da’wah or in other words it is a land which needs more da’wah.
I
was inspired and motivated for Islamic da’wah by Dr. Zakir Naik
Alhumdulilllah. I have been into the field of Da’wah for the past 7-8
yrs now Alhumdulullah and delivering public talks is into my blood by
now Alhumdulillah , but soon after coming to Canada I was in a state of
confusion as to how should I establish myself here for Da’wah ? And one
thing was really pinching me that I need to start it right from the
scratch and establish myself here for Islamic Da’wah. The days were
just passing by right in front of me and my tension and worry was
increasing as I am a public speaker and am not getting any
opportunities to have public talks here though I was doing da’wah on
one to one basis but that wasn’t satisfying me and I wasn’t able to
satisfy myself with that. I used to call to my teachers and seniors in
da’wah and cry over the phone presenting my worries towards da’wah and
tell them that I fell as if my hands and legs are been chopped off and
I am left all alone in a desert and I am not able to do anything
despite the fact that I want to do everything Allah hu mustaan.
And
one night with this worry and fikar in my mind I went out for dinner in
a restaurant and surprisingly the owner of the restaurant was having a
keen eye on me of which I was completely unaware he came to my table
and said “are you br. Asif ?” , I looked to my side and said yes , he
then sat with me suddenly and started talking to me saying I have seen
you on YouTube and read your status always on facebook , have read your
articles Alhumdulillah and this day was the start of my da’wah carrier
in Canada Alhumdulillah.
Then this brother took me and
introduced me with other people and we went to universities and met few
other people who were working in the field of Da’wah and I was very
well introduced to them
Alhumdulillah. But even till this point
I wasn’t delivering pubic talks and I was still waiting for that time
very patiently. then came the time for the Journey of Faiths conference
which is held in Canada every year and in that conference by the mercy
of Allah I with the other brothers who were working with me in the
field of da’wah formed and organized a da’wah department in the Journey
of Faiths conference and this conference never had any da’wah
department before this and this was its first time Alhumdulillah.
I was working in the da’wah department of the Conference and was
mentoring the da’wah team members Alhumdullillah and was responsible to
handle the table talks with the non Muslims who come to visit the
conference Alhumdulillah. This da’wah department and my team brought
phenomenon success during the table talks with 7 sahadas in two days
Alhumdulilillah the lengthiest table talk I had was with a black
Christian brother which continued for no less than 7-8 hrs
Alhumdulillah which was possible only with the help of Allah
Alhumdulillah. This journey of faith conference opened my gates to
public talks in Canada Alhumdulillah as my da’wah team in the
conference had one of the best and top students of Dr. Farhat Hashmi
too Alhumudlillah and after the conference this student of Dr. Farhat
organized straight two public talks of mine Alhumdulillah, out of
which one was to be held on the International peace day which is
celebrated in Canada .I also spoke to my master and
inspiration Dr. Zakir Naik before these two talks of mine and told him
about these upcoming lectures and topics of these lectures that were
going to be, “Rediscovering Peace through Islam” and “Why is Islam the
Fastest growing religion in the West?” and also told him about the
organizers as I was already introduced to Dr. Farhat Hashmi through her
student Alhumdulillah. He gave me lots of duas and asked me to continue
with the Islamic da’wah Alhumdulillah.
After that public talks
of mine which was held on the international peace day the audience who
were present in the lecture started organizing my lectures in different
mosques and Islamic centers. Alhumdulillah Allah has his ways
Alhumdulillah. My schedule was going really tuff and tight as I was
take care of my studies , my job and now lectures ALhumdulillah but
because of this busy schedule I wasn’t able to concentrate on my
research and preparations of my lectures , but Allah put barakah in my
time Alhumdulillah and I used to do my preparations of my lectures in
while I am travelling ,I used to do my research , prepare my lectures
and everything while travelling because other than this time I never
used to have any other spare time Allah hu mustaan , even till today
this is how my schedule goes Alhumdulillah and Allah has put lots of
barakah in my travelling time Alhumdulillah.
I was invited as a
guest speaker in Islamic society of North America i.e., ISNA Canada
ALhumdulillah invited by shaykh Abdullah Idrees Alhumdulillah where I
addressed the audience on the topic Islam and Secularism – Tolerance or
Intolerance ? Followed by an open Q and A session.
The gates to public talks kept on opening Alhumdulillah one after the
other Alhumdulillah.
Shaykh
Imam Nafees twice invited me in Jame Mosque coopers also called as the
Islamic propagation centre, where I delivered two lectures on different
occasions on the topic, “Why do we need Islam in the West ?” and second
was on the topic , “Myth, Misconceptions and Clarifications about
Islam” ,and after that Shaykh Mohammad Baru organized my public talk in
his mosque Ibn Abbas Ahumudlillah where I delivered a lecture on the
topic ,“Fundamental Beliefs of the Christians ”, Alhumdulillah I kept
of receiving invitations for the public talks and I was accepting all
for the sake of Allah as Allah opened and gave me those oppurtunities
Alhumdulillah. One of the best and not forgetful experiences was when I
was invited for a public talk in a university organized by the MSA
(Muslim Student Association) where I told the organizers that I will be
speaking on the topic, “Introduction to Christ Jesus pbuh in the light
of the holy bible and Glorious Quran”. I choose this topic as it was a
university environment with full of non Muslims audience Alhumdulillah
and this lecture had a 90% of non Muslims audience followed by an open
Q and A session Alhumdullillah , but after the Q and A session there
was some problem created by the Christian audience and I was suddenly
taken into security and was taken for interrogations by the security
and I was interrogated for some time in a closed room and then asked to
have a closed room Q and A sessions with exclusive Christian audiences
Alhumdulillah which was one of the most successful events Alhumdulillah
recorded in the camera Alhumdulilllah this event boosted the moral of
the other Muslim
students
|
in the
university for Islamic da’wah and gave them guts to talk to the
non Muslims and give them da’wah Alhumdulillah. My recent public talk
was in Toronto Islamic Centre where I addressed the audience on the
topic, “Islam’s offer to the western world”. I am also invited for a
public talk in the university of Toronto Alhumdulillah whose date and
topic are yet to get decided inshaAllah… along with these public talks
simultaneously my da’wah on one and one basis , table talks and
discussions with the non Muslims is still on Alhumdulilllah ,
Canada has given me
opportunities to meet scholars from different parts of the world to sit
with them and learn from them Alhumdulillah scholors like Dr. bilal
Phillips , shaykh saeed rageh , shaykh mohtesham al hameedi ,Abdullah
hakim quick and many others Alhumdulillah. Allah has also blessed me
with a job where in I am able to do da’wah while working, give to the
non Muslims copies of the Quran and convey to them the message of Islam
Alhumdulilllah which is next to impossible at a work place in Canada. I
talk to the non Muslims for hours and hours at my place of work
Alhumdulillah and may Allah reward my boss at work for his lenient
attitude towards me Alhumdulillah Aameen.
I have noticed that the Muslims of Canada are strong and active
mashaAllah and at the same time there has to be a lot of da’wah needs
to be done to the non Muslims, I have seen that the western world is
thirsty today and needs their thirst to be quenched with Quran and with
the guidance of Allah mentioned in the Quran and the teaching of the
prophet Mohammad peace be upon him.
Allah subhaanwatalla has blessed me with this work Alhumdulillah and
gave me this ability to convey the message of Islam to the non Muslims
in the west Alhumudillah and blessed me with few very good brothers
whose favors are not and never forgetful till death inshaAllah , who
have been very supportive to me in this work of mine in Canada in all
aspects till date Alhumdulillah and Allah knows them and to them only
Allah can reward with the best Aameen.i have many many more things to
share and write but this space is not alloweing me to write everything
Allah hu mustaan…
I ask my brothers and sisters to make dua for me that Allah keep taking
the work of his precious deen from me till my last breath and accept
whatever very very tiny done in his way from my side and forgive me my
faults and my short coming and grant me with iqhlaas and accepts this
work which is done only and only for his sake and for his deen Aameen…
may Allah reward my parents with best in both the worlds Aameen and
grant them with janatul firdaus Aameen above all because of their
support, trust and help to me I came into this field
Alhumdulillah.
US
Poll: 85 Percent of Muslim
Voters Picked President Obama
… By Professor Nazeer Ahmed
(WASHINGTON,
D.C., 11/9/2012) -- The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR),
the nation's largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization,
today released the results of an informal exit poll indicating that
more than 85 percent of American Muslim voters picked President Obama
in Tuesday's election.
[NOTE: A similar CAIR exit poll in 2008
showed that 89 percent of American Muslim voters picked then-candidate
Barack Obama. Two percent of respondents said they voted for Sen. John
McCain.]
CAIR's email survey of more than 650 American Muslim
voters indicates that just four percent of respondents cast their
ballots for Mitt Romney.
Poll findings:
• 95.5 of the Muslim voters said they
went to the polls on November 6.
• 85.7 percent cast their ballots to
re-elect President Obama.
• 4.4 percent of respondents said they
voted for Mitt Romney.
•
Just over two percent (2.2) of respondents said they voted for
Libertarian candidate Gary Johnson. The same percentage (2.2) of
respondents said they voted for Green Party candidate Jill Stein.
[NOTE: More than four percent of respondents declined to say who they
voted for.]
• States with the highest number of
survey
respondents (in descending order) were California, New York, Texas,
Virginia, Illinois, Florida, Michigan, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, and Ohio.
• Of those who voted, 8.3 percent said
they did so for the first time.
•
41.5 percent said they consider themselves Democrats. A similar number,
40.6 percent, consider themselves politically independent. Only 7.4
percent said they are Republican.
"The fact that more than 95
percent of Muslim respondents went to the polls is a clear indication
that they are fully participating in our nation's political process and
are part of the fabric of America," said CAIR National Executive
Director Nihad Awad. "Muslim voters in swing states such as Florida,
Virginia and Ohio seemed to have played a critical role in tipping the
balance in the president's re-election victory."
These
results support the findings of a pre-election CAIR survey of 500
Muslim voters that rated jobs and the economy, education, health care
policy, Medicare and Social Security, and civil rights as the top
issues. That survey indicated that 1 in 4 Muslim voters remained
undecided about their presidential pick.
"It appears that
undecided Muslim voters broke decisively in President Obama's favor at
the polls," said CAIR National Legislative Director Corey Saylor.
Saylor also expressed appreciation that a number of anti-Muslim
candidates were rejected by voters nationwide.
CAIR: American Muslims Celebrate Defeat of Congressional Critics
CAIR: How the Congressional Anti-Muslim Caucus Fared
CAIR
is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization.
Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage
dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build
coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
- END -
CONTACT:
CAIR National Legislative Director Corey Saylor, 202-384-8857,
csaylor@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper,
202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR Communications Manager Amina
Rubin, 202-488-8787, 202-341-4171, arubin@cair.com.
|
Download pdf