Peace and controversy during Ramadan (Denver Post)
Posted: 09/02/2010 01:00:00 AM MDT
As Muslims near the end of Ramadan, I among many find this annual practice of fasting a refuge.
Since last Ramadan, the Colorado community has been marked with media notoriety linked to terrorist activity. In February, Denver resident Najibullah Zazi pleaded guilty in a suicide bomb plot. In March, Jamie Paulin-Ramirez, from Leadville, was arrested in connection with a plot to murder an anti-Muhammad cartoonist in Sweden. Faisal Shahzad, the Times Square bomber, brought a spotlight to Colorado in May because his wife had been living in Aurora. And then there is Anwar al-Awlaki, put on the U.S. government hit list in May, who also spent time in Colorado.
Local controversies are coupled with newer national issues, such as the emotional debate swirling around the proposed Muslim community center near ground zero and the proposed Koran-burning event planned for Gainesville, Fla., headed up by a church group there.
Despite these media storms, Muslims find solace in turning our focus to fasting, which some 20,000 of us in Colorado are engaged in from Aug. 11 to Sept. 9 or 10. In this period, we forgo food and drink and marital relations — not taking so much as a sip of water, and instead focus ourselves on gratitude, peace and discipline. While hunger pains abound, Muslims take time to volunteer in places such as the Ansar Food Pantry in Aurora or with Muslims Against Hunger in Fort Collins to feed needy families.
While the nation debates the very charged issue of the ground zero mosque, at sunset, mosques throughout the metro area fill with worshipers who stand solemnly in ranks to perform ritual prayer, reflecting on the plight of those less fortunate and in gratitude for the everyday things provided to us that we take for granted.
In these lines will be Muslims who have fasted year after year, along with new converts who are experiencing their first fast.
As Ramadan draws to an end, I will look forward to the celebration of Eid al Fitra (Festival of Fast-break) but like many Muslims, I will be keenly aware of how close it occurs to the anniversary of Sept. 11. I must admit some anxiety in hearing about the planned Koran-burning, but I suspect that protests coming from the Muslim quarter will not rise to violent levels.
For millions of Muslims who memorize the Koran, pages and ink lose their relevance compared to the heart, where the Koran as God's word is really revealed.
Indeed, for myself and fellow Muslims, there is a lesson this month that true peace can be found when turning to your faith — and the rest falls into its place, peacefully around you.
Taj Ashaheed is the public relations director of the Colorado Muslim Council and committee member of The Abrahamic Initiative. E-mail him at tajuddina@hotmail.com. He was a Colorado Voices columnist in 2006.Read more: Peace and controversy during Ramadan - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_15964125#ixzz13PkJUJoc
As Muslims near the end of Ramadan, I among many find this annual practice of fasting a refuge.
Since last Ramadan, the Colorado community has been marked with media notoriety linked to terrorist activity. In February, Denver resident Najibullah Zazi pleaded guilty in a suicide bomb plot. In March, Jamie Paulin-Ramirez, from Leadville, was arrested in connection with a plot to murder an anti-Muhammad cartoonist in Sweden. Faisal Shahzad, the Times Square bomber, brought a spotlight to Colorado in May because his wife had been living in Aurora. And then there is Anwar al-Awlaki, put on the U.S. government hit list in May, who also spent time in Colorado.
Local controversies are coupled with newer national issues, such as the emotional debate swirling around the proposed Muslim community center near ground zero and the proposed Koran-burning event planned for Gainesville, Fla., headed up by a church group there.
Despite these media storms, Muslims find solace in turning our focus to fasting, which some 20,000 of us in Colorado are engaged in from Aug. 11 to Sept. 9 or 10. In this period, we forgo food and drink and marital relations — not taking so much as a sip of water, and instead focus ourselves on gratitude, peace and discipline. While hunger pains abound, Muslims take time to volunteer in places such as the Ansar Food Pantry in Aurora or with Muslims Against Hunger in Fort Collins to feed needy families.
While the nation debates the very charged issue of the ground zero mosque, at sunset, mosques throughout the metro area fill with worshipers who stand solemnly in ranks to perform ritual prayer, reflecting on the plight of those less fortunate and in gratitude for the everyday things provided to us that we take for granted.
In these lines will be Muslims who have fasted year after year, along with new converts who are experiencing their first fast.
As Ramadan draws to an end, I will look forward to the celebration of Eid al Fitra (Festival of Fast-break) but like many Muslims, I will be keenly aware of how close it occurs to the anniversary of Sept. 11. I must admit some anxiety in hearing about the planned Koran-burning, but I suspect that protests coming from the Muslim quarter will not rise to violent levels.
For millions of Muslims who memorize the Koran, pages and ink lose their relevance compared to the heart, where the Koran as God's word is really revealed.
Indeed, for myself and fellow Muslims, there is a lesson this month that true peace can be found when turning to your faith — and the rest falls into its place, peacefully around you.
Taj Ashaheed is the public relations director of the Colorado Muslim Council and committee member of The Abrahamic Initiative. E-mail him at tajuddina@hotmail.com. He was a Colorado Voices columnist in 2006.Read more: Peace and controversy during Ramadan - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_15964125#ixzz13PkJUJoc
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