My mosque could do more for me (From Asian Image)

My mosque could do more for me

12:25pm Wednesday 28th March 2007 in News features By Shabnam Hussian

Picture this it's a cold Sunday morning, you've just woken up, you're having your breakfast and there's a knock at the door.

You drag yourself to the door to find that its the two do-gooder bearded men collecting money for the local mosque.

Ashamed, you're still in your pajamas you hand over a £20 note and swiftly shut the door.

This scene is repeated at least once a month, and why not?

The mosque needs money to help with running costs, wages etc. It is a place of worship afterall and I'm sure we all, if not already have made use of the facilities.

Sometime later it's the holy month of Ramadan, you switch on TV and you see the same two uncle-G's sat there launching an appeal for money to build a new mosque (as the other one is rather old and dated and doesn't meet the requirements of the local community).

They're looking to raise a six-figure sum and they can't do this without your help.

So out pops the credit card and after a swift transaction of a couple of hundred quid you put the phone down and breathe a sigh of relief after you've done your bit to help the mosque. And its good to do good things in Ramadan isnt it?

Time and time again (and I really dont mind as Allah has blessed me with a lot) I will donate to the local mosque, and honestly it makes you feel good when you help out.

Although I dont pray in the mosque (ladies please dont start that "sisters should be allowed in mosques" debate its as interesting as the veil thing) the male members of my family have made use of the prayer facilities over the years.

Earlier this year I was (and still am) in a difficult predicament with my family re: "Still single and not my fault" November issue of Asian Image.

I decided to turn to my local mosque as a channel for help. So I phoned the mosque.

An illiterate somebody answered. I asked to speak to the Imam and after what seemed like a tug of war along came the Imam.

I really didnt know what to expect but what I experienced shocked me.

He couldnt even speak English. So out came my Anglicised-Punjabi skills and I explained my problem.

He listened but then told me to listen to my parents, and not ring him again about the matter as he didnt want to get involved.

He'd gone before it sunk in.

Oh my God! How dare he! The cheek ! I didn't phone him again.

I rang another major mosque for help, they told me to get in touch with my local Imam, they didnt want to get involved either. Why didn't that surprise me?

There was another case regarding the same mosque, where a Muslim brother was wanting to convert an English girl to Islam with regards to marrying her.

The man laughed in his face and told him to "run along and there's a mosque down the road that deals with this sort of thing".

Strange isnt it? They're quick to take your money off you yet when you genuinely need help and it is your time of need you're not even allowed to turn to them for help.

So who are we supposed to turn to? These religious institutions are supposed to help people when they are in need, just like you help them, but they dont.

What use are they to today's youth, tomorrows grown-ups?

Is there any wonder the youth are becoming radicalised by the institutions that don't give them the time of day?

I spoke about the matter to an Arabic Scholar, who wasn't shocked about the reluctance of my mosque to help.

He explained that this is a national problem, not just prevalent in the North.

Yet the majority of Arab mosques will help if you go to them. Weird hey? I don't donate to them yet they are willing to listen to me.

I will carry on donating to my local mosque but its about time mosques stopped being run by committees of ageing uncles with beards, who cant/dont speak English and know very little about religion but lots about culture.

Yes they pray five times a day, which is all good for them and nobody else.

Hopefully the youth of tomorrow will have some decent educated powerful Imams to turn to.

We can only but pray...