TEN GOOD THINGS ABOUT AHMADIYYAT

Dr Abdus Salam, an Ahmadi who was the first Muslim to win the Nobel Prize in physics for work which led to the discovery of the Higgs-Boson

Contents

1. Spirituality
2. Advocating world peace and economic/social justice
3. Condemning 'religious' violence
4. Humanitarian Efforts in Pakistan & worldwide
5. Environmental Efforts
6. Educational Efforts
7. Spreading the true teachings of the Quran
8. Working to unite the Muslim ummah
9. Defending the character of Muhammadsa
10. Mosque building around the world

1-   Spirituality

Ahmadi Muslims strive to build a relationship with the one true, living God. In his weekly Friday Sermon, broadcast worldwide on the MTA channel, the Khalifa encourages Ahmadi Muslims towards moral reformation and striving towards the highest standards.

2-   Efforts for world peace and economic/social justice

The khalifas of Ahmadiyya have often asked Ahmadis to pray for the victims of war. During the 1990s, Hazrat Mirza Tahir Ahmad delivered sermons and wrote a book condemning the first Iraq War while also condemning the aggression Iraq's leader, Saddam Hussein, showed towards Kuwait. In so doing, he evenhandedly condemned aggression on both sides.

In recent years, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad has regularly hosted peace conferences in which he has addressed politicians and diplomats around the world about the importance of avoiding war and striving for worldwide peace and justice. Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad has been invited to speak on similar themes at the US' Capitol Hill, at the UK parliament, the New Zealand parliament, in the company of the prime minister of Canada and at the European Parliament - where the khalifa specifically addressed the need for economic justice.
               
Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad has written publically to world leaders including the Pope, Queen Elizabeth II, the religious and political leaders of Saudi Arabia and Iran, as well as the political leaders of the UK, Israel, China, USA, Canada, Germany and France. These letters condemned escalating tensions between countries around the world, called for negotiated solutions that avoided further wars and warned against the destructive dangers of nuclear weapons.

Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad also regularly speaks out for the rights of those who are oppressed. He has condemned governments around the world for prioritising spending on their armed forces ahead of the welfare of their people. He also regularly encourages Ahmadi Muslims to pray for innocent civilians who are suffering the effects of war, for example in Syria, Palestine or anwhere where conflict occurs.

3-   Condemning 'religious' violence

The root of the word Jihad means striving and has been metaphorically applied to mean fighting in the cause of Allah. The doctrine of Jihad as understood and propagated by the Muslim divines of this age, who are called Maulvis, is utterly incorrect. It can lead to nothing except by their forceful preaching they should convert common people into wild beasts and would deprive them of all the good qualities of human beings. O ye Muslim divines and Maulvis, listen to me. I tell you truly that this is not the time for fighting for faith. Henceforth desist from religious wars and the sword which causes bloodshed. To persist with bloodshed is not the way of Islam. Had I not arrived there might have been some excuse for this misunderstanding. I have brought you a commandment which is that Jihad of the sword has ended but the Jihad of the purification of your spirits must continue to be waged. (Hazrat Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, The English Government and Jihad)

Had Ahmad’s advice been followed by non-Ahmadi Muslims when it was given more than 100 years ago, the horrors of 'Islamic' terrorism could have been entirely avoided today.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has been at the forefront of calling for religious freedom around the world. In the west, Ahmadi mosques have hosted interfaith meetings in which other religious communities from the local area are invited to promote greater friendship. When controversy broke out in the US about a proposed Ground Zero mosque, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad responded by calling for interfaith unity:

If a mosque is built at the proposed site, then the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community would like to see churches, synagogues, Hindu places of worship and places of worship of all other religions also built near Ground Zero. That would be a good example of how from an act of evil and terror has emerged unity and peace. (Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad)

Meanwhile, when a Muslim leader in Saudi Arabia called for the destruction of churches, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad resonded:

I was shocked and very saddened to learn that Saudi Arabia’s Grand Mufti has called for all churches in the region to be destroyed. What he has said is completely against the teachings of Islam and must be condemned absolutely. We find that the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) spent his entire life preaching peace, tolerance and justice. Thus there can be no other conclusion than to say that what the Grand Mufti has said is completely wrong and displays a complete lack of understanding of Islam on his part. (Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad)

4-   Humanitarian Efforts in Pakistan & worldwide

One particular Ahmadi charity, Humanity First, was launched amidst the war in Bosnia to offer disaster relief. However, it took on the name 'Humanity First' to ensure victims of the war were aware the charity would treat not just Muslims but people of all beliefs. Since then, Ahmadi workers/donations have been sent with medical aid and equipment to disasters around the world. In Pakistan, due to persecution, Ahmadis are discriminately neglected by government authorities after humanitarian disasters. However, rather than retaliating, Ahmadi charities not only treat Ahmadi victims of disasters, but work to help all Pakistani victims regardless of their faiths. A national non-Ahmadi newspaper in Pakistan recorded the irony of Ahmadi Muslims assisting those most venomously hostile to Ahmadiyya even in a country where state-sponsored persecution against Ahmadi Muslims is the norm:

When a fire broke out at a building in Chiniot, the district administration called the rescue service in Rabwah for help. The irony that the Chiniot building was owned by a member of the Khatam-e-Nabuwwat movement is not lost to Rabwah’s rescue services. A former tae kwon do instructor with the Pakistan Army, Nadir Saidain says the fire service was started because the district administration refused to assist in rescue operations in Rabwah town.

The service, like many others in the area – such as a 200-bed guest house – is free. Other facilities, including a sports centre and swimming pool, are heavily subsidised. Despite the ostracism of Ahmadis in mainstream society, the community’s facilities draw people of all faiths to Rabwah. The gleaming 80-bed Tahir Heart Institute is one example. Over 80 per cent of its patients are not Ahmadis. Its head, Dr MMH Nuuri, says the hospital does not have any discriminatory policies. Admission forms do not ask for the patient’s religion, and preaching in the premises is not allowed.

Up to 300 people are treated daily, many of whom hide details of their visits. According to Dr Nuuri, “I overheard a patient talking on the phone and telling someone he was under treatment in Sargodha. The patient later said, ‘Sorry doctor, but if people know I am in Rabwah I will not be spared.’”

Treatment is free, but those who can afford it contribute towards the cost. Referrals come in from cardiologists across Pakistan, and it has attracted doctors from abroad to practice for short stints.

“Our doctors have to be committed towards their profession,” Dr Nuuri said. “Our philosophy is that the patient is always right and doctors have to abide by their wishes.”

The hospital is one of many in Pakistan built by the Ahmadiyya community. Healthcare, along with other areas that would normally be the domain of the district’s administration – such as security and sanitation – are all managed by the community, since the administration is lax in its duties. Reminders of the government’s negligence are visible all over Rabwah. The community’s schools, which were nationalised in the 1970s, were never returned. Tahir Ahmad, who handles education projects, maintains a list of government officials he has met since 1996 to lobby for the return of the schools to the community’s control. Despite complying with the government’s requirement to deposit an amount comprising fees and schools’ staff allowances for six months to one year, the government refuses to denationalise the schools, citing “law and order” as a reason. Ahmad recalls a conversation with then-outgoing Punjab Chief Secretary Kamran Rasool. “Young man, you are an Ahmadi,” Rasool reportedly said. “You are not going to get these schools back.”

The community has built new schools and provides scholarships and soft loans. As a result, Rabwah reportedly has a literacy rate of over 90 per cent. One such school – with a modern lab, well-stocked library and spacious classrooms – charges a monthly fee of Rs25 [the equivelant of $0.10US]. The schools provide a safe environment for students who would be harassed elsewhere. Young graduates told The Express Tribune about being shunned for their faith or told to ‘join the right way’. One student who was asked to leave his hostel because of his faith has not recovered from the incident as yet, and is reluctant to complete his education.

Even though Ahmadi families were discriminated against during last year’s floods, the community has provided housing and aid to families – irrespective of their beliefs – in flood-affected areas. “We were taking relief goods to Rajanpur once,” recalls a representative. “We were stopped on the way and asked, “You are taking relief goods to Ahmadis? Don’t you know they are non-believers?” (Published in The Express Tribune, July 11th, 2011. source: http://tribune.com.pk/story/207111/thinking-proactively-ahmadis-have-found-their-own-solutions-in-rabwah/)

On a day-to-day basis, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community strives to cater for the needs of vulnerable parties such as orphans, widows and the homeless. In some of the poorest parts of Africa and Asia, Ahmadi architects and engineers have worked to install wells to provide drinking water, solar panels to provide electricity and hospitals to provide free medical care. In one such hospital in Pakistan, non-Ahmadi Muslim leaders who call for the murder of Ahmadis have been treated unhesitatingly by Ahmadi doctors - who refuse to discriminate based on faith. The humanitarian efforts are not restricted to developing nations. Across Europe and North America, local communities at Ahmadi mosques have donated thousands of pints of blood each year which are used to save lives in hospitals.

5-   Environmental Efforts

Ahmadis are also aware of their environmental responsibilities. In the UK, 90,000 trees have been planted by the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community. In Germany, Ahmadi mosques organised a litter-picking campaign to help clean their local city. Around the world, Ahmadi buildings are installing solar panels to provide clean, renewable energy sources.

6-   Educational Efforts

Ahmadi Muslims have built and continue to run hundreds of free schools in some of the poorest parts of Africa and Asia. These schools not only teach children religious studies, but also teach secular academic knowledge. They admit both Ahmadi and non-Ahmadi students. The commitment to serving the local communities is so great that the schools have a rule forbidding the conversion of any of the non-Ahmadi students as the focus must be on educating the children, not preaching to them.

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community works to ensure the education of all of its children. Classes are held at local mosques in religious education and in the developing world the academic education of poorer children is subsidised by the community. The results of these pro-education policies are visible. Incredibly, in Pakistan where the most optimistic projections estimate the literacy rate as being less than 60% (the most pessimistic projections are of 26% overall and 12% for girls), Pakistani Ahmadis are reported to have a literacy rate of close to 100%:

It is easy to understand why the literacy rate is almost one hundred percent amongst Ahmadis. (Antonio Gaultieri, a Christian professor at Carleton University, writing in his 2004 book 'The Ahmadis: Community Gender and Politics in a Muslim Society'. The book was based on research he conducted while staying at Rabwah studying Ahmadiyya academically from 1987-2004)

7-   Defending the character of Muhammad S.A.W

Whenever Muhammadsa is attacked, whether by religious leaders such as Pope Benedict XVI, political leaders such as Geert Wilders, films such as the Innocence of Muslims or publications such as the Danish cartoons, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, Khalifatul Masih V, has been at the forefront of defending Islam. After each of the aforementioned controversies, Hadhrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad responded by delivering numerous sermons explaining the true personality of Muhammadsa.

After the Innocence of Muslims film controversy, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad hosted a press conference with media outlets from around the world in which he explained why people should not needlessly insult one another's religious beliefs. This press conference was followed by a press release on the same themes, which was distributed around the world. During his sermons, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad advised Muslims not to respond with violence or in any uncivilised manner. Instead, he advised Muslims to recite darood (prayers for Muhammadsa) and pray that enmity towards Muhammadsa should be destroyed. Further, he advised Ahmadi Muslims to write to and contact media outlets about the true teachings of Muhammadsa, to spread literature about his life and to invite non-Ahmadi guests to mosques to learn about him.

In response to this advice, around the world Ahmadi Muslims began to distribute books, leaflets and magazines on the personality of Muhammadsa. Moreover, Ahmadi Muslims around the world hosted events teaching about his life which were attended by thousands of non-Muslim guests.

In other examples, after a Danish publication printed cartoons insulting Muhammadsa, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad wrote an entire book refuting  the insulting intent of the cartoons. Meanwhile, when Dutch politician Geert Wilders increased in his hostility towards Islam, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad delivered his condemnation of Wilders via public sermons and statements, while urging Ahmadi Muslims to only respond to such hostility through prayers.

8-   Spreading the true teachings of the Quran

For a century, Ahmadis have been at the forefront of translating the Quran into different languages. To date, the Ahmadiyya community have translated the Quran fully in 73 languages and partially in 114. Thousands of Qurans have been given away to non-Muslims and libraries around the world. The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community have also published extensive literature explaining the meaning of the Quran and its Arabic words.

Publishing the Quran is not the only way in which the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community are spreading the message of Islam. Ahmadis have written hundreds of books explaining the teachings of Islam and have given these away along with magazines and leaflets to millions of non-Muslims. With the advent of the digital age, Ahmadis have launched TV channels, radio stations and numerous websites. In 1994, Muslim Television Ahmadiyya (MTA) became a worldwide 24/7 channel launched and funded by the community. Now available in numerous languages and across several simultaneous channels, MTA broadcasts the teachings of Islam around the world free-to-air with zero adverts or breaks. Ahmadis have also regularly taken out adverts in newspapers and other TV channels spreading the messages of Islam and are now using social media such as Twitter and blogs to reach an online audience.

In recent years, the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community have also promoted a campaign called 'Muslims for Loyalty, Freedom, Equality, Peace and Respect' which has emphasised how Islamic teachings underline Muslims must be a loyal citizens of their country. This campaign has encompassed international leaflet distributions teaching non-Muslims about Islam, conferences for non-Muslim guests at local mosques as well as a bus campaign in which hundreds of buses and billboards hosted adverts explaining the campaign.

9-   Working to unite the Muslim ummah

For decades, the khalifas of Ahmadiyya have called for greater cooperation and unity among the independent Muslim nations around the world. In his book, 'The Gulf Crisis and the New World Order' (1991), Hazat Mirza Tahir Ahmad called for political and economic cooperation to mutually strengthen the Muslim nations. His successor, Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad, has advised the Arab nations to show unity and end wars between themselves. He has also called for an international organisation of Muslim lawyers to work towards ending anti-Muslim hate speech around the world.

10- Mosque building around the world

The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community has opened and runs over 15,000 mosques worldwide as of 2014. Although the most important function of the mosque is prayer and religious advancement, an example of the positive contributions made to the local community by an Ahmadi mosque is given below with the case study of Baitul Fatuh, Morden, London, UK. The mosque was the largest in western Europe with a total capacity of 10,000 when it opened in 2003. It was built using only donations from within the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community and was voted one of the top 50 buildings in the world by the UK's Spectator magazine:

When I first saw a picture of the mosque I attend on the Daily Mail website...it was hardly 36 hours since more than 1,000 people from all walks of life, including national and international journalists, attended a peace symposium at the mosque. Attendees (80% of whom were non-Muslim guests) were welcomed with hospitality and warmth.

It was at this symposium that the worldwide head of the Ahmadi Muslims told the world that all people should unite in promoting the principles of 'equity, justice, peace and integrity'. He asked all nations to put aside enmities for the sake of our future generations.

...The mosque has also been contributing to the wider non-Muslim community. The Ahmadiyya Youth Association, whose administrative centre is in the mosque, is holding its 27th annual charity challenge in Milton Keynes on April 28. Last year the same event raised £250,000 for a number of different charities. An additional £120,000 pounds were donated to Queen’s charity to mark the diamond jubilee. That’s not all. Every year the Ahmadiyya Youth Association send hundreds of volunteers to marshal Leukaemia and Lymphoma Research’s annual bikeathon, helping to raise millions of pounds. Members of the association also help in raising money for British veterans with an annual poppy appeal.

Then, almost every Friday evening, the mosque kitchen is used for cooking and packing food for London’s homeless. Last year 7,000 food packets were distributed to the homeless. Sometimes they also distribute blankets, clothes and toiletries along with food. The mosque is also used for packing relief material when natural disasters strike around the world. There were three blood donation sessions hosted at the mosque last year resulting in more than 300 units of blood collected.

As for environmental commitments, the attendees of the mosque have planted 8,000 trees during 2012. They also worked with other local faith groups to preserve the local park and save it from being sold on for commercial use. This was a fine example of multi-faith cooperation. In addition, the mosque arranged for at least 10 litter picking sessions in the Merton area. They also help to clear the snow off the pavements during the winter.

The mosque itself is open for public use. The local university uses the premises to hold exams. The mosque has hosted three external conferences, four borough council meetings and two council surgeries. An Armed Forces function was also hosted at the mosque. The mosque holds monthly liaison meetings with neighbours, churches, councillors, schools and police to discuss local issues. There were two well attended public job fairs in the mosque, organised by the mosque's administration and visited by many private and public employers.

Then when the local scouts in Merton recently found their hut roof badly damaged and decaying, Ahmadis took on the responsibility of repairing the roof as the scouts didn’t have the budget to do it. This news was not covered anywhere (until now) as it was not done to gain acclaim, but to contribute to the local community.

There is a huge car park in the mosque compound, behind the main building and adjacent to the London tube station. The car park is open to the public. Those who go to the nearby college or use public transport into central London, can park their cars on most days, regardless of the colour of their skin or their choice of faith. The service is absolutely free and available to all.

Around 33,000 guests visited the mosque last year. This includes student groups, teachers, representatives from different churches etc. Most of these are provided refreshments and many served with a meal.



The most striking impact the mosque, for me, came last week, after a dinner with a group of friends, some of them Ahmadis, others not. We were walking to the nearest tube station after a delicious meal made up of Middle Eastern delicacies. "You know," said my friend who comes from an indigenous British family and has converted to Islam, "I only became patriotic after I accepted Islam". This came from a man whose attitude to the country, in which he and his ancestors were born and raised, was completely changed by the instructions of Islam's prophet, Muhammad who lived in Arabia almost 1,400 years ago: "Love for one’s country is part of one’s faith".
              (Ibn Habeeb, article originally published at www.newreligion.eu 2012)