Weekly update, part 1: a special event

 On Saturday evening we were privileged to participate in a very special community event: the inauguration of the Fath-e-Azeem Mosque, the new home of Zion's Ahmadiyyah Muslim congregation.

   

There was a huge crowd -- Ahmadiyyahs from all over Chicagoland and people like us from the community.   There were so many tents set up outside that I couldn't get a photo of the mosque itself.   Two churches on the same street offered satellite parking.   

Here is the AP/Washington Post (!!) story of the event. 

These are all community friends (non-Muslim). Dress was "modest business attire" and women did not have to cover their hair.  (All the Muslim women did.)   

I noticed that there were no Muslim women in the tent where we dined.  The man at our table said that the women had the option and most chose the women's tent. (I don't know if any men dined with them.)

Photography was not allowed during the program.  Mirza Masroor Ahmad (pictured) is the Khalifa, or leader, of the worldwide Ahmadiyya movement. He came from London to deliver the dedication address.  It was very special for all the Ahmadiyyas (and for us) -- akin to meeting the Pope.

There is a historical connection between Rev. John Alexander Dowie, the evangelist and faith healer who founded Zion, and Mirza Ghulam Ahmad who founded the sect in 1889 in India.   Dowie condemned Islam and all Muslims.  Ahmad challenged Dowie to a prayer duel to determine which was the true religion. Ahmad wrote, "Whoever is the liar may perish first."  Dowie replied,  “Do you think that I should answer such gnats and flies?”   The duel went viral and was covered by newspapers across the country.  (For the record, Dowie died in 1906. Ahmad died in 1907.)  

This photo was part of an exhibit inside the new mosque.  There were other artifacts about the history and expansion of the movement, now in 200+ countries with many millions of members.   

The women of the community prepared the delicious meal (Pakistani/Indian).  

There were Indian sweets and s swag bag with a nifty LED-lit glass paperweight for every guest. 

What a memorable occasion! We were so happy to be a part of it.