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bismi-lLahi-rRahmani-rRahiem In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful === News Update === All Canadians (West) benefit from Islamic history month JUDITH MILLER - Oct 30, 2007 (The Record) Late last month Canadian senators Mobina Jaffer and Hugh Segal launched the first Islamic History Month Canada for October. Good for them. They supported an opportunity to build bridges of experience and understanding. Canadian Muslims, with the support of a wide range of people from many backgrounds, originated Islamic History Month Canada so that all Canadians may share in this annual recognition of the nation's largest non-Christian faith group. Muslims and non-Muslims in Canada are benefiting from attention focused on the rich legacy of Islam, which belongs to all Canadians. This heritage comes to us from many countries and cultures. Much of it might be called a lost history. This month gives all of us a chance to notice the Muslim culture, which is developing around us, as well as to acknowledge its wider contribution to human history. North America's oldest mosque is still standing, preserved as a national heritage site in Edmonton. And in Toronto there is a mosque with a multi-function gymnasium -- a facility that is used for events such as basketball games and sports tournaments, school graduations, fashion shows and lectures. On Fridays, however, it becomes a place of prayer. University classrooms which have just been used for lectures on sociology, mathematics or computer science are converted on Fridays into prayer halls. In the Western world, Canada has the highest per capita number of Muslim senators and members of Parliament. In urban Canada, mosques and churches share parking lots. The largest Protestant church in the country has publicly declared that Muslims worship the same God that Christians do. During Islamic History Month, we are noticing the wonderful riches offered to all of us when artists blend Islamic traditions with Western approaches to the visual arts, theatre, food, fashion, architecture, literature and music. While Muslims are a small minority here -- fewer than three per cent of the total Canadian population -- the community comprises a wide variety of immigrants from some 40 different national, linguistic and ethnic backgrounds. And over 50 per cent of Canada's 750,000 Muslims, based on 2007 population figures, are Canadian-born. On the Indian subcontinent, Muslims form a minority of some 400 million -- an astonishingly high number for a minority. They created one of the world's great cultures, highlighted by such imposing monuments as the Taj Mahal. And Muslim culture has enriched many other areas, such as Spain and Eastern Europe, Indonesia and countries of Africa. Now it is Canada's turn to celebrate the Islamic legacy. Medicine, architecture, art, law, mathematics all bear the marks of contributions from the Islamic world. A rediscovery and renewed appreciation of Islamic history and the present day accomplishments of Muslims give us a wider understanding that will help us see -- and address -- present conflicts within the larger view of human history. Senators Jaffer and Segal deserve our thanks, as well as to all the other Canadian citizens who are asking us to turn our attention to the art, culture and history of Islam, and to the things which unite us rather than those which divide us. Especially pleasing was our Canadian Parliament's statement of support for Islamic History Month in Canada. On Oct. 25, Parliament officially declared an Islamic History Month in Canada. Mauril Bélanger, the Liberal MP from Ottawa-Vanier and opposition critic for Canadian Heritage, Francophonie and Official Languages presented this motion in the House of Commons: "That, in the opinion of the House, due to the important contributions of Canadian Muslims to Canadian society; the cultural diversity of the Canadian Muslim community; the importance of Canadians learning about each other to foster greater social cohesion; and the important effort now underway in many Canadian communities in organizing public activities to achieve better understanding of Islamic history, the month of October should be designated Canadian Islamic History Month." "I believe that by having a better understanding of our fellow Canadians from various communities and backgrounds that we will achieve a stronger and more cohesive country," said Bélanger. Several cities across Canada have declared October Islamic History Month, and locally special events have been organized with support from the City of Kitchener, the Kitchener Public Library, the University of Waterloo, Renison College, and the UW School of Architecture, as well as some private citizens. Judith Miller is a member of Islamic History Month Canada advisory board and is a professor of English at Renison College, University of Waterloo. source: <http://www.therecord.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=record/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1193728543553&call_pageid=1024322168441&col=1024322596091>http://www.therecord.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=record/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1193728543553&call_pageid=1024322168441&col=1024322596091 === -muslim voice- ______________________________________ BECAUSE YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO KNOW
