CAIRO – Once one of the centres of London's Jewish community, the East End of London, well off the tourist trail, is now home to many of the capital's Muslims. One hundred years ago its proximity to the Docks made it a natural choice for somewhere for the Muslim sailors from Yemen and South East Asia to pray. A fund was set up in 1910, the “London Mosque Fund,” by eminent Londoners and notable academics, both Muslim and not, to raise the money for a London Mosque. Thirty years later, three houses were purchased and converted into a mosque, which opened its doors in 1941. In 1975 the Greater London Council, wanting to build a wider road, acquired these three houses under a compulsory purchase order and, in return, gave land in Whitechapel Road for a purpose-built mosque. With a golden dome of eight and a half metres in diameter and a minaret standing twenty-two metres above the street level, East London Mosque was opened in 1985. East London Mosque and London Muslim Centre is arguably the most vibrant mosque in the country, with so much going on for all age groups. It is best to get there early to find a space for prayer, especially at weekends. In a typical week, the mosque welcomes 23,000 worshippers. Indeed, by size of congregation, it is now the largest in Europe. London is as multi-cultural and multi-ethnic as any city in Europe. Whitechapel Road, in the heart of the East End, is as multi-cultural as it gets! Turkish, Lebanese and Italian restaurants vie with American Diners and coffee shops. Shops selling every item of gold jewellery stand next to Indian and Pakistani outfitters with bright and colourful dresses on display. Quite what most Londoners make of it when they see a great mosque in the middle of their High Street is known to Allah Alone. Some of them will certainly see it as a threat to their British way of life. Others will see it as a symbol of religious oppression or the oppression of women, just as the television very subtly tells them almost every day. There will be others who see no place at all for religion in their city and view a mosque, or any other place of worship, as an anachronism, a relic of the past with nothing to offer modern man – or woman. There will be others, though, people of faith or of no particular religion at all, who see something reassuring about a temple to God's glory in their midst. Life has become very busy, especially in a bustling capital city like London, and there is a need, from time to time, to pause and reflect on what is really important. In this mosque we see the truth of the claim that this really is the century of Islam in the West. It is true that there are Muslims in Britain, and in many other European countries, who look to other countries as “home”. There are Muslim communities where many of the members speak little English and have little in common with their neighbours. At their best, though, there are Muslim communities in the West that have so much to teach Muslims throughout the world. East London Mosque is one of them. The vision of this Mosque community is to serve the local community; to promote tolerance and oppose extremism; and to encourage the participation of young people and women. The very striking thing about praying here is the number of young people in the congregation. This is an active place, not just a place for old men to re-live what might have been. There is a fitness centre, for example, where the young can work out and be in the company of like-minded people of faith. In fact, the congregation at the Mosque became so great that in 2004 an extension of eight thousand three hundred square metres was added. This six-storey centre, known as the London Muslim Centre, has two multipurpose halls, a seminar suite, a nursery, classrooms, a fitness centre, a small Islamic library, a radio station, retail units and offices. What is even more exciting is the next phase. Soon to open in 2012 will be the nine-storey Maryam Centre. Named after the mother of Prophet Jesus (pbuh), this will add a new main prayer hall and improved funeral services. What is most exciting is what this Maryam Centre will be for women. It will not only include a substantial new prayer space, but will also have full- and part-time education for women, a health and fitness centre, clinics, domestic violence support and counseling units. It is easy to talk. Sometimes as Muslims we talk a lot about the high regard which Islam has for women, but sometimes our actions don't live up to our words. Critics of Islam, especially in the West, are quick to pick up on this. The Maryam Centre at East London Mosque and London Muslim Centre will show the people of London that women are indeed at the very centre of what Muslims believe. Muslims read in the holy Quran: At length she brought the (babe) to her people, Carrying him (in her arms), They said: “O Mary! Truly a strange thing has thou brought!” 9:27 East London Mosque and London Muslim Centre does just this. In presenting the message of Islam, it both provides a beautiful place of worship for London's Muslims and it also provides for the needs of those who go there. In doing so, it presents the people of London with a strange thing and tells them that Islam is a blessing, not a threat, to any society and that God is Most Great and in control of all things, even in the wind and the rain in Whitechapel Road. British Muslim writer, Idris Tawfiq, recently spent two weeks in Malaysia and Singapore talking about Islam as part of a speaking tour. You can visit his website at www.idristawfiq.com.
