CARDIFF MOSQUE HOSTS DAILY RAMADAN IFTAR

Cardiff, 2 Ramadan 1436/19 June 2015 (MINA) – Revealing the beauty of Islam to the community, a group of Muslims have planned to make this year’s Ramadan pleasant to everyone by providing free daily night meal to their guests from all faiths.

“We provide the food to end the fast, called iftar, a three-course meal, to anyone who comes to the mosque at the time of ending the fast,” Community outreach manager Mohammed Alamgir Ahmed said, On Islam reports as quoted by Mi’raj islamic News Agency (MINA).

“We can feed up to 400 people every evening. We even have ‘sharing Ramadan’ nights where groups of non-Muslims come to experience iftar with us.

“This year we have three dates booked in where are expecting about 30 [non-Muslim] guests per night,” he added.

Ramadan, the holiest month in Islamic calendar, kicked off on Thursday, June 18.

In Ramadan, adult Muslims, except the sick and those travelling, abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex between dawn and sunset.

Muslims dedicate their time during the holy month to be closer to Allah through prayers, self-restraint and good deeds.

It is customary for Muslims to spend part of the days during Ramadan studying the Noble Qur’an.

Many men perform i`tikaf (spiritual retreat), spending the last 10 days of the month exclusively in the mosque.

Welcoming the holy month, Cardiff Muslims decided to show their community what Ramadan and Islam were about.

“Our doors are open and we would welcome the chance to show the public what really happens at Ramadan and what Muslims really believe in, how we live, and how Welsh Muslims adapt to fit in their jobs, studies and lives along with their religion,” Ahmed said.

The program is to reveal the beauty of Islam by meeting with one of the basic needs of the people which is food.

The volunteers will host 400 people every night for the next 30 days during the month of Ramadan.

Volunteers at the mosque in Wyverne Road, Cathays, will serve food when the fast ends at 9.30pm each night.

Homeless

Along with iftar, thousands of free meals would be given to homeless people during daylight hours, who will be invited to eat at sunset as well.

This year Ramadan will also help in bridging gap between people in the larger community.

“We may have Indian curry and rice one night, Malaysian food another night, and Middle Eastern food another night because our members come from different cultures, said Mr Ahmed.

“All the cooks are volunteers and are not paid. It will be a mix of Arabic, Asian, Middle Eastern and Malaysian food.

“We have done this for years. It will be a military operation. We have no chairs. We roll out mats to protect the carpet and sit on the mats.

“It’s very important to show what Islam is really about and that it is about unity in everything.

“What better way to show unity than break bread together with the community?”

Ahmed said in recent years the meals have become even more popular as some Muslims and non-Muslims struggle to afford food.

“Austerity means more people have been coming in recent years. It is a full meal that they may not have had otherwise,” he said.

“It is particularly important we have an open-door policy.” (T/P006/NMT)

Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)