SUHUF 2017 | mercy

2017

MERCY and i raised my hands

CON TENT

04 About Us 05 Message from Chairman 06 Letter from Editor 08 2017 Event Highlights 10 Dakwah 12 Social Development 14 Youth Development 16 Education - Kindergarten 18 Education - Madrasah 20 Corporate Services 21 Facilities Management 22 Corporate Communications 24 Muhammad - a Compassionate or a Violent Prophet 26 Allah’s Mercy Upon a Traveller and a Stranger 28 Mercy in Diversity and the Art of Truth 30 7 Steps to a Successful Dakwah Campaign 32 Towards Mercy in Change 34 Mercy

ABOUT US EN-NAEEM MOSQUE

SERVICES

Built in 1983, En-Naeem Mosque strives to provide quality Islamic learning and social programmes for the Muslim community, while promoting good relations with other religious organisations, civic groups and people of other faiths.

• ZAKAT SG (MUIS) Authorised Collection Centre for Zakat Harta and Fitrah

Located at the junction of Hougang Avenue 3 and Tampines Road, En-Naeem Mosque was initially equipped with only 2 classrooms. In the 34 years since, the mosque underwent 3 major phases of upgrading – in 1994, 2006 and 2015 – that saw the number of classes increased to 12, congregants’ capacity increased to about 3,500 and a new elevator installed to provide better accessibility to Jemaah of various ages.

Beyond the primary function as a place of worship, En-Naeem Mosque also provides various services to cater the needs of our Jemaah. We are proud to be among the select mosques in Singapore running an ECDA (Early Childhood Development Agency) approved kindergarten and providing structured religious classes for the younger generations in the form of aLIVE madrasah. Starting 2018, En-Naeem Mosque will be one of the ADIL (ADult Islamic Learning) centres providing a structured religious education pathway for working adults in Singapore.

Helmed by the Mosque Management Board, the mosque is staffed with qualified personnel manning the daily operations and functions of the organisation. Support from the community comes in the shape of our volunteers, with our Befrienders, Khalifah (Male), An-Niswah (Female), and al-Fataa az-Zahra (Youth), lending their strength and expertise to carry out projects that benefit the community at large.

As a thread in the fabric of community, En-Naeem Mosque continues to seek ways to work together with other partners and agencies in the area and at national level to provide services to the community. Among our partners are: Yayasan MENDAKI, Hougang Family Service Centre, Madrasah Irsyad Zuhri al-Islamiah, Singapore Girls’ Home and grassroots organisations such as IRCC (Inter-racial and Religious Confidence Circle) and community centres.

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• Islamic Education Centre (Kindergarten and Madrasah aLIVE) • Islamic Dakwah Centre (Daily/Monthly Lectures) • Al-Quran Learning Centre (Weekly Classes/Consultations /Tahfizul Quran) • In-house Mini Library • Financial Assistance for Low Income Families • Marriage Preparatory Course (conducted by external vendor) • Counselling for Zakat Recipients • Community Outreach and Volunteering Effort (Voluntary Groups) • Youth Hub • Tahnik & Cukur Rambut (by Grand Imam) • Aqiqah/Korban Rites (AidilAdha) • Mass Iftar during Ramadan • Rental of Facilities

MESSAGE FROM

CHAIRMAN Assalamualaikum wr wb 2017 was yet another eventful year for Masjid En-Naeem as we continue with efforts in strengthening our key programmes to support Muis’ long term vision of developing a “Gracious Muslim Community of Excellence that would Inspire and Radiate Blessings to All”.

Masjid En-Naeem strives to be a key institution in your socioreligious life. We have upgraded the mosque to ensure better space for prayers, religious learning and social development.

Board members, key staff and mosque befrienders were trained in order to enhance our service oferrings, leadership and management capabilities. Learning & Training Development policy was institutionalised and internal audits conducted to ensure Masjid En-Naeem is well governed.

2017 has seen En-Naeem taken steps to boost its programmes. Our kindergarten underwent the new ECDA (Early Childhood Development Agency) licensing audit and I am confident that the efforts of staff and parents will be rewarded positively. Dakwah also conducted a run of ADIL Solat Workshop in Ramadan 1438H – a step towards providing even more ADIL classes next year. Our Madrasah also expanded its IQSO (Iqra’ and Solat) programme, opening classes for youth and adults. En-Naeem youths went on a worthy cause to provide humanitarian efforts in Pesantren az-Zainiyah in Batam.

I would like to also take this opportunity to thank you, our Jemaah who has always supported us and together, let us make Masjid En-Naeem a vibrant and dynamic hub for religious learning and spread mercy to anyone and everyone who comes across us.

With continuous support from the community, we can move forward to build an even stronger and better En-Naeem. We will continue to intensify our efforts in building a community of rahmah (compassion). May we remain confident and overcome the challenges ahead together and make a difference in the lives of those within and beyond the community.

Regards and wassalam, Ahmad Ridwan Alwi

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Letter from Editor...

SUHUF

is the brainchild of our former Chairman Hj Mohd Sa’at Matari, conceived as a mouthpiece for Masjid En-Naeem to communicate with our key stakeholders – our Jemaah, you.

Like an infant learning to crawl and walk, there has been stumbles and missteps along the way – the pains of growing up. Management and staff changes brought about new and refreshing ideas to the concept of SUHUF and its purpose. Content, publishing frequency, and the overall image of the premier newsletter of Masjid En-Naeem has all transformed along the way. #progress.

For 2017, SUHUF is revamped – without losing sight of its purpose as a mouthpiece.

Although SUHUF has been condensed to a single edition per year, I can guarantee you that the content does not suffer in terms of quality.

The backbone of SUHUF 2017 focuses on sharing with you our milestones and achievements throughout the year. Each department has been tasked to share and highlight their key event to readers, as a small sample of the different categories of programmes organized by the mosque. A form of Annual Report so to speak.

I am quite excited to see the end-product of SUHUF 2017 as we decided to take the dive and request writers to share articles with us. Although public education and messaging have always been key aspects of past SUHUF editions, 2017 represents our first venture to rope in external writers. I am eager to see how this will enrich our newsletter further and hopefully you, dear readers, will benefit from this change.

With a focus on mercy, the writers we have with us on board this year come from a diverse background and they will try to bring their own angle on the subject at hand.

From an academic scholar in Dr Haniff to a social change-maker in Shah Reza, I hope that you will enjoy reading their stories just as how I have enjoyed them, perhaps even more.

Finally, my heartfelt gratitude goes to everyone involved in the creation of this collective masterpiece – guest writers and colleagues who contributed their pieces, along with the Mosque Management Board for entrusting this project with my editorial team.

Together with En-Naeem, towards Jannatu Na’im.

Muhammad Khairani Basiran

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Mercy,

and I raised my hands...

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HIGHLIGHTS

2017

JANUARY

- Start of monthly syarahan Santai Sabtu

FEBRUARY

- Youth hiking at Macritchie - 1st Kindergarten learning journey

JULY

AUGUST

- APHUBB (Family Carnival) - Education National Day programme

SEPTEMBER

- Aidiladha 1438H @ En-Naeem - Youth humanitarian project - Awal Muharram 1439H @ En-Naeem 8

- Start of Kindergarten Innovation Grant project - Education Aidilfitri programme

OCTOBER

- Children’s Day Challenge

MARCH

- Strategic Planning Retreat - 1st Befrienders training session - Start of Young Daie series

JUNE

- Water saving taps installed - Youth In-Charge - Quran Hour/ Nuzul Al-Quran

NOVEMBER

- Jejak Kekasih Allah - Education graduation 9

APRIL

- Parental workshop - Madrasah Isra’ Mi’raj programme

MAY

- Ramadan 1438H @ En-Naeem - Forum Pra-Ramadan

DECEMBER

- Education orientation - Kindergarten holiday camp

DAKWAH Dakwah is the core and backbone of mosques in Singapore.

With the key focus of shaping the religious life of Muslims here, we strive to deliver a suite of programmes and events that will enrich the Islamic knowledge of Muslims in our locale (Hougang) specifically, and Muslims all over Singapore in general. Beyond that, Dakwah Department of En-Naeem Mosque also strives to provide religious services to the public such as tahnik, korban and others.

In that respect, 2017 has been a memorable year for Dakwah department of En-Naeem Mosque. While continuing some of our traditional events and programmes such as our syarahan Santai Sabtu and our daily kuliah, we have also taken steps to organize other programmes and events to further enrich the religious experience of our Jemaah such as the ADIL Solat workshop held during Ramadan. We were also part of the Quran Hour event where mosques around Singapore brought Jemaah together in an effort to do khataman al-Quran within one hour.

As a way of providing service to our larger Jemaah, we also piloted a live feed of selected events to give those unable to attend the event at chance to benefit from the knowledge shared at En-Naeem Mosque. Alhamdulillah, we have managed to provide live feed of 2 forums and 1 special talk throughout 2017. With assistance from the Corporate Communications Department Moving forward to 2018, En-Naeem Mosque will start to offer ADIL classes as one of the appointed ADIL centres in Singapore. Jemaah can also look forward to other programmes and services that we will introduce in 2018.

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190 308

SHEEPS SLAUGHTERED DURING AIDILADHA

TAHNIK PERFORMED

2017

ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

PROGRAMME SPOTLIGHT – JEJAK KEKASIH ALLAH Dakwah department organized a special event for Maulidurrasul 1438H on the 25th of November 2017.

Called ‘Jejak Kekasih Allah’, the idea behind the programme name serves to remind us that we are all in search of the true path that has been left behind by our beloved prophet Muhammad s.a.w.

For 2017, the event’s main attraction was a Forum entitled “Rasul diikut, Arus diturut” with Ustaz Ahmad Dahri and Ustazah Kalthom Md Isa as the panelists. The discussion revolved around the sunnah of living in a plural society as characterised by the prophet s.a.w. and his companions in Makkah. Muslims in Singapore need to understand that Islam never taught its adherents to ostracise themselves from the larger community. Instead, forging a strong bond of understanding and helping one another was a character of the Muslim community in Madinah.

Jejak Kekasih Allah will be Dakwah department’s signature programme for years to come so do keep a look out for it in 2018 and beyond!

OTHER ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

Syarahan Santai Sabtu - Total 7 runs - Jemaah outreach: 700 pax approx.

Tahnik - 308 tahnik performed by Ustaz Fahmi - 27 Aqiqah Korban 1438H - 190 sheep slaughtered; 23 aqiqah and 167 korban - Operations finished by 5 pm Quran Hour - More than 100 participants took part - Khataman al-Quran within one hour ADIL Solat Workshop - Conducted by Ustaz Khalid Md Rafi - More than 100 participants registered - Precursor to launch as ADIL Centre in 2018

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Daily Kuliah 7 Kuliah Dhuha per week: - Monday: Ustaz Md Afdal Abd Hamid - Tuesday: Ustaz Salam Nasip - Wednesday: Ustaz Ahmad Muzzamil - Thursday: Ustaz Shafi - Friday: Ustaz Windu Wijaya - Saturday: Ustaz Ahmad Dahri - Sunday: Ustaz Mahfuz Al-Hafiz 3 Kuliah Maghrib per week: - Monday: Ustaz Abu Bakar - Wednesday: Ustaz Salam Nasip - Friday: Ustaz Windu Wijaya 3 Kuliah Isyak per week: - Monday: Ustazah Saodah - Tuesday: Ustaz Saripi Rawi - Thursday: Ustaz Md Noor Tijany

SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT En-Naeem Mosque is one of the 29 Social Development (SD) Lead Mosques in Singapore. As an SD Lead Mosque, we provide social development services such as Muis Zakat Financial Assistance (FA) scheme, empowerment programmes and other assistance packages.

En-Naeem SD Unit focuses on meeting the social and religious needs of the community through alleviating financial difficulties and creating Islamic learning platforms.

In our effort to touch and outreach to the less privileged Muslim families - especially around Hougang, we provide support to individuals and families beyond the monthly financial assistance to the poor and needy. Examples of programmes organised include Islamic Learning, Parenting Talk, Children Enrichment Workshop, Financial Literacy and Befriending activities.

The befriending activities’ aim is to "ziarah" the homes of people such as low-income elderly, people suffering from chronic illnesses or people with disabilities (PWD). These are people identified as at risk of having low social support and isolated from the community due to their prevailing conditions.

Befrienders are volunteers and their main roles are to provide companionship, offer emotional support and help develop self-confidence in the long-term zakat beneficiaries through regular home visits or ziarah.

To ensure our community receives coordinated assistance, En-Naeem SD Unit works closely with other Malay Muslim Organisations (MMO) such as MENDAKI, PPIS, PERSATUAN AIN, and Association of Muslim Professionals (AMP). We also conduct regular networking with other social service agencies such as MSF Social Service Offices (SSO), Community Development Councils (CDC), Family Service Centres (FSC), Community Centres and churches to share information as well as resources.

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ZAKAT BENEFICIARIES FAMILIES

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2017

ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

PROGRAMME SPOTLIGHT – PARENTING WORKSHOP: MY CHILD IS A TWEEN The parenting workshop was conducted in collaboration with Ministry of Social & Family (MSF), Family For Life Council which provided FAMILY 365 talks and interactive programmes. The workshop was held on 1 April 2017 at Bidadari Hall, En-Naeem Mosque. A total of 33 participants attended the 2 hour interactive workshop which was conducted by an experienced trainer, Ms Siti Adilah Abu Bakar, Director of APKIM Resources. The workshop aimed to share, equip parenting knowledge and skills that can further help to foster healthy parent-child relationship. During the workshop, parents were taught the 8 Principles of Confident Parenting, gained useful insights of themselves and their children’s emotional needs. They also had the chance to explore the different ways to deepen their bond with their children through the Love Languages approach. Family For Life collaterals were distributed to the participants at the end of the workshop.

En-Naeem Social Development unit hopes to continue offering family and marriage workshops and interactive programmes in the pursuit to empower, enhance and enrich the Muslim community family life.

OTHER ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES NEMC Befrienders’ Training - Conducted by Mdm Muzaiyanah Hamzah, Head of Social Development Strategic Unit, Muis - 25 NEMC Befrienders attended the training Parenting Workshop: My Child is a Tween - Collaboration with MSF FAMILY 365 Programme - 33 participants including non Beneficiaries Ramadan Porridge Distribution to 3 rental flats - Collaboration with Pr. 5 students from Madrasah Al-Irsyad and En-Naeem al-Fataa az-Zahra - 200 packets of porridge distributed Purchase of Hari Raya Shoes and Clothing for Zakat Beneficiaries (ZB) families -15 selected families of Beneficiary Tazkirah and Iftar Ramadan - 38 Families of Beneficiary - Fidyah Vouchers distributed to the Beneficiaries Distributing Ramadan Groceries with Trolley Basket - 70 families of Beneficiary - $50 worth of groceries pack

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Cookies Hampers and Chicken & Beef for Hari Raya Celebration - 70 families of Beneficiary - $87 worth of Cookies Hamper and $50 worth of Chicken & Beef pack Islamic Parenting 101 Workshop - 21 participants - Workshop presented by Mr Nailul Hafiz Abd Rahim, CEO - Principal Consultant at Asian Leaders Institute Distribution of korban meat during Hari Raya Aidiladha - 70 families of Beneficiary MUIS Befrienders’ Day 2017 - Learning Tour at Enabling Village Back To School Bundle 2017 - 8 selected families of Beneficiary IQRA and Quran Recitation Class – Ongoing weekly programme - Open to all Beneficiaries and family members - Collaboration with PERGERAQ

YOUTH DEVELOPMENT

The Youth Development Unit of En-Naeem Mosque aims to shape the socio-religious life of young Muslims in the vicinity of Hougang and North-Eastern Singapore in general. In order to achieve this, the unit is assisted by al-Fataa and az-Zahra, the male and female youth volunteers respectively.

Through various programmes and events, the Youth Development Unit managed to get in touch with approximately 250 youths throughout 2017. Engaging them via activities such as hiking, Ramadan Youth Camp and and also Youth-in-Charge, the purpose is to deliver the ethos of Islam and its virtues via activities.

2017 also saw the Youth Development Unit continuing its partnership with other agencies to provide services to our youth, namely Yayasan Mendaki and Singapore Girls’ Home. The partnership between En-Naeem Mosque and Yayasan Mendaki to provide space for Mendaki Homework Café is now into its third year, with 21 students benefitting from the programme in 2017.

While our partnership with Singapore Girls’ Home sees En-Naeem Mosque sending asatizah to the Home in order to outreach to the girls and provide them the opportunity to get to know about Islam.

Moving forward, 2018 will be another challenging year where we will try to broaden our outreach and strengthen our variety of programmes to try and get in touch with even more youths in the future.

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21

MENDAKI HOMEWORK CAFE STUDENTS

2017

ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

PROGRAMME SPOTLIGHT – HUMANITARIAN AID 2017 saw our youth leaders embark on al-Fataa and Az-Zahra’s first major humanitarian project in Batam, where about 15 youth leaders visited Pesantren az-Zainiyah – a boarding school housing 44 students between the ages of 13 and 18.

The project team had two objectives on site: infrastructural improvement and knowledge enrichment.

Divided as such, they went to perform the tasks set out to them diligently and in an efficient manner.

All in all, the infrastructural improvement team successfully painted two classrooms, cemented the drains and spruced up the Pesantren’s compound during the one-week stay. On the other hand, the knowledge enrichment team filled the time with the students with different activities and programmes to spark their interest in the English language, among other things.

Although the youth leaders visited the Pesantren for a duration of about a week from 15-20 September, the planning for this major undertaking started way back during the tail-end of 2016. The passion and commitment shown by each and every one of them has contributed to the success of this project.

OTHER ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

Hiking - Programme conducted at Macritchie - 15 youths participated

Youth In Charge - House painting & groceries distribution - 60 youths participated

Young Daie, 3 Series - total of 3 runs in 2017 - 50 youths participated

Mendaki Homework Cafe - Twice a week session

Fundraising - 20th May, during Pre-Ramadan Forum - 9th Aug, during APHUBB (family carinival)

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Singapore Girls’ Home - Weekly Islamic learning class onsite

EDUCATION:

KINDERGARTEN

Curriculum enrichment includes learning journeys which give more learning experiences and exposures to our children. The excursion exposed them to hands-on construction work.

En-Naeem Mosque Kindergarten (EMK) has been operating for more than 33 years and a registered kindergarten by Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA). We are currently among the 18 Mosque-Based Kindergartens in Singapore.

It is a centre that continuously put the effort in providing early childhood education that develops children’s potential and nurtures responsible and competent individuals.

Our Curriculum Our curriculum is aligned with the Nurturing Early Learning (NEL) frameworks from MOE that covers learning areas (domains); Social & Emotional Development, Language & Literacy, Motor Skills Development, Numeracy, Aesthetics & Creative Expressions, and Discovery of the World. We offer additional language – Simple Arabic & Phonics.

EMK has received several Innovation Grants from 2008 to 2017. Our 2017 goal is to provide

quality early childhood education which meets the ECDC legislation requirement. We are focused at getting the ECDC licensing and adopting SPARK accreditation framework.

We have improved and upgraded our physical environment especially on safety, health and hygiene. Our team of teachers revisited our curriculum too - to refine, enrich and improve it. Our students have more hands-on approach and exposure to each theme learning.

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We are also extending project works / innovative projects to the K1 this year from only the K2 levels since the past years. Alhamdulillah, we received the ECDA Innovation Project Grant this year to embark on a Malay Language Learning Thru Malay Cultural awareness and activities – the Kompang & Silat experiences.

EMK also collaborates with MOE & AECES (Association of the Early Childhood Educators) to provide supportive programme for our K2 children who need supportive literacy programme. They were identified through the assessment tool provided when they were in K1. The programme; FLAIR (Focused Language Assistance in Reading), is conducted daily and this year is the 2nd year of collaboration.

EMK 2017 Profile

ENROLMENT

250 STUDENTS 2

Classes

Pre-nursery

Nursery

5

4 K1

4 K2

Session

3

2

3

3

1:12

1:15

1:20

1:24

Teacher:Student (max as from ECDA)

Teachers Kindergarten Assistants

12 full time 3 part time / relief 2

Our Staff

Our staff are also aggressively attending training and courses to meet the legislation and training hours requirement that enhance their professionalism for the benefit of our children.

With the support from En-Naeem Mosque Management Board and our parents, we believe that we are able to move forward to ensure the 34 years legacy of quality early childhood education in En-Naeem Mosque will continue.

2017

ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

PROGRAMME SPOTLIGHT – INNOVATION GRANT PROJECT In 2017, K1 and K2 students of En-Naeem Mosque Kindergarten went through a special programme to preserve and appreciate the Malay language, culture and heritage through kompang and silat.

Named “Menjunjung Tinggi Budaya”, the students learnt about silat and kompang from the respective experts in the field from Persisi and Kompanghut. Planning for the project stretched throughout the first half of the year, while implementation was from July to October 2017.

The project had the stated objectives of inculcating the interest of Malay language and culture in the students through silat and kompang, appreciate the local Malay culture, and to be able to articulate thoughts in simple Malay.

Throughout the project, students were taught about Malay language and had their Malay vocabulary expanded. They also performed thrice in 2017 – one kompang performance during a Racial Harmony programme, and two silat performances during our Family Carnival and Graduation 2017.

All in all, we believe that the project has achieved the desired outcomes for both students and teachers.

250 STUDENTS & 15 CLASSES

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OTHER ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES - Termly & thematic learning journeys - Workshop for parents - Sand/Water Play - Fire Evacuation - International Friendship Day - Aidilfitri Celebration - Racial Harmony - National Day - Children’s Day Challenge - Graduation Ceremony - K2 Holiday Day Camp - APHUBB – Family Day

EDUCATION:

MADRASAH

Students attend the following levels: LEVEL Kids 1 – 4 (5 to 8 years old)

NO. OF CLASSES 8

Tweens 1 – 4 (9 to 12 years old)

Our Mission

To build Madrasah as an Islamic institution that is integrated, comprehensive and holistic with an interactive way of learning.

Teens 1 – 4 (13 to 16 years old)

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Youth 1 – 2 (17 to 19 years old)

4

TOTAL

30

This year En-Naeem Mosque Madrasah continues our commitment for improvement. Our asatizah put in effort to be reflective and responsive to students’ needs. We are focus on supporting our students to gain the Islamic knowledge and developing them to be productive and contributive Muslims in the multi-racial and religious society.

Madrasah Staff

Our 2017 goals are to ensure our asatizah meet MUIS requirement of ARS certification and enriching our curriculum to be more impactful by identifying the basic knowledge our students should be competent in. Hence we focus more on the holistic development of the students, solat practices and basic IQRA. This yea we embarked on an additional 30-minutes intensive one-to-one solat session during the normal madrasah curriculum hours.

En-Naeem Mosque Madrasah continues to provide Iqra’ & Solat classes (IQSO) outside madrasah curriculum hours for the past years since 2009. In 2017, these classes are conducted on Wednesdays to Saturdays with 3 levels of competency reading skills, Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced for madrasah and non-madrasah students.

En-Naeem Mosque Madrasah has a clear vision and purpose. Through our motto, “Applying Knowledge, Strengthening Faith”, we aim to provide a quality Islamic education for our students. We ensuring they develop a broad range of knowledge to enable them to take responsibility for their own direction and to adapt to the changing world and living in Singapore.

Enrolment Profile

Our enrolment this year is about 600 students, coming from different races, languages and cultures such as Malay, Indian, Chinese, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Pakistani and Eurasian. Therefore, English is our medium language to suit the diversity of all races.

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En-Naeem Mosque Madrasah comprises of 6 trained, experienced, dedicated teaching staff and 9 part-time teaching staff.

Other Supporting Programmes

1. IQSO classes 2. Fardhu Ain & Quran for adult classes

In this supporting programme, there is an increase of 6% from total enrolment in April 2017. The total number of IQSO students stands at 121 as of November 2017

600 ALIVE MADRASAH STUDENTS

2017

ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES

PROGRAMME SPOTLIGHT – INTERCLASS DAKWAH COMPETITION

As part of our enrichment programme for the aLIVE students of En-Naeem Mosque Madrasah, students from Teens and Youth aLIVE had an Interclass Dakwah Competition on Sunday, 27 August 2017.

A total of 67 students from 14 classes participated in the competition, and guest judges included Ustazah Sarima, Ustazah Nadirah and Ustaz Arif. The students formed groups of 3 to 5 and they were tasked to present knowledge of Islam learnt in class.

Although the competition itself was a one-day event, students were exposed to various methods of doing dakwah and learnt the ropes of conducting research during the preparation stage. Youth aLIVE students were tasked to focus on issues related to Islam and young adults, while Teens aLIVE students researched on basics and intermediates of Islamic practices.

We believe that the competition has exposed the students to an alternative form of learning and how to be more confident in tackling issues pertaining to Muslims in Singapore.

OTHER ACTIVITIES & PROGRAMMES - Israk Mikraj Programme - Iqra’ & Solat Holiday Programme - Aidilfitri Programme - Teens & Youth Motivational Talk - APHUBB – Family Day - Learning Journeys - Fire Evacuation Exercise - Eidul Ihtifal / Graduation Day - Orientation Day for new students

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CORPORATE SERVICES People is at the core of what makes En-Naeem Mosque ticks. Without people, the mosque will be an empty building that serves no purpose or function. The Corporate Services Department of En-Naeem Mosque strives to provide the best that we can for our people – Jemaah and staff alike.

We believe that good programmes come from good people. Hence as of 2017, all staff are required to complete 80 hours of training and development per annum. One key baseline training that all staff attended was the Service Excellence workshop. The benefit of this workshop will be visible to the Jemaah via a better experience when interacting with our staff.

The Corporate Services Department of En-Naeem Mosque encompasses Human Resources, Finance and Customer Service. Throughout 2017, steps have been taken to improve on how we do things and streamlining our processes so that you, the Jemaah, will experience better service when dealing with us.

Finally, to promote better staff cohesiveness, the Staff Welfare and Appreciation Team (SWAT) was created in 2014, and in 2017 many internal programmes have been done to let staff believe that working with En-Naeem is more than just a job, it is family working hand in hand.

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Organisation Chart 2017 Mosque Management Board

Mosque Executive Chairman

FULL-TIME STAFF IN 2017

Corporate Services

Customer Service

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Admin/ HR

Facilities Management

Finance

Education

Kindergarten

Madrasah

Corporate Comms

Islamic Learning

Dakwah

Social Development

Youth Development

FACILITIES MANAGEMENT

Providing peace and tranquility to our Jemaah via a conducive environment is one of the important thrusts of En-Naeem Mosque. The task of providing this has been entrusted to the Facilities Management Team (FMT).

Throughout 2017, the Team has strived to look into the needs of our Jemaah and improve the environmental experience that they will get when entering En-Naeem Mosque. Key among the structural changes that has been made were: installation of new shelters at the main carpark (Tampines Road), cafeteria and open area facing blk 253, and the installation of Arabic calligraphy at the Main Prayer Hall.

Beyond that, the Team also made an effort to enhance the comfort level of Jemaah through several procurements, namely: the purchase of a new wide area vacuum-cleaner – to ensure that the prayer halls’ carpets are dust free, installation of air fresheners around the building, and the purchase of more sanitary bins and soap dispensers located in the toilets and ablution areas.

Moving forward, 2018 will see the Team focused to bring better experience to the Jemaah by improving our existing sound system and also repairing the leakages found at some of the sheltered areas around the mosque.

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WATER SAVING TAPS INSTALLED

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CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

Although the Corporate Communications department is a recent addition to the organisational structure of En-Naeem Mosque in 2016, we have had a dedicated Marketing and Communications Officer to oversee the maintenance of social media presence and the publicity of our events and programmes since 2014.

By 2017, the work of Corporate Communications grew from simply publicising events and maintaining social media presence to promoting the image and branding of En-Naeem Mosque. While social media (Facebook and Instagram) engagements has increased by a factor of 10%, 2017 has seen the department take up the challenge of rebooting the mosque’s official website. Watch out for its unveiling in 2018!

Content creation is another aspect that Corporate Communications worked on throughout the year. As a result, 2017 saw the team produced 8 videos, published 26 advertisements in Berita Harian, and worked together with Dakwah department to stream 3 Facebook Live feeds. Additionally, En-Naeem Mosque was featured in 2 separate articles in Berita Harian throughout the year.

Direction-wise, Corporate Communications saw a change in the format of SUHUF for 2017, while 2018 promises to be a bigger year as the department will focus on ensuring that En-Naeem Mosque becomes more visible to the larger public and that our messages are heard by the wider community in Singapore.

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VIDEOS AND LIVE FEEDS PRODUCED

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Muhammad A Compassionate or Violent Prophet?

Belief in Muhammad as the Final Prophet and Messenger of Allah is a fundamental pillar of faith in Islam.

However, the belief constitutes the command upon Muslims to take the Prophet as the role model in life, emulate him in every aspects of life and adhere to his commands as stipulated in the Qur’an, “Verily, in the Apostle of God you have a good example for everyone who looks forward [with hope and awe] to God and the Last Day, and remembers God unceasingly.” (The Qur’an, 33:21) In this context, it is thus pertinent to ask; what is the most basic character of the Prophet that we are going to follow and recommend others to follow?

Every child would surely opt for a compassionate, loving and caring rather than one who is harsh and violent. This has become the universal dream of all children, regardless of their religion.

The role played by the Prophet in educating and bringing people to the right path is a parable of a father nurturing his children. The Qur’an states, “He it is who has sent unto the unlettered people an apostle from among themselves, to convey unto them His messages, and to cause them to grow in purity, and to impart unto them the divine writ as well as wisdom – whereas before that they were indeed, most obviously, lost in error.”

(The Qur’an, 62:2) We would as such love to have a compassionate and loving Prophet as much as we would yearn for the same attribute from our respective fathers.

Portraying this kind of personality is a logical way of describing the beautiful nature of the Prophet’s character and personality.

Radical groups who wage attacks in the name of Islam are not excluded from the above stated disposition.

Ironically, while they yearn for a compassionate and loving father ever since they were young, these groups are more inclined towards a negative 24

portrayal of the Prophet’s image i.e. fierce, harsh and violent – as depicted in some selected hadiths that they usually quote: “I am sent with the sword when the Day of Resurrection is around the corner, until Allah alone is worshiped, and there is no partner for Him. My livelihood is under the shade of my spear, and he who disobeys my orders will be humiliated.”

(Narrated by Ahmad) “I am sent to slaughter (the non-believers).”

(Narrated by Ahmad) These hadiths are used in their propaganda to lure other Muslims to participate in their “jihad”. In reality, these radical groups have given the Prophet the image of a father that is contrary to their own childhood desire.

This thus make them synonymous with those idolaters reproached by Allah for describing Him with something they hate most i.e. having daughters. This was mentioned by God in the Qur’an: “And [thus, too,] they ascribe daughters unto God, who is limitless in His glory – whereas for themselves [they would choose, if they could, only] what they desire.” (The Qur’an, 16:57) Being too engrossed with the idea of “jihad”, the radical groups had actually dishonoured the Prophet.

They failed to understand those hadiths in the light of other hadiths and Qur’anic verses that portray the opposite of what they had described.

Examples of such verses are, when God says: “Indeed, there has come unto you [O mankind] an Apostle from among yourselves: heavily weighs upon him [the thought] that you might suffer [in the life to come]; full of concern for you [is he, and] full of compassion and mercy towards the believers.”

(The Qur’an, 9: 128) In another verse, God says: “And it was by God’s grace that thou [O Prophet] didst deal gently with thy followers: for if thou hadst been harsh and hard of heart, they would indeed have broken away from thee. Pardon them, then, and

pray that they be forgiven. And take counsel with them in all matters of public concern..”

(The Qur’an, 3:159).

And in another verse: “And [thus, O Prophet,] We have sent thee as [an evidence of Our] grace towards all the worlds.”

(The Qur’an, 21:107).

The supposedly harsh attitude highlighted does not describe the principal nature or personality of the Prophet. Rather, it was a reaction that took place in certain exceptional situations.

In a hadith, the Prophet has said: “The most beloved religion to Allah is the true (al-hanifiyah) and tolerant religion (al-samhah).”

(Narrated by Ahmad)

Many scholars have concluded that the wars waged by the Prophet during his lifetime were defensive wars. They were fought against the enemies who initiated the enmity towards the Prophet and his followers.

Apart from these verses, history has shown the kind and tolerant behavior of the Prophet. Upon regaining the city of Mecca, the Prophet freed all dwellers whom before the conquest were his enemies, except a few individuals.

Advice for the Public People should stay alert and vigilant lest they should get influenced with the propaganda of the radicals even though it is supported by verses form the Qur’an and hadiths.

To them, the Prophet said, “O Quraish people, what do you think I will do to you?” They said, “We do not expect from you except a kind treatment.” The Messenger of God said, “I will say to you what Joseph had said to his brothers [who had tortured him]: “Let no reproach be on you this day” (The Qur’an, 12:92)

If you read anything about Islam but it contradicts your humane nature (such as insulting, stigmatizing or justifying killing a fellow human being), then stay alert.

“Go! Surely, you are all free.”

(Narrated by Al-Bayhaqi) The problem of the radicals is that – they always ignore the comprehensive approach taken by Muslim scholars in elaborating the hadiths – by placing the hadiths into the context and taking other hadiths and Qur’anic verses into account.

Scholars are in the opinion that those hadiths portraying the Prophet as being fierce referred to his attitude towards hostile enemies that were waging war against him.

They were not at all general positions one should take towards all non - Muslims because such position does not complement the Qur’anic position towards non - Muslims such as the following verses; “Verily, those who have attained to faith [in this divine writ], as well as those who follow the Jewish faith, and the Christians, and the Sabians – all who believe in God and the Last Day and do righteous deeds-shall have their reward with their Sustainer; and no fear need they have, and neither shall they grieve.” (The Qur’an, 2:62) “[But] they are not all alike: among the followers of earlier revelation there are upright people, who recite God’s messages throughout the night, and 25

prostrate themselves [before Him].”

(The Qur’an, 3:113)

Abu Wabisah bin Ma’bad relates: I went to the Prophet and he asked me: “Have you come to inquire me after virtue?” I said: “Indeed”.

He said: “Ask your heart. Virtue is that which satisfies the soul and comforts the heart; and sin is that which perturbs the soul and troubles the heart, even if people should pronounce it lawful and should seek your views on such matters.”

(Narrated by Hasan and Al-Darimi) If there are issues or information that go against your conscience but are supported with verses from the Quran or hadith, seek advice from the specialists.

The Qur’an states, “If you do not know this, ask the followers of earlier revelation.” (The Qur’an, 21:7) Conclusion When we move something out of its context, we are putting ourselves in the perils of misinterpretation which may cause us to accept anything even though it is contrary to our own humanly instincts and dispositions.

All the above reviews and tips will help us to restrain ourselves from being swayed with the views that depict our beloved Prophet as harsh and violent.

by Ustaz Dr. Mohd Haniff Hassan Research Fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS)

Mercy Allah’s

Upon a Traveller and a Stranger There is nothing quite like traveling: to see a new place for the first time or to return to a favorite place and relive the beautiful memories again. People of all ages from all countries travel to foreign places for many different reasons, chiefly because it is a profound way to discover our own selves while providing us with memorable life experiences. Pico Iyer once said: “We travel, initially to lose ourselves, and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes.”

An Honour Allah Bestows Upon Us One of the ways in which Allah honours humankind is by giving us the ability to travel and prefering us over all other creations. He says: “And We have certainly honored the children of Adam and carried them on the land and sea and provided for them of the good things and preferred them over much of what We have created, with [definite] preference.” (al-Isra’ 17:70) It is therefore imperative that we do not squander the honour Allah has bestowed upon us and to use them wisely in the proper manner.

Evidenced In Our Ibadah We are encouraged to travel much, as Islam has a rich tradition of travelling. In fact, Islam spreads to the world through the examples set out by the travelling Companions.

Travel is integral to many ‘spiritual’ aspects of Islam. A prime example would be the rituals of Haj and Umrah, which by themselves involve numerous rituals of motion and travel, such as the tawafs around Ka’abah, the sa’i between Safa 26

and Marwah, and the journeys to Mina, Arafah and Muzdalifah. Each of these movements demands the pilgrim to constantly internalize and reflect while in a state of travelling.

A Tradition Of Travelling The Prophet’s formative years were spent travelling.

These travels later had a profound impact on his ability to appreciate and respect the difference, while empathizing with other cultures.

Following that example, Imam Bukhari travelled to great distances for knowledge. Ibn Battuta left Tangier at the age of 21 years old for Haj, but he savoured travelling the world before finally reaching Makkah only 30 years later! Following his spiritual crisis, Imam al-Ghazali embarked on a journey to develop a sense of detachment from the physical world and to beautify his spirit through his travels.

To Be A Traveller Or A Stranger The Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “Be in this world as though you are a traveller or a stranger.”

[Bukhari] Every spiritual tradition in Islam incorporates the aspect of ‘wandering’ or ‘travelling’ as part of the manner in which we train the soul.

The wisdom behind this is to encourage detachment of the physical and material world, to make the spirit a stranger to everything so as to instil a sense of gratitude, humility and wonderment of Allah’s creations. In turn, travelling trains to develop the Self to distinguish between Reality and illusion – leading to increased consciousness of the Hereafter.

Increased Tawakkal One beautiful effect of travelling is that we become more dependent and more trusting in Allah and His help. Unlike our daily routine, we begin to consciously ask for Allah’s assistance in our travels, for spiritual support and for success of our trip, whether for business or pleasure.

“Travelling: it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller”

amazed by Allah’s miracles, to take a cruise along the River Nile while admiring the wonders of the ancient world and to fly in a hot-air balloon over Cappadocia, Turkey.

But most of all, in every of these steps that we take, we have the privilege to exchange and share each other’s Islamic experiences be it in a madrasah in Ho Chi Minh City, or through a seminar with Islamic scholars in Bosnia-Herzegovina, or attending a We also ask for good majlis in an orphanage in Lombok, or company while on our journey – Ibn Batuta through a discussion with students at all of which should be the recipe the only Islamic university in Russia. of our daily communion with Allah. Through this dependence, it is hoped that when we We did not just want to be a tourist. We wanted to see return home, we become more conscious of these places with a local’s perspective – to see their Allah’s role in our lives and continuously be country as they see it for themselves. We left our hearts more dependent on Him than on other people. in all of these places that we visited and bring back treasures of stories to remember our whole lives.

Heightened Sense of Gratitude As we travel to explore new horizons and A Mercy And Gift From Allah possibilities, our travels must lead us to a All of this is never possible without the blessings heightened sense of gratitude. Allah says: and ability that Allah has provided us. Some may not have the opportunity to travel far or to travel often. Most “And as you see ships ploughing through importantly, their minds and intellect must never stop the waves, so that you might go forth ‘travelling’ – to always be in a state of striving to improve in quest of some of His Bounty, that themselves. The physical journey is only a catalyst for the may you be grateful.” internal journey of the mind and the soul. (an-Nahl 16:14) We manifest our sense of gratitude by being more empathetic to the plight of others and are encouraged to be more charitable – not only in monetary terms, but of experiences and expertise that we individually possess.

Enriching Ourselves Through Travel Travelling provides us with a rich and diverse world experience not found in any books. The backdrop of our classroom is the whole world.

Through our travels, we have been enriched and blessed to walk through the excavated ruins of a once-grand city of Madinat al-Zahra in Cordóba, to witness with some emotion the reduction of one of the most important mosque in the Islamic world to a mere mimbar in the Mosque of Cordóba, to perform tahajjud under the stars and watch the sunrise over the vast horizon in the Sahara Desert of Morocco, to walk the historical Ancient Silk Routes and discover how Islam laid its foundation in Uzbekistan and Russia, to be at the very cave mentioned in Surah al-Kahf of the Seven Sleepers in Jordan, to chase the Northern Lights in Norway and be 27

Travelling can therefore play a critical role in helping us grow into better versions of our normal selves. When it corrects the imbalances and immaturities of our base natures, travel reveals its full potential to function as a form of personal spiritual therapy.

Within Islam, there is a higher purpose to everything and it is this refinement that makes a difference for Muslims in their daily lives. Travelling as an activity is no different – it is an educational and a spiritually transformative experience. That is why, truly, travelling is a sunnah and a way of life!

by Ustaz Saif-ur-Rahman alchemyofhippieness Director, Alchemy of Travel Pte Ltd

MERCY IN

DIVERSITY

and the Art of Truth...

Diversity: An Innovation?

Convergence in Diversity Muslims believe that Islam is the true religion. That Moving along further back in time, we will see it is the only belief system and way of life that will examples of diversity happening even during the bring the followers to paradise in the hereafter. Once time of prophet Muhammad s.a.w. upon a time, Muslims in Singapore were only concerned about living in a multi-religious The story of Abu Bakar and Umar r.a. differing in their community. Today, the influx of foreign workers and approach towards performing the tahajjud comes to the accessibility of mind.

Abu Daud “O people!

Verily We have created you knowledge via the reported in his Sunan internet has brought from man and woman, and We have that Abu Bakar different strands of performed his tahajjud made you into tribes and families understanding Islam to at night in hushed so that you may know one Singapore – or multi-Islam tones while Umar did another; Verily the most honourable his with a clear and so to speak. loud voice. When of you with Allah is the pious This diversified strands of asked by the Prophet understanding Islam – once (careful in discharging his/her duties) s.a.w. why they observed only in chapters among you; Verily Allah is the Most performed their of books – has somehow Knowledgeable and Well Acquainted” tahajjud in such caused our local manners, Abu Bakar [al-Quran 49:13] community to start stated that “Allah questioning: which is the listens that I am ‘true’ Islam? The underlying logic behind this is the supplicating to Him”, while Umar stated that he has belief that there can only be a single way to “wake up those in slumber (so that they can perform understand and practice Islam. the solat) and drove away the devil”.

It is this writer’s belief that beyond the 11 basic tenets in Islam (6 articles of faith and 5 pillars of Islam), there has always existed a diversity in the practice and manifestation of the religion.

The story of how Imam Syafi’i rewrote most of his fatwas stands as proof of the existence of diversity in the classical Islamic world.

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The hadith ended with prophet Muhammad s.a.w. stating to Abu Bakar to increase his voice a bit, while telling Umar to lower his voice a notch. He did not condemn either of them nor stated that they did anything wrong, simply that they can both perform their tahajjud better by following the advice of the Prophet s.a.w.

Another example of diversity can be found in the issue of how the companions understood the instructions of the Prophet s.a.w. to them during the battle of Banu Qurayzhah where he said: “None of you should perform the Asar prayers except in the vicinity of (the village of) Banu Qurayzhah”.

The companions had differing opinions. One camp accepted the words of the prophet at face value and thus they performed the Asar prayers beyond its stipulated time after they have reached the village of Banu Qurayzhah, while the other believed that the Prophet s.a.w. was simply stressing the importance of hastening their speed and to reach the village of Banu Qurayzhah in time for Asar. Hence, when they realised they could not reach there before the end of Asar, this second group of companions decided to perform their prayers where they were at that point of time.

Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. did not admonish either group of companions upon their return to Madinah from their expedition. The stand taken by the prophet proves to us that diversity happened during his lifetime and that it was not frowned upon by the Prophet s.a.w.

The stories related here tells us that diversity has existed and will persist. Humans are bestowed with the gift of a discerning mind, one that causes all of us to learn and understand things differently.

No I in Truth Dakwah remains a key aspect in Islam. The cornerstone of it being “enjoining others to do good, while refraining them from doing bad”.

It is meant to be a two-way street of sharing knowledge of what is good and bad among Muslims.

Yet the prevalent condition that we see today is the mentality of “the truth resides within me”. It is an erroneous supposition to link the truth of Islam to that of a Muslim. Islam’s message of truth is contained in the Quran and Sunnah (prophetic traditions), and they are subjected to interpretations and the different understanding of different scholars.

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Our knowledge of Islam is linked to the understanding of our teachers and how we received their knowledge. The different paths taken by every one of us to achieve this ultimate truth means that we will have obtained different ‘versions’ of it.

What we have to understand is that the true purpose of dakwah is to share the knowledge of Islam to others.

Acceptance of the knowledge by the other party is beyond our scope, yet it is important for us to understand that different people are receptive to different methods of delivery. This is the art of truth. Catering your message to your audience so that they will be able to accept the truth contained in the message imparted to them.

Islam or I Slam?

Recently, Muslims in Singapore has seen increases in religious programs and events organised by various organisation such as mosques and others. While the development is positive in general, caution still needs to be put in place to ensure that it does not turn to a negative mark in the fabric of our community.

New media and social media today has now make it easier for everyone to share their thoughts and feelings to anyone around the world. While this has been a good development for dissemination of knowledge, it has also shown its dark side.

Hate speech, blatantly discrediting others due to disagreements and other unsavoury comments can be seen on a daily basis – propagated, sadly, sometimes by Muslims. The recent trend shows that Muslims still tend to live in the fallacy of a false dichotomy – I am right, therefore you are wrong.

At the rate of what is happening today, we may well be upholding the values of ‘I Slam’ rather than Islam – the religion of peace and mercy.

by Muhammad Khairani bin Basiran Muhd Khairani joined En-Naeem Mosque in 2012 and now heads the dakwah department of En-Naeem Mosque since 2016. He is concurrently studying for his M.Sc. Asian Studies at S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies and expected to graduate in 2018

of the muazzin cannot be heard in its purest form if the microphone were covered by dust or algae. All credits belong solely to Allah and the purpose is to glorify the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w).

Bismillahirahmanirahim, ne cannot help but to notice the trend of new dakwah entities mushrooming in recent years; promoting values and positive messages in a fresher perspective. This is no surprise. It is an ideal time for cause marketing due to a heightened emphasis on doing good. However, campaign initiators need to understand how to shout out their messages effectively in order to take advantage of the numerous opportunities available.

They also need to avoid wastage of brain juice, resources and energy which may prevent startups to lose momentum or worse, a PR disaster. The 7 simple steps listed here will cover some critical aspects of a campaign to help you achieve your dakwah goals, insya Allah.

O

01

Purifying Intention

Strive to attain the station of Ikhlas. Seek guidance from a teacher on ways to purify our intention and cleanse our hearts. The beautiful voice 30

02

Forming a Team

No man is an island. Even Rasulullah s.a.w. appointed selected companions to head certain tasks. You need a team. Although there is no cookbook approach to forming a team, if you want your team to be really effective, you will need to get the right people for the tasks. If possible, try to bring in members that bring varied experience and perspectives to the project. Once formed, set goals, delegate tasks, grant access and avoid micro managing. Energetic and creative people will become very frustrated if they do not have the freedom to complete their work. No task is easy.

Professionals are trained to make it look easy. Avoid telling members of a team what to do and how to do it. Instead, work with them to create goals and set forth your guidelines. Mutual accountability and commitment follows.

03

Jemaah Study

Who is your audience? You cannot choose all.

Choose a specific type of audience. One size does not fit all. Understanding any desired jemaah is always a bit of a challenge, particularly amid an ever fragmenting media landscape. When an audience comprises a very small portion of an extremely large population, the challenge rises exponentially. Understand your audience. Be near them. Be them. Is there a gap that can be filled? Is there a problem to be solved? How can your campaign make a difference in their life? Gather testimonials and facts. Ultimately the goal is not to find an audience for your message but to send a message to your audience.

04

Ask an Ustaz

months. For example, do note that audience’s habit will change during Ramadan. The holy month has a significant impact on people’s social behaviour and you need to adapt. For example, studies have shown that in 2013, Facebook engagement increased by 30% during Ramadan and people engage on social media predominatly after Iftar and before Sahur.

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Facilitate to ensure team members are on the same page. At any particular time, someone should be assigned to monitor and coordinate efforts to ensure message fluidity and prevent undesirable kickbacks.

Set a group agreement on measurable goal to fully understand how you are achieving conversions or results. It is important to analyse which campaign segments are performing best.

Adjust accordingly if needed. Record learning points so that you cando better next time.

Every message has a content expert. Seeking spiritual advice boosts your competency in designing a religious campaign. Those who are truly open to guidance on dakwah sciences and not just looking for validation develop better (Sahih Bukhari) solutions to problems. Your thinking will be textured and you can overcome biases and self-serving rationales.

05

Monitoring Progress

“Convey (my teachings) to the people even if it were single sentence.”

Wallahu A’lam Bissawab

Set Your Message

Effective campaigning is built around clear messages which state the problem, the solution proposed and the action the audience can take to reach the campaign goal. It should capture the attention of your target audience. The message should be easy to understand, remember and need no further explanation. Do not rush to craft one.

Multiple draft should be tested to reap the benefit of fresh eyes and unbiased opinions.

06

Publicity

Put your message into words, graphics or whatever form that best communicate the key points to your audience. Create multiple versions as different people absorb information differently. However, the outlook must be consistent and relatable with one another. Use a range of platforms to park your campaign, online and offline. Content should easily be adapted and repurposed to suit different media or channels. Its best to schedule all campaign activities on an auto pilot mode to prevent team fatigue and energy can be channeled to keep a look out for campaign enhancement opportunities Lastly, audience behave differently in different 31

by Mohamed Shah Reza Mohd Anuar Co Founder of Muslim Youth Forum Singapore (MYF) and Shepherds Group is a self taught social media coordinator with a background in community marketing and communication, actively share with people worldwide about Islam through social media events and campaigns. As a Muslim youth activist, he has served multiple organizations and groups, regularly advising start up organisations. Shah Reza conduct detailed needs analysis and design creative solutions aimed at creating innovative Islamically sound social media initiative. He is always open to promote ideas, inspiration, and passion in the da’wah circle. With a vision to inspire love in the Muslim Ummah, he constantly strive to find new ways to rekindle love in the community.

Mercy Towards

in Change

I have been thinking about this a lot - this idea of change. I think I’ve been thinking about change a lot because, this year I’ve seen people I love or people around me, change, or trying to change.

I’ve also noticed that I’ve changed too.

But what I’d like to touch on is not self-motivated change, rather our desire to change someone we love, for the better.

I want to share with you a story that was shared with me and one that impacted me greatly. There was a couple, and they’ve been married for a while and all was good until one day, the husband decided that he would try to be a more practicing Muslim. He started learning how to pray, and he started getting to know the Deen, and his change was obvious, and it made his wife felt unsettled. His wife saw the change and in the beginning, she resisted this new version of him, partly due to the fear that she might “lose” her best friend, someone she loves, someone she’s been living so comfortably with.

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“The most perfect man in his faith among the believers is the one whose behaviour is most excellent; and the best of you are those who are the best to their wives.”

(At-Tirmidhi) So he became kinder. Gentler. More compassionate.

More loving. And his wife slowly appreciated this change in her husband. Alongside him waking up earlier in the morning to pray Fajr, alongside him being more careful of what he watches and reads, he was also becoming a better husband. But the most startling change was how she saw that for the first time ever, this man that she loves, was at peace.

Happy.

And one day, after 10 years of seeing him “change”, she went to him and said, “please teach me more about Islam.”

I love this story because it taught me so much about doing “dakwah” to the ones closest and dearest to you. Here are some things I’ve learned:

The more the husband learned about the Deen, the more he realised that Islam is a beautiful combination of both worship, and good character. So he knew that on top of praying his 5 daily prayers, and fulfilling his basic obligations, he knew that he had to work on bettering his character too.

1) Expecting the people around you to change just because you’ve changed is unfair We have to realise that every single one of us is on our own journey towards Allah. Sometimes, when Allah wills, our path might cross and we might meet and progress together and that would be lovely and beautiful. But expecting someone to walk on your life journey (not theirs) is a little unreasonable.

And this, he started doing with his wife. He learned about the Hadith where the Prophet Muhammad SAW said,

Allah has a plan for everyone - and just as how we trust Allah’s plans for us, we have to trust Allah’s plans for the people around us as well.

2) Kindness and love softens even the hardes of hearts You know, whenever I read the stories of our beloved Prophet Muhammad SAW, I always *meltzzzzz* at how kind and merciful and loving he was. Which is why most, if not all, of the people he (SAW) interacted with, converted to Islam. The husband in the story I shared above never once forced his wife to pray or to “cover up” - instead he followed our Prophet’s sunnah of being gentle and compassionate to his wife, and this, after a while, softened her heart.

I always cringe slightly whenever I hear parents or elders “nag” at the youths to pray. Saying things like “apa nak jadi dengan kau, tak sembahyang!” with an exasperated tone will not help. It might just push them away.

Softening and opening up the heart is the first step towards change - but that can only happen with love, kindness and patience - just like what the husband from the story I shared earlier, did.

3) It’s all in Allah’s time, not ours If we manage to carry out the first two points above, the one that’s always hardest to remember (at least personally for me) is that change will only happen in Allah’s time not ours. The biggest challenge is not to set our own “deadline” as to when this person that we love should change: “when he turns 30” or “when we have our first child” or “when she gets married” - these are deadlines we set ourselves and when the deadlines become near and the person we love is far from the person we want them to be - we get frustrated, we get impatient, we start to lose hope.

We have to remember that this is a test of our sincerity towards the person we love as much as it is a test for them. The husband waited 10 years till his wife’s heart softened. Some of us will have to wait longer, some of us, shorter. Whatever the time period is, our love for them should not falter, we should not despair, nor should we lose hope.

Because Allah's help will come 4) Dua, Consistently. Constantly.

The all-important “weapon” that we have in this journey of encouraging our loved ones to change is Dua. And not just praying to Allah to soften their hearts to change, but make dua that Allah will soften our hearts to not judge. And pray for them with yaqin (certainty) that one day, they will be closer to Allah more than we are closer to Him. Pray for them more than you’d pray for yourself.

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And pray with ambition: “that one day she will inspire others to the Deen”, “that he will be at the forefront of emulating the Sunnah of hhe Prophet in his community”, “that they will be initiators of change in the country” - pray BIG! Because nothing is too impossible for Allah SWT. So ask Him - as He is the Owner of Hearts, the Turner of Hearts, the Softener of Hearts.

And lastly, 5) Focus on the things you can change.

Not on things you can’t.

The hard truth is this: it’s not our job to change people - that right only belongs to Allah. Our job is to be the best friend / sister / wife / daughter / mother that we can be to them. A lot of us (me included) spend way too much time forcing things to happen when we should actually focus on how can we be better companions for the people we love.

Are we creating a safe space for them so they can come to us when they have doubts? Are we a source of positivity and happiness for them when they are going through a tough time? Do we welcome them with a huge smile and a hug when we see them or do we frown?

Islam is a selfless religion - it doesn’t emphasise on the concept of Self. Yes, Islam encourages us to do good, but it also encourages us to come together towards goodness. Which is why it is only natural that we want to see the people we love change for the better.

But how we invite them towards Allah and towards change is important to note as well. And this is something we can all try to learn and improve on constantly.

I pray that He will give us the grace and the patience and the wisdom that we need so that we can invite people to His way in a beautiful manner and I pray that Allah will help us perfect our character so that we would always be the best Ambassadors of Islam wherever we go, Amin!

Love and Prayers always, A

by Aida Azlin A writer, entrepreneur and a proud believer fiercely committed to serving Sisters the world over to pursue self-betterment.

Subscribe to Aida Azlin’s videos and Tuesday Love Letters on aidaazlin.com

MERCY Just last week I was telling a dear friend how I’d rather not exist in a world where toxic thrives.

There are so much enmity plaguing this creed, how we hurt others because we think our idea of faith is supreme, how our interpretation of knowledge is above theirs, how every little whisper we turn into a howl. We forget that only He knows. Our existence are but mysteries; who are we to scar, to burn, to leave marks, to solve this enigma for others, to play God. The Friday prayer sermon just this afternoon, spoke to me in such illuminating affirmations. Knowledge, especially in faith, is akin to Light. Light binds, not divides. We seek light not out of fear of the darkness but at a promise to gain clarity. This is our intimate journey, how we move towards that Light is ours to make. Like a blind man, like moths at night, a child yearning, just do not stand in their paths, my friend. Your forehead kisses the same Earth like they do, your knees bend the same curve, and each night, your spine collapses just the same. Do not be the lips that question an arm sleeved with tattoos or hair uncovered by cloth or sins not yours, instead be lips that observes silence, kindness and always, prayers for all. I hope your heart does not make space for words like “Kafir”, “infidel”, “shirk” and instead be a room with gardens and an ocean of calmness. Even our Beloved won’t be a judge for another being; Let God You seek knowledge not to draw boundaries between yourself and others, you seek for this overwhelming gravity of unknowing needs you to always be finding ways to be closer to Him. You seek knowledge to know Him not to make known to others. You have every right to continue seeking, to have your palms heavenwards every night begging to be illuminated. This is your deeper conversation, go on, just you and God.

by Noor Iskandar

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Bismillahirrahmanirrahim; In the name of Allah the Most Merciful and Beneficent is He, who provides without boundaries to every single creation of His with no exception, no biases.

He gives and gives relentlessly from the beautiful skies down to every single tree, He shelters all living things with love and mercy, and the seas that buoy sustenance for the underwater world, and the rain to the soil to grow produce for mankind and animals, just look at the way the cycle runs; a perfect provision for everyone, look at the birds and the lions caring for their babies, our mothers, through their life, constantly carrying a bag of worries, for her children who made her cry in the middle of the night who never saw her sacrifices and put up a fight.

Our fathers who break their backs trying to make ends meet, just to provide for our families and attend to every need but oh Lord the mercy You bestow upon us is on a much greater magnitude yet I fail to thank and remember You, fail to show my gratitude, You’re the only One who’ll love me despite my ocean of sins.

Oh Allah, Your mercy truly encompasses all things.

If only we care to look and ponder at His signs in everything; don’t forget we are in need of His mercy in this life and the hereafter and if you’re reading this right now you’re probably more blessed than a million others, so raise your hands and say “Alhamdulillah” to the Most Merciful.

by Humairah Mohd Jamil