A tale of two mosques
By John Quinlan, Journal staff writer | Posted: Friday, October 05, 2007
The mosque is the cornerstone of Islam, said Dr. Eyad Najdawi, chairman and imam (prayer leader) of the Mosque of Sioux City. It is one of two such cornerstones in Siouxland that serve a Muslim community of about 200 to 300 people, The other is the Islamic Center of Siouxland in South Sioux City.
"We are blessed to have two mosques in the community," Najdawi said.
Ahmed Mohammed, president and imam of the Islamic Center, said the dual congregations appeal to cultural differences among the members. "For instance, some people like to talk in Arabic, the language. We don't understand it. If we can talk in our language, they are not comfortable with it," he said.
Najdawi and some others simply prefer to attend a mosque closer to home.
The Mosque of Sioux City's biggest contingent is its Somali/Ethiopian community. Members also hail from Pakistan and the Arab countries. Najdawi is from Jordan.
Mohammed, a native of India, said the Islamic Center serves about 40 families. Members come from India, Pakistan, Iran, Morocco, Somalia, Senegal and elsewhere, though it also has its share of American natives and converts.
Dr. Askar Qalbani, a 30-year area resident who attends the South Sioux City mosque, pointed to Mohummed Sadden, a 65-year-old South Sioux City lawyer who was born in Sioux City and whose family has been here for 100 years. When he moved to the area, Qalbani said, he knew of only four or five Muslim families. The community has grown significantly since then.
Siouxland Muslims met at a Sioux City hospital 25 years ago, but when St. Joseph Hospital closed and Mercy Medical Center moved downtown, Qalbani said, they relocated to a room at Briar Cliff College. From there, they moved to a building at Seventh and Jones streets and converted it into a mosque. Then, after years of planning and fundraising, the Islamic Center of Siouxland was built and opened in 2002.
The Mosque of Sioux City was established in October 1999 at 10th Street and Grandview. Last December, the congregation bought the former Nazarene Church and is renovating it into a mosque and cultural center, Najdawi said.
"It's a teaching place, too," he said. "The mosque takes much more importance than being a worship place,"
Though Muslims can say their prayers at home, they miss that sense of community by not going to a mosque, said Dr. Misir Nauman, who prays at the Islamic Center.
Many come from Islamic countries where large mosques are everywhere. So it takes a little more effort to practice their faith in the United States, Nauman said. "It's slightly difficult in terms of logistics. But other than that, Islam is basically a very simple religion," he said.
"When 9/11 came, it was a sad time for all of us," Najdawi said. "And I don't think we will ever recover. I think that the only way we can recover is basically by living and delivering the right message. I'm talking about us as Muslims and the community as a whole."
"We are blessed to have two mosques in the community," Najdawi said.
Ahmed Mohammed, president and imam of the Islamic Center, said the dual congregations appeal to cultural differences among the members. "For instance, some people like to talk in Arabic, the language. We don't understand it. If we can talk in our language, they are not comfortable with it," he said.
Najdawi and some others simply prefer to attend a mosque closer to home.
The Mosque of Sioux City's biggest contingent is its Somali/Ethiopian community. Members also hail from Pakistan and the Arab countries. Najdawi is from Jordan.
Mohammed, a native of India, said the Islamic Center serves about 40 families. Members come from India, Pakistan, Iran, Morocco, Somalia, Senegal and elsewhere, though it also has its share of American natives and converts.
Dr. Askar Qalbani, a 30-year area resident who attends the South Sioux City mosque, pointed to Mohummed Sadden, a 65-year-old South Sioux City lawyer who was born in Sioux City and whose family has been here for 100 years. When he moved to the area, Qalbani said, he knew of only four or five Muslim families. The community has grown significantly since then.
Siouxland Muslims met at a Sioux City hospital 25 years ago, but when St. Joseph Hospital closed and Mercy Medical Center moved downtown, Qalbani said, they relocated to a room at Briar Cliff College. From there, they moved to a building at Seventh and Jones streets and converted it into a mosque. Then, after years of planning and fundraising, the Islamic Center of Siouxland was built and opened in 2002.
The Mosque of Sioux City was established in October 1999 at 10th Street and Grandview. Last December, the congregation bought the former Nazarene Church and is renovating it into a mosque and cultural center, Najdawi said.
"It's a teaching place, too," he said. "The mosque takes much more importance than being a worship place,"
Though Muslims can say their prayers at home, they miss that sense of community by not going to a mosque, said Dr. Misir Nauman, who prays at the Islamic Center.
Many come from Islamic countries where large mosques are everywhere. So it takes a little more effort to practice their faith in the United States, Nauman said. "It's slightly difficult in terms of logistics. But other than that, Islam is basically a very simple religion," he said.
"When 9/11 came, it was a sad time for all of us," Najdawi said. "And I don't think we will ever recover. I think that the only way we can recover is basically by living and delivering the right message. I'm talking about us as Muslims and the community as a whole."
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