IMAGH Organizes Iftaar at Ahmadiyya Mosque

From left: Latafath Hussain welcoming the guests while Imam Mubashar Ahmad, Dr. Eijaz Sheikh, Shazad Bashir and Dr. Jaseem Pasha look on.

From left: Latafath Hussain welcoming the guests while Imam Mubashar Ahmad, Dr. Eijaz Sheikh, Shazad Bashir and Dr. Jaseem Pasha look on.

By Dr. Jaseem Pasha

HOUSTON: IMAGH’s motto is “Fostering Amity Across Communities, Cultures and Religions” and towards that end it organized a dialogue and iftaar (breaking of the fast) and dinner on Sunday, July 20

Ahmadiyya Muslim Community of Houston hosted a very educational inter-faith social evening, attended by a large crowd of Houstonians, representing all hues of Muslims from the sub-continent, which included Shias, Sunnis, Bohras, and Ismailis, as well as Hindus, and Christians to share “Break the Ramadan Fast together”.

The event took place at their beautiful mosque, the “Baitus Samee”  in north Houston. The highlight of the event was discussion on “Importance of inter-faith Communal Harmony” by eminent Houstonians.

Attendees at the event.

Attendees at the event.

Present were Dr. Maqbool Haq, the Chairman of Board of Directors of Indian Muslims Association of Greater Houston (IMAGH), Latafath Hussain, the President of IMAGH, and Karim Maknojia, the Vice-President of IMAGH. More than seventy five members of IMAGH and their friends attended the event.

The program started exactly at 7 pm with Imam Mubashar Ahmad Sahib, the President of the Ahmadiyya Community welcoming the guests. Iftikhar Sheikh, the Vice President of Ahmadiyya Community, introduced the guest speakers and emceed the event.

Dr. Ejaz Sheikh, was the first speaker and gave a very informative introduction and passionate explanation of ‘who is an Ahmadiyya”. Dr. Sheikh was followed by Dr. Jaseem Pasha, who emphasized that the success of interfaith dialogue lies in establishing the common grounds of recognizing each other first as human beings and observing respect for human dignity, without excluding anyone.

Breaking the fast

Breaking the fast

The next speaker was Shahzad Bashir who gave a vivid example of what separates humans from others, and his statement,’that if you aspire for paradise, you should create a paradise here first’, were all very well received. The last speaker was Imam Mubashar Ahmad, who highlighted the importance of interfaith and intra-faith harmony.

The guests appreciated the warm hospitality that was extended to them by the members of the Ahmadiyya Community. The arrangements were impeccable, the quality of discussion was par excellent, and the food (cooked in-house) was absolutely superb.