{"id":4788,"date":"2015-06-19T11:25:33","date_gmt":"2015-06-19T10:25:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/english.thesunrisetoday.com\/?p=4788"},"modified":"2015-06-19T11:25:33","modified_gmt":"2015-06-19T10:25:33","slug":"cardiff-mosque-hosts-daily-ramadan-iftar","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/english.thesunrisetoday.com\/index.php\/cardiff-mosque-hosts-daily-ramadan-iftar\/","title":{"rendered":"Cardiff Mosque Hosts Daily Ramadan Iftar"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Cardiff<\/a>Revealing the beauty of Islam to the community, a group of Muslims have planned to make this year Ramadan pleasant to everyone by providing free daily night meal to their guests from all faiths.
\n\u201cWe 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,\u201d Community outreach manager Mohammed Alamgir Ahmed told Wales online.
\n\u201cWe can feed up to 400 people every evening. We even have \u2018sharing Ramadan\u2019 nights where groups of non-Muslims come to experience iftar with us.
\n\u201cThis year we have three dates booked in where are expecting about 30 [non-Muslim] guests per night,” he added.
\nRamadan, the holiest month in Islamic calendar, kicked off on Thursday, June 18.
\nIn Ramadan, adult Muslims, save the sick and those traveling, abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex between dawn and sunset.
\nMuslims dedicate their time during the holy month to be closer to Allah through prayers, self-restraint and good deeds.
\nIt is customary for Muslims to spend part of the days during Ramadan studying the Noble Qur’an.
\nMany men perform i`tikaf (spiritual retreat), spending the last 10 days of the month exclusively in the mosque.
\nWelcoming the holy month, Cardiff Muslims decided to show their community what Ramadan and Islam were about.
\n\u201cOur 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,\u201d Ahmed said.
\nThe program is to reveal the beauty of Islam by meeting with one of the basic needs of the people which is food.
\nThe volunteers will host 400 people every night for the next 30 days during the month of Ramadan.
\nVolunteers at the mosque in Wyverne Road, Cathays, will serve food when the fast ends at 9.30pm each night.
\nHomeless<\/strong>
\nAlong with Ramadan iftar, thousands of free meals would be given to homeless people during daylight hours, who will be invited to eat at sunset as well.
\n\u201cWe 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,\u201d Ahmed said.
\n\u201cWe can feed up to 400 people every evening. We even have \u2018sharing Ramadan\u2019 nights where groups of non-Muslims come to experience iftar with us.
\n\u201cThis year we have three dates booked in where are expecting about 30 [non-Muslim] guests per night.”
\nThis year Ramadan will also help in bridging gap between people in the larger community.
\n\u201cOur 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,\u201d Ahmed said.
\n\u201cWe 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.
\n\u201cAll the cooks are volunteers and are not paid. It will be a mix of Arabic, Asian, Middle Eastern and Malaysian food.
\n\u201cWe 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 mats.
\n\u201cIt\u2019s very important to show what Islam is really about and that it is about unity in everything.
\n\u201cWhat better way to show unity than break bread together with the community?\u201d
\nAhmed said in recent years the meals have become even more popular as some Muslims and non-Muslims struggle to afford food.
\n\u201cAusterity means more people have been coming in recent years. It is a full meal that they may not have had otherwise,” he said.
\n\u201cIt is particularly important we have an open-door policy.\u201d<\/p>\n

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