The Obligation to Support the Proposed New Mosque in East London
The Obligation to Support the Proposed New Mosque in East London
A fatwa concerning the obligation to support the establishment of the new mosque in East London (London Markaz)
There has been an ongoing debate concerning the proposed establishment of a new mosque in East London. It is true that many Muslims and some non-Muslims are supporting it, yet we have also witnessed opposition to it from many including some members of the Muslim community. I find myself obliged to clarify the Islamic opinion regarding supporting the establishment of this mosque in particular and any other mosque for that matter.
Mosques are blessed premises where the words of the Creator are recited and taught. They are centres of mercy and peace for the whole of humanity. They are houses where monotheism is proclaimed enabling people to receive rays of guidance. It is for this reason that mosques are the most beloved places to Allah as the Prophet (sallaAllahu alayhi wa sallam) declared in an authentic hadith. In addition, the act of establishing mosques is one of the best deeds according to Islamic teachings. Allah says in the Quran [translation of the meaning of (9:18)], ‘The mosques of Allah shall be maintained only by those who believe in Allah and the Last Day; who perform Salat, give Zakat, and fear none but Allah. It is they who are expected to be on true guidance’. It is authentically reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, ‘Whoever builds a mosque for the sake of Allah, seeking by it Allah's grace, Allah will build for him a house like it in Paradise’. (Related by Al-Bukhari & Muslim). The first action carried out by the Prophet (peace be upon him) when arriving at Madinah was to establish the mosque. The Mosque in Islam has a central role in a Muslim’s life; the Prophet (peace be upon him) would spend a great amount of time in it meeting with people, receiving foreign delegates, co-ordinating activities, and holding public gatherings to discuss matters of public concern. It is the place at which the life of Muslims is centred.
In contrast, Allah condemns in very harsh terms those who prevent people from establishing the remembrance of Allah in mosques. Allah says in the Quran [translation of the meaning of (2:114)], ‘And who is a greater wrongdoer than one who forbids that Allah's Name be glorified and mentioned much in Allah's mosques and strives for their ruin? It was not fitting that such should themselves enter them except in fear. For them there is disgrace in this world, and they will have a great torment in the Hereafter.’
Allah described the destruction of places where He is worshipped as an action of mischief and corruption. Allah says in the Quran [translation of the meaning of (22:40)], ’For had it not been that Allah checks one set of people by means of another; monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques wherein the Name of Allah is mentioned much would surely have been pulled down.’ Allah also commands us to help one another when doing righteous deeds by saying [translation of the meaning of (5:2)], ’Help one another in virtue, righteousness and piety; but do not help one another in sin and transgression. And fear Allah. Verily, Allah is severe in punishment.’
Based on these and other texts, I conclude that it is obligatory upon each and every Muslim who bears witness that Allah is the only God to be worshipped and Muhammad is His final Messenger to aid and help the establishment of this aforementioned mosque and any other mosque in the UK. This obligation is ever the more binding when we bring to our minds the unprecedented challenges the Muslim community in Britain is currently facing. This should oblige Muslims to be united and to be vigilant of any harmful or hidden agenda as well as of the possible ramifications of such debates.
Finally, it is not acceptable for any Muslim in the UK or elsewhere to refrain from supporting a mosque that he knows needs moral support, especially when seeing many adversaries actively working to stop Muslims from preserving their identity and religion. I warn the Muslims who are working and striving against the establishment of this mosque that they may in effect be aligning themselves with those who are classified as hindering people from the path of Allah as mentioned in the Quran; Allah says: [translation of the meaning of (22:25)], ‘Verily! Those who disbelieve and hinder (people) from the Path of Allah, and from the Sacred Masjid (at Makkah) which We have made (open) to (all) men - the dweller in it and the visitor from the country are equal there (as regards its sanctity and pilgrimage) - and whoever inclines to evil actions therein or to do wrong, him We shall cause to taste a painful torment."

written by talha siddiqui, September 26, 2009
as for their books u must understand fadail amaal is not a book of fiqh for which u need only sahih hadith,its a book meant to encourage sallat,zakaat,haj,zikr,etc.if not tell me why have books with dhaiff(weak) hadith been preserved along the generations,they have their own role to play.alas u are bent on talking against a work which is actually the real work of ur Prophet. O.k if their is problem with fadial amaal then what of riyaadus saliheen,which they also use,what of Muntakhab, and Hayatus sahabah,for ur information this book(H.Sahaba)is even in used across many madaris in Saudia,and arab countries..
if u still ve a problem with tabligh contact me on my e.mail..:forest_inv@yahoo.com, or my number 002348067770011...
please i m not trying support tabligh blindly,nor ve i fallen in a blind love with them,i ve critically analised each and every aspect of the effort,all i will say is try and do the work or else pray for forgiveness,but never open ur mouth and criticise men who r very close to Allah ,lest u down Allah's curse.Thanks.
written by Abd, January 02, 2009
In response to those who was claiming that we muslim do not know the difference between Iman and Yaqeen. this is strange - I never knew knowing the Kitab at Tawhid in detail is a pre-reqiste to be a good muslim. Perhaps one can only delude themselve by thinking they are better muslim just because he/she studied Aqaid. May Allah safeguard me from such people who are arrongant in deen and those who prefers enimosity at the expence of brotherhood due to their grouping mindset.
written by Abdul Khaliq, September 16, 2008
written by John Gibson, April 15, 2007
written by I'm also an Ex Tablighi from Leeds, April 10, 2007
1. Yes to a new Masjid if it is needed.
2. No to ashura being shared amongst ahlus sunnah with ahlul biddah.
3. No for Masjid to be given to Tabligh for 2 main reasons;
A) As Tabligh dont comand the good of forbid the evil properly as this takes Ilm and does not fit in to their numbers / people gathering aims, then this is why extreme takfiree types go undetected amongst them and also there i not enough teaching against these incorrect ideologies so the youth can avoid it if they come across it. Therefore it is better to have the Masjid managed by those who have Ilm and or having Ilm are not scared to distrubute it and comand the good and forbid the evil, including against the takfiree / 'jihaadist'.
b) The main bidda in Tableegi (dawah) jamaat is in their method of the very thing they are suppose to be experts in i.e. Dawah / Call to Islam.
I was with them from age of 12 to 18 but from other people experiences, their teachers and their books one sees that they avoid calling to Worshiping Allah (alone) and the avoidance of worshipping other than Allah. They will call and call to Allah but only to His Lordship / Tha he alone is Rabb. But the Pagan arabs in the time of the Prophet SAw already believed this, but when they worshipped they directed some of it to other than Allah. The reason why Tabligh only call to Allahs Rabb / Robabiyah and his Uluhiya (worship only for Allah alone) is so that a sufi, shia, Mutazilee, Ash'aree and even those of other faiths can sit with them a they all agree that Allah is Lord. But Allah swt says : we sent a messenger to every nation ordering them that they shud worship Allah alone....16:36 So the Messenger's before throughout time were not ordered to just tell people to believe Allah is Lord and gather the people under that...rather it was for the people to worship Allah Alone...regardless of who it upsets and f no one follows.. May Allah guide me and these brothers to the the truth, ameen.
written by faisal al otaibi, April 05, 2007
faisal al otaibi
written by Ismail Farraj, April 01, 2007
I totally support this mosque, but only because not supporting it is tantamount to supporting the kuffar. I used to be a tablighi and I am extremely unhappy that the masjid is going to the Tablighi's. Whatever happened to Muslim cohesion? In response to Abu Musab's ranting, the money is coming from the government, and I believe they should be more selective about who they allow to run his mosque.
As for the work of tabligh, it is something righteous, but the actual hizb (group)mostly consist of (religiously) ignorant men who go about calling people to innovation (though they have the best of intentions!). They either misquote hadith or they give it a false interpretation in order to fulfil their Tablighi agenda's. Going on three days mainly consists of reading fazail A'mal (a book with some really dodgy contents), the 6 tablighi points (not to be confused with the 6 articles of faith which would probably be much more beneficial!) and have tea breaks every couple of hours. I actually used to put on weight when I went on Jamaat!!
Before disseminating knowledge you must learn. Most tablighi's I've come across have not managed to tell me the difference between Emaan and Yaqeen even they it comes out of their mouth every couple of minutes. If they would only study Tawheed and Aqidah they would truly be upon the understanding of the salaf instead of rambling on about that which they have no knowledge.
I know I've gone on alot about the Tablighi's but only to voice my concerns as to the caretakers and decision makers of this mosque. The Muslims need to build a shura, to start of with they can have one for every city. I think London shura should consist of sh. Haitham Haddad, sh. suhaib Hasan, sh. Abu Hanifah, sh. Sulaiman Ghani (to represent the Hanafi's), sh. Abu Ithar, and other members from different aspects of the community (eg Doctors, lawyers etc). I believe every city should choose their shura and thereafter we can talk about unity.
written by Ibnul Adam, March 27, 2007
Tablighis do not understand the concept of Bida'h. If they did, they would not start this group 80-90 years ago (1920s), which by the way was started by a exterme sufi, Muhammad Ilyas of Bangladesh.
May Allah guide these people. Their niyah is good, but manhaj is not.
Wa salamo alaykom
written by Ex-Tablighi... Now... A Muwahid, March 27, 2007
Abu Musab..get real bro!
The sahabahs would go in the "path of Allaah" for jihaad. They did NOT set aside 40 or so days to go round knocking on peoples door and preaching shirk from books fadha'il e-amal.
And NO!... going to "study" in Madina, India, Pakistan, Egypt, Yemen etc and going on Tablighi "field trips" for 40 days are not the same thing.
Hmmmm... I wonder you only mentioned madinah university.
Take care and get knowledge of TRUE Islam through studying Tawheed and Shirk, from REAL scholars who cite proofs and evidences.
BTW... Well said brother Abu Ismail, I could not have said it better.
PS... I am NOT against building a house of Allaah. I am against people who define Islamic terms incorrectly while giving pathetic examples.
Fee Aman Illaah Ya Muslimeen.
written by abu Musab, February 24, 2007
In this messaging list I can see there are so many hideous bothers out there think that they are on the right path and so sure that they are not doing bidah, then why the hell do you go out for the weekend with the sheikh to gain knowledge, isn’t that bidah? Or is that from Quran and Sunnah?
Many of you discussed about money, have even donated a penny to wards the effort of the Markaz or did anyone ever came to you for money, answer ‘NO’, because this effort does not need your money neither does it need you, so why are you so concern about the money, if you got money of your own go and open your own madaras. What ever Allah decreed for this place will happen with or without your support. Islam was not established with money, numbers, criticism etc it was though purity, unity
I know I have been very harsh in this message, please do forgive me if I insulted you in anyway. I am so hurt by other people’s sayings and seem to me that we are so liberated from our teaching.
Masalam
written by ***********, February 19, 2007
1. You think the money should be better spent elsewhere.
Frankly there is no reason why you can’t think this and still support the mosque. After all nobody said you have to contribute anything from your pocket. Surely you cannot believe that a building where the remembrance of Allah is established is a complete waste?
2. You think you will be helping people in their innovation.
Let us assume that you are right and the mosque is full of innovators, even though I disagree. (N.B. I hope you are aware that not every person who commits an act of innovation is an innovator). How exactly will making it larger help them in their innovation?
written by Salafi, February 15, 2007
written by Abu Ismaeel, February 15, 2007
The many millions would be better spent building other institutions and facilities to serve the critical needs of our Muslim community.
Let's think:
How many muslim mosques do we already have in London, to fulfill the obligation to pray in? Roughly? Many hundreds, right?
Ok.
1. How many muslim shelters?
2. How many muslim cemetaries?
3. How many muslim hospitals?
4. How many muslim universities?
5. How many muslim orphanages?
6. How many muslim shelters?
Do we not need these??
Will building a megamosque fulfill these needs??
NO.
What is WRONG with us?!
Why do we, instead of competing in building beautified mosques, not take a wholistic view of what our re-ordered priorities should be vis a vis our situation in the UK and what other muslim needs we must fulfill?
May Allah grant us wisdom.
May Allah grant us imagination and vision.
And may Allah grant us the correct balance between them, and fiqh fi'd deen.
written by Salafi, February 12, 2007
written by Raya, February 11, 2007
As a Muslim it would be an honour for me to support the building of a mosque particularily in the west, yet Muslims are encouraged to be intelligent about the choices they make for the better of the community. As is well-known Muslims are currently under fire for what extremist Muslims are doing and saying in the name of Islam. It is my right, as a Muslim, to know before voting whether this mosque is going to be used by or its facilities become accessible for extremists. It's is both my duty to protect my religion, and my right not to be subject to discrimination by society becasue of the extremists doings. I think it would be very assuring and a positive step of good intentions towards the British community, if the responsibles for this project assure the Muslim and non-Muslim community about the activities, facilities, and most importantly, the people who will be holding posts in the administration of mosque, particularly the imam and Friday sermon deliverer(s). The mosque should be a beacon for light and good not exclusion and extremisim. Becasue I am a Muslim and that is my duty...I have the right to know.
written by just another Muslim, February 08, 2007
written by Abu-Musab, February 08, 2007
Zazakallah Sheikh
May Allah reward you for demonstrating your priceless support to establish this mosque, which will bring endless benefits to our community. It came to my attention that many brothers and sisters do not know what happens in the Markaz and how brothers and sisters around the world work relentlessly in spreading the deen from such place. I therefore request brothers to visit the current Markaz on Thursday night gathering and then judgement on the effort through which countless number of Muslims worldwide are now worshiping Allah and non Muslims accepting Islam by observing the effort of such people who associate themselves with the effort of the Markaz. As we all know that deen spread from Masjid Nabawi, therefore we should treat all mosques equally to such and help in all means. I myself been an associate of this mosque and effort for more than 10 years and never experienced any activity which violates Islam. Trust me, one need to see this effort before making any judgement merely on hearsays. May Allah guide us all.
Masalam
written by Abdullah, February 07, 2007
written by Mohammed Kadir, February 07, 2007
Before anyone decides to cast me as an "obstacle", please bear in mind what I actually said! Which is that I am in support of a true masjid which stands for Islam and stands against all things UNISLAMIC in our society - a masjid that speaks out and involves the COMMUNITY!
Wasalam.
written by Rahima, February 07, 2007
written by someone, February 07, 2007
written by Osman Ahmed, February 07, 2007
written by abuahmed, February 03, 2007
written by Slave of Allah, February 03, 2007
written by Dis solutioned muslim, February 02, 2007
Secondly it is not enough to build just houses but what about the education to the immediate community - what masajed can say they are offering education fe sabeelillah?
Arabic for starters, tajweed, et al???
As our prophet has stated - the time is very near - we can see for our own eyes the empty masajeds already - why the need for confirmation of the end of time???
written by Dr Bilal Philips, February 01, 2007











With due respect and love for all my brothers in Islam I will make this comment very clear and it is for your own benifit:
SHUT UP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
There is a time and place for every time of a discussion. The comments below are ill timed as well as ill placed. So I repeat my advise:
SHUT UP !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For the future if every one please think before writing stuff that will be so awesome !