Al-Huda
Foundation, NJ U. S. A
the Message Continues ... 5/131
Newsletter for July 2012
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The Story of the
Transformation of a Community
by Nasir Shamsi
Mehfle Shahe Khorasan, the
First Shia Center of the American Shias of Indo-Pakistan had its
30th Anniversary in August 2005. As one of its first
congregants, I was asked to pen down my thoughts about what is
now endearingly called Mehfil. I do not know where I read it,
but I agree with the succinct message in this quote: “The
history is to a people what brain is an individual". The living
communities always record their history. It is an account of
where they came from, what preceded them, what brought them
together and kept them together - their religious heritage,
culture, aspirations, folkways and mores - their early
struggles, and anything and everything that transformed them
from a group into a community. For us in these critical times,
the study of our early struggle and the role of a small center
to help transform scattered groups into community has become all
the more significant.
Since I am trying to recap
memory of events scattered over three decades, please forgive me
for any omissions or mistaken dates. I’ll try to avoid
mentioning names of persons, as much as possible, because they
are too many and won’t fit in the confines of this small paper.
The story of Mehfil is the
story of evolution and development of the first Shias of
India-Pakistan origin who started arriving in New York in the
late 60’s and 70’s, in search of better living for their
families. Until the early 70’s, it was hard for a new-comer from
Pakistan to find a Pakistani, much less a Shia in New York.
It was 1973; I landed in
New York in March of the same year. There was no place to
observe Muharram. Men and women and small children of the only
about 20 families from the Tri-state area assembled in the UN
high School Hall on the East Riverside across from the 25th
street in Manhattan, to commemorate the first Muharram, for most
of us. The place was rented. The taped speeches were heard, a
sister did Soz, followed by Matam and Noha Khawani. That was us
- a small group of Shias hailing from India and Pakistan. Some
funds were collected to purchase a place. A year passed.
In 1974, we met again for
Muharram at the same place. A few new people attended and some
more funds were collected this year. A sketch of the proposed
building in New York was posted at the entrance and a skeleton
association was formed.
Later this year, Sultan
Karamali and Yusaf Haroon, two entrepreneurs, and dedicated
Shias from Karachi bought a church in Englewood, New Jersey and
named it “ Mehfle Shahe Khorasan “, to be managed by a Trust by
the same name. Shaikh Muhammad Sarwar, a young, erudite and
pious scholar was called in from Karachi, as the Resident Alam
of the Center. Shaikh Sahib who had finished his education in
Najaf lived next door from the center. The Mehfil opened for
Majalis for some time. It came down one day due to fire caused
by a short circuit in the basement. Soon however a brand new
building replaced the old church structure. In 1975, this small
but comfortable facility became the first Imam Bargah in the
Tristate area. Same year, SANA (Shia Ithna Asha’ri Association
of North America) bought a property in Delran in South Jersey (
about 80 miles south of Mehfil) and established the second Shia
Center.
I have fond memories of
what now has generally come to be known as Mehfil. In 1977, we
purchased our house in Montclair, not far from the Mehfil. We
seldom missed any of the programs at Mehfil. The families from
New York also attended these programs. Because there was a
physical place we could call our own, the loose group that we
were before soon evolved into a community. A sense of
friendship, brotherhood and camaraderie permeated the body
politic of this newly born community. There was expression of
enthusiasm and caring for one another among its members. This
phenomenon was hardly accidental; it was the flowering of the
right to assemble. The feeling of being part of a community
always generates energy and joy, ecstasy and mutual love. People
respected one another, committed to struggling together rather
than against each other. This gave birth to extraordinary
synergy among the members of the community. The worries and
anxiety were replaced by optimism and sanguineness.
It was a happy community. A
couple of other associations had been formed by now. The good
thing about association is that it unites into one channel the
efforts of diverging minds, and drives them vigorously in the
pursuit of a common goal. There is nothing that cannot be
achieved through the combined power of individuals united into
an association or organization. The synergy resulting from the
combined power of a community can work miracles. All successful
organizations give special attention to this. They encourage
their management bodies to participate in workshops on
communication skills and leadership development programs.
The associating power
helped develop an enthusiastic and vibrant community in the
NY/NJ Metropolitan area. The congregants of Mehfil, touched and
charged by the newly discovered identity and a sense of
self-awakening, were able to launch in the following few years a
membership organization-- the Muslim Foundation of New Jersey
(1984). This was a natural development of the process of
community-making, guided by the prudence and wisdom of a few
selfless leaders and a compliant but vigilant congregation.
There were other compelling
reasons for forming a membership based organization, giving
representation to the families scattered over more than 100
miles radius around the First Shia Center in the Metropolitan
area. Mehfil was acquired and managed by a closely held Trust.
As the community took shape, there was a growing demand from
people to participate in the management. The New Yorkers early
on were not very happy, because of long commuting, for choice of
North New Jersey for the first Shia Center. They had all along
been trying to find a place some where in New York.
The founding of Muslim
Foundation in the basement of Dr. Manzoor Rizvi’s house in
Bloomfield, New Jeresy in 1984 was another milestone toward the
community building effort. I was present in that meeting
attended by leaders from different parts of New York and New
Jersey. A truly representative body of some 20 people laid the
foundation of the Muslim Foundation and agreed upon its mission
and goals of the Muslim Foundation. From now on known as MFI, it
became the working body to manage and maximize the use of Mehfil
as a Shia Center, leaving the titular role of the Khorasan Trust
as owner of the property. The MFI gave the center a
representative character through greater participation of the
community. It contributed to the spirit of volunteerism, which
over the next three decades was to produce a number of good
leaders in the community. Many of these leaders helped in
creating and managing programs, even centers at other places.
Driven by enthusiasm and
initiative of Hasan and Salman, two Mehfil boys still in their
early teens, the MFI launched the First Shia Sunday School in
the basement of Mehfil. I was fortunate to be among its early
teachers along with Dr. Manzoor Rizvi, late Dr. Haider Shamsi,
Srs. Nasim Gokal and Mumtaz Ladak. I cherish with great love the
memories of those happy Sundays. I had the pleasure of teaching
our young boys and girls; among them were Aazim, Arif, Hasan,
Ali, Salman, Adnan, Jafar, Saba, Zehra, Shahana, Huma and
Durrana. They were all brilliant, disciplined and eager to
learn. I call them our superstars of the 80’s. They are all
doing well now; most of them married, they are devoted to
serving both religion and community.
This joint venture of the
Mehfil and MFI acted as catalyst; it stepped up the community
building work. The MFI sponsored the first religious Scholar.
Maulana Tilmiz Hasnain Rizvi arrived in 1984. He was appointed
Director of MFI’s newly created subsidiary, The Islamic Central
Directorate with mandate to provide guidance in religious
matters to the Shias of the Tri-State area. The then President
of MFI, late Dr. Haider Shamsi purchased a house in Englewood,
close to the Mehfil , only to house the ISD office and library.
In 1984, the late Maulana
Saeed Akhtar Rizvi (of Bilal Mission, East Africa) came to the
US at the invitation of MFI. He gave instructions at a two-week
long Summer Camp for the Shia youth at Alpine, New Jersey
organized by the Mehfil Sunday School and MFI. Kids from New
York also participated in this Camp. His books, “ The Elementary
Islamic Instructions “ and another book, “ The Guide Book of
Quran “ became the first two publications of MFI. Printed to
fulfill the needs of the students of the Mehfil Sunday School,
now these books are taught in many Shia schools. This made MFI
embark on publication course; it continued publishing more
books. It has 25 Publications to its credit, including the
English translation of Shaikh Tejani’s monumental work: Shias
are the (Real) Ahlul Sunnah “- a remarkable title. ( I had the
privilege of editing 22 out of the 25 books published by the
MFI.) By now MFI had also launched a Quarterly Magazine, Payame
Aman, the first Shia journal in the US; I served as its editor
for all, except for its early issues, which were edited by Syed
Baqar Rizvi. Payame Aman was distributed free to 3000 Shias
nationwide. The first copies of each issue of the Magazine were
made available at the entrance of the Mehfil. It was once again
the two students of Mehfil Sunday School-- a brother and sister
team (Adnan and Saima), who, in 1993, helped start the MUNJ
(Muslim Youth of New Jersey), the First Shia youth association
in New Jersey; they simultaneously launched also a bi-monthly
Newsletter, “ Awakening “. This was the first time Shia youth
had a newsletter of their own, with articles, poems and cartoons
contributed by the boys and girls of the community.
The influx of new migrants
in the 70’s and 80’s greatly increased the numbers as well as
the resources of the nascent community, which had already built
three more Centers in New Jersey, Baytul Qayem (est. 1985) in
the South, Baitul Asr and Astana-i Zahra in Central Jersey. New
York also had now a big Center (the old Islamic Center at Queens
Blvd) in Queens, New York, which was later replaced by the
current Al-Khoi Center in Jamaica, New York. The congregants of
Mehfil provided cooperation and support to the other Centers in
New Jersey and New York. Although these centers work
independently of one another, yet there is a remarkable
connectedness between them and their managements. The MFI
established its own Center in Franklin Township in recent years.
Even though it moved its office to the building in Franklin
Township to pursue its great goal of building the First Shia
Masjid, the relationship as well as interest of its founder
members with the Mehfil remains undiminished.
Mehfil is a small facility.
It is our Community’s unsung hero ! Nobody has gauged its
performance. The most remarkable thing about Mehfil is that
although it started as a small center, yet, almost unknowingly,
it has played a vital role in transforming the early Shia groups
into a community; some of its congregants reached out nationally
and they were able to inspire major Shia projects at other
places. To name a few of these projects and programs: they were
among the founders of JANA (Jafria Association of North
America); they played a leading role along with their friends in
New York, to help establish as well as manage the First Shia
Center in New York—the Islamic Center on Queens Blvd, Queens for
several years, until it moved to the building in Jamaica under
new management and was renamed as Al-Khoi Center.
They closely worked with
Dr. Khalil Tabatabai for his project in Karachi, Imam Hussain
University. They also helped start the first Howza Ilmiya and a
Shia youth school with live-in facility at Medina, New York in
1987. The two congregants of Mehfil sent their sons to help
start the first session of the new Shia institute at Medina.
Maulana Tilmiz Hasnain Rizvi and Maulana Amir Mukhtar Faezi
worked as the first Principals of this school.
The community building
movement that started with establishment of Mehfil in 1974 had
to go full circle and find its fruition. In 2002, as the
Providence would have it, a Mehfil congregant met a Shia brother
from New York in the Breakfast Room at the Hyatt Regency,
Washington DC (they were both there to attend ISNA annual
convention). The brother from New York mentioned that his sons
(who were also present at the time) were very unhappy; they said
while ISNA had done so much, what had we (the Shias) done ? The
New Jersey brother said:
“ Don’t worry. Why don’t you call other community leaders when
you go back home and let’s meet and form our own organization on
the same model? ”
The brother from New York
took the suggestion to heart. Two weeks later, they met with ˝
dozen other community leaders in Maryland. It was unanimously
agreed to form a national Shia organization to address, among
other things, the socio-economic and political issues facing the
community. Thus UMAA (Universal Muslim Association of America)
was formed as the First national organization of the American
Shias.This was the fulfillment of a mission that had begun in
1974 -- the final flowering of an effort that had commenced with
the first small community center. This is the journey of a
community from Mehfil to UMAA, the quintessence of the Shia
heritage in America. UMAA is beginning of a New Era !
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