Johnson City, Tenn., quietly crossed a threshold in July when the city’s first purpose-built Islamic center opened its doors, a 9,600-square-foot home for the small but growing Muslim Community of Northeast Tennessee.
A mosque – or to use the preferred Arabic term, a masjid (mahs-JEED’) – might have once seemed out of place in a medium-sized town in the old Bible Belt, but no more. With national trends and regional growth comes greater diversity, particularly with magnets such as the medical and health industries and East Tennessee State University. We’re all neighbors now.
The new building is located on Antioch Road, bordering Willow Springs Park on about three acres of land that the Muslim community bought 10 years ago. Construction started last year, after the members had saved enough money to pay for the half-million-dollar building outright. A loan was out of the question, since Islamic law forbids dealing with loan interest. (Strictly speaking, Jewish law and early Christian practice carried the same prohibition.)
A masjid is essentially a simple structure with simple purposes: It is a gathering place for worship, prayers and community events. Muslims do not “consecrate” or bless their buildings, although the members are considering a “grand opening” to invite the wider community.
“We believe all the world is a place for prayer,” explained MCNET leader Taneem Aziz.
The structure looks ordinary – the tan siding and deck could belong to any house or building – except for the large green dome on the roof.
The main prayer room, a carpeted rectangle about 30 feet by 75 feet (pictured here, before carpeting), is precisely aligned to face east, toward Mecca, as dictated by Muslim custom. The worship leader sits in a small alcove on the east wall, underneath a handcrafted panel with decorative Arabic script that calls people to prayer. No pews or chairs are here, since people normally stand, kneel and bow to the ground in Muslim services.
About 300 people can worship in that room – that is, about 300 men, since Muslim services are segregated by gender. The women’s area is separated by a wall with six large windows fitted with one-way glass, a clever feature that allows women to view the main room but, for the sake of modesty, prevents men from looking in.
The building also includes a kitchen and classrooms, and bathrooms truly meant for bathing, with areas for ritual washing of feet — short, tiled pillars as seats that face low shower heads over a draining area. The mirrors are bordered with intricate tile patterns.
The basement waits for the funds to be finished. Aziz said it will be used for gatherings, meals, recreation and other social events.
That would be called a fellowship hall in a lot of churches, I told him.
“A fellowship hall,” he repeated softly. “I like that. That’s a good term.”
It’s a long way from the first meetings of the Muslim Student Association at ETSU almost two decades ago, which gathered in the basement of a member’s home. The group grew large enough to buy and renovate a house on Division Street in 1994, which served as the community center until now. About 70 households are actively involved now, Aziz said.
Since the masjid opened, several people have become active members, including those who have come and gone in the past and local Muslims who never appeared until now. The modest growth is encouraging, and the members hope to call a full-time imam to lead worship and guide the community. No one knows when that might happen.
For now, they plan to steadily increase their activities – such as scheduling prayer gatherings five times a day, according to Muslim custom – confident that having the close proximity to the university and the medical center will permit many of their members to attend during the day.
Aziz said they also plan to organize public talks and other gatherings – both social and educational – and invite non-Muslims to visit.
“This is not only for our community, but also to let people know about Islam,” Aziz said. “The facility will give us the chance to invite other people for fellowship.”
First published in the Johnson City (Tenn.) Press, 20 Sept. 2008.
I don’t know why anyone would be so happy about a rattlesnake nest comming into the Johnson City community.Do some reading on Islam,( not from politically correct sources ) before you are so welcomming.The history of Islam is very violent and militaristic from it’s beginnings.If you are not a muslim,you are an infidel.All infidels must be converted,subjugated,taxed or killed.Like i said,do some research.The people who paint Islam as a peaceful religion are one of two things anti-Christian or on the petro billions payroll.
Comment by Phil Nillum — March 25, 2009 @ 3:50 pm |
Sorry to say that the individual who wrote this comment did not have his facts straight. On the contrary, the religion of Islam is a beautiful religion that teaches peace between neighbors and all humankind. The religion of Islam was sent down to the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) based on three religions. The first was Chrisitianity and the second was Judism and finally Islam. If you read and understand the Quran (with an open and unbiased mind) you will learn that it DOES NOT allow violance in any way, shap, or form. I am NOT an anti-Christian or an anti-Jew nor am I on the “petro billions payroll.” So please before writing any comments about this beautiful religion or any other religions make sure that your facts are straight.
Comment by Areej — June 19, 2009 @ 2:16 am |
Sounds like ‘sleeper cell’ infiltration to me—and has been going on for decades in JC. Familiarize yourselves with the term TAQIY YA and the Muslim agenda will be understood. And YES, they historically have a violent past. Armageadon has been painted as a war between Christianity, Islam, and Judaism by some ‘camps’.
Comment by Timothy Steppe — September 24, 2009 @ 12:36 pm |
becuse i own a dog, i am “unclean”, because i eat pork i am “unclean”, because my wife sometimes wears jeans she is “unacceptable” as a wife. i do not follow the quaran and beat my wife when she disobeys me, i am not a “righteous husband”. the chritians have a problem with me too, i drink wine and smoke cigarettes. the fact that i know by heart more scripture accepted by jews, christians and muslims than any preacher, imam or rabbi i know of and do my best to live by them seems to matter not. i have my own prayer room where i remove my shoes because i “stand on holy ground” and my neighborhood is my church, synagogue and mosque. i would say bless you all but too many of you would find that offensive.
Comment by stan dailey — November 10, 2009 @ 8:29 pm |