Muslim Student Association holds Open House

The Muslim Student Association sponsored an open house at the Islamic Society of Tuscaloosa Thursday night.

Farah Majid, UA law student and member of the MSA, said the purpose of the event was to “allow community members to come to the mosque and observe and interact and promote awareness.”

The event began with a meet and greet, and the MSA provided refreshments. Ranita Sharif, vice president of the MSA and a graduate student at the University, welcomed attendees to the Islamic Society of Tuscaloosa and introduced Bilal Ahmad, president of MSA.

Ahmad translated a recitation from the Quran and introduced speaker Adam Tarifique to give a presentation of the introduction to Islam. Tarifique is active in the Birmingham Islamic Society. Tarifique began by telling a story to explain the basic ideas about Islamic culture. He said the Arabic word “Islam” can be defined from five verbs: “surrender, submission, obedience, sincerity and peace.”

Tarifique explained requirements for Muslims, including praying five times a day and an annual donation of income to poverty.

“It is required for every Muslim to give 2.5 percent of their income to the poor,” he said.
Tarifique said that this money donated is not for the government or any organization, but goes directly for the poor.

Tarifique also clarified common misconceptions about Muslims and Islamic beliefs. He explained that many people believe Muslims worship a “black box in the desert.” But, he said, “This black box represents a focal point for Muslims to be united in one single direction in prayer.”

Tarifique explained the two major sins for a Muslim person. He said the first rule of a Muslim is to worship God, or Allah, in Arabic, alone.

“The second major sin by a Muslim is to disobey our parents,” he said.

Following the presentation, visitors were invited to participate in a quiz for prizes about Islamic ideals before starting a question and answer session. Tarifique and audience members shared in answering questions about the prophets Jesus and Muhammad and the relationship between the Bible and the Quran.

Karly Alexander and Whitney Talley, seniors majoring in communication disorders, attended the event with their multicultural issues class.

“We’re both Christians and we’re learning to administer therapy to future clients of all cultures,” Alexander said.

“We want to know more about Islamic culture,” Talley said.

Sharif said the open house was the MSA’s last event of the semester. She said she hopes those that attended enjoyed learning about Islamic culture.