Friday 21 June 2013
The founder of the oldest mosque in Switzerland was actually sent out to build a mosque in Germany. However, due to the complicated entry procedures in the postwar period the missionary ended up in Zurich instead. Now the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community invites for the 50th anniversary.
Audio “The oldest mosque is 50 (06/21/2013)”
4:53 min
When the mosque was built 50 years ago, the minaret was not a matter of discussion.. There was some resistance, a demonstration and petitions to the city council was launched. But Mayor Emil Landolt campaigned for the mosque. And so it was that the first mosque in Switzerland on 22 June 1963 inaugurated by the then UN Secretary General Sir Muhammad Zafrullah Khan.
Islamic worship in layers
“Before, people came from all over the German-speaking Switzerland,” Imam Sadaqat Ahmed told in “Regionaljournal Zurich Schaffhausen”. “In layers then celebrated religious festivals.” Today the Muslims immigrants mainly come from the city and the greater Zurich area-usually with Pakistani background.
And they appreciate the mosque: “It is a great contribution to integration – especially after the minaret initiative. A contribution that it can be done without violence and misunderstanding, “says a believer. Another says: “The mosque is the most beautiful piece of jewelry for me in Switzerland. It means a lot to me that I come here and to strengthen my relationship with God. ”
Open Mosque Day
On Saturday, the mosque celebrates its 50th anniversary with a big party. Are invited dignitaries from the city and canton – and all who would like to see the mosque itself once. The Jubilee is Open Mosque Day.
Text: fren / Post: Vera Deragisch
(Sorry, Google translate used. Original in German: (with photos): http://www.srf.ch/news/regional/zuerich-schaffhausen/schoenstes-schmuckstueck-50-jahre-mahmud-moschee-in-zuerich
Without him there might not be a Mosque: Dr. Emil Landolt, Mayor of Zurich at the time. The small prince in the picture is now Dr. Yahya Hassan Bajwa
Categories: Ahmadiyyat: True Islam, Europe, Switzerland
Fact correction: Sir Zafarullah was the President of UN General Assembly and not the Secretary General.
Nice report otherwise. thanks for sharing. Was this this first ever muslim mosque in Switzerland?
Thanks for the correction. You are right of course. In fact I had the honor and pleasure to be Sir Zafarullah’s guest in New York during his tenure of President of the UN General Assembly. – Yes, this mosque was the first ever Muslim Mosque in Switzerland. That is why in the early days all Muslims used to attend it. In fact large numbers of Turks used to arrive at 6 am on Eid days and Eid prayers were held at 6 and then again later on when others arrived. It was not until some 20 years later that Turks and Arabs opened up their own ‘prayer centers’, Geneva mosque followed. Now there are 4 mosques in Switzerland, but in addition may be a hundred or more ‘prayer centers’ here and there, mostly on ‘ethical lines’ (Turks, Arabs).
I am delighted to know Mahmud Moschee is celebrating 50 years of its founding. This mosque has a special meaning for me. My waleema ceremony took place in this mosque in February 1972 when Mr Mushtaq Ahmad Bajwa was Imam of the mosque. I lived in Zurich not too long but every friday i used to look forward to offering prayers at the mosque. Imam Bajwa’s wife the most kind person i had ever met, she was second only to my mother. Imam Bajwa had a pleasant personality, not a dry scholar. He had a vast knowledge of world affairs, and a special tact to understand and measure a person’s abilities. At my waleema many Yuguslavian Muslims took part, and in fact one the guests was a relative of King Farooq of Egypt. I visited the mosque about six years ago after almost 30 years.My brother Dr Ishaq Khalil had spent a good deal of his life in Zurich, this mosque was his second home. Fondly I looked at all the photographs that are hanging on the stairs, in the main hall. I used to mail post cards to my relatives that had picture of the mosque at the back. I have fond memories of this splendid mosque. God bless mosque and may it continue to be beacon of light for all its Swiss citizens.