Muslim students struggle to unify a group with disparate identities
Anyone who ventures into the chapel of the Interfaith Center (IFC) on a typical evening early this fall will see something alien to most Americans, but familiar to 1.5 billion people across the world - a Ramadan service for the Muslims of Hopkins and the surrounding community.
During this time of the year, Muslims around the world celebrate Ramadan, the month when Islam's holy text, the Qur'an, was revealed.
"The Qur'an is the pinnacle of Arabic poetry," freshman Husain Danish said, "so during the service, the motions of everybody praying reflect the rhythm of the prayers."
As the sun sets, people start filing into the dimly-lit IFC chapel. Attendants are of all ages, ethnic origins and styles of dress, ranging from women in hijaabs and men in prayer caps to students in jeans and hoodies. The diversity is remarkable, but equally mesmerizing is the unity once the muezzin gives the athan (call to prayer) and everyone comes together at the front of the chapel.
Each congregant removes his or her shoes and makes the same motions, moving in harmony with the words of the prayers. After the service, the JHU Muslim Association (abbreviated as JHUMA, a pun on jummah, the weekly Friday afternoon prayer for Muslims), hosts a dinner for everyone to break his or her fast. Tables in the basement of the IFC are crowded with Hopkins students and other Muslims from the community who are welcomed by JHUMA since there are no mosques nearby.
Last February something happened to challenge the idea that all Muslims, despite cultural differences and different upbringings, could be united at Hopkins. The New York Times published an article entitled "Iraq's Shadow Widens Sunni-Shiite Split in U.S.," describing tensions between Shiite and Sunni Muslims on American college campuses. The article asserted that sectarian violence in Iraq had contributed to unrest between the two sects all over the world; most attacks are against Shiites, who are the minority in much of the world but the majority in Iran and part of Iraq.
During this time of the year, Muslims around the world celebrate Ramadan, the month when Islam's holy text, the Qur'an, was revealed.
"The Qur'an is the pinnacle of Arabic poetry," freshman Husain Danish said, "so during the service, the motions of everybody praying reflect the rhythm of the prayers."
As the sun sets, people start filing into the dimly-lit IFC chapel. Attendants are of all ages, ethnic origins and styles of dress, ranging from women in hijaabs and men in prayer caps to students in jeans and hoodies. The diversity is remarkable, but equally mesmerizing is the unity once the muezzin gives the athan (call to prayer) and everyone comes together at the front of the chapel.
Each congregant removes his or her shoes and makes the same motions, moving in harmony with the words of the prayers. After the service, the JHU Muslim Association (abbreviated as JHUMA, a pun on jummah, the weekly Friday afternoon prayer for Muslims), hosts a dinner for everyone to break his or her fast. Tables in the basement of the IFC are crowded with Hopkins students and other Muslims from the community who are welcomed by JHUMA since there are no mosques nearby.
Last February something happened to challenge the idea that all Muslims, despite cultural differences and different upbringings, could be united at Hopkins. The New York Times published an article entitled "Iraq's Shadow Widens Sunni-Shiite Split in U.S.," describing tensions between Shiite and Sunni Muslims on American college campuses. The article asserted that sectarian violence in Iraq had contributed to unrest between the two sects all over the world; most attacks are against Shiites, who are the minority in much of the world but the majority in Iran and part of Iraq.