Muslims get chance of a lifetime to meet world leader in Cumberland

OttawaCommunityNews.com
Oct. 31, 2016
Brier Dodge

Members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama`at in Cumberland had the opportunity of a lifetime to meet the leader of the religious organization during his trip to Ottawa.

Caliph Hazrat Mirza Masroor Ahmad visited the mosque, a former elementary school, in Cumberland on Oct. 15, as an estimated 800 people came to celebrate his arrival in Ottawa.

“This is the highest honour a community can have,” said Iman Imtiaz Ahmed. “He brings a new spirit and a new enthusiasm in Ottawa.”

On Oct. 18., more families attended the mosque to meet with the Caliph, visiting Canada on a tour from London.

Families could discuss individual issues with him, and get advice from the highest person in their religious organization.

Ahmed said the visit has been “emotionally uplifting” and is a chance for members of the mosque to renew their religious pledges. It’s a once in a lifetime chance for most of the people and families who had short one-on-one visits, as he sat in a private room on the second floor of the mosque.

There are millions of Ahmadiyya Muslims world-wide, and it is considered to be the fasted growing Muslim sect in the world.

Before Ottawa, the Caliph was in Toronto and visited the Canadian headquarters in Vaughan, where celebrations were underway for the 50th anniversary of the Ahmadiyya Muslims in Canada.

“Tens of thousands of people were in Vaughan for his arrival,” said Hassaan Shahid, who does communications for the organization and travelled to Ottawa for the Caliph’s visit. He said in Islamic tradition, the people were not clapping or cheering, but chanting.

“It was interesting for people to see the love people have for His Holiness,” Shahid said.

He also spoke at a three-day Ahmadiyya Muslim convention in Mississauga, where he delivered a sermon to 25,000.

The motto of the sect is “love for all, hatred for none.”