By Imam El-Amin, MMNS

Imam Abdullah Bey El-Amin, of Detroit, Michigan and his wife Cheryl Zahirah El-Amin, recently celebrated 30 years of marriage by renewing their wedding vows at Detroit’s Muslim Center.  The ceremony was designed to show the gratitude to ALLAH for the many blessings that came out of the union that He caused to come into being.

The renewal ceremony had a double special meaning as it was put on by the three children of the couple and their spouses.   Son, Maurice and wife, Camisha; daughter, Zarinah and husband Halim, and son Idris and wife Colette. Imam Dawud Alim, longtime friend and acquaintance of the couple officiated the ceremony.
Prophet Muhammad (s), was quoted as saying “when a man marries he has fulfilled half of the religion, so let him fear G’d regarding the remaining half.”  Also, in sura 52, ALLAH makes the  beautiful promise to us  “And those who believe and whose offspring follow them in faith – We unite them with their offspring;  and We will not deprive them of any of their work.  Every man (or woman) is pledged for what they do.”  52:21

The evening was shared by many of the couple’s friends and family, which included representatives of people from Prophet Abraham’s seed as well as brothers and sisters from other religious groups.  The guests wrote many “pearls of wisdom” and good wishes on slips of paper as they entered.  These are being kept in a book of remembrance by the happy couple.

The evening ended with a scrumptious dinner and much cheer and good wishes.

As Salaam alaikum
(Al Hajj) Imam Abdullah El-Amin

11-18

Jewish & Muslim students explore common health issues

The University of Western Ontario’s Jewish Medical Club and the Muslim Medical Students’ Association  joined forces to explore health issues unique to Muslim and Jewish patients.

While raising awareness of health issues is the driving force behind a student-led presentation , Jewish and Muslim students from the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry hope their collaborative efforts can demonstrate the importance of overlooking differences and working towards a common goal.

“We believe that as future physicians, it is our duty to be culturally sensitive towards the patients we treat and we hope that this event will help raise awareness about the health issues affecting Jewish and Muslim patients,” says Abdullah Alabousi, a representative from the Muslim Medical Students’ Association.

“We hope that this event will serve as a symbolic demonstration that Muslim and Jewish students can see beyond their differences and work together to raise awareness about each others’ cultures,” says Danny Mendelsohn, President of the Western Jewish Medical Club.

Dr. Nabil Sultan, a London-based nephrologist (a physician with an expertise in kidney diseases, kidney transplantation, and dialysis therapy) discussed such topics as ‘Religion and Healing,’ ‘The Muslim Physician’s Perspective: Is it encouraged or ignored?,’ ‘Porcine Valves: Lard and Other Pig By-Products in Medicine’ and ‘End of Life Issues: Withdrawal of Care and Pronouncing of Death.”

William Fisher, a Western professor of Psychology and Obstetrics and Gynaecology, spoke about Judaism’s perspective on contraception, abortion, end of life issues and the Jerusalem AIDS project – a collaboration between Jewish and Muslim physicians and researchers in Israel and Palestine targeted at preventing the spread of HIV in the region.

Awards presented to NJ Muslim law enforcement officers

SOUTH PLAINFIELD,NJ–The executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) on Saturday presented an award to the American Muslim Law Enforcement Officers Association (AMLEOA) at the annual banquet of the council’s New Jersey chapter.

More than 300 people turned out for the event in Edison, New Jersey. Rashida Tlaib, the first Muslim woman to be elected to the Michigan Legislature, spoke about the important role of Muslims in the political process. CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad also addressed the crowd, and presented CAIR-New Jersey’s 2009 Champions of Justice Award to AMLEOA “for outstanding service to the community.”

Ontario commits $80,000K to Muslim centre

LONDON, ON–The Ontario government is helping break the silence on domestic abuse in London’s Muslim community through a new grant that will increase support for victims.

The Muslim Resource Centre for Social Support and Integration, headed by Londoner Mohammed Baobaid, will receive $80,000 to provide immediate crisis assistance to Muslim women and families.

The resource centre will help connect the Muslim community to government programs and services.

“Social support and integration is missing in terms of programming in our society,” Baobaid said.

Permission denied:Mississippi mosque

The Madison County Planning Commission today denied a request from the Mississippi Muslim Association for a zoning change that would allow it to build a mosque on U.S. 51.

Commissioner William Amadio said the decision was based on the city’s refusal to commit to providing sewer service to the property. The proposed site, just north of the city limits, lies in Madison’s certificated area for the utility service.

“The only problem I have is you haven’t worked out your issues with Madison,” Amadio said. “I would deny your request based on you don’t have utilities worked out with Madison.”

Madison city attorney John Hedglin said the city has no objection to whatever decision the commission reaches, as long as the Muslim Association would be willing to work out accommodations with the city regarding sewer service.

QMG welcomes Khalid Wahid

Quincy, Ill. — Quincy Medical Group  announced that Khalid Waheed, MD, MPH is joining the Mt. Sterling Affiliate in April 2009.

Dr. Waheed received his bachelor of medicine, bachelor of surgery (M.B.B.S) from Deccan College of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, India in March 2000. He received his masters in public health (M.P.H) from Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Ill., in May 2005. His residency training was at North Oakland Medical Center in Pontiac, Mich.

Dr. Waheed worked as a duty medical officer in the Orthopedics Department at the Owaisi Hospital and Research Center in Hyderabad, India. He also practiced as a physician assistant at Mid-America Medical Center in Villa Park, Ill.

Dr. Waheed is a member of the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Family Physicians.

11-18

Asalamu alaikum,

I believe you are editor or maybe involved with the paper “Muslim Observer”     I just wanted to share this with you just like I shared with you the speech of Mr. Haqqani.     

I am commenting on the following article and probably you would like to share it with the MO’s editor/owner.

There is an article in the MO in Mar 20-26 issue by Mr. Pervez Amirali Hoodbhoy with title “Pakistan – Towards Theocracy?”

First of all, the title showed me that someone probably has a problem with Theocracy (i.e. Allah being the Highest in legislation”).

Secondly, it was proven when I went thru the whole article and was deeply disappointed.

Mr. Pervez is living up to his name as in the history I have never seen or met a good Pervez.

Maybe there are, but I have not come across.

He deeply criticized and mainly on the basis of whatever the west is making us believe.

He totally backed the western ideals not only with his observance, but also thru using certain titles.

And I am making my points short and not going through the whole thing:

I believe my main objection started since the paper I was reading was called “Muslim Observer”.

My understanding was that Muslim Observer would have articles backing up the Muslim point of view and not of Western.

Maybe if the paper’s name was just “The Observer” I would not have been disturbed at all.

Perhaps they should consider that to broaden the horizon for articles to be included.

Wassalam,

Zahid Mahmood, Texas

Northampton, MA – The Bill of Rights Defense Committee (BORDC) is pleased to announce that lawyer, recording artist, columnist, and grassroots organizer Shahid Buttar will join the organization in mid-May as Executive Director. Buttar will lead BORDC and the People’s Campaign for the Constitution (PCC) as they raise awareness about the impacts of national security policies on civil liberties and privacy interests.

Previously Counsel to Muslim Advocates’ Program to Combat Racial & Religious Profiling, Buttar has long advocated in defense of the Constitution. A 2003 graduate of Stanford Law School, he served as Professor Lawrence Lessig’s Constitutional Law Teaching Assistant andas Executive Editor of the Stanford Environmental Law Journal.  Based in Washington, DC, from 2003 to 2008, Buttar also served the American Constitution Society for Law & Policy as Associate Director for Communications & Outreach.

Buttar’s most recent work includes a FOIA request of a secret policy recently enacted by the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), the Domestic Investigative Operational Guidelines (DIOGs). The request, which Buttar filed as the new administration took office this January, was granted expedited processing for the rare reason that it relates to “a matter of widespread and exceptional media interest in which there exist possible questions about the government’s integrity.” The FBI committed on March 18 to disclose the document, but has not yet done so and may ultimately maintain secrecy over the document’s most objectionable sections on “ethnic behavior” and “geo-mapping” that effectively mandate ethnic profiling of numerous communities across the US.  Says Buttar, “The FBI has a long history of violating the rights of law-abiding Americans. Unfortunately, the DIOGs repeat the Bureau’s worst historical excesses, and have evaded scandal only because they remain secret.”

At BORDC, Buttar will facilitate grassroots mobilization across the US in defense of civil liberties and privacy interests threatened by national security programs. In addition to the expansion of FBI powers, BORDC will also challenge warrantless surveillance, executive secrecy, preventive detention, and local and state coordination with federal immigration law enforcement and domestic intelligence collection. According to Buttar, “The emerging surveillance state is a travesty violating our nation’s values of freedom and democracy. The Obama administration’s promises have not been fulfilled by the reality of its actions, and the President’s own calls for grassroots mobilization demand an active movement for civil liberties restoration. Because the ‘war on terror’ has become a war on the Constitution, Americans of conscience must defend the Bill of Rights, now more than ever.”

Chip Pitts, president of BORDC’s board of directors, is thrilled to have Buttar join the organization. “We are incredibly happy to have someone of Shahid Buttar’s passion and grassroots qualifications leading BORDC. With him as our executive director, there is no limit to our ability to reinvigorate the grassroots civil liberties movement and effect substantive change in American government.”

Formed in 2001 after the passage of the USA PATRIOT Act, the Bill of Rights Defense Committee is a national organization defending constitutional rights and civil liberties violated by “war on terror” policies. BORDC’s mission is to promote, organize, and support a diverse, effective, national grassroots movement to restore and protect civil rights and liberties guaranteed by the Bill of Rights.

The organization’s purpose is to educate people about the significance of those rights in our lives; to encourage widespread civic participation; and to cultivate and share the organizing tools and strategies needed for people to convert their concern, outrage, and fear into debate and action to restore Bill of Rights protections. As part of BORDC’s national action campaign, 8 states, 406 municipalities, and 89 labor unions, organizations, religious bodies, and college campuses have passed resolutions vowing to protect civil liberties.

11-18

By Emma Graham-Harrison

MULAYAN, Afghanistan (Reuters) – The cave Sakhi Allah now calls home was a potato store when he was a child, growing up in the lush river valley of Afghanistan’s remote central highlands below his current front door.

Like most of the villagers of Mulayan, every time he steps out he looks down on the shattered remains of a life ripped apart by decades of civil war.

His home was sacked by the Taliban and years as a refugee have left him, and those neighbors who also straggled back, too poor to rebuild their homes.

Instead they moved into centuries-old caves that overlook the valley, probably hollowed out by Buddhist monks long before the valley’s conversion to Islam.

“Life is much more difficult than when we were young,” said the 27-year-old father of six, seated on a worn red carpet in the single unpainted cave where his family eat, sleep, cook and rest.

“We have been back for four years, and I would prefer to live in a house, but we don’t have any money.”

A pipe takes fumes from the stove out through a hole in the mud front-wall. There is little decoration beyond a bunch of plastic flowers stuck on the wall and a small red plastic mirror, but Sakhi said his family are still better off than others.

“Some people don’t even have a donkey to bring water up from the river.”

With no money to rebuild the village, they have moved even the village mosque into a cave, now immaculately whitewashed with a newly reinforced roof.

“We had no other space to set up a mosque,” said Haji Mehrabuddin, who consecrated the cave and presided for several years over its two rows of carpets and a rough-dug niche that points the way to Mecca for prayer.

The village is set in the fertile Bamiyan valley. It looks idyllic, tucked among snowy mountains, but has always been a dangerously tempting prize for regional rulers.

Just a few minutes away is the “city of screams,” the stumpy remains of a vast citadel sacked by Ghengis Khan and a potent reminder of past disaster.

When it rains, the ceiling falls

Before they were driven from Kabul in 2001, the hardline Taliban treated the valley’s ethnic Hazara inhabitants brutally, in part for their adherence to the Shi’ite branch of Islam which the Sunni Taliban despised.

When they finally took control of Bamiyan, the Taliban killed many of its inhabitants and razed homes and buildings like the bazaar. They then blew up two giant Buddha statues that had presided over the valley like guardians for hundreds of years.

Most of the 200 families in Mulayan village were killed or fled with the valley’s other inhabitants and never returned, residents say. Around 20 families who did straggle back had little option but to move into the caves.

Rebuilding a home would cost at least $1,000, and no one has that much money, said Asmat Allah, a pale 70-year-old with startling blue eyes who once had a 10-room home.

Now his family of 14 cram into two dugouts, scraping a living like other villagers from potato and wheat farming.

“When it rains, clumps of mud and stone fall from the ceiling, and it is very cold,” he said.

The cave dwellers of Bamiyan say they have seen no help in nearly eight years from the government of President Hamid Karzai, up for re-election in August.

Children attend a school 20 minutes walk away, and say they love their home but hope for a life beyond the fields.

“I want to be a doctor, to serve the people,” said 16-year-old Karim Allah, who saw some of the ravages of the Taliban before fleeing to Kabul.

But haunting those dreams is the fear a resurgent Taliban could defeat foreign troops backing the government in Kabul and return to the now peaceful valley.

“The news makes me worried the Taliban could come back. I get sad looking at our old houses,” he said, staring across the valley at dusk.

(Editing by Jerry Norton)

Q&A with Abdi Soltani

By Annette Fuentes, New America Media

Editor’s Note: Abdi Soltani, 35, is the newly appointed executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, the largest affiliate of the national organization. Before coming to the ACLU, Soltani headed Californians for Justice, a grassroots immigrant and civil rights group; the Campaign for College Opportunity; and PARSA Community Foundation, a Persian philanthropic organization. He spoke with NAM editor Annette Fuentes about his vision for the organization.

What are your priorities as executive director of the ACLU in this region?

One big priority is to bring in the next generation of ACLU members and leaders. One of my big goals will be to reach young people and diverse people, in rural and central valley communities. People who will sustain the work of civil liberties and rights.

Another major goal is to look at some of the big challenges of next few years, whether it is securing marriage equality or reducing the dramatic number of people who are incarcerated, and issues affecting youth and students.

The ACLU is often perceived as a mostly white, liberal group. How do you gain a wider member base?

The great thing about the ACLU is it works on issues that touch the lives of every person. We’re working on immigration and police, education and students’ rights, reproductive health. All these things create great entry points into the organization. I want to get young people deeply engaged in organization.
You are Iranian and came to this country as a child.

I was actually born in the United States. My parents were on fellowships, but they moved back to Iran and we came to the U.S. when I was 8.

How does the immigrant experience shape your perspective on civil liberties?

It does so in a few ways. When you come to the United States from another country, you do appreciate the freedoms we enjoy as Americans. They are not taken for granted. So, whenever I see those freedoms under attack I want to make sure they are preserved. For people who grow up in America, that freedom of speech and freedom of assembly are taken for granted.

At same time, I feel there are a lot of issues–whether you’re a Middle Easterner profiled after 9/11 or an immigrant facing raids–there are a lot of issues facing newcomers and we need to protect their rights.

Are you the first immigrant to head this office?

That’s a good question. It’s safe to say that I’m the first Middle Easterner to head this agency, and possibly the first in any office. I grew up with a Muslim background. I’m not an actively religious person, but that shapes my identity.

The ACLU was on the defensive for most of the last eight years during the Bush Administration. Is there a visible change now with the Obama Administration?

What’s import about the ACLU is that at any given moment we’re both protecting and advancing freedoms in the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. In the last eight years, we’ve been able to fight Bush on the Patriot Act and Guantanamo. We made strides in free speech rights for students and in protecting gay and lesbian students in schools.

What we’re protecting and what we’re advancing change. So, right now we’re doing the most to press Congress and the Obama administration to advance civil liberties. At the federal level, there is big work to undo the damages done under the Bush Administration, whether changing the Patriot Act or ending the use of torture. But that just takes us to where we were before.

Here in California, we want to really insure the civil rights of all in our communities. When it comes to immigrants, there is a lot of work to be done, with homes raided, children separated from families without due process. When it comes to children in schools, there is a lot to be done in protecting freedoms.

You worked at an organization that focused on increasing opportunities for youth to attend college. What do you bring from that to your new post?

There is a lot I’ve learned about the importance of education and opportunity. I’ve also learned that there is a limit to how much of social problems can be solved by education alone. We are not going to solve the criminal justice problem by simply educating the population. We have too many laws that criminalize behaviors that should not be criminal. We incarcerate far too many people. We want to expand educational opportunities, but there is only so much that education can do.
In terms of education, school push-outs is something that the ACLU has identified as a big problem. The combination of discrimination and push-out is helping drive students out of high schools and that diminishes opportunities for their lifetimes.

What do you consider the biggest civil liberties challenges facing the state? The country?

The number of issues is substantial. I can’t say one is more important than another. Flashpoints will be gay marriage, immigration, education and incarceration. Another that doesn’t get attention is technology. We have range of protections that prevent the government from surveilling us. Currently what is not protected as private is file-sharing.

At the core, the fundamental goal I’m trying to work towards is to grow the constituency of people dedicated to civil liberties.

You should have a receptive audience here in northern California.

I think it’s a very receptive audience. I know the board is committed to the task. The challenge we face is there are a lot of needs. We need to make choices and priorities. The thing is everyone can disagree with a part of our agenda, but we all agree that it’s there to protect everyone.

For example, we’re working on the death penalty. Some of the people on death row have committed heinous crimes, but the core idea of protecting freedoms and protections is something we can all support.

11-18

Lips are a visible body part at the mouth of humans and many animals. Lips are soft, movable, and serve as the opening for food intake,  as a tactile sensory organ, and in the articulation of speech.

One differentiates between the Upper (Labia superfluos entafada) and lower lip (Labium inferius). The lower lip is usually somewhat larger. The border between the lips and the surrounding skin is referred to as the vermillion border, or simply the vermilion. The vertical groove on the upper lip, is known as thephiltrum.
The skin of the lip, with three to five cellular layers, is very thin compared to typical face skin, which has up to 16 layers. With light skin color, the lip skin contains fewer melanocytes (cells which produce melanin pigment , which give skin its color). Because of this, the blood vessels appear through the skin of the lips, which leads to their notable red coloring. With darker skin color this effect is less prominent, as in this case the skin of the lips contains more melanin and thus is visually thicker. The skin of the lip forms the border between the exterior skin of the face, and the interior mucous membrane of the inside of the mouth.
The lip skin is not hairy, and does not have sweat glands or sebaceous glands. Therefore it does not have the usual protection layer of sweat and body oils which keep the skin smooth, inhibit pathogens, and regulate warmth. For these reasons, the lips dry out faster and become chapped more easily.

The facial artery is one of the six non-terminal branches of the external carotid artery. It supplies the lips by its superior and inferior labial branches, each of which bifurcate and anastomose with their companion artery from the other side.

11-18

By Nilofar Suhrawardy, MMNS India Correspondent

NEW DELHI: Defeating stereotyped notions held about women in Muslim countries being the neglected lot, Iran Embassy hosted a women oriented function in Delhi, earlier this month. Called the “Food Festival,” women invitees were received only by women, including the chief host- wife of Iranian envoy Seyed Mehdi Nabizadeh. Only women were visible, attending to guests and serving food as well as soft drinks. The stage was also held for a brief while by only women. The chief guest on the occasion was Ms Menon, wife of Indian Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon. It was the first diplomatic gathering held in the capital city, with only women taking the stage as hosts, guests as well as caterers. In addition to highlighting similarities in Iranian and Indian cuisine, the Food Festival strongly suggested that, diplomatically, when and need be, women of Muslim nations certainly know how to make their presence felt. The guests included women from various fields, including diplomatic representatives, social activists and media.

Though Muslim women constitute only a small percentage in the diplomatic staff of their respective countries, this has not deterred them from making their diplomatic presence felt assertively. Women hold senior positions in several embassies of Muslim countries, based in Delhi, including Pakistan, Turkey and Egypt. Riffat Masood is the first woman from Pakistan to hold the office of Deputy High Commissioner. This is a major development considering that India and Pakistan have yet to appoint a woman as their respective envoy to the other country. Besides, only around 10 percent of Pakistani diplomats are women. When questioned on her opinion about the importance gradually but definitely being gained by women of Muslim countries in the diplomatic field, Masood told TMO: “This is like a slap on face of those who paint only a negative image of Muslim women in Islamic countries.”

11-17

By Mahvish Akhtar, MMNS Pakistan Correspondent

President Asif Ali Zardari approved a controversial Shari’ah regulation for the Malakand division of the North West Frontier Province on Monday after the National Assembly asked to implement a peace deal between them and the provincial government.

‘Sharia Nizam-i-Adl Regulation 2009’ was signed by the President on Monday April 14, 2009. The parliament did not need to be on board or approve of it for it to become the law. The President has the right to sign such bills into law with the Federal assembly’s approval so he did.

This bill states that all courts in the province will abide by the Shari’ah law and the hearings and judgments will be given according to the Islamic Law of Shari’ah.
The President’s representative says he did so in order to get some stability in the area and strike some peace with the Taliban.

“Yes, the president signed the regulation after the National Assembly adopted the resolution,” presidential spokesman Farhatullah Babar told reporters. Later the president left for Dubai on a short visit.

ANP feared that PPP and its other allies might not be comfortable with this regulation and make some problems in the implementation of this law. However, PM Gillani said, “I am with them, I am not against them,” about ANP’s need to get the regulation signed and the President actually following through and signing the regulation.

MQM parliamentary leader Farooq Sattar was the only one to oppose the deal with arguments that largely remained unanswered from the supporters of the move before he led his group silently march out of the house after the prime minister and some of his ministers failed to persuade them from reversing what he said would only be abstention from voting on a move that he said would amount to allowing a Kalashinkov-bearing ultra-radical group to enforce its school of thought by force, endorsing the establishment of a parallel judicial system in the country, and encouraging those who would flog women and might not allow a women like Fehmida Mirza to be the National Assembly speaker.

PML-N’s Ayaz Amir called the regulation as the product of a ‘doctrine of necessity’ that Pakistani superior courts in the past used to uphold military coups, but added it should be given the benefit of doubt as it could be a ‘harbinger of better things’ despite ‘many doubts’.

The reaction from our neighbors has been pretty outstanding as well. Afghanistan is directly affected by whatever takes place in the northern areas. Afghan Presidential Spokesperson, Humayun Hamidzada, told a news briefing, “Since any deal with terrorist groups can have effects on the security of our own country and people, we ask the country of Pakistan to take into consideration the issue of security and its side-effects on relations between the two countries.”

Afghanistan has in the past accused Pakistani security forces of tacitly supporting militants who infiltrate across the border into Afghanistan, an accusation that has soured ties between the two key allies of Washington.

However, the world needs to realize the kind of situation Pakistan and the Pakistani government is in as far as the northern areas and Taliban are concerned. The Taliban have an undeniable hold on that area. They are getting stronger in spite of all the tries to weaken them over the years. The country is running out of options. We could continue to fight them and let them destroy one big part of the country while they get stronger. The other option is to make some kind of peace with the Taliban and see how we can come up with a better relationship and understanding with them.

Option one has been tried tested and has failed to bring about any peace. There is no harm in giving the other option a chance if it will stop the killing of innocent people. This agreement has already been put into effect and is being enforced in Malakand District, the area that it was meant for.

According to the Provincial Government in the Northern Areas the law and order situation has already started to improve since the law has been put in motion. The Militant Taliban are now making their way into the province of Punjab, this  means that the governments’ concern could not have been only the NWFP area but also the rest of the country which had started to feel the burden of the war waging between the government and the Taliban.

There is no way of knowing how this will end or if this is the end of all the trouble however, something should be said about different things and thinking out of the box to solve and avoid problems.

11-17

By Asghar Vasanwala

The event celebrated as Easter by Christians is in fact important to Muslims as well, if for a different reason. 

Memorable Events of Human History.

Muslims and Christians both believe in the Omnipotent, Omnipresent, Omniscient, All Powerful and Eternal GOD.

The Christian belief is that Jesus (as) was saved, although they believe he was saved in a different way.  But notwithstanding that, the importance of his being saved is the focus of this article.

Muslims believe that Jesus (as) was saved on the day of Ashura, as were so many prophets in the past, including Musa (as) who was delivered from Pharoah on Ashura, and as Ibrahim (as) was saved from the fire of Nimrod on Ashura.  So the date is important, although of course as Muslims our understanding of the significance of that date is different from Christians and their observance of Easter.

Reminding a quotation from Holy Qur’an Suratun Nisa, verse:

“The Natives and the aliens miserably failed in their plan against Jesus

“Their boastful claim: ‘We killed the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary who claims to be Messenger of Allah.’

They could not kill Jesus, nor they could hanged him, No, certainly not, they were put in confusion…… Surely they could not slay him.

But Allah exalted Jesus, raised him high unto Himself

And Allah is indeed Almighty, Most Wise.”

YES, Certainly, The blasphemers, The deniers of Jesus Failed miserably in their wicked planning.

They could not crucify, nor could kill Jesus.

Almighty GOD raised him up high unto Himself.”

Salaams on him and his mother Blessed Mary and all who respect Jesus.

May this FRIDAY and all Fridays be Good for all the humanity, and peace from us to on one of the great Messengers, JESUS, Who enlightened the path of tolerance, mercy, affection, love and services to the down-trodden, deprived ones, the have-nots of humanity.

The other difference is that for us as Muslims, every Friday is good Friday, every Friday is a kind of ‘eid for us as Muslims.

11-17