Imam Mohammed Zafarullah will serve the Chicagoland Community
Hundreds of Muslims Welcome New Imam Mohammed Zafarullah to Bait-ul-Jaamay Mosque
Imam Mohammed Zafarullah serves as a Missionary of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, the oldest Muslim organization in the United States, est 1920. Under the direction and guidance of His Holiness Mirza Masroor Ahmad, the Khalifa of Islam, Imam Mohammed Zafarullah will teach local Muslims about Islam, speak at interfaith events, and serve as a resource for Muslims and non-Muslims in the Chicagoland area. “Many Americans are deeply interested in learning about the true teachings of Islam,” said Imam Mohammed Zafarullah , “and it is our responsibility to teach them in a loving and inclusive environment.”
Bait-ul-Jaamay Mosque in Glen Ellyn. Imam Mohammed Zafarullah
Imam Zafarullah devoted his life to serving Islam since 1982 after graduating from Jamia Ahmadiyya, an intensive, multi-lingual, seven-year missionary training seminary in Rabwah, Pakistan.
Imam Zafarullah served in various parts of Pakistan for eight years until 1991, when he was transferred to Sierra Leone. He served the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in West Africa for six years as an Imam and missionary, as well as an administrator and teacher at an Ahmadiyya secular secondary school. In 1996 he was transferred back to Pakistan for two years, where he worked at the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community’s headquarters in Rabwah. In 1999 he was transferred to the US, where he was stationed in Dayton, Ohio for five years. In 2004 he was transferred to Houston. He was the South regional missionary there for next ten years, in charge of outreach for Houston, Dallas, Fort Worth, Austin, Tulsa and New Orleans. In summer 2014, Imam Zafarullah was transferred to the Los Angeles area, headquartered at the Baitul Hameed Mosque in Chino. His missionary duties covered Southern California, including San Diego, and Las Vegas. Now he is transferred to Chicago area. He is married and has four children.
Imam Zafarullah has been conveying the true teachings and peaceful message of Islam for over 30 years, seeking to dispel distrust, fears and misconceptions about Islam among the general public. As an Imam, he focuses heavily on the training and education of the young people in the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, knowing the importance of teaching proper Islamic morals and correct understanding of the religion to ensure the development of Ahmadi youth into righteous and successful adults.
In his missionary work and outreach efforts, he focuses on building interfaith connections through civic and humanitarian involvement in, and contribution to, the communities he and his fellow Ahmadi Muslims live in. He also makes a concerted effort to reach out to Muslims of other denominations in order to communicate to them the true teachings and purpose of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, whose motto is “Love for All – Hatred for None.” Ahmadi Muslims believe in the Promised Messiah and Imam Mahdi, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908), who came to bring mankind back to God, to restore righteousness and the love of God and humanity in people’s hearts, and to revitalize Islam and return it to its original pristine purity at the time of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).
About Ahmadiyya Muslim Community:
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is a dynamic, reformist and fast-growing international movement within Islam. Founded in 1889, the Community spans over 210 nations with membership exceeding tens of millions. Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA, established in 1920, is among the oldest American-Muslim organizations.
The Ahmadiyya Muslim Community is the only Islamic organization to believe that the long- awaited messiah has come in the person of Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835-1908) of Qadian, India. Ahmad claimed to be the metaphorical second coming of Jesus of Nazareth and the divine guide, whose advent was foretold by the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad. The Community believes that God sent Ahmad, like Jesus, to end religious wars, condemn bloodshed and reinstitute morality, justice and peace. Ahmad’s advent has brought about an unprecedented era of Islamic revival and moderation. He divested Muslims of fanatical beliefs and practices by vigorously championing Islam’s true and essential teachings
Ray Hanania is an award winning political and humor columnist who analyzes American and Middle East politics, and life in general. He is an author of several books.
Hanania covered Chicago Politics and Chicago City Hall from 1976 through 1992 at the Daily Southtown and the Chicago Sun-Times. He began writing in 1975 publishing The Middle Eastern Voice newspaper in Chicago (1975-1977). He later published “The National Arab American Times” newspaper (2004-2007).
Hanania writes weekly columns on Middle East and American Arab issues as Special US Correspondent for the Arab News ArabNews.com, at TheArabDailyNews.com, and at SuburbanChicagoland.com. He has published weekly columns in the Jerusalem Post newspaper, YNetNews.com, Newsday, the Orlando Sentinel, Houston Chronical, and Arlington Heights Daily Herald.
Hanania is the recipient of four (4) Chicago Headline Club “Peter Lisagor Awards” for Column writing. In November 2006, he was named “Best Ethnic American Columnist” by the New American Media. In 2009, Hanania received the prestigious Sigma Delta Chi Award for Writing from the Society of Professional Journalists. He is the recipient of the MT Mehdi Courage in Journalism Award. He was honored for his writing skills with two (2) Chicago Stick-o-Type awards from the Chicago Newspaper Guild. In 1990, Hanania was nominated by the Chicago Sun-Times editors for a Pulitzer Prize for his four-part series on the Palestinian Intifada.
His writings have also been honored by two national Awards from ADC for his writing, and from the National Arab American Journalists Association.
Hanania is the US Special Correspondent for the Arab News Newspaper, covering Middle East and Arab American issues. He writes for the Southwest News newspaper group writing on mainstream American issues.
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