2008 Woodie Awards
WPU Holds Fastathon to Celebrate Muslim Heritage
Rumki Chowdhury
Issue date: 10/15/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
For Muslims, fasting during Ramadan is about disciplining one's self from desires harmful to them spiritually and physically.
Ramadan began on Sept. 12, marking the first of 30 days of fasting, which takes place from sunrise to sunset each day. Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, which includes faith (Shahadah), prayer (Salah), charity (Zakah), fast (Sawm) and pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj). It is a time for charity, cleansing of the body, family, prayer and discipline. The history behind this holy month is that around 610 A.D., Angel Gabriel revealed the first verses of the Holy Quran to Prophet Mohammed.
The Muslim Students Association hosted a campus-wide Fast-A-Thon where more than 60 attendees were able to participate in the iftar, or breaking of fast for the day. Even non-practitioners got a chance to experience fasting and attained more knowledge about Ramadan and Islam in general.
Guest speaker Faraz Khan enlightened students with his knowledge of Ramadan and Islam in a lecture and open forum. Khan emphasized the concept of humanity as giving up personal motivation to connect with people. He also stated that Islam is not a new religion. As the Prophet Muhammad said, the previous messengers of God, including Jesus, had the same goal as he - to encourage people to serve God by serving each other.
When asked about the essence of Islam, Khan said, "Islam comes from the Arabic term 'Salaam' which means peace and to surrender. In order to obtain peace, one must surrender his/her own desires and be obedient to God."
Although Fast-A-Thon is new to William Paterson University, it's been a tradition for MSA to host iftar two or three days a week in UC 214. This semester, the dinners were held on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The food ranged from pizza and sandwiches to traditional homemade food brought by students and staff to share with their peers and professors.
During one Monday night meeting, history professor James Pavlin and his wife, Tina, brought maklouba, an Arabic dish consisting of chicken, vegetables and rice for iftar. There were 15 attendees, who were a mix of resident and commuter students of varying cultures and religions.
Abedah Miah, junior, shared how important it is for her to spend time with her family during this time.
"Ramadan is the only time during the year that my family eats together. We cook, debate and pray together. It's a time I cherish," said Miah.
Ruby Ahmad, junior, described her South Asian customs. "Usually, I spend iftar with my family and close friends at home. The meal includes samosas (stuffed with potatoes), papri (made of rice), dates, chole (chickpeas) and parate (bread). We also drink sweet lassi (milkshake). After 20 minutes, we all pray together," said Ahmad.
MSA encourages students, faculty, and staff to attend their meetings on Thursdays during common hour in UC 214. The meetings consist of student discussions on Islam-related topics and guest speakers.
Ahmad said, "I didn't know there were so many Muslims on-campus and I thought that the club was going to be hardcore, but after I joined, I made a lot of friends."
Ramadan began on Sept. 12, marking the first of 30 days of fasting, which takes place from sunrise to sunset each day. Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam, which includes faith (Shahadah), prayer (Salah), charity (Zakah), fast (Sawm) and pilgrimage to Mecca (Hajj). It is a time for charity, cleansing of the body, family, prayer and discipline. The history behind this holy month is that around 610 A.D., Angel Gabriel revealed the first verses of the Holy Quran to Prophet Mohammed.
The Muslim Students Association hosted a campus-wide Fast-A-Thon where more than 60 attendees were able to participate in the iftar, or breaking of fast for the day. Even non-practitioners got a chance to experience fasting and attained more knowledge about Ramadan and Islam in general.
Guest speaker Faraz Khan enlightened students with his knowledge of Ramadan and Islam in a lecture and open forum. Khan emphasized the concept of humanity as giving up personal motivation to connect with people. He also stated that Islam is not a new religion. As the Prophet Muhammad said, the previous messengers of God, including Jesus, had the same goal as he - to encourage people to serve God by serving each other.
When asked about the essence of Islam, Khan said, "Islam comes from the Arabic term 'Salaam' which means peace and to surrender. In order to obtain peace, one must surrender his/her own desires and be obedient to God."
Although Fast-A-Thon is new to William Paterson University, it's been a tradition for MSA to host iftar two or three days a week in UC 214. This semester, the dinners were held on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. The food ranged from pizza and sandwiches to traditional homemade food brought by students and staff to share with their peers and professors.
During one Monday night meeting, history professor James Pavlin and his wife, Tina, brought maklouba, an Arabic dish consisting of chicken, vegetables and rice for iftar. There were 15 attendees, who were a mix of resident and commuter students of varying cultures and religions.
Abedah Miah, junior, shared how important it is for her to spend time with her family during this time.
"Ramadan is the only time during the year that my family eats together. We cook, debate and pray together. It's a time I cherish," said Miah.
Ruby Ahmad, junior, described her South Asian customs. "Usually, I spend iftar with my family and close friends at home. The meal includes samosas (stuffed with potatoes), papri (made of rice), dates, chole (chickpeas) and parate (bread). We also drink sweet lassi (milkshake). After 20 minutes, we all pray together," said Ahmad.
MSA encourages students, faculty, and staff to attend their meetings on Thursdays during common hour in UC 214. The meetings consist of student discussions on Islam-related topics and guest speakers.
Ahmad said, "I didn't know there were so many Muslims on-campus and I thought that the club was going to be hardcore, but after I joined, I made a lot of friends."
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