On Nov. 20 in the Student Center Ballroom, members of the Islamic community shared and celebrated the Islamic spirit during Eid Al-Adha with those on campus. There were hundreds of people at the event and both ballroom A and B were filled with people.
Muneer Khalid said, “It is a great way to connect Eastern Michigan University and University of Michigan’s Muslim Associations… A great way to reach out.”
Eid Al-Adha is a celebration that takes place after the pilgrimage called the Hajj. Eid Al-Adha is dedicated to Abraham and his many trials, the greatest of which is when Allah commanded him to sacrifice his son on the mountain and at the last moment stopped Abraham. This test showed Abraham’s unrelenting love for Allah and is celebrated in Eid Al-Adha each year.
There were several speakers at the event, introduced by Haroon Manjlai. One was Moataz Am-Hallak. Am-Hallak came to the event with several strong messages
Am-Manjlai said, “The Hajj reminds us of the unified nature of Islam. The season of Hajj unifies us, it does not divide us. People come from all over the world to celebrate unity. It is a time where race and boundaries all disappear… You can not separate the Hajj and Eid Al-Adha.”
“There is no level of love higher than this level of love. (The love Abraham had for Allah),” Am-Manjlai said, when he talked about the love of Abraham. “Because this was a high level of love there had to be a hard test that came with it. There is something very very special we enjoy in the U.S. that others only experience when we go to Hajj. It is enjoying diversity and different peoples.”
The next speaker was named Ali Suleiman. Ali talked about the meaning in the stories and said Muslims, Christians and Jews all have in common they are proud of Abraham and they come from the stock of the hardships he faced. He decided to be a speaker for this event because, “I would like to share knowledge with people. I would like to remind them of their responsibility to God and to their communities.”
At the end of the event, there was a buffet featuring Middle Eastern food, like hummus and tabbouli, and pizza.
The areas laid out in the Student Center were divided for women, men and an area where families could sit together.
“In this culture it’s not traditional for women and men who are not married to sit together and some may feel uncomfortable but we do have seating areas above where families can sit together,” Hani Mohamed said, when asked why there was a separation between genders. “We just don’t have enough room right now so people will literally be (smashed together).”
“The separation is rooted in Islam because men and women communicate differently and so it’s supposed to be all about respect,” said Abdikalik Dini, member of the Ypsilanti Muslim community. “This showed what the community of Islam is all about instead of how it is portrayed in the media… this celebration is about sacrifice.”
