ISLAM IN CANADA standing out in any way. Personal discrimination, which has few boundaries and is frequently institutional in form, many times leads to an identity conflict. Canada, a primarily secular nation, developed its policies and structures within that framework. Daood Hamdani (d. 2019), who worked as an economist with the federal government and authored several articles on the country’s Muslim community, stated the main reason for institutional discrimination: “Canadian society was organized for a Christian community, which leaves it unequipped to deal with Islamic tradition.” And yet Canada has much to offer its Muslims and may even help them maintain their identity through the religious freedom that its Charter of Rights provides. The extent to which each individual feels the link with his/her religious identity depends upon the individual. For a committed Muslim, observing Islam’s ritual practices are the most significant element of his/her Islamic identity. Others believe that praying and reciting the Qur’an are the primary rituals that bring them closer to God. They are not just routines, but the means to achieve wholeness. Community rituals and gatherings are another mechanism for maintaining identity, for they allow Muslims to relate to each other by reenacting the same ritual and thus sharing something that is uniquely theirs. Accordingly, such rituals strengthen their identity as a distinct group. Commitment to religious belief is one of the strongest elements that helps preserves an Islamic identity. Generally, Muslims have a strong emotional attachment to their religion and thus attempt to stay true to it in body, mind and spirit. Rather than implying “perfect” adherence, this implies that strong commitment creates a strong consistency between belief and practice, as well as a resultant strengthening of one’s identity. Weak commitment and religious belief often alienate one from his/her identity. On the personal level, a committed Muslim keeps his/ her links with Islamic practice by observing Islam’s rules in all aspects of life. This type of commitment drives an individual’s behavior and keeps it relatively predictable. For instance, avoiding all types of alcohol because it is prohibited becomes a predictable element in one’s life and a source of stability. Sometimes, committed Muslims experience a conflict between Canada’s commitment to pluralism and their own sense of special identity. Therefore, the Muslim community acts as a central base where Islam’s values and norms come together. Committing to Islam’s social community reinforces a Muslim’s identification with his/her fundamental roots. Muslim immigrants find it hard to maintain the “ideal” Islamic identity, for this would require living in an “ideal” Islamic state. Nevertheless, a more “relative” type of Islamic identity can be achieved in the absence of a traditional Islamic state if the political situation allows for it. Such is the case in Canada, where the freedom of religion is a basic right and ethno-cultural plurality is promoted at the national level through the county’s official multicultural policy. ih Ahmad F. Yousif, Ph.D., a lecturer at Sultan Sharif Ali Islamic University, Brunei Darussalam, is author of “Muslims in Canada: A Question of Identity” (2008).
32 ISLAMIC HORIZONS
Canada’s First Mosque: The Al Rashid Mosque It takes a mosque to build a community BY NOOR AL-HENEDY
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any important features, organizations and landmarks define northeast Edmonton, Alberta. Among the most impressive ones is the Al Rashid Mosque, Canada’s first mosque, which has served Muslims for 80+ years. In the early 20th century, mainly Arab/Lebanese Muslims flocked to northern Edmonton for its affordable housing and to be near the mosque. The economic boom of the 1970s and an inviting Canadian immigration policy resulted in a rapid Muslim population growth. The mosque’s visionaries thus purchased a larger lot. However, since most of the Muslims lived in northeastern or northwestern Edmonton, the land was sold and a three-acre lot was purchased for the new Canadian Islamic Center, which included a sizable Al Rashid Mosque. To understand the mosque’s influence on the community’s development, we consulted Richard A. Awid’s “Canada’s First Mosque: The Al Rashid” (2010). According to him, Muslims of Scottish origin arrived in 1867, followed by Arab Muslims. Many of them settled in Quebec and Ontario and became peddlers who made a living and learned English by selling to local farmers. Ali Tarrabain, one of Edmonton’s first Arab Muslims, came to Canada in 1901 and by 1906 had moved to northern Edmonton and opened a general store. Shortly thereafter, Ali Hamdon (1907), Ahmed Ali Awid (1928), Najeeb Aiiley (1936) and other Lebanese joined him. By 1938 the community elders, all of whom were proud of their Canadian identity, began thinking about how to maintain their Arabic culture for their descendants. Until then, they had been praying in each other’s homes. Their solution was Canada’s first mosque — Edmonton’s Al Rashid Mosque. In September 1938, the Arab Moslem Association (AMA) was incorporated and became the mosque-building project’s executive council in charge. Led by President Joe Teha, Treasurer Nejib Ailey (the mosque’s first religious leader-imam), Secretary Mohammed Assiff and executive
