Declaration on Observing a Unified Ramadan
In
accordance with the Qur’an (the Book of Allah), the authentic teachings of the
Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), the agreement of
the companions of the Prophet, their righteous followers, and the righteous
generations who followed Ahlus-Sunnah wal Jamaah, and according to the advice of
our knowledgeable scholars:
We
hereby declare that beginning with this month of Ramadan 1421 Hijrih (2000 C.E.)
that:
1. The beginning of the month of Ramadan and the month of Shawwal will be determined only by actual moon-sighting and not by calculations or astronomy;
2. For
the purpose of uniting the Muslims in the State of Oregon, all named
institutions agree to follow the method of local sighting in North America, and
to start the month of Ramadan and the month of Shawwal together on the same day;
3. Since
the Day of Arafat and Hajj are acts of worship associated with specific places,
we will follow the dates of Arafat and Eid al-Adha as observed in those places.
We
believe that this agreement is an initial step toward uniting the Muslim Ummah
in all aspects of life. We would
like to invite all other Islamic institutions in the State of Oregon, as well as
other states in North America, to join us in our efforts to establish Islamic
systems that will serve the Muslim Ummah in the best way.
Signed,
The
Islamic Center of Vancouver, the Islamic Society of Southwest Washington
The Islamic Center of Northeast Portland, the Muslim Community Center
The Islamic Center of Portland, Assabr Masjid
The Islamic Center of Beaverton, Bilal Masjid Association
The Islamic Center of Corvallis, Salman al-Farisi Masjid
Abu Bakr Masjid
MET, Muslim Educational Trust
For more information, please call (541) 757-1970 or email: sfic@hotmail.com
