- July 17, 2013
- Posted by: Faith Associates
- Category: News
The Iftar 2013 programme has been established following the successful Olympic Iftar 2012 programme, where Mosques opened their doors to Olympians, Ministers, International dignitaries, community leaders of different faiths and the wider community to share the Ramadan experience.
The Iftars in Mosques are a wonderful way to bring communities together and to help people understand the Islamic practices that take place in Mosques.
The Iftar, the evening meal that breaks the Muslim fast during the holy month of Ramadan, is a time of celebration that traditionally includes the hosting of guests and travellers. This year, Ramadan is between 10th July and 9th August and in the spirit of collaboration and friendship, mosques across the UK will open their Iftar celebrations to neighbours, visitors, Muslims, non-Muslims, officials and Embassy staff from across the world.
Following the spate of attacks on UK Mosques following the brutal murder Lee Rigby, mosques across the UK will be opening their doors for the communities to experience the ’Ramadan Iftar Celebrations”. This will give visitors a chance to experience Ramadan with local Muslim communities.
They will sample warm hospitality and experience the cultural mix of mosques around the UK: a huge range of culinary dishes from Asia, Africa, Europe and the near and far East will be available at different mosques. The Scouts Association enthusiastically supports the initiative and scouts across the country will be on hand to help serve guests during the Iftar meals.
Shaukat Warraich, Director of Iftar 2013 said: “I am delighted that so many mosques across the UK are taking part in Iftar celebrations… I hope people will keep an open mind and come along to local mosques. They will be warmly welcomed and there will be a chance to do some mythbusting about mosques and Islam”.
The Iftar 2013 website, www.iftar2013.com, will provide details of participating mosques across in the UK, by using the latest social media tools to help visitors of any faith and no faith find out what is happening in their area by simply typing in their postcode. Some of the nation’s smaller mosques will have designated Iftar days; the larger ones will run Iftars every day throughout Ramadan, which will host officials as part of the national festivities. For further information and to arrange media interviews please contact:
Faith Associates/Iftar 2013 office on 01494 416202
Email: info@iftar2013.com
1. Ramadan in 2013 started on Wednesday 10th July and will continue for 30 days until, the 8th of August. Although Ramadan is always on the same day of the Islamic calendar, the date on the Gregorian calendar varies from year to year, since the Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar and the Islamic calendar is a lunar calendar. This difference means Ramadan moves in the Gregorian calendar approximately 11 days every year. The date of Ramadan may also vary from country to country depending on whether the moon has been sighted or not.
2. Iftar 2013 is being organised by Faith Associates on behalf of the participating mosques and Islamic centres. Faith Associates is committed to multidisciplinary collaborative research, development and implementation of faith and community initiatives at local, national and international levels. Further information can be found at www.faithassociates.co.uk/.
3. Full details of participating mosques and activities can be found at www.iftar2013.com
