BY: ERMIZI MUHAMAD
SHAH ALAM, JAN 19: The management of Surau Al-Syakirin in Bandar Utama, with the cooperation of Hidayah Centre Foundation had invited all non-Muslim communities to jointly participate in the Mosque Open Day (MOOD) programme, an initiative that reflects culture openness in Selangor.
Supporting the effort is Tourism, Environment, Green Technology and Consumer Affairs Exco Elizabeth Wong, who says that such programmes should be organised throughout the state.
She said it is believed this move will foster closer kinship among citizens in the state, regardless of religion and race.
“This is a very good programme considering that the surau has been opened for the last 20 years, and this is the first time it is opened to non-Muslim communities.
“This should be done by all mosques and surau in the state, to provide opportunities to non-Muslims to ask questions and get better understanding of the religion.
“These programmes reflect the openness of culture in Selangor, where citizens live peacefully and respect others’ religions,” she said.
Among contents of the programme were activities such as ‘free market’, knowledge sharing with Muslim converts and “How Do I Look In Hijab’ photo-booth.
There was also a health-check service conducted by Segi University & College and Tropicana Medical Centre.
Meanwhile, Programme Director Jamaludin Shamsudin said the objective was to enable non-Muslims to understand the mosque as a centre for local community development activities.
“We are not asking, and are far from forcing anyone to convert to Islam. What we are doing is just to convey that Islam brings blessings for all, that it is a universal religion with universal values, and possibly deflect the prejudice and suspicion of the religion,” he said.
