Dear members of the community,
I convey to you, on behalf of The Council of European Jamaats, a very happy and joyous Eid-ul-Fitr Mubarak. On this auspicious day, may The Almighty Allah (SWT) shower upon us his divine grace, blessings, and forgiveness. May He accept our ibadah during the holy month of Ramadhan, and may he overlook our shortcomings.
Eid is a day we eagerly anticipate - a time to sit and share our happiness with our near and dear ones. As we do the same, within the comforts of our own homes, it is our duty as muslims to reflect and act upon the plight of the millions less fortunate celebrating their Eid in conditions a world apart. Today in our prayers and indeed everyday, let us remember our momineen in war torn Iraq, in the volatile middle east, and of course on our own shores, where we are constantly battling to maintain our faith and ways.
These are surely challenging times on the ummah, and only in the spirit of togetherness, resolve and unison can we move forward. At CoEJ, we are taking strides in ensuring that we maintain our faith and influence on our shores. I am pleased to inform you that The Council of European Jamaats is now a fully federated member of The World Federation of KSIMC. As regional members of The World Federation, we now represent each and every jamaat in Europe, enabling effective delivery locally whilst having a united representation at a global level.
As CoEJ develops with your support, we are now in a position to collect all huquuq and non-huquuq funds in Europe. You can be rest assured that we will be channelling the funds directly to The World Federation without any deductions as agreed with them. This agreement includes the collection of Khums from all members in the region. This historical concordance ensures that the greater the funds channelled through CoEJ in this way, the more projects and services we are able to deliver to Europe. It is only with your continued support that we will be able to gain our financial independence and ensure that we are able to cater specifically for, and deliver to European needs.
Let us on this day of Eid, reaffirm our commitment to the nurturing and advancement of our faith, our people and our communities. Let us ensure that our communities remain steadfast on the path and teachings of the Ahlul Bayt, and ensure our readiness for the awaited imam, Al Mahdi (A.S).
I invite you to visit the CoEJ website at
www.coej.org or contact the Secretariat for information on how you too can help make a difference.
On this occasion let us remember and pray for the safety and long life of our ulemas. Let us not forget our brethren in faith in our prayers, and may Allah (SWT) hasten the reappearance of our awaited saviour. Ameen
I wish you and your families Eid Mubarak.
Munawer Rattansey
President
