Jewish prayer ritual alarms Alaska Airlines crew

I sympathize with these Jewish travelers. I had to pray on airplanes on several occasions (especially on long trips and when prayer times would have been missed). I am sure some travelers might have felt nervous around me.

What do you do when you have to pray during travel?

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LOS ANGELES | Sun Mar 13, 2011

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - An orthodox Jewish prayer observance by three passengers aboard an Alaska Airlines flight on Sunday alarmed flight attendants unfamiliar with the ritual, prompting them to lock down the cockpit and issue a security alert, officials said.

Alaska Flight 241 from Mexico City to Los Angeles International Airport landed safety at LAX and was met by fire crews, foam trucks, FBI agents, Transportation Security Administration personnel and police dispatched as a precaution.

The three men, all Mexican nationals, were escorted off the plane by police and questioned by the FBI before being released to make connecting flights to other countries, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said. No charges were filed, she said.

The three passengers had startled members of the cabin crew with what was interpreted as suspicious behavior shortly after takeoff, airline spokeswoman Bobbie Egan said.

"The three passengers were praying aloud in Hebrew and were wearing what appeared to be leather straps on their foreheads and arms," she said. "This appeared to be a security threat, and the pilots locked down the flight deck and followed standard security procedures."

It turned out the passengers were engaged in the wearing of tefillin -- small, black prayer boxes containing scripture that devout Jews bind to their foreheads and arms with black leather straps in a daily ritual accompanied by special prayers.

Asked about the authorities' reaction to the alert, Eimiller said: "We're obligated, of course, to respond when the flight calls us to clear up concerns."

(Reporting by Steve Gorman. Editing by Peter Bohan)

Thank God for everything

I placed “Thank God for everything” as my tagline on my Instant Message profile. Within an hour or two, a friend sent me an IM message asking me: “what’s up with the tagline?”

I explained to him that I am currently recovering from a severe cold or flu that forced me to stay in bed for several days and to take a dreaded visit to the doctor in urgent care. I guess my explanation was not satisfactory because my not so religious friend replied with a double question mark: “huh??”

I went on to explain what I meant.

The Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) said:

عجباً لأمر المؤمن إن أمره كله له خير، وليس ذلك لأحد إلا للمؤمن

إن أصابته سراء شكر فكان خيراً له، وإن أصابته ضراء صبر فكان خيراً له

-- رواه مسلم --

"Amazing are the ways of a believer for there is good in every affair of his/hers and this is not the case with anyone else except in the case of a believer for if he/she has an occasion to feel delight he/she thanks [Allah], thus there is a good for him/her in it, and if he/she faces hardship and shows resignation (and endures it patiently), there is good for him in it." (Reported by Imam Muslim)

So how can one not be thankful and grateful when he or she knows that there is reward when one patiently perseveres? And why would one not patiently persevere if he or she knows, without a doubt, that Allah/God is in charge of all things and all affairs. He is The Provider of cure (As-Shafi), He is The All Compassionate (Ar-Rahman), and The All Merciful (Ar-Rahim).

I am reminded by what Prophet Abraham (pbuh) said (as quoted in the Quran): "and when I am ill, it is He who cures me" (Quran 26:80).

May Allah grant mercy, patience, and cure to every suffering person.

A powerful and inspiring prayer when facing difficulties

The Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) prayer as he left the city of Al-Ta’if (after being rejected and attacked)

دعاء رسول الله عند خروجه من الطائف

اللهم إليك أشكو ضعف قوتي، وقلة حيلتي، وهواني على الناس، يا أرحم الراحمين، أنت رب المستضعفين وأنت ربي، إلى من تكلني، إلى بعيد يتجهمني، أم إلى عدو ملكته أمري؟

إن لم يكن بك عليَّ غضب فلا أبالي، ولكن عافيتك هي أوسع لي

أعوذ بنور وجهك الذي أشرقت له الظلمات، وصلح عليه أمر الدنيا والآخرة من أن تُنزل بي غضبك، أو يحل عليَّ سخطك، لك العتبى حتى ترضى، ولا حول ولا قوة إلا بك

"O Allah/God! I complain to You of my weakness, my lack/scarcity of resources and the humiliation I have been subjected to by the people.

O Most Merciful of those who are merciful. O Lord of the weak and my Lord too. To whom have you entrusted me? To a distant person who receives me with hostility? Or to an enemy to whom you have granted authority over my affair?

So long as You are not angry with me, I do not care (about the hardships). Your favor is of a more expansive/important relief to me. I seek refuge in the light of Your Face by which all darkness is dispelled and every affair of this world and the Next is set right, lest Your anger or Your displeasure descends upon me. I seek Your pleasure and satisfaction until You are pleased.

There is no power and no might except by You."

Muslims Urge Prayers for Rain to Put Out Calif. Fires

CAIR asks people of all faiths to join nationwide spiritual effort

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today called on mosques and other houses of worship across the nation to offer prayers for rain to help put out wildfires currently raging in California.

SEE: California Fires Force Another 50,000 From Homes

CAIR urged American mosques to offer special Islamic prayers, called Salatul Istisqa (sal-AT-al-istis-KA), which the Prophet Muhammad traditionally offered during times of drought.

In Salatul Istisqa, the Prophet would offer supplications such as: "O God, give us rain that will replenish us, abundant, fertilizing and profitable, not injurious. Grant it now without delay...Send down rain upon us and make it a source of strength and satisfaction...O God, give us a saving rain, good and productive, general and heavy, now and not later, beneficial and not harmful."

The Quran, Islam’s revealed text, states: "O my people! Seek forgiveness of your Lord and turn to Him in repentance. He will send you from the sky abundant rain." (Quran, 11:52)

"Americans of all faiths need to offer spiritual assistance to the courageous firefighters who are battling these deadly fires," said CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad.

Awad also asked mosques in wildfire areas to offer shelter to fire victims and that financial aid for victims be sent to the American Red Cross.

SEE: American Red Cross Response to Southern California Wildfires

Locally, the Islamic Shura Council of Southern California and local Islamic centers are organizing the special prayer of Salatul Istisqa at the Islamic Society of Orange County from 6:30 pm to 7:30 pm on Thursday the 25th of October. All area Imams were also requested to dedicate their Friday (Oct 26th) sermons for the same purpose.

Mosques in Irvine and San Diego have opened their doors to welcome evacuees escaping the raging fire.



A firefighter lit backfires to protect the Bonita neighborhood in San Diego County.
Photo: Eric Thayer/Getty



ImagesGov. Arnold Schwarzenegger observed a fire burning out of control in Lake Arrowhead, Calif.
Photo: Jim Wilson/The New York Times

A firefighter working to put out a fire in the vineyard at a home in Lake Hodges, near San Diego on Tuesday. (Lucy Nicholson/Reuters)

Sami Yusuf - The Beautiful Attributes of Allah

Muslims commemorate holy journey of Israa' and Mi'raaj

Muslims commemorate holy journey
Mosque in Redlands part of global remembrance of prophets, prayers
Mona Shadia, Staff Writer
San Bernardino County Sun
http://www.sbsun.com/ci_6598432

One night more than 1,400 years ago, the Islamic faith teaches, God took the Prophet Muhammad on a journey from Mecca to Jerusalem to heaven.

Muslims believe that during the trip, Muhammad met with other prophets, including Adam, Abraham, Moses and Jesus. And that it was the night God assigned to him the five daily prayers and made them mandatory for all Muslims.

Muhammad had been sorely tested by the loss of his most beloved wife, his uncles who raised and protected him and the rejection and physical attack by the people of a town he visited - but he didn't question his faith, Islamic teachings say.

The night journey, known to Muslims as Isra and Mi'raj, was commemorated Friday by Muslims everywhere, including in the Inland Empire at the Islamic Center in Redlands.

It was Rajab 27 on the Islamic calendar.

"The night journey ... came in which God wanted to strengthen his faith, to remind him that `I'm still with you,"' said Hussam Ayloush, executive director of the Southern California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.

Ayloush, who is a guest imam at many Southern California mosques, regularly provides sermons and leads the Friday prayer.

The night journey, Ayloush said, reminded the prophet that obstacles are tests faced by every prophet of God.

As 1 p.m. approached, the parking lot of the center filled rapidly as Muslims came to the Redlands mosque. Children followed quickly in the footsteps of the adults.

Mohammad Hossain, founder and director of the Islamic center, led the sermon and the prayers.

He highlighted the importance of prayers.

"This is a special occasion," Hossain said. "It's a historic event. That particular day was given to all mankind. Prayer is the first priority of worship. It's the first one to be accounted for on the day of judgment."

But aside from praying to obey God, Ayloush said, Muslims believe praying is designed as a direct link between them and God.

"It's a constant link between us and our creator, at least five times a day," Ayloush said. "Someone who's linked with his creator at least five times a day is expected to be more aware and mindful to be a better person.

"Knowing that I just finished my link and my connection with God now and in a few hours I'll be reconnecting again, it's difficult and hypocritical for me as a person to do what displeases God - such as cheating, lying, harming someone or committing any forms of injustice. And that's why it's important," Ayloush said.

The faith teaches that the journey's purpose wasn't meant only to strengthen the prophet's faith and assign the prayers, but that it also revealed many important lessons for Muslims.

During the journey, the Quran teaches, the prophet was taken from the holiest mosque in Mecca to the farthest mosque in Jerusalem, known in Arabic as Al-Aqsa (photo shown above), where it is believed he led the prayer with all prophets, including Abraham, Moses and Jesus.

"It was a reminder to Muslims that the root of their religion does not lie through Muhammad alone, but actually with every prophet from Adam to Abraham and the rest," Ayloush said. "That was an important reminder.

"Islam was not sent only to the Arabs of Arabia, but to all people as a message of monotheism, the belief in the one god, the God of Abraham and of compassion and justice to each other - and that's the universal message," he said.

After the sermon at the Islamic Center, they all stood - men and women, old and young, foot to foot and shoulder to shoulder - and did what they believe God asked of them on that same day hundreds of years ago. They prayed.

Contact writer Mona Shadia at (909) 386-3873 or via e-mail at mona.shadia@sbsun.com.

A Muslim prayer of thankfulness

In the name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

In the Qur’an, God Almighty says: “Remember! Your Lord has declared, ‘If you are grateful, I will increase my favors upon you.” (14:7).

There are so many favors and blessings that we need to be thankful for; blessings that we take for granted such as family, good health, and ability to live in peace, security and with dignity.

Thanking God should be much more than simply offering a one day thank you prayer after a dinner. We must show our thanks in our actions, every day. Prophet Muhammad said that “Those who do not thank people, they do not thank God”

Let’s thank God for His blessings by also thanking those people who deliver those blessings to us. Let’s thank the workers, the farmers, the laborers, the drivers, and all the good people by treating them fairly, the way we would like to be treated.

O God, grant us thankfulness to you by helping promote a culture of justice and equity to other people.

Aameen (Amen)