Sister Jabou
This is a blessing for US Muslims not a problem . I disagree with Mr Cheema here . There are enough and qualified Quranic reciters here in the US than you can imagine but they have full time jobs so if we want to have their full time concentration during Ramadan then we must compensate them with equal pay that they would have earned and let them take a leave of absence during Ramadan.
The cost of housing , feeding and air tickets plus incidental expenses (which may include their families too at times) for the imported Imams would be the same in the end anyway- moneywise
Why Import when we have our own?
Some of these foreign Imams ( yes I used that word in a positive context) do not or cannot relate to our norms and new conditions like working moms / regular hours of work for most of us/ plus the minds of the average youngAmerican muslims and non muslims alike . "Back home" as they say everyone understands and adopts to the Ramadan schedules and are more flexible etc so these foreign Imams come here for a month and assume it is the same condition as 'back home' and preach old parables not current lifestyles.
So some how as I said it is a blessing in disguise and we must develop our own youngsters to take over this important and traditional responsibility of reciting the whole Quran from the begining to the end during Ramadan
Best regards
Habib
>From: Jabou Joh <
[log in to unmask]>
>Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list <
[log in to unmask]>
>To:
[log in to unmask]
>Subject: Fwd:MUSLIM SCHOLARS DENIED U.S.VISAS FOR RAMADAN
>Date: Sun, 10 Nov 2002 14:10:32 EST
>
>TULSA, Okla. - U.S. Muslim communities that have invited Muslim scholars to
>recite the Quran from memory during Ramadan celebrations may have to make
>changes as scholars struggle to get U.S. visas.
>
>Increased security and restrictions on immigration visas may disrupt
>tradition at Tulsa's Al Salaam mosque when Ramadan begins next week.
>
>Muslim scholars, usually from the Middle East, have been brought to the
>mosque to recite the entire Quran from memory during Ramadan, Islam's lunar
>month of fasting, prayer and spiritual reflection. "This year, because of
>what appears to be a reluctance of the State Department to grant visas to
>Islamic scholars, many Muslim communities may not be able to practice their
>annual routine," said Mujeeb Cheema, spokesman of the Islamic Society of
>Tulsa…
>
>Recitation of the entire Quran from memory during Ramadan is an ancient
>tradition in Islam.
>
>The recitation is part of nightly evening prayers during the month of
>Ramadan, a 29- or 30-day lunar month which occurs 11 days earlier each year
>on the western calendar.
>
>Two scholars, one from Egypt and the other from Turkey, have been invited
>to recite the Quran in Tulsa, but neither has been granted a visa, Cheema
>said.
>
>Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American Islamic Relations in
>Washington, D.C., said his organization has received complaints from all
>parts of the United States about visa problems for visiting scholars.
>
>"We're considering approaching the State Department about it," he said,
>"but it's unlikely to be resolved for this year."
>
>Hooper said the U.S. government seems to be concerned the scholars won't
>return to their home country.
>
>"I believe most are ones who have come in previous years and have gone
>back, so that hasn't been the case," Hooper said.
>
>If neither of the foreign scholars receives a visa, the Tulsa Muslim
>community has identified three of their own people who each have memorized
>different portions of the Quran, and together will be able to recite the
>entire book, Cheema said.
>
>"We strongly prefer the overseas option, because that ensures a fully
>committed person, who has no other job-related obligations during the day,
>and can focus on this laborious undertaking," Cheema said…
>
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
>To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
>at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
>To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
>
[log in to unmask]
>
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~