Islamic Center Marks Third Year in Easton

It’s around 1 p.m. on a Friday afternoon and members of arrive for one of five calls to prayer. They remove their shoes, place them on shelves or along the edge of the inner walls of the entranceway, and except for a few quick hellos, they remain silent, each with their own thoughts and prayers.

The faithful enter the prayer room and kneel or sit in rows on the carpeted floor. There are no pews with kneeling pads for comfort. In prayer, the faithful bend from the waist, their foreheads touching the carpet as they pray. 

This day, Rizwan Butt, 38, president of EPMA and prayer leader, offers a sermon on the folly of gossiping.

 “God has commanded us to always tell the truth; avoid lying,” he says. “Even suspicion is like lying,” he added, saying some people go out of their way to validate their suspicions, and not give others the benefit of the doubt.

Butt also talks about jealousy and hatred, saying disputes are inevitable, but one should forgive and to not forsake a brother for more than three days.

Three years into its existence -- the congregation bought the building from Faith United Church of Christ in March 2008 -- the center has begun reaching out to the Easton community.

It recently instituted a free health clinic, which is overseen by volunteer physicians and runs from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on the first Thursday of every month.

Services include physical examinations for a driver’s license, pre-employment, and pre-college enrollment. Screenings for high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, obesity and heart disease are also done. If treatment is required, individuals will be referred as required.

Also on the drawing board is a section for gently-used clothing for those in need.

Two days after the Friday service, the center is filled with families. Most Sundays would find  about 110 young Muslims in the upstairs classrooms, but this was a fun day, with cotton candy, pizza, a bouncy house and face painting. 

While the kids played, their parents prayed, the men and women divided by a partition.

The building has an abundance of space, including a social hall which is used for weekly dinners and other events. Classrooms for the religious education are freshly painted and colorfully decorated. Adult and children classes include Islamic Studies, Arabic, and Recitation of Scripture in Arab, including the unique rhythm and cadence.

“The Arabs were the best of poets of their time,” Butt said, and the rhythm and cadence does not fit into anything else, except the Quran,” he added. .

Butt is aware that some Muslims have used the Islamic scripture to foster hatred and violence.

“Don’t judge Islam by the actions of Muslims; judge the action of Muslims by the teaching of Islam,” he said.

“All of us come from Adam and Eve,” Butt said. “If we keep that perspective in mind, it makes it easier to remember that we have a relationship to every person in the world.”