Birmingham Central Mosque

Summary

Birmingham Central Mosque, is a mosque in the Highgate area of Birmingham, England, run by the Birmingham Mosque Trust. The organization, 'Muslims in Britain’ classify the Birmingham Central Mosque as, nonsectarian.[1] The mosque has a capacity of 6,000, including women.[1] The mosque provides a Sharia Council which in 2016 handled 400 requests for divorce.[2]

Birmingham Central Mosque
Religion
AffiliationIslam[1]
Location
LocationHighgate, Birmingham, England
Architecture
Typemosque
Completed1975
Specifications
Capacity6,000 (including women)[1]
Dome(s)1
Minaret(s)2
Website
www.centralmosque.org.uk/

The mosque has 21 listed trustees,[3] and its Chair is Muhammad Afzal. Its Vice Chairman is Mohammed Najib.

History edit

A golden dome was added to the top of the minaret in 1981.[4] In 1986, the mosque sought and was granted permission to call prayer within certain limits.[5] Between 1988 and 1990, Al-Hijrah School educated children in three rented rooms within the mosque before moving to Midland House in Small Heath.[6]

In 2006, the West Midlands Fire Service put out a fire in the mosque which began in an office in the building. It did not spread far, yet it caused damage to electronics and also destroyed paperwork.[7]

In December 2011 a man was arrested after making a Facebook threat to bomb the mosque.[8]

Following a protest by the English Defence League (EDL) in April 2017, the Birmingham Central Mosque held a tea party with the goal of countering those demonstrations and promoting interfaith dialogue. The tea party ended up receiving more participants than the original EDL march.[9]

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "Birmingham Central Mosque". Muslims in Britain. 25 April 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  2. ^ Bone, Amra (2 March 2017). "Inside Britain's sharia councils: hardline and anti-women – or a dignified way to divorce?". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  3. ^ "Charity Details". beta.charitycommission.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
  4. ^ Panikos Panayi (1999). The Impact of Immigration in Post-war Britain: A Documentary History of the Effects and Experiences of Immigrants in Britain since 1945. Manchester University Press. p. 103. ISBN 0-7190-4685-8.
  5. ^ W. A. R. Shadid (1995). Religious Freedom and the Position of Islam in Western Europe. Peters Publishers. p. 35. ISBN 90-390-0065-4.
  6. ^ "History of Al-Hijrah". Al-Hijrah. Archived from the original on 16 October 2008. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  7. ^ "Arsonists set fire to city mosque". BBC News. 7 January 2006. Retrieved 2 December 2007.
  8. ^ "Man arrested after Facebook threat to bomb Birmingham mosque". Mirror. 12 December 2011. Retrieved 27 February 2020.
  9. ^ York, Chris (8 April 2017). "EDL Birmingham Demo Countered By Mosque Tea Party". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 5 June 2017.

External links edit

  • Birmingham Central Mosque website
  • Birmingham Central Mosque on the BBC
  • "Public urged to tour city mosque"