ORANGE, NJ — Imam W. Deen Shareef is looking for a new site to relocate his Masjid Waarith ud Deen mosque, now in Irvington, and he has set his sights on Orange, although the Orange Board of Education is currently trying to buy the building he wants.
“Masjid Waarith ud Deen is kind of like in transition,” said Shareef on Saturday, Sept. 9, during a charity meat giveaway at the D. Bilal Community Center in Irvington Park, in honor of the Islamic religion’s Eid al Adha celebration. “We actually have a piece of property that we’re trying to purchase in Orange. We couldn’t find a piece of property in Irvington, but we have to wait and see. Hopefully, we’ll have a variance meeting in Orange and, hopefully, the variance will be approved. So we’re looking at perhaps transitioning from Irvington into Orange. But we still have relationships here in Irvington. So whatever we’re going to be doing, we have to split ourselves between Orange and Irvington and Newark”
Shareef said the public is invited to attend the service at the masjid’s “temporary home” at 557 Clinton Ave. in Newark on Fridays at 1 p.m. He also asks people to pray that the mosque gets the zoning variance needed to establish a permanent home in Orange.
Meanwhile, Shareef and his followers said they hope to hold more positive, community-oriented events such as the food giveaway in Irvington. The muslim volunteers were giving away boxes filled with halal beef, lamb and chicken. Halal meat has been prepared according to the tenets of Islamic law.
According to Shareef, the Prophet Muhammad said charity is one of the Five Pillars of Islam; the others are: faith, prayer, fasting and Hajj, the pilgrimage to the Mecca in Saudi Arabia.
“We’ve partnered to give away the packages that are in celebration of our recent celebration of Eid al-Adha, which is the celebration of sacrifice,” said Shareef on Saturday, Sept. 9. “Eid means ‘recurring happiness.’ So those that are participating in the festivities want to share in the happiness of the joy that comes not only with making Hajj but also from coming together as a community and as a family.”
Shereef was accompanied at the event in Irvington by members of his mosque; Osman Dulgeroglu, vice president for Embrace Relief; and Serhat Sen, director of Edep Academy, along with some student volunteers.
“Each year, in the time of Eid al Adha, we are distributing around 200,000 pounds of beef meat here in the United States and also 40 other countries around the world in Asia, Africa and South America,” said Dulgeroglu on Saturday, Sept. 9.
Dulgeroglu is a former biology teacher from Turkey who came to the United States in 2002, switching careers shortly thereafter to enter the nonprofit world. But he said education is still near and dear to his heart, adding, “Education and Islam are both about helping.”
He and Shareef said education falls under charity as one of Five Pillars of Islam, so it was right to have young people volunteering at the food giveaway.
“Education is also charity and that’s another big part of Islam and the Eid al-Adha celebration,” said Deen on Sept. 9. “The Eid al-Adha celebration is not only to feed the people the food, but also to feed them knowledge. It’s important, because Eid al-Adha is ‘the brighter Eid,’ which means that it’s a celebration not only of sacrifice, but it’s a celebration also of the enlightenment of the human intellect. So it’s about education, as well as charity.”
According to Sen, the timing of the food giveaway was fortuitous.
“School has started. It’s like a month since we started our school,” he said. “With our students, we always are working with Embrace Relief, not just learning but giving back to the community. We came here today with 10 to 15 students. We have some of our graduates and current students. We’re willing to work with this community for coming years.”
That was good news to Edwin Bowles, 18, a student at Essex County College who is a member of the Newark mosque. He came to the Irvington event for a practical lesson in charity and giving back, along with Saldet Kaskin, 14, who attends Wayne Hills High School, and Seni Niaks, a high school senior who wants to be an architect.
“I think it’s very helpful for us to feed the homeless and actually build relationships. I think it’s very helpful toward the community,” said Bowles on Saturday, Sept. 9. “We all come from nothing. Basically, we’re just trying to help each other out, so that we (can) be better people.”
Kaskin, who said she plans to be a medical doctor, appreciates Islam’s holistic approach to helping people.
“I feel like it’s going to help out everyone,” said Kaskin on Saturday, Sept. 9. “I feel like it’s going to bring peace to everyone.”
Niaks also said she was glad she came to Irvington for the food giveaway.
“It was my first time in this community,” said Niaks on Saturday, Sept. 9. “It’s nice meeting everyone and hopefully we’ll continue this again.”
Deen agreed, saying, “We are the peacemakers and the peacekeepers. Islam is about bringing human beings together to work for the greater good.”
“This is about making relationships with people and also providing charity to people that need the support for their families and their children.”
South Ward Councilwoman Sandy Jones, one of the Friends of Irvington Park, said helping families and children is what it’s all about.
“It was a great idea to service the people in the community,” said Jones on Monday, Sept. 11. “You always do well when you give out food. It’s a combination of religions. Everybody does well, when we work together.”
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