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Page 2 The Islamic Bulletin Issue 7 Page 3 The Islamic Bulletin Issue 7
Dear Editor:
TRIP TO BRAZIL
Five brothers and I had the
chance, with the mercy of God,
to visit the Muslim community
in Brazil.
There are about 4-6 million
Muslims living in Brazil consist-
ing mostly of descendants from
Lebanon, Palestine and Syria.
To give a brief history of the mi-
gration movement of Muslims in
Brazil, it started around the year 1880, when the occupation and
economical hardship was due on Muslims in Great Syria.
Immigration was at its peak in the 1950’s when the economy of
Brazil was at its best.
Today, there are first, second, third, and even fourth generation of
Muslims living there.
The good news, thanks to God, is that Islam and Muslims are well
and sound. There are hundreds of well built mosques everywhere
and thousands of good practicing Muslims.
There are also Islamic schools and community centers. This is all
due to the mercy of God and the effort which was put by hundreds
of Dawa jamat who spent their times there teaching Islam since
the 1950’s.
When we arrived at Sao Pablo Airport, we had no names, address-
es, or phone numbers of Muslims to contact. The leader of our
group suggested that we look through the phone book for Muslim
“sounding” names and give them a call.
To our surprise, the second person we called was the Amir (leader)
of the entire Islamic Centers in Brazil.
46 people accepted Islam while we were in Brazil. Among them
was a general in the army, a state person, 7 engineers, a rock singer,
a drummer and even a preacher.
Letters To T he Editor
I met the preacher in the street while he was preaching Christianity.
He would not allow me to leave until I explained Islam to him.
This preacher became very interested in Islam and accompanied
me to the Masjid.
He then declared his Shahadah and proceeded to trade in his
Holy Bible, full of 12 years worth of notes, for a Glorious Quran
in Portuguese.
JAMAAT TO BRAZIL
- by Mohammed Asan Khan, Daly City
“As for those who strive for Us, We surely guide
them to Our paths, and Lo! God is with the good”.
(Quran 29:69)
For this “call” the Muslims are required to spare their time for
traveling in groups, from house to house, street to street, village
to village, town to town, and country to country extorting the
people to lead their life according to the Principles mentioned
above.
No amount of opposition, threat, or persecution should defer them
from carrying out this job which has, in fact, been the life mission
of all the prophets in general and that of Muhammad (pbuh) in
particular.
Thanks to God, a Jamaat from San Francisco left on November
10, 1991 to Brazil to fulfill the commandment of Allah, Sub-
hana Wa Tala and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (Peace
be upon him).
The Jamaat stayed in two major cities, Rio de Janeiro and Sao
Paulo.
Having worked in so many Masjids and meeting Muslim brothers
from different countries, mainly the Middle East (as the majority
of the population is from the Middle East) many brothers made
intention to go to Pakistan for 4 months and others made their
intentions for 40 days.
Since the Jamaat (Group) from other countries are also visiting this
country (Brazil) the work of Dawa (invitation to Islam) has started
and lot of changes are taking place.
Still much effort is needed.
46 people embraced Islam. On our way back to San Francisco,
Jamaats from New York, Portugal, and South Africa were in the
neighboring cities of Brazil.
Need to contact us?
Web Address:
E-Mail:
Editor, Islamic Bulletin
P.O. Box 410186
San Francisco, CA 94141-0186, USA
Ruins of L ost City Uncovered in Arabian D esert
Guided by ancient maps and sharp-eyed surveys from space,
archaeologists and explorers have discovered a lost city deep
in the sands of Arabia, and they are virtually sure it is Ubar,
the fabled center of the rich frankincense trade thousands of
years ago.
Leaders of the expedition reported that excavations so far have
uncovered the ruins of eight towers and adjoining walls and
deposits of pottery dating to Roman times and as far back as
2000 B.C., perhaps earlier. They said the location and size of
the site and evidence of a violent destruction appeared to match
historical accounts of Ubar’s rise and fall.
Ubar was called the “the Atlantis of the sands” by T.E. Law-
rence--Lawrence of Arabia--who had planned to look for the site.
The ruins are on the edge of the Empty Quarter of the Arabian
Peninsula in the Dhofar region of Southern Oman.
Much research has tied Ubar to the city Iram in the Quran and
to Omanum Emporium on the maps of Claudius Ptolemy, the
Alexandrian geographer of the second century A.D. He referred
to the people of the region as Ubarites.
But it was not until scientists began painstaking analysis of sat-
ellite images that they spotted geological traces that led them to
the site. Images made with invisible, near-infrared light showed
evidence of ancient caravan routes, undetectable on the ground,
leading to and from one particular area.
In the Quran, the city of Iram, possibly Ubar, is described as
the “many columned city...whose like has not been built in the
entire land.”
Condemned for their sinful and unrepentant lives, the Quran
relates, the people in Iram were destroyed by God. The expe-
dition found evidence of its cause.
The site’s buildings were built over a large limestone cavern,
which at some point in the distant past collapsed, plunging
much of the city into a gaping hole. The ruins were eventually
buried in drifting sand.
(See also San Francisco Chronicle, Feb.5, 1992)
Editor’s Comments
The archaeologists and explorers had no books or other source of
information to refer to except that of the Holy Quran. Passages
from the Holy Quran were even being quoted on the nightly
news and the major talk shows.
It should come as no surprise to us Muslims that the accuracy of
the Quran has once again been proved to be true. We Muslims
should not be surprised of the passages in the Quran and their
truthfulness.
Muslims should also beware and take notice of how God creates
and also destroys. The people of Ad had disobeyed God and as
a result, God punished them by destroying an entire city. Do
we think that because we live in such modern times that we
are immune to such punishment?
Remember the earthquake in October 1989? This was just a
small reminder of how powerless man really is. If we had been
destroyed, were we prepared to meet our Creator? What good
were our money, wealth, and power at such a time?
Only our good deeds will be of value in such a time. Let us all
repent to The Almighty in this blessed month of Ramadan from
this moment.
For more about the people of Ad, please click here and refer also
to the Quran 7:65-72; 11:50-60; 25:38; 26:123-140; 29:38;
41:15-16; 46:21-26; 51:41-42; 54:18-21; 69:4-8; 89:6-14.
Muslim Inmates O bserve R amadan
San Francisco: Thanks to God and to the kind assistance of a
reverend, for the first time the 23 inmates at the S.F. County jail
will be allowed to gather in one room for the entire Ramadan.
They will be able to have their meals before Sunrise and at
Sunset. Dates will be provided for the break of fast.
B irth of the Kosher S teel I ndustry
Shocked to discover that most tin cans contain traces of animal
fat; an improbable coalition of Jews, Muslims and Seventh-day
Adventists has persuaded major steel-makers to start manufac-
turing kosher steel.
The U.S. Steel-POSCO joint venture in Pittsburgh recently be-
came one of the first steel factories in the country to qualify for
kosher certification. Steel made in the plant for use in food and
beverage cans and steel drums now is guaranteed to meet strict
Jewish kosher, Muslim halal-haram and Seventh-day Adventist
requirements.
Religious dietary laws, which date from biblical times, regulate
what foods observant Jews, Muslims and Seventh-day Adventists
may eat or drink. Muslims and Jews may not consume pork or
any animal products that come from meat not slaughtered in
accordance with religious ritual. 7th-day Adventists do not eat
meat.
The idea that food laws could affect steel sales seemed far-
fetched until someone discovered that steel used to make cans
routinely is coated during processing with lubricants containing
animal fats. Analysis showed that even after cleaning, steel re-
tained some of the lubricating oil.
(See also San Francisco Chronicle, Feb.14, 1992)