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Q3 - ISB Community Newsletter

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Assalamu Alaikum Dear ISB Community,

I am excited to share this new quarterly update with you. With each one that comes out, I am amazed at how much our community is accomplishing. As you read through the pages, you will enjoy seeing the great achievements, the good work being done, the tremendous growth of the community, and all the fun we are having. At ISB, weve seen significant positive change and progress, such as a new playground for our growing community, a new location for the Halal Food Fest to accommodate our growth, two new properties added to the ISB campus this year, a beautiful minaret visible from afar, and being at full capacity in nearly all of our educational programs for children such as Al-Rahmah School, Al-Rahmah Quran Academy, the After School Academy, and the Al-Rahmah Sunday School. And the list goes on.

Something I would like for all of us to reflect on, however, is what each of these quarterly updates should remind us of, and that is time. They should remind us of time. How fast is time passing by? What have we been doing with our time? And of course, how much time do we each have left before we ultimately return to Allah? In just a few more weeks, we will all be looking at the new ISB 2025 calendars and making plans for the coming year. While this past year feels like it flew by, it was certainly a significant one with a lot happening. There is definitely much to celebrate this year, but it was also filled with challenges for our Muslim community at large. Over a year ago now, a genocide in Gaza began, and since then, it has only expanded to include our brothers and sisters in the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria, Iran, and Yemen, with no end in sight. There are people all over the world (including here in Baltimore) who are food insecure, suffering from famine, or struggling with the aftermath of natural disasters or political upheaval. This year was also difficult for Muslims here in America, as many of us feel that our collective voices have been ignored by our civic leaders, and very little is being done regarding the concerns we have been raising.

Abu Huraira (R) narrated: Allah's Messenger, our beloved Prophet Muhammad said, "Time will pass rapidly, good deeds will decrease, and miserliness will be thrown (into the hearts of people), and Harj (will increase)." They asked, "What is Harj?" He replied, "(It is) killing (murdering), (it is) murdering (killing)."

My challenge to all of us is to think about what we can do better in the coming year and with the time we have left on this earth. We all have a desire to make ISB a Prophetic Community. To do so, one of the things we must do is become prophetic community members. We need to live our lives in the best of manners and push ourselves to be better every day. We cannot expect to build a prophetic community without doing our part. Its time to roll up our sleeves and get to work. I have a few simple requests for each of us to start with, and I pray we can work together to implement them in our lives.

1. Pray. Come to ISB for your regular daily prayers. Build a habit with your family to attend at least one congregational prayer a day.

2. Give Salam to one another. Our Prophet Muhammad said in a hadith to "Spread the Salam," encouraging his community to spread peace, offer food to the needy, and be kind and loving towards one another. Lets make this a norm at ISB. Lets ensure everyone feels welcome.

3. Learn. Our programs and classes for children are at capacityAlhamdulillah! But what about the adult classes? If you are an adult, a young professional, newlywed, or a senior member of our community, know that our Deen is vast and there is always more to learn. We need to ensure that we are improving ourselves as much as our youth are. Sign up for one of our Qibla classes or stay after salah for one of our daily halaqas.

4. Increase in good deeds. Remember the hadith I mentioned earlier? Lets do our part in building a prophetic community by volunteering whenever we can, increasing our charity, fasting on the Sunnah days (Monday and Thursday), sacrificing luxury if it means easing the struggles of those around us, being good neighbors, and being there for our community as challenges arise and opportunities for good present themselves. Lets ensure we continue to move forward in pursuit of Allahs pleasure.

I make dua that Allah (SWT) continues to bless our community, that He allows us to grow together in the best of ways, and that He helps us be there for one another, both locally and globally. Ameen.

Sincerely, your brother,
Hasan Hammad
President, Islamic Society of Baltimore

Save the Date! General Body Meeting

Don't forget to mark your calendars for our semi-annual General Body Meeting, scheduled for October 27th, 2024 at 11:00am.

Learn updates, and give your feedback! Your participation and input are essential when it comes to building our communitys future, inshaAllah.

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