please join us for the 2024 Year-End Fundraising, "Does God Answer Petitionary Prayer?" , "Science and Religion" Lecture , and other Weekly Events

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Assalamu Alaykum, with greetings of peace to you ,

2024 Year-End Annual Fundraising

In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful

Surely those who read the Book of God, are firm in devotion, and spend of what we have given them in secret or openly, can hope for a commerce that will not decline (Quran 35:29)

ICCNC's Annual Year-End Fundraiser

The Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California (ICCNC) has launched its annual year-end fundraiser, and we kindly request your generous support to sustain our vital programs and services throughout 2025. With your contributions and blessings from Allah (SWT), we aim to achieve our goal of $100,000 by December 31, 2024.

With the community support and dedication of selfless volunteers, ICCNC continued its programs, and persevered in its mission to serve the community, and those in need both in Oakland and around the Muslim world where, we are witnessing unprecedented genocides and violence against Muslims around the world, especially in Palestine, Lebanon, Afghanistan.

Summary of Our 2024 Accomplishments

Through your continued generosity, ICCNC was able to accomplish the following in 2024:

• Completed drafting a new bylaw to enhance ICCNCs governance and to better serve the community.

• Hired a consultant and started developing ICCNCs strategic plan for the next five years. The strategic plan report will be created.

• Distributed groceries and produce to more that 300 families every week throughout the year in partnership with the Support Life Foundation and interfaith volunteers from Kehilla Community Synagogue, Montclair Presbyterian Church, First Unitarian Church of Oakland, and Temple Sinai.

• Prepared and distributed more than 200 hot meals every Wednesdays and Fridays to the Oakland's unhoused population.

• Commemorated religious events, including Ramadan, Muharram, Eids, and continued our interfaith collaboration with Oakland Faith Trio partners.

• Conducted weekly Friday prayers and broadcasted the Khutbahs via Zoom/YouTube.

• Fulfilled essential Islamic services for the community, including marriage, burial, and memorial ceremonies.

• Hosted lectures and discussions led by renowned Muslim intellectual and author Dr. Abdulkarim Soroush on the critical topic of science and religion, lectures on the Sixth Book of Masnavi, and interpretation of Imam Ghazali's Kimiyae Saadat.

• Continued with the online debates with scholars on the issue of Belief and Unbelief in a Post-Secular Era.

• Increased our outreach through our YouTube Channel now having over 15,800 subscribers, a 20% increase from last year.

• Distributed more than $107,000 of Fitra, Fedyah, Sadaghah and other religious donations and dues to help the needy in Oakland and to nonprofit organizations to help the needy Muslims in Gaza, Lebanon, Afghanistan, and Iran.

• Signed a contract to purchase and install a special wheelchair elevator for the building to make ICCNC accessible for the physical disabled people.

• Received several quotes for the following maintenance and capital improvement projects:

  • To repaint the exterior of the entire ICCNC building and repair the stucco in the areas that have been damaged.

  • To replace all the damaged windows throughout the building with new energy efficient windowsUpcoming Annual Gathering and Celebration

Upcoming Annual Gathering and Celebration

To celebrate ICCNC's accomplishments and honor our dedicated volunteers, we will host our annual gathering and celebration which the date will be announced at a later date. Please mark your calendars, and we will provide the events details soon.

Donate to ICCNC

Your support empowers ICCNC to continue serving the community. Please use the button below to donate via credit card or PayPal. Alternatively, you can mail your check to ICCNC. We also highly encourage you use our highly secured website payment system and schedule recurring monthly donations for 2025.

As a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, ICCNC gratefully accepts tax-deductible donations. May Allah (SWT) multiply the reward for your generosity and contributions in this world and the Hereafter. We pray for your continued health, peace, and prosperity.

Thank you for your unwavering support of ICCNC. Together, we can make a positive impact on our community.

Donate To Annual Fundraising

"Science and Religion" - Lecture No. 78 by Dr. Soroush

Sunday, Dec 29, 2024, at 11:00 AM (Los Angeles)

Please join us for Science and Religion lecture series in Farsi by Dr. Abdolkarim Soroush. The lectures will be held via Zoom and ICCNC YouTube Channel. For Zoom, pleaseclick here to registerfor the lecture series. Attendees register once and can attend any of the occurrences.

Also, for those in the U.S. who are interested to purchase the latest book by Dr. Soroush please use thislink to order it from Bonyad Towhidin San Jose, CA.

We appreciate your support of Dr. Soroushs classes by paying a $10 donation for each session of the class.

"Does God Answer Petitionary Prayer?" - Conversations with Dr. Soroush and Dr. Naraghi

January ,4 th and 11 th, 2025 at 10:30 AM (Los Angeles)

Prayer is a central practice in every religion, serving various purposes. People pray to express gratitude, offer praise, seek forgiveness, and make requests.

Petitionary prayer, where individuals ask God for something, has been a subject of significant philosophical inquiry, particularly among Farsi-speaking communities. To delve deeper into this topic, the Islamic Cultural Center of Northern California (ICCNC) hosted a debate (in Farsi) on August 10, 2024, between Dr. Arash Naraghi and Dr. Amir Akrami. However, time constraints limited the discussion, leaving many audience questions unanswered.

To address these questions, ICCNC has invited two prominent Muslim philosophers, Dr. Arash Naraghi and Dr. Abdolkarim Soroush, for follow-up conversations. These discussions will be streamed on the ICCNC YouTube Channel on January 4th and 11th, 2025, at 10:30 AM (LA Time).

January 4th: Dr. Hassan Masoud will converse with Dr. Naraghi (in Farsi).

January 11th: Dr. Yaser Mirdamadi will discuss the topic with Dr. Soroush (in Farsi).

To better understand the nuances of petitionary prayer, Dr. Masoud has prepared a concise introduction with links to other resources, available here.

ICCNC encourages you to join these insightful conversations to deepen your understanding of this important aspect of our faith and our relationship with God.

Weekly Events at ICCNC

• Friday Prayer, Dec,27 at 12:30 PM - Please join us for Friday Prayers at ICCNC starting at 12:30 PM. The Friday prayer sermons (Khutba) will be live-streamed via both Zoom Meeting and ICCNC YouTube Channel.