In response to ISWM President Ali Hazratji’s request, Mr. Awkal has scouted parcels around the region for months, and Hazratji’s ‘Islamic Society’ has recently set its sights on Belchertown as a welcoming place to “target” for an “anchor.” While the application is being prepared, Mr. Awkal is concerned that “anti-Islamic views may taint the process,” so he is reaching out to the community to teach us about the burial practices of Muslims, Christians, and the Jews.
Scouting parcels around the area for Dr. Hazratji’s ISWM
Unlike many Christian and pagan burials, we don’t embalm our dead, Awkal said, noting that Jews adhere to a similar practice. Muslims are often buried with no more than a shroud, rather than a coffin, he said.
When a muslim dies, the body is wrapped in a sheet and buried almost immediately, he said.
Now there is a large influx of people from Egypt, Pakistan, Lebanon and Syria and our ummah is getting larger. That is why we need a cemetery.
Many followers of Mohammed are deeply committed to applying the teachings of the Koran by following the “sayings and practices of their prophet, who demonstrated the “perfect example” to “build bridges of tolerance, harmony, and understanding” to nearby communities by assisting them with their burial needs.
Mohammed demonstrates his “sayings and practices.”
Allah sent him to perfect all moral values and to serve as the best example for mankind to follow (Qur’an 33: 21)
632 – the Banu Qurayza community – Mohammed generously provided burial services for 900 of the men who had been killed. He also helped the widows by providing them all with new owners on the very same day.
The women and children were mostly spared and were enslaved instead.Muhammad selected one of the women, Rayhana, for himself and took her as part of his share of the slaves. She is said to have later become a Muslim.
Mohammed also helped the nearby Banu Nadir and Banu Qaynuqa communities make economical funeral arrangements.
