Al- Hadi Mosque open house dispels myths about Muslim faith

An Edmonton mosqueopened its doors to the public Sunday afternoon in an effort to combat what the congregationfears is a growing backlash against the Muslim community.

The idea came to Mohyuddin Mirza, the outreach director of theAhmadiyya Muslim Community Canada in Edmonton, after an online video was released by anal-Qaeda-linked group calling for attacks atWest Edmonton Mall and other shopping centres in the U.S. and Europe.

I thought Oh, here we go again, Mirza said.

This is my religion, this is my faith, I have lived this for 70years, so I got to tell people that this is not what Islam is.

He worried the mall threats, as well as the continued actions of ISIS and the attacks on Frances Charlie Hebdo magazine, would give people misconceptions about his religion.

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The open house at Al- Hadi Mosquewas designed to give people from outside the faith a better understanding of the religions history and teachings. He said Islam preaches non-violence, and that groups like ISIS have twisted the faiths tenants for their own purposes.

It is to be a jihad of pens, a jihad of argument. Not a jihad of guns, Mirza said.

He said like any other religion, there many different communities and beliefs within Islam. But those who commit violence in the name of the religion are ignoring what it actually teaches, he said.

Dozens of people attended the event. For some, it was a chance to learn more about Edmontons Islamic community. For practising Muslims, like Samina Mian, it was a chance to speak to others and dissolve some of the stereotypes that she has encountered.

Respect, respect for other religions, respect for other cultures, and that's what real Islam is, respect, she said.

Like Mirzas, Mian worries that for too many theonly experience with Islam is hearing about extremist groups, sothey might not be getting an accurate view of her religion.

We read it, we hear it, we see it in the TV all the time, with the growing crisis in the Middle East, and ISIS, the way Islam is portrayed, she said.

Sundays open house coincided with Meet a Muslim Family, a national campaign organizers hopewill dispel misconceptions about Islam.