At a local mosque, just before Mother’s Day, the Juma khutbah was about how Islam places eminence on mothers. After the prayers, a fundraiser from another state stood up and said, “Yes, pray for all the mothers in Palestine and Iraq. But, give us money so that we can build a $2.5 million mosque” and then quoted a vaguely relevant hadith to justify his request. All the musalli agreed. How about praying for the mosque and giving sadaqah instead to the poor mothers in Palestine and Iraq, I wondered.

Is it because the recipients are non-Muslim? In times of economic distress, such as now, wouldn’t it be a good idea to raise funds for the local shelter or the food bank instead of a new mosque? Consider the circumstances from the perspective of a non-Muslim living in your community. He recently lost his job; is behind on his car and credit card payments, and is about to lose his house. Yet, there is a new $2 million mosque coming up not two blocks from his house. From the media, he’s concluded that all terrorists are Muslims and here they are, in his neighborhood, building a new mosque to run activities out of. Wouldn’t it be an act of sadaqah to raise funds to alleviate his condition? Wouldn’t that neutralize his prejudices towards Muslims and Islam? Wouldn’t that be following Allah (SWT)’s commands? However, if we continue building new mosques when people in our communities are suffering, how have we carried out Allah (SWT)’s commands? Besides, do you think they’ll have a soft spot for Muslims and Islam in the United States? I believe that sadaqah is very easy. Allah (SWT) has made it easy for us to give to the needy, the miskin, the traveler, and the orphan, regardless of their beliefs. The conditions of these people innately tug at our hearts. Yet, when it comes to giving to mosques, there is a natural resistance, especially when there is already an existing mosque in the community. Let’s organize our fundraising efforts to support the deserving in our local communities. As for mosques, there now exist non-traditional ways to make mosques self-sufficient. See my previous article, “The Changing Face of Fundraising for Mosques.”