UPDATED 29.06.24
The Definition Of A Mosque.
Previously you may have recently heard Ayman Syed of The Chelmsford Muslim Society claim that the use of the Hamptons for Islamic prayer did not make it a mosque.
We beg to differ. During an interview on Chelmsford Community Radio on the 10/08/20 the General Secretary of the CMS Ayman Syed (now the Chair) was asked by the interviewer (referring to Hamptons Sports and Leisure Club) about the venue’s use.
The current use
Since 2020 (when this piece was published), the use for worship and religious education has gone from 90 minutes a week, to over 80 hours a week. The Hamptons Mosque now offers:
Daily prayers x5 from 3.30am-11pm
Jamu’ah prayers on Friday attended by 200+ worshippers
A madrassah catering for 145 students often using the entire venue.
Extended use for 30 consecutive days during Ramadan
Eid celebrations
Weekly religious lectures and seminars
Sister’s circles and Halaqas
Segregated events solely for the Muslim community
Free parking for the Muslim community
Definitions of a mosque
The Oxford English Dictionary definition of a mosque is “A Muslim Place of Worship” and Vocabulary.com offers “The mosque is the traditional Muslim place of worship. Architecturally, it often features a minaret, or onion-shaped dome, on top”
Wikipedia defines a mosque as “A mosque (/mɒsk/; from Arabic: مَسْجِد, romanized: masjid, pronounced [masdʒid]; literally "place of ritual prostration") is a place of worship for Muslims.[1][2] Any act of worship that follows the Islamic rules of prayer can be said to create a mosque, whether or not it takes place in a special building.[2] Informal and open-air places of worship are called musalla, while mosques used for communal prayer on Fridays are known as jāmiʿ.[1]
The Collins Dictionary has “A mosque is a building where Muslims go to worship”
And finally Britannica offers “Mosque, Arabic masjid or jāmiʿ, any house or open area of prayer in Islam. The Arabic word masjid means “a place of prostration” to God, and the same word is used in Persian, Urdu, and Turkish. Two main types of mosques can be distinguished: the masjid jāmiʿ, or “collective mosque,” a large state-controlled mosque that is the centre of community worship and the site of Friday prayer services; and smaller mosques operated privately by various groups within society.
Some of you will remember the many fundraising pages that the Chelmsford Muslim Society ran to purchase Hamptons. Take a look at the descriptions of the proposed use of the premises:
The owners can use all the “alternative” names for the venue it wants:
Hamptons Sports and Leisure Centre
The Hamptons Centre
Hamptons,
Hamptons Islamic Centre
it’s a mosque by definition and by use
KBO