Ramadan in tunisia and U.S.A

Ramadan in TunisiaThe glorious month of Ramadan is special in Tunisia, where life takes a different course, marked with special customs

and traditions. The families decorate the front of their houses and those caring for Mosques give them an extra

coat of paint and light up the minarets with lamps.The Tunisian family is reunited and strengthens its bonds during this month, which the Tunisians call the “Month of

Meeting”, because members of each family find themselves around the same table every day at Iftaar (end of the fast).

The bonds of solidarity and fraternity consolidate and people visit family and friends frequently.

Many families residing close to a Mosque offer worshippers milk and dates before prayer and the Iftaar meal after. In the cities, caravans of solidarity are organized to provide Iftaar

for the poor and needy.During the month of Ramadan, thereis a large increase in

the number of worshippers in Mosques throughout the country.

Ramadan in TunisiaThe Mosques are frequently overflowing, they are so full that men, women and young people have to pray in the streets

and neighboring public spaces.One particularly noticeable phenomenon in the last few years has been the large surge in the number of young

people, boys and girls, who go to the Mosques. Observers refer to this as “rebirth of the faith”, which impregnates

Tunisian society during this glorious month.Tunisian families begin their preparations for Ramadan, on

the moral and material levels, especially the women who are to prepare meals for Iftaar.

They prepare “hlalem”, a kind of traditional paste used for the daily

soup, “bssissa” a very nutritious mixture containing corn, coriander, chick-peas, sugar, olive oil and salt and the “brik, a triangular wafer stuffed with eggs, meat or fish and fried in

oil.The majority of cities organize various cultural and artistic

activities during the long evenings, where a convivial family atmosphere prevails.

Ramadan in the U.S.A.

From Phoenix up to Seattle over to New York and down to Houston the Muslims of America will flock to their Islamic

centers for enormous potluck dinners and Taraaweeh prayers.

In America as well as other non-Muslim countries, the mosque performs a different function than it does in Muslim countries. It is more than a place for prayer and the Friday sermon; the Islamic center is the hub of the entire Muslim

community. It is a meeting point for friends and the center of the excitement during Ramadan. Thus, many break their fast

in the mosque rather than at home.

Ramadan in the U.S.A.

The last few years have been tense years for Muslims living in America trying to clarify what Islam teaches and defining their place in a foreign land. This Ramadan, many will, no doubt, be reaching out to non-Muslims in an act of Da’wah (calling to Islam), perhaps inviting non-Muslims to join in

their Iftaar or contacting the media for positive coverage on the month.

The Muslims of American are a cultural melting pot, in which one community might contain people form every continent. This creates a truly multicultural, truly Islamic feeling, not to

mention making a truly international Iftaar. Meals usually consist of everything from cuisine of the Indian subcontinent to American casseroles; form Far-East Asian cuisine to Arabic

food. 

سما طارقإعداد: http://www.islamweb.net/eramadan/المصدر: