The Islamic Society at the University of Essex
The Islamic Society at the University of Essex is a primarily student-run society whose vision is to inspire and enable Muslim students to live by Islam. It was first established in 1985 to provide an international platform to support Muslim students, inform others about Islam and provide a forum for the discussion of a variety of issues related to Islam and Muslims. It is estimated now that the Islamic Society accommodates about 500 members including members of staff, students and local Muslim community who belong to a diversity of ethnic backgrounds.
Following the principles of Shura (i.e. consultation) in Islam, the chief executive members of the society are annually elected. Elections for the positions of President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Sisters Representative and Activity Officer are annually held at the end of the academic year.
Despite the fact that membership of the society is principally granted to registered students of Essex, the society welcomes members of the Colchester community, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, to participate in the different activities organised by its members.
The society also maintains close links with the Muslim community in the County of Essex whose members take part in activities like the Friday Prayers, the Eid Prayers, the Ramadan Iftar, the Islamic Awareness Week and in other similar activities that aim at the promotion of Islam and Islamic values at Essex.
The Islamic Awareness Week (IAW) marks the most important annual events of the society for which Muslims students, both males and females combine their knowledge, skills and efforts to present a true picture of Islam and state with simplicity what Islam is all about. Students from all backgrounds work hand in hand to try and rectify some of the damage caused by the media against the globally established negative image of Islam and Muslims. This five-day event involves organising a variety of activities including Islamic exhibitions, talks, debates, social gatherings with non-Muslims, etc. The event, by the grace of Allah, usually results in having a number of converts to Islam. Therefore, this event was awarded the status of a conference by the University of Essex in 2006. The Islamic Society will thus organise its first International Conference in 2007 in which a number of well known Muslim scholars have been invited to talk and exchange ideas with individuals and groups who belong to different cultural backgrounds that Islam is part of.
In its attempt to promote literacy of Arabic and knowledge of Quran among young Muslims and non-Arab Muslims, the society holds Arabic teaching circles through out the academic year. Quran memorization completions are occasionally held especially in the Holy Month of Ramadan. Quran interpretation circles are also held weekly and are delivered in both Arabic and English.
In order to keep channels of communication open between Muslims and members of other faiths and help establish intellectual exchange for a better understanding and respect for one another, the society holds different seminars and discussion groups. Trips to different masjids, churches and other places of worship are organised as are visits to local schools, on invitation, for the same purpose.
The society’s office is located in the Multi-Faith Chaplaincy Centre which includes other facilities like a permanent prayer room, an ablution area for sisters, a kitchen, a library and a shop which caters for its members’ need for Halal food by selling different Halal meals every Friday. In addition to the need for food, the society accommodates the members’ need for recreation by organising different sports activities on a weekly basis.
In pursuit of its aim to keep contacts with other faiths, the Islamic Society is a member of a three-faith forum (of Jews, Christians and Muslims) which holds different seminars and discussion groups on a regular basis. The society has also successfully organised some activities that involved people of the local community. These activities include a Neighbourhood Day, a School Day and the wedding ceremonies of some of its members. The Neighbourhood Day was organised with an aim of presenting the complete way of life that Islam calls for and introducing the Islamic Society to the local community, inside and outside the University, while in the School Day, children from local schools were invited to participate in some activities and games that the society designed for them. The wedding ceremonies, on the other hand, aimed to strengthen ties among members and the local community in parties that, not only celebrated the married couple, but also presented the joyful atmosphere of marriage in Eastern culture. As all the other activities organised by the society, the weddings reflected amongst disparate groups the atmosphere of love and harmony that Islam calls for.
