By Sarah Hannan
The aftermath of the 21 April attacks has impacted religious observances of all Sri Lankans. Churches had to cancel their Sunday Mass, Muslim Mosques in many parts of the island did not have the Friday Jummah prayers, and measures are underway to stop Vesak celebrations in main cities and suburbs.
With the month of Ramadan commencing tomorrow, several mosques have taken the decision to cancel Ifthar arrangements and change the time of Taraweeh prayers and not conduct Taraweeh prayers for women.
The Sunday Morning contacted the All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) President Rizve Mufthi to inquire whether all mosques across Sri Lanka would be taking precautionary steps to safeguard their congregations, to which he responded: “We are yet to take a collective decision on limiting activities in mosques. There are more pressing matters in the country at the moment and we have informed all mosques to take any safety measures to protect their mosques and its attendees.”
At the time this newspaper went to print, the Kollupitiya Jummah Mosque, Dehiwala Zainab Mosque, and the Wellawatte Jummah Mosque had informed the area Muslims that Ifthar arrangements would be cancelled due to the prevailing security concerns.
Meanwhile, the Dehiwala Zainab Mosque and the Wellawatte Jummah Mosque had further informed that they will not conduct Taraweeh prayers for women while Taraweeh prayers for men will commence soon after Isha prayers.
The month of Ramadan is considered to be one of the holiest of months in the Islamic calendar. However, following the Easter Sunday attacks, the mounting threats have forced the community to break tradition.
The aftermath of the 21 April attacks has impacted religious observances of all Sri Lankans. Churches had to cancel their Sunday Mass, Muslim Mosques in many parts of the island did not have the Friday Jummah prayers, and measures are underway to stop Vesak celebrations in main cities and suburbs.
With the month of Ramadan commencing tomorrow, several mosques have taken the decision to cancel Ifthar arrangements and change the time of Taraweeh prayers and not conduct Taraweeh prayers for women.
The Sunday Morning contacted the All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) President Rizve Mufthi to inquire whether all mosques across Sri Lanka would be taking precautionary steps to safeguard their congregations, to which he responded: “We are yet to take a collective decision on limiting activities in mosques. There are more pressing matters in the country at the moment and we have informed all mosques to take any safety measures to protect their mosques and its attendees.”
At the time this newspaper went to print, the Kollupitiya Jummah Mosque, Dehiwala Zainab Mosque, and the Wellawatte Jummah Mosque had informed the area Muslims that Ifthar arrangements would be cancelled due to the prevailing security concerns.
Meanwhile, the Dehiwala Zainab Mosque and the Wellawatte Jummah Mosque had further informed that they will not conduct Taraweeh prayers for women while Taraweeh prayers for men will commence soon after Isha prayers.
The month of Ramadan is considered to be one of the holiest of months in the Islamic calendar. However, following the Easter Sunday attacks, the mounting threats have forced the community to break tradition.