Asalamualaikum All,

Isn’t it amazing that every year Allah sends Ramadan just when we need it most?

Post-Christchurch I feel like I’ve been carrying a weight on my shoulders and this weight has just been added to exponentially since the absolutely senseless acts in Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday.

May Allah grant ease to all those impacted by these events and the many other events that are taking place daily that don’t even make it to our news feeds anymore as they’ve almost become normalised.

Without question, the greatest test of our current times for every single one of us is a test of our faith. And for this we must thank Allah for sending us Ramadan.

Allah tells us that that the purpose of Ramadan is so that we may achieve Taqwa (God Consciousness). He also tells us that it is through His remembrance that the hearts find peace.

And I was thinking, is this not the need of the hour?

May Allah allow us all to taste the fruits of Ramadan, even amongst all of the struggles that no doubt many of us are facing today.

With that allow me to share with you some good news on the school front.

As you may recall our biggest hurdle to being able to start the school was the planning permit for the site. Alhumdullilah, glad to say we’ve now secured the permit.

Here’s a video of the moment that Council decided to grant us the permit –

This is a massive milestone on the road to establishing the school. Whilst securing the permit has been somewhat frustrating at times,  two things I’ve learnt along the way:

1. Never question the decree of Allah. We weren’t able to start this year because we didn’t have the permit, but getting the additional year to get ready has been immensely beneficial. Perhaps I’ll write about that one day.

2. It’s been really good to be able to participate in civic life. Through this process we’ve engaged with the neighbours and being able to connect with them at a human level has been huge. When we fronted up to the objectors meeting at Council it was pretty clear that they were apprehensive about a Muslim group coming to the area. When we left, they were telling us how impressed they were with what we are doing and how far we have come. Today we are going to walk the streets and deliver them some pre-Ramadan treats. May Allah unite the hearts.

The planning permit comes with conditions and that’s our next frontier. I’ll write about that shortly.

Your duas, always needed.

Wishing you your best Ramadan ever.

BarakAllah Feek

Adel