Jami Mosque (Toronto)

Jami Mosque
Jami Mosque
Arabic: مسجد جامع
	The entrance of Jami Mosque
Religion
Affiliation	Islam
Ecclesiastical or organizational status	Church (1930–1960s); Mosque (since 1969);
Leadership	Amjed Syed
Status	Active
Location
Location	56 Boustead Avenue, Toronto, Ontario; M6R 1Y9
Country	Canada
	Location in Toronto
Geographic coordinates	43°39′12″N 79°27′16″W / 43.6532°N 79.45448°W
Architecture
Type	Presbyterian church
Funded by	King Faisal of Saudi Arabia (1969)
Date established	1961 (as a congregation)
Completed	1930 (as a church); 1969 (as a mosque);
Website
	isnacanada.com/locations/jami-mosque-toronto

The Jami Mosque (Arabic: مسجد جامع) is a mosque, located just east of High Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is the oldest Canadian Islamic centre in the city and dubbed "the mother of all the mosques in Toronto".^[2]^[3]

Built in 1930 as a Presbyterian church,^[2] the building was purchased in 1969 by Toronto's small, predominantly Bosniak and Albanians^[2] Muslim community, and converted into the city's first Islamic worship centre.^[3]

History

Jami's congregation was founded in 1961 and first met in a leather shop near Dundas West and Keele. The structure that now houses the mosque was originally built in 1930 by John Francis Brown & Son as the High Park Presbyterian Church. In 1969, the Muslim Society of Toronto secured funds from King Faisal of Saudi Arabia to secure purchase the church building as a home for the pre-existing congregation and as Toronto's first permanent mosque.^[4]

While Jami originally held a large number of Tablighi Jamaat followers, the numbers declined after a large influx of Gujarati Muslims immigration led to the leasing of a hall in eastern Toronto; and the eventual 1981 purchase of a building converted to Madina Mosque, which became the spiritual hub of Tablighi Jamaat. Jami then drifted towards finding leadership in the Muslim Students Association.^[5]

Controversies

B'nai Brith raised concerns in 2004 when Ibrahim Hussein Malabari, variously described at the time as either the current or former imam at Jami, invited Abdul-Rahman Al-Sudais to an Islamic Society of North America conference. Al-Soudais had previously described Jews as "the scum of the human race, the rats of the world, the killers of prophets and the grandsons of monkeys and pigs" sparking condemnation from the Jewish group.^[6]

In 2017, Jami was found to be raising money that was indirectly being used to fund the Jamaat-E-Islami and its armed wing Hizbul Mujahideen, on Canada's list of banned organizations. As a result, ISNA Islamic Services of Canada, the group organizing the drive was ordered to pay a CA$500,000 fine. According to the Canadian Revenue Agency: "the society’s resources may have, directly or indirectly, been used the support the political efforts of Jamaat-e-Islami and/or its armed wing Hizbul Mujahideen."^[7]^[8]

Notable congregants

Hassan Almrei, arrested on a security certificate for his alleged membership of al-Qaeda^[9]
Ahmed Khadr, married in the mosque^[10]^{[page needed]}
Ahmad Kutty, an Islamic scholar, former imam at Jami
Mohammad Zeki Mahjoub, arrested on a security certificate for his alleged membership in the Vanguards of Conquest^[11]
Mohammed Abdullah Warsame, convicted in the United States for providing material support for terrorism^[12]

References

^ Kernaghan, Tom G. "Jami Mosque served changing community". OAK.
^ ^a ^b ^c Jami Mosque. Doors Open Toronto. 2009.
^ ^a ^b "About us". Jami Mosque. Archived from the original on February 1, 2017.^{[self-published source?]}
^ "Jami Mosque". Architectural Conservatory of Ontario. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
^ Masud, Muhammad Khalid. Travellers in faith: studies of the Tablīghī Jamāʻat. p. 227.
^ Sharrif, Ali (June 1, 2004). "No-show sheikh rattles Jewish-Muslim relations". NOW Magazine. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
^ Bell, Stewart (October 1, 2018). "CRA suspends, fines major Islamic charity over concerns it may have 'provided resources' to armed militants". Global News. Retrieved November 11, 2018.
^ McLean, Jesse (July 25, 2013). "Star Investigation: Federal audit raises concern that Canadian charity funded terror". The Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved November 19, 2021.
^ Almrei, Hassan. Affidavit, November 9, 2005.
^ Shephard, Michelle (2008). Guantanamo's Child: The Untold Story of Omar Khadr. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-470-84117-4.
^ Mahjoub, (Re), 2013 FC 1092, Federal Court (Canada)
^ Colin Freeze (October 1, 2018). "Somali Canadian faces U.S. conspiracy charge". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 16, 2023.

External links

Jami Mosque Archived 2019-12-11 at the Wayback Machine

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[kern-1] Kernaghan, Tom G. "Jami Mosque served changing community". OAK.

[yeller-2] Jami Mosque. Doors Open Toronto. 2009.

[about-3] "About us". Jami Mosque. Archived from the original on February 1, 2017.^{[self-published source?]}

[4] "Jami Mosque". Architectural Conservatory of Ontario. Retrieved June 16, 2023.

[5] Masud, Muhammad Khalid. Travellers in faith: studies of the Tablīghī Jamāʻat. p. 227.

[6] Sharrif, Ali (June 1, 2004). "No-show sheikh rattles Jewish-Muslim relations". NOW Magazine. Retrieved June 16, 2023.

[2018fine-7] Bell, Stewart (October 1, 2018). "CRA suspends, fines major Islamic charity over concerns it may have 'provided resources' to armed militants". Global News. Retrieved November 11, 2018.

[8] McLean, Jesse (July 25, 2013). "Star Investigation: Federal audit raises concern that Canadian charity funded terror". The Toronto Star. ISSN 0319-0781. Retrieved November 19, 2021.

[affa-9] Almrei, Hassan. Affidavit, November 9, 2005.

[child-10] Shephard, Michelle (2008). Guantanamo's Child: The Untold Story of Omar Khadr. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-0-470-84117-4.

[11] Mahjoub, (Re), 2013 FC 1092, Federal Court (Canada)

[12] Colin Freeze (October 1, 2018). "Somali Canadian faces U.S. conspiracy charge". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved June 16, 2023.

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v t e Islam in Canada
Organizations	NCCM Ahlul Bayt Assembly of Canada Canadian–Muslim Civil Liberties Association Canadian Muslim Union Islamic Circle of North America (U.S. domiciled) Islamic Society of North America (U.S. domiciled) Islamic Supreme Council of Canada Muslim Association of Canada Muslim Canadian Congress Young Muslims Canada Muslim Students Association Former Canadian Islamic Congress
Events	Reviving the Islamic Spirit MuslimFest Fast-a-Thon
Islamic centres and mosques	see: List
Other topics	Little Mosque on the Prairie Me and the Mosque Islam in the Arctic
Category List of mosques List of Muslims

History

Controversies

Notable congregants

See also

References

External links