Mosque Maryam

Mosque Maryam
Mosque Maryam
Basic information
Location 7351 S. Stony Island Avenue
Geographic coordinates 41°45′39″N 87°35′6.2″W / 41.76083°N 87.585056°W / 41.76083; -87.585056
Affiliation Nation of Islam (formerly Greek Orthodox)
Municipality Chicago
State Illinois
Leadership Minister Louis Farrakhan
Website www.noi.org/
Specifications
Dome(s) 1
Minaret(s) 0

Mosque Maryam (Temple #2) in Chicago, Illinois, is the headquarters of the Nation of Islam. It is at 7351 South Stony Island Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood.[1] Louis Farrakhan's headquarters are in the premises. The building was originally the Saints Constantine and Helen Greek Orthodox Church before it relocated to suburban Palos Hills. Elijah Muhammad purchased the building in 1972 and the mosque was then repurchased by Louis Farrakhan 16 years later, in 1988. It was named after Mary, the mother of Jesus ("Maryam" is Arabic for Mary).[1] Farrakhan said former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi had also lent Elijah Muhammad, his predecessor as head of the Nation of Islam, $3 million to convert the Greek Orthodox Church in Chicago into the Mosque Maryam.[2]

Design

The main prayer hall is unusual for mosque, since it was originally the church's nave that contained pews later replaced with seats,[3] where mosques usually have only an open floor space to spread prayer rugs on which to kneel.

The distinctive architectural design of Mosque Maryam further identified the spiritual significance of this house. There is in the dome, written in four directions, the Arabic phrase whose standard interpretation in English is "There is no God but Allah." In the centre of the dome is written "Allah is the greatest." Surrounding the dome in Arabic text is the 24th Sura (chapter), verses 35-40 of the Qur'an titled Al-Nur (The Light).

Mosque Maryam serves as the headquarters and National Center for the Nation of Islam. Adjacent to the mosque is Muhammad University of Islam, an educational institute for boys and girls from preschool through 12th grade.

References

  1. 1 2 "Mosque Maryam and The Nation of Islam National Center." Nation of Islam. Retrieved on February 26, 2009.
  2. ↑ David Lepeska (April 9, 2011). "Farrakhan Using Libyan Crisis to Bolster His Nation of Islam". The New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2015.
  3. ↑ Edward E. Curtis (2010). Encyclopedia of Muslim-American History. Infobase Publishing. p. 388. ISBN 978-1-4381-3040-8. Retrieved 16 December 2012.
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