JP\/5\/AHMAD<\/p>\n
Mob attack strengthens Ahmadi's faith<\/p>\n
Yuli Tri Suwarni
\nThe Jakarta Post\/Bandung<\/p>\n
\"Love for all, hatred for none.\"<\/p>\n
It was this simple verse that attracted Ahmad Bakir, 69, to
\nbecome a devotee of the Indonesian Ahmadiyah Congregation (JAI)
\nwhen he was young. The verse is a motto of Ahmadiyah teaching, to
\nwhich he was introduced by his grandmother and mother.<\/p>\n
Ahmadis, as devotees are called, believe in the resurrection
\nof the Prophet Isa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), in the
\nhereafter. They also believe that the messiah is Hadhrat Mirza
\nGhulam Ahmad (1835-1908), from Qadian, a small village in Punjab,
\nIndia, who establish Ahmadiyah in 1889.<\/p>\n
\"It is only a minor difference. While most Muslims are still
\nwaiting for Imam Mahdi (the Messiah), we believe that Prophet Isa
\nhas arrived. Why is it a big matter if we think a step in
\nadvance?\" Bakir, a father of five, whose entire family follows
\nAhmadiyah, told The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
He was sitting with several elder members of the sect
\ntranslating the Koran into Sundanese in a rear room of Mubarak
\nMosque on Jl. Cikutra in Bandung, which acts as the JAI center in
\nWest Java.<\/p>\n
Bakir says Ahmadiyah prohibits violence against others and
\nfollowers are expected to resort to patience and prayer to
\ncounter differences. He says Ahmadiyah has spread Islamic
\nteachings peacefully in Europe and the United States.<\/p>\n
With pride, the members told the Post the Baitul Futuh Mosque
\nin London was one of Ahmadiyah's biggest mosques in the world and
\ncould accommodate about 10,000 people.<\/p>\n
Bakir said he had never encountered any major problems
\npracticing his faith in Indonesia, until last week when a mob
\nattacked JAI's Mubarak campus in Parung, Bogor.<\/p>\n
Bakir strictly adheres to Ahmadiyah teachings, including the
\nrule that members must marry other members and mass prayers must
\nonly be led by an Ahmadi imam. His five children are married to
\nfellow Ahmadis.<\/p>\n
\"Unfortunately, after the attack, we no longer feel safe as
\ncitizens,\" said Ahmad Anwar, 75, an Ahmadi from Cianjur who now
\nlives in Bandung. He was introduced to the teachings in 1947. The
\nformer soldier from West Java's Siliwangi Command said he was
\nintroduced to Ahmadiyah by the first preacher from India who
\nbrought the teachings to Indonesia in 1925, M. Rahmat Ali.<\/p>\n
During the early stages when he first began to follow the
\nteachings of Ahmadiyah in Cianjur, neighbors thought he was a
\nChristian because he believed in the resurrection of Prophet Isa
\nand began to avoid him.<\/p>\n
But he was committed to the teachings. People's aversion to
\nthe group strengthen his faith and he brought up his five
\nchildren to become devout Ahmadis, one of them now living in
\nAustralia.<\/p>\n
According to the group, tens of thousands of people in
\nIndonesia follow Ahmadiyah spread in 300 branches throughout the
\nnation.<\/p>\n
The sect was established in Bandung in 1948 and their mosque
\nwas constructed on Jl. Sapari in Bojongloa, south Bandung.<\/p>\n
\"Like other citizens, we do not keep exclusively to ourselves.
\nWe have policemen, soldiers and bureaucrats who are Ahmadis. We
\nobserve the start of Ramadhan and Idul Fitri based on the
\ngovernment's decision,\" said another Ahmadi.<\/p>\n
A common scene at Ahmadiyah mosques is women Ahmadis
\nperforming Friday prayers, which is not common at most mosques in
\nIndonesia. However, the group is now more cautious about its
\nactivities for fear of an attack similar to the one in Bogor last
\nweek.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/jp5ahmad-1447899208",
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