Mosque loudspeakers

Mosque loudspeakers

From Republika

I used to visit mosques all over the country, especially the
ancient ones, where I loved to perform my prayers. My attraction
to mosques is their beauty and grandeur, also their miraculous
ability to create inner peace.

That was then. Now I feel distant from mosques. It does not
mean I have given up saying my prayers, but I prefer performing
them at home, especially the evening prayers during Ramadhan,
when I have to cover my ears from the noise of the mosques in my
neighborhood.

I know this is an improper thing to do for a faithful Moslem,
but I cannot deceive my conscience either. For me, the mosques
have become so noisy thanks to the use of loudspeakers. The
mosques now seem to compete with each other for the highest noise
level.

Imagine a neighborhood with 10 big and small mosques switching
on their loudspeakers to call Moslems to prayer every day. Every
night I can only get to sleep after daybreak, when the
loudspeakers go silent after 10 hours of continuous use from dusk
to dawn.

Oh, God, who can I complain to? Did you not once say, "Lower
your voice when calling Me?"

A Faithful Moslem

in Depok