Biography And Other Information

Imam A. M. Khattab was born January 11, 1932, in Al Balashone, Egypt. After completing grade three in Al Balashone he went to Zagazig for grade four. He was 11 years old. It was here, around the age of 15 years, that he was inspired, one day, to purchase himself some study guides in English, French, and German, and he learned to write and speak these languages on his own. Later, he went on to Cairo’s Al-Azhar University where he received a broad education in theology and the social sciences by attending, on his own initiative, four colleges simultaneously: Arts, Science, Law and Theology. He graduated with a master’s degree in theology from the school of Usul-ud-Din. He also completed four years of law school, but chose to leave the final examination unfinished because he was delegated abroad. He obtained a second master’s degree in sociology from the University of Alberta and an almost-completed doctorate in sociology from the University of Waterloo, both in Canada.

After graduation from Al-Azhar University, he served in the Egyptian consulate in Calcutta, India, for two years and later headed the Institute of Foreign Languages at Al-Azhar.

Imam Khattab was delegated from Al-Azhar to Canada in the year 1964 as the first imam of the mosque in Edmonton, Alberta. After five years he moved to London, Ontario, and from there to Sarnia, Ontario. In Sarnia he was the director of the social services department at St. Joseph Hospital for seven years.

In Toledo, he guided the construction of the new Islamic Center in Perrysburg and served the Muslim community of Greater Toledo for more than 16 years.

He was known among the Toledo community simply as “Imam”. He passed away September 15, 2001.

More About the Imam

In September 1998 Imam Khattab officially retired from the post of Imam and Director of the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo. The July/August 1998 issue of the Monitor – the Islamic Center’s bimonthly magazine – was dedicated to Imam Khattab.

Here are some of the articles that appeared in that issue of the Monitor. The following articles are reprinted with the permission of their respective authors. The editor of the Monitor was Dr. Naveed Farooki who passed away only eight months after Imam Khattab.

Editorial of July/August Issue of the Monitor
by
Naveed Farooqi, M.D.

It was a cool and serene night in the holy city of Makkah. I was sitting in the courtyard of Haram al-Sharif waiting for the break of dawn and the soul stirring sound of Adhān for fajr prayer. The splendor and grandeur of Ka‘bah was enough to sweep one’s emotions into an ecstasy hard to describe! My mind traveled back to the times of the Prophet when he circled around the same House in the company of his dedicated companions! Tears rolled down my face as I lamented my misfortune at not having lived at the feet of my Prophet. I was feeling sad and elated at the same time when the person sitting next to me leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Merry Christmas, Naveed!”

That person next to me was none other than Imam Khattab who had led a group of Muslims from Toledo for Umra in December 1984. I had joined the group as an outsider since I did not move to Toledo until 1988.

My acquaintance with Imam Khattab took place in the holy precincts of Makkah and Medina and I observed a man of God who was endowed with intellect, knowledge, worldliness, spirituality, and a keen sense of humor rarely found in such a proportionate fashion.

Over the two-week period I spent with Imam Khattab while in Saudi Arabia, I developed deep and enduring respect for a man of action, integrity, boldness, and honesty, beside his ability to de-mystify complex problems and questions while many others would skirt around the issues.

Imam Khattab often came under the microscope of critical and sometimes unfair judges. He was often misquoted, misunderstood, and misjudged but such is the fate of people in the public eye. Imam Khattab’s contributions to this Islamic Center, and Muslims in general, will always be remembered and appreciated for generations to come.

We are dedicating this issue of the Monitor to Imam Khattab who was the guiding force behind the tradition so dear to us all here at the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo and around the world.

He who knows not,
And knows not that he knows not,
Is a fool—shun him.

He who knows not,
And knows that he knows not,
Is a child—teach him.

He who knows,
And knows not that he knows,
Is asleep—wake him.

He who knows,
And knows that he knows,
Is wise—follow him.

                                                                – A Persian Proverb

Feature Article by T.O. Shavanas, M.D.

IMAM KHATTAB, MY IMAM

Close to about 40 years ago, an “Imam” in my village chased me away from Islam for telling him the truth that the earth is a globe contrary to his “wise” fatwa of a flat earth. Since that time I thought that all “Imams” were an intolerant bunch of men who indoctrinate mostly illiterate, brain-dead people with unreal things from a book called the Qur’an. A few years later in the USA, I read the translation of the Qur’an by Yusuf Ali to prepare for a meeting. My study of Qur’an as an apostate at that time changed my life and my opinion about the Qur’an and Islam. However, my views about “imams” did not change much.

Around 1983, curiously, but of course reluctantly, I stepped into the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo to explore the architectural beauty of the building. I saw Imam Khattab in his office. He did not have the “classical characteristics”of an “imam”. He did not have a beard and he was not dressed any differently from me. On that day, I had no desire or intention to converse with him because I thought he was also one of those Muslim clerics. It was a Sunday. I saw a lot of people going into the sermon room and I also followed the crowd.

On that day, Imam Khattab talked about interest and riba. I did not find the topic interesting; however, I continued to listen curiously. But, he startled me when he said at the end of the sermon, “If you think that what I said here makes sense for you, take it, or, if it does not make sense, ignore it.” Wow! An Imam that gives a choice to his congregation! I could not believe my ears. I continued to observe this man for a while on Sundays when I had nothing else to do. The more I heard him, the more I admired him.

I admire his memory, his wide knowledge, and his intellectual humility. I observe in him a unique Imam unlike other “imams” who consider themselves as all-knowing-gods.

Imam Khattab is a unique Imam who has the guts to say that many practices and interpretations of contemporary Muslim scholarship at large are outside the reality of the modern age. He insists that Muslims have brains and repeatedly implores them to make use of them. Finally, in due course, I accepted Imam Khattab as my Imam.

I did not pray when I met him first. He made me pray when I got time. Then he made me pray five times a day. He made me come to the mosque every Sunday. Finally, my Imam convinced me to work only in the morning in my office in Adrian, Michigan, on Fridays, in order to come to Jum‘ah. He accomplished all this without any coercion, without pointing fingers, and, even without mentioning a word about me or about my conduct. My Imam, what an inspiring man!

My Imam is a kind man. I can tease him and laugh with him. I can argue with him and I can contradict him. But he did not beat me up or throw me out of the Center as the “Imam” in my native village had. Imam Khattab did not reject me but guided me with his gentle and kind human touch. He knows that I have major flaws. He must have believed that I need the Center more than those who are mo’min. Once, when some Muslims walked out from the Center, he said in a sermon: “Mo’mins do not need this Center. But it is indispensable for those who strayed away from Islam. So, we have to preserve it at any cost even if all mo’mins leave the Center.” I thank him for his graciousness to dedicate the Center for the mission to save sinners, like me, who have the real need for the Center. After all, mo’mins have a guaranteed place in Heaven! The sinners, like me, don’t have such a guarantee but have only hope. My Imam gave me hope!

My Imam is a complex man. He is a leader, effective communicator, critical thinker, and a scholar. I have listened to many widely acclaimed Islamic scholars in many Islamic conferences, but my Imam is a greater scholar than many scholars I have come across in Muslim conferences. He just does not “parrot” what others say. He critically analyzes and conveys his logical conclusions to the members of the Center. And he leaves the members of the Center to accept or reject his opinion. My Imam, what a gracious man!

He is a serious man, but, at times, he uses humor to teach the fundamentals of Islam. Let me quote Imam Khattab to show how effectively and humorously he taught us a fundamental Islamic principle – Allah, the maliki yawmuddin (The Master of the Day of Judgment). He said: “Once two angels in heaven had a furious argument and decided to go to God to settle the matter. One angel wanted Cherrefe Kadri and the other wanted Jim Adray to plead the case.2 They contacted the chief of the angels, Gibreel, for the telephone numbers of Cherrefe and Jim. The wise Gibreel told them, “You have to ask for a change in venue. We don’t get lawyers up here in Heaven.” (This is not a word-by-word quote from Imam but the message of the content is from my Imam). My Imam! What a great communicator!

When my Imam is angry, I find him in his excellence to explain complex issues and their solutions very clearly and effectively. Many a time I hoped that the Imam would give a sermon when he was angry as long as his anger was not focused on me. However, if I become the focus of the anger of an imam, I pray,“O Allah, let that angry Imam be my Imam Khattab.” He is kind and forgiving.

When my Imam openly preached that the Eid and other holy days must be fixed by astronomical calculations, the rest of the Muslim leadership-at-large rejected it. Now, the leadership is gradually accepting Imam Khattab’s opinion. These facts are testimony to my Imam’s leadership, far-sightedness, and his ability to use critical analyses to arrive at the truth. My Imam! What a great leader!

He is a down-to-earth human being. So, like all other human beings, he loves food. During a dinner after our monthly Qur’an study meeting, I saw him over- indulging in food. I thought of teasing him. The conversation went something like this: I asked him, “Imam, do you ever diet?” He jokingly said: “I eat my head off one day and starve the next.” I queried: “How do you feel...?” He did not allow me to complete the question. “Great,” he said quickly with his charismatic smile and his characteristic rubbing of his hands, “every other day!” I laughed and at the same time was amazed at this quick but humorous response. My Imam, what a versatile man!

The finest tribute to my Imam came from my wife, Faizi. Imam announce on June 12,1998, “This is my last sermon.” My wife was upset with the news. In the car on our way back home, she asked tearfully, “Would Imam be there when I die?” My wife’s question to me somehow shows how inextricably the members of the Center depend upon Imam Khattab to draw the Divine Grace in life and even in death. Her question also shows how deeply the members of the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo esteem Imam Khattab. For many of us, my Imam is unmatched.

If Allah gave the world a few more imams like my Imam, the world of Islam and the world of Muslims would be different. The world at large would be a better place to live. May Allah bless my Imam and shower on him His choicest blessings. I thank God for giving me the chance to meet him, to know him, to learn from him, to enjoy his quick wit and humor.

2 Both are lawyers who regularly attended Sunday sermons

Dr. S. Amjad Hussain


President The Islamic Center of Greater Toledo 1985-86, 1995-98
Op-ed columnist The Toledo Blade

TRIBUTE TO AN UNUSUAL IMAM

Last month, Imam Abdelmoneim Mahmoud Khattab stepped down as Imam and Director of the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo.

Most personalities lend themselves to be conveniently boxed in pigeon holes crafted with the usual attributes: honesty, integrity, knowledge, vision, etc. In the case of Imam Khattab, it is difficult, if not impossible, to find words, clichés and metaphors to paint him into a neat-looking box. It is a daunting task to draw a circle around this enigmatic, multifaceted, multidimensional, multitalented, and very strong-willed individual.

Imam Khattab came to Toledo in 1982 as Imam and Director of the Islamic Center. It took him 22 years to make the journey from rural Egypt to Toledo, Ohio. This journey took him from his village to Cairo where he attended Al-Azhar University, the oldest seat of Islamic learning in the world that he attended from 1954 to1960. Subsequently, he worked in the Egyptian consulate in Calcutta, India(1960- 61), served as an Imam in Edmonton, Canada (1964-1969) and in London, Ontario (1969-1974) and headed the Department of Social Services at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Sarnia, Canada (1974-1982).

In the early eighties, our Imam Dr. Allauddin Kharofa accepted a position with the World Muslim League in New York and left Toledo rather abruptly. Dr. Saleh Jabarin, the then President of the Center, persuaded Imam Khattab, who at the time was Director of Social Services at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Sarnia, to help us on a part-time basis. For the next two years, Imam Khattab commuted between Sarnia and Toledo.

It did not take long for the leadership of the Center and the community to realize that he was just the person who could lead the community through the difficult task of building the new Center, as well as help develop programs that were the crying need of our community. After some hesitation, he accepted our offer and became full time Imam of the Center.

Much has been accomplished by the community since the unsure days of the mid-seventies. A new Center was planned and built on the present location in Perrysburg. We expanded our membership, instituted new programs, and reaffirmed our commitment to religious education for our children and our youth. Imam Khattab was the guiding force behind all that, and more.

We were also able to integrate our religious philosophy with the best of what the West has to offer. As a result, the atmosphere at the Center is relaxed and enjoyable. The Center has become an extension of our homes where we do not pretend to be ‘Friday Muslims’. Imam Khattab has been instrumental in creating that harmony.

His greatest contribution to the Center, and, by extension, to the Muslim community, has been to interpret Islam with the now all-but-forgotten and ignored tool of Ijtehad. He broke new ground in the sensitive areas of Islamic dress for women, banking, insurance and meaningful dialogue with other faiths. It was his genius to interpret religion within the parameters provided by the Qur’an and Sunnah and still be a progressive citizen. We are, thanks to his leadership, more confident of our individual religiosity and more comfortable with our surroundings.

I have often compared the job of an Imam in North America to that of a tightrope walker. To lead a contentious group of people, each carrying a heavy baggage of individual cultures and traditions from thirty-two countries, is a daunting task. But despite our minor differences and disagreements we remain a cohesive community.

His was a class act.

Imam Khattab has stepped down and has handed over the mimber to Imam Farooq. He will, however, continue to help the community and the Center in many other ways for years to come.

Thank you, Imam Khattab for a splendid job. The spirit generated by your work, and your legacy and grace will outlast all of us.

Dr. Saleh A. Jabarin

As President of the Center for more than ten years and as a student and listener to his weekly lectures and sermons for more than fifteen years, I had the good fortune of working with Imam Khattab. I can surely conclude that Imam Khattab is not retiring, but moving to a different level of serving Islam, our community, and society as a whole. Imam Khattab has dedicated all of his life to the service of Allah and Islam.

As Imam and Director of our Center, he has strived in cooperation with various community members to achieve the highest level of accomplishments: a united, peaceful, Muslim community with a large and most exemplary Islamic Center – a Muslim community that gets along extremely well with the community at large and is well represented in the public forum of our local and regional society; an Islamic center that draws large crowds for its events; and most importantly, a Muslim community which is constantly moving closer to achieving the true Islamic teachings and practices.

At the personal level, he made religion free from mystery and vagueness through his lectures and lessons. He introduced religious concepts not only with vigor, but also with simplicity and humor. He emphasized and explained the balance between the rights and the obligations that our religion prescribes.

Imam Khattab’s accomplishments were achieved because he put the interests of Islam and the community above all others. He and I continue to be the best of friends, and we both managed to work effectively for the benefit of our community. The secret of our successful relationship can be summarized by paraphrasing the words of Khalifa Muawiyah of the Umayyad period: “If there was a piece of hair between me and my opponent, it will never be broken because when my opponent pulls hard, I let go, and when he lets go, I will pull harder.” The Imam and I were not opponents after all but working for the same cause. Apparently, we both subconsciously tried to build a constructive compromise which proved to serve the community very well.

Hajj Hussein Shousher

I have had the pleasure of knowing Imam Khattab for the past 30 years from the time I lived in Canada to the present. When Imam Kharoufa left the Islamic Center on Bancroft Street, we invited various imams from different communities. I suggested to the Council to invite Imam Khattab to be a visiting imam. While he was here, I happened to show him the rendering for the new Islamic Center. As soon as he saw it, he told his family that he would like to be part of the creation of the new Islamic Center.

He has been a great asset to our community. His hard work and dedication have contributed a great deal in the building of the Center. He worked tirelessly on the local and international level to raise funds that were needed to accomplish this task using his relationship with various individuals and institutions to reach his goal. He is a good organizer. Hardworking and very aggressive, he is also very stubborn but very knowledgeable. When it comes to his work, Imam Khattab has his own special way of accomplishing it, even if the method he used irritated some members of the community.

Having been his friend for thirty years, I have had my share of disagreements and we clashed on a number of occasions. The more we disagreed, the friendlier we became; you have to know Imam Khattab like I know him: his aim is always for the good and the benefit of the community. He is dedicated to work for the Islamic and Arab cause. I lived, worked, and traveled with him and I know how committed he is, and it has been an honor and pleasure to be in his company. Imam Khattab will always be a part of the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo and will be missed by all of us. We wish him the best of luck on his “so-called retirement”.

The Shousher family as a whole wish him good health and happiness in the years to come.

Dr. M. Razi Rafeeq

As the spiritual leader of the Islamic Center for the past 16 years, Imam A. M. Khattab has guided our community with wit and wisdom. One of Imam Khattab’s most appreciated qualities has been to always encourage us to use our minds. Instead of just relying on others to give us orders, Imam Khattab wanted us to think for ourselves about what is in the Quran and Sunnah.

Another appreciated quality is Imam Khattab’s humor. With every sermon, there were always a few jokes to keep things light. Imam Khattab’s engaging style allowed the community to laugh at itself when necessary and keep things in perspective.

In his sermons, speeches, and in his answers to questions from the community, Imam Khattab showed great depth of understanding of Islam. He has the ability to weave together different stories and topics in a way that showed ultimately the unity of Islamic thought. By using Qur’anic verses as the basis for his speeches, he encouraged the community to further their own study of the Qur’an.

Dr. M.Y. Ahmed

I first came to know Imam Khattab in 1972 when I had just moved to Toledo from Canada. There was a dialogue between Muslims and Christians at the old Commodore Perry Inn in downtown, Toledo. One of the speakers was Imam Khattab who spoke about “Jesus in Islam”. He was very impressive and I wished, even at that time, for Imam Khattab to become imam of our community.

As I became more active in the community, I almost forgot about him until 1980 when he came here to give Jum‘ah khutbah as one of the candidates for imam. Since then, I have continued to enjoy his sincerity, guidance, and friendship even though we have disagreed in many religious matters. However, he was always able to convince me by challenging me to think, as the Qur’an demands us to do.

You can better judge a person only if you have lived with him, and I got this chance when a group from Toledo went to ‘Umrah under his leadership in 1984. While in Makkah, we stayed in an apartment complex owned by a friend of Imam Khattab. Apparently, this building was not occupied for some time. The bathrooms were not clean and needed to be cleaned. Everybody was tired. I had not seen any imam who becomes a serving person and a cleaning man. That night I saw Imam Khattab going from one bathroom to the next, cleaning and scrubbing. Many scholars and imams can give great lectures, but I have not seen this quality in any other imam. Also, I remember clearly, on the eve of the inauguration of the Islamic Center, the Center grounds had no landscaping and the ground needed sodding. Almost the whole community was there to lay down grass and I found Imam Khattab on his knees laying down the grass along with the other members of the community.

Imam has shown that he is not just an imam to lead prayer, but to lead in every part of our lives.

I pray to Allah (swt) to bestow on him the best of this world and the Hereafter.

IMAM’S WORDS TO HIS COMMUNITY AT THE CONCLUSION OF
HIS LAST SUNDAY SERMON JUNE 14, 1998

Now this concludes the story of Moses and I am sure that every one of you has received that flyer telling you that this will be my last Sunday lecture. That will be the job of somebody else. I would like just to tell you a few things and when you read my article (“The Farewell” reproduced below) consider it a sort of accountability with which I am very happy.

Fifteen years in the life of a man are not that much – it is a very short period, but I think that our achievements as a Muslim community of Toledo have been tremendous in these 15 years. Lots of people say “Khattab did it” but I would like to tell you that if Khattab had no soldiers to lead, he could not do anything. So, first and last, the community members are to take the credit. We were functioning 15 years ago in Bancroft – a very little mosque – we were praying the Jum‘ah prayer three persons, four persons; if we had seven persons we would consider it a very big congregation that day. Last Friday in the Jum‘ah prayer, there was not a single inch of space in the prayer room for someone to stand.

God described man as wa khulikal insaana ajula “Man is created rushed” so he wants everything right away. We would like to liberate Palestine – today! – though the age of a country is counted by generations. It took the Jews 2000 years to plan and work to get Palestine and until this moment they have never lived a day in peace. But that is the nature of countries – you cannot measure it by the years. So if we take the Muslim community of Toledo as a very little country inside Toledo, we should think of it in the same way. The people who live here don’t feel it because the progress is one inch every week – one inch – but the people who go back home [to their native countries] and come back after five, six years notice the change. Our new brothers who join and who have never seen this community say “This community is un-Islamic – this community is not following Islam – even the Imam is kafir.” This is said and I have heard it in many of the cities in North America and from people who have never met me before or ever come to Toledo.

But, we ourselves are happy with ourselves. On the physical plane we are the largest in North America now with all the facilities surrounding it; there is no bigger mosque in North America. On the spiritual scene, I take it also people are praying, ladies are changing. Many of you don’t know that we have gone through a time when our ladies used to come to the mosque in miniskirts – they didn’t know; that’s how much they knew. If we had kicked these women out at that time, you would not find many women here today or their husbands or their kids. But we followed the way of treatment that is followed by the doctor. How can I treat a patient if I do not admit him to the hospital? I had to admit those people to the mosque and let them listen, and slowly, day by day, they learned and they came to the right way and they were not scared of me but scared of God. And I am very happy for that achievement also.

I came here to find that even our funerals.... I have seen a $10,000 casket for a person from this community. The body used to be shown in the funeral home for five days, six days like the Americans. And I have seen women – Muslim women – with the make-up on and lying in the casket and the people – men – going in front of the casket and looking and saying “Isn’t she beautiful.” If she was alive she would not accept that; she would consider it molesting. But, because she is dead; she cannot defend herself. That’s changed. The funeral home nowadays does the transportation only; everything else is done here by Muslims. That is a change – we don’t feel it. There are some people who approached me and said: “When I die leave me for two, three days so my friends will come and visit me.” And I said to them: Just die and I’ll bury you after one hour! Even your daughter or your son will not see you!” They take it as a joke. We learned here by joking not by the Qur’an and hadith. We quote Qur’an when it is needed, we quote hadith when it is needed but we talk to the brain.
Our ladies here know that I like the sweets; I ate too much baklava until I got diabetes. I remember one day when I said to some ladies: “you are always asking me for fatwa; we have to ask you for fatwa today because this is in the field of your specialty.” They said “What?” I said to them I went to Beirut Bakery today and I found beautiful baklava in a plate that was covered and wrapped and placed on the shelf, and another plate of baklava from the same tray that was not covered or wrapped and on the shelf. This is your domain – cooking and baking – what is your advice to me: which one should I buy? They said to me: “The covered one!” I said to them: “This is why Islam wants you to be covered, so you will be sweet in the eyes of men.” That is a joke.5 We laughed together. And that is Islam. As we say you go to our shaykhs everywhere nowadays and the shaykh is serious – never smiles. If he smiles, the Day of Judgment will come earlier. I don’t know from where they got that Islam. The Prophet, peace be upon him, said: “The smile in the face of your brother is a charity.” But the shaykhs are very serious – scare the people. Cherrefe Kadri6 used to scare the kids and say to them, “I am going to take you to the Imam!” And when she brought them I talked to the kids and smiled and laughed. The kids got used to me and started to joke with me.7 So Chereffe failed in her objective to frighten the kids.8

Brothers and sisters, that is a long way and I think we have done a marvelous job during the last 15 years. Imam Farooq will be here and I have a full confidence that Imam Farooq will follow the same way we are following – the same footsteps and the same road we have accepted for ourselves here. And as Amjad Hussain said to you before, this is not a farewell khutba or anything because, as you know, I have another office here. So Imam Farooq will
take my office but I’ll be here every week and I have an office, too, and I made sure to select my office in front of the room of the women because we have been friends since a long time.9 I wish you every luck.

 5 This joke is worth hearing in Imam’s original voice to appreciate the whispered emphases, and the impishness in his voice

 
6 A certified teacher who was a volunteer teacher in the Sunday school for 20-25 years. Later, she became the first female President of the Islamic Center.


7 Smiling broadly in a very pleased manner and rubbing his hands in his characteristic way.

8 Cherrefe’s comment is: “I think Imam’s comments were for illustrative purposes only. I did not ever want to set him up as a bad or scary person.”

9 In the meaning that Imam always stood up staunchly for women’s rights. Imam’s new office was located across the hall from the women’s cloakroom. His name and designation are on that room until now: Imam A. M. Khattab. Zakah Office. He continued to raise funds for the mosque and achieved his goal of fully paying off the loan in 1999. He continued to raise funds for the Islamic Chair at the University of Toledo until two months before he died.

THE FAREWELL

By Imam A.M. Khattab

Every beginning has an end. Every life span, whatever its length, reaches a point of termination. This is the Will of God and the way to which human beings have become accustomed. Looking back at the Islamic Center when I moved to Toledo, and comparing it with how I see it at the present time, I note the following differences:

  1. When I first moved to Toledo , this community was functioning from a very tiny mosque located on Bancroft street in downtown Toledo in an area which was viewed as undesirable by many of the members of the Muslim community. Today, we are functioning from a very prestigious mosque located in a more prestigious area. Because of it architectural design, the mosque is included on the Ohio map of tourism as a place worthy of being visited by tourists. The building is forty thousand square feet containing every type of facility needed by the community. The Center is surrounded by ten acres of well landscaped area. The remainder of the forty acres of land has been reserved for future development. As we have noted every Ohian, Muslim and non-Muslim takes pride in this establishment.

  2. Islamic Center has a variety of activities; the mosque is full for the Jum ‘ah prayer; it is more than full for the Sunday noon prayer; the sermon room is full for the Sunday lecture; sixteen classrooms are dedicated to teaching Arabic, Urdu and religious education; and the social hall is full of Muslim families solidifying their relationships as a Muslim brotherhood. In short, the Center looks like a beehive on Sundays. In addition to these activities, the Islamic Center has built an excellent relationship with its neighbors of other faiths through our regular tours and our participation in the larger society events and activities.

  3. In the early ’80’s, the members of the Islamic Center were predominantly Arab. Now, the Islamic Center has members representing more than twenty nationalities. These members are practicing their faith under one roof in a brotherly manner regardless of their color, nationality, race, language or the Islamic school of thought they follow.

  4. In the past, our Muslim brothers and sisters attended the Sunday lectures in Western clothes which were contrary to Islamic principles. They were never ill- treated or forbidden from entering the Center. Our policy was to encourage them to learn and thereby to adopt proper Islamic appearance. Our motto was “No man can judge a man but the ultimate judge is Allah.” Today, the Center is reaping the rewards of this policy. The community members are attired in a decent and modest way, as Islam requires. Many of them found their way to Allah and are practicing their faith in obedience to Him. One may note this trend by observing the number of people in the prayer room, by the number of Muslims who perform the obligation of Hajj every year, or even by looking at the roster of Zakah that appears in our published magazine – the Monitor.

  5. Most of the Islamic centers in North America follow the Islam of “the books”. Consequently they do not utilize the article of thinking with which God distinguished man from the other creations. In other words, Muslims emulate the former Muslim scholars with no consideration for the differences in time and environment. As a result, Islam is publicized in the West as a stagnating religion which cannot be integrated into life in the so-called modern era. On the other hand, the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo has adopted the concept that “The most truthful Book is the Holy Qur’an.” Any other book is subject to being right or false. With regard to the Sunnah of the Prophet, Muslims who have no knowledge of that important Islamic source, quote ahadith which are weak or were never said by the Prophet (pbuh). They make of these false ahadith a new Islam. Considering that some of these Muslims have good intentions, in the final analysis they are serving the purpose of the enemies of Islam. On the basis of these false ahadith, especially those related to the position of women in Islam, the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo has been branded as an “un-Islamic institution”. In spite of these false accusations, the Center’s policy has put the Muslim community of Toledo in the forefront of Islam in North America and has made it a model to be emulated by other Muslim communities.

  6. Most of the Islamic centers in the West are financed by fund-raising dinners along with what is known as donations. In the area of finance, our Center has enacted the obligation of zakah. This important pillar of the Islamic faith has sensitized the Muslims to the fact that what they are paying to the Center is not a donation but an obligation. Through this Islamic financial approach, the Center’s daily operation is funded by the local Muslim community with no outside support of any kind.

  7. In the old mosque in the early ’80’s, Muslims were fully dependent upon funeral homes to conduct the burial of their deceased. Embalming used to take place, showing the body for several days at the funeral home was the rule; and purchasing of the casket was commensurate with the class status of the deceased. The price of such a casket ranged from three thousand to ten thousand dollars. In short, even death was an object of pride. At the present time, Muslim funerals have become fully Islamic – there is no embalming; caskets are standardized for rich and poor to denote equality in death; the funeral home’s role has become limited to transporting the body from the hospital to the mosque and from the mosque to the cemetery and, as the dignity of the deceased lies in his burial, the body is buried on the same day as death occurs, in an Islamic cemetery.

The above observations are just some examples of the many changes that have taken place during the last 15 years. Now the position of Imam is being relegated to a new person, namely, Shaykh Farooq Abo Elzahab who graduated from Al-Azhar and who received his initial training in Toledo. I am fully confident that Imam Farooq will follow and improve the established system. I am sure that he will complete the task and reach the goal taking into consideration the Divine Advice “Preach to the way of God by wisdom and good counsel; if you have to discuss a matter do that in a good manner.”

In spite of Shaykh Farooq’s ability to face the challenge of this position, I would like to admonish him to ornament himself with patience and perseverance as he is going to face the dilemma faced by every imam. This dilemma is eloquently spelled out in the following words:

THE IMAM’S DILEMMA

If an imam preaches over ten minutes, he is long-winded.
If his sermon is short, he did not prepare it.

If the congregation funds are high, he is a businessman.
If he mentions money, he is money-mad.

If he visits his congregation, he is nosy.
If he does not, he is snobbish.

If he has festivals and dinners, he is bleeding the people.
If he does not, there is no life in the mosque.

If he celebrates the Eids in a quiet voice, he is a bore.
If he puts feeling into it, he is an actor.

If he starts the sermon on time, his watch is fast.
If he starts late, he is holding people up.

If he tries to lead the people, he is showing off.
If he does not, he does not care what the lecture is like.

If he decorates the mosque, he is wasting money.
If he does not, he is letting it run down.

If he intervenes in a marital conflict, he is biased.
If he does not, he is not doing his job.

If he visits a sick person, he is selective.
If he does not, he pretends not to know.

If he talks with a single woman, he must have married her.
If he does not, he is a fundamentalist who hates women.

If he talks with a married woman, “Why is he giving her that importance?”
If he does not, he is a senseless arrogant.

If he supports an oppressed poor woman, “Why is he helping this trash?”
If he does not, he is only caring for the rich.

When he dies, there was nobody like him.
And there never will be his equal again!!

I extend my best wishes and prayers to Shaykh Farooq and I would like to inform our community that I have not yet despaired. Even though my time will be reduced to a weekly basis, I shall continue “fighting” with you and for you, because, first and last, I love you all. My final opinion is that the Muslim community of Toledo is the best. God bless all of you.



THEN DAWNED THE DAY
THAT MARKED THE END OF
IMAM’S TOIL AND STRUGGLE IN THIS WORLD:


SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2001, 7A.M.


The funeral was conducted at the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo on Sunday, September 16, 2001.



(The Holy Qur’an 89:27-29: [Unto the righteous God will say:])

“O thou human being,
In complete rest and satisfaction!
Come back thou to thy Lord well pleased thyself,
And well pleasing unto Him.
Enter thou, then, among My devotees!
Yea, enter thou My Heaven.”


"After life’s fitful fever he sleeps well;
Treason has done his worst:
nor steel, nor poison,
Malice domestic, foreign levy, nothing,
Can touch him further."
                                                   –Shakespeare

AFTER THE FUNERAL, IN THE ISLAMIC CENTER SOCIAL HALL, DR. SALEH A. JABARIN MADE THE FOLLOWING ADDRESS

Assalamu Alaikum, peace be upon you. On behalf of the Muslim community of greater Toledo, I would like to extend our thanks and gratitude to all of you for coming to share with us in our grief for the passing of Imam Khattab. It is a tribute to his life and his act to see so many people here today.

Our grief for his passing is especially great in light of the tragic events of September11th. Imam Khattab stood for tolerance, compassion, understanding, and unity, and it would be with these ideals that he would lead us today.

Imam Khattab was a servant of God and humanity. While we know him best as our beloved Imam for the last twenty-two years, his contributions to humanity are varied and great. Before coming to Toledo in 1979-80, Imam Khattab served as a social worker in a Catholic Hospital in Canada, where he counseled the sick and the needy. He ministered to prisoners and served as a teacher, preacher, a guide in Islamic teaching in many Muslim communities in North America and around the world. For over forty years, he gave sermons and lectures; he visited the sick and buried the dead; all done with humility and a great level of care and grace.

In 1980, Imam Khattab became the Imam and Director of the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo. At that time, we were on East Bancroft Street in Toledo, and we were only in the planning stages of building our current Islamic Center here in Perrysburg. With immense enthusiasm and limitless determination, he gladly undertook the task of bringing a seemingly impossible endeavor to fruition. Through his hard work and dedication, he became the leader in soliciting funds from our community and others around America and abroad. He visited many communities and traveled to far away places. He sacrificed his time and spent many hours away from his family for the interest of the community at large. Due to his unending efforts and commitment, along with the support of God and the community, we were able to raise the funds necessary to pay for this building and to leave the community debt- free. More recently, he supported and worked hard to raise the funds to establish our full-time school, which opened its doors on August 28, 2001, and thus fulfilled a long- time dream of this community.

Imam Khattab did not limit his services to this community alone, however. He was available to and continued to be involved in the affairs of Muslims around this country to the last moment of his life. In addition to building this Islamic Center and providing religious guidance, he worked tirelessly in building bridges with other non- Muslim communities, especially in the Toledo area. He worked with and supported the activities of the Inter-Faith Council and established lasting and fruitful relationships with many of the religious and political leaders of our community. Islam and Muslims are better understood and appreciated due in large part to his dialogues and interactions with the leaders of this community.

In all the years that we interacted with him and that he served this community, Imam Khattab operated according to a very simple but profound principle. That principle was that the interests of the Center and its membership community take precedence over any personal interest or gain. Imam Khattab was a man who preached with great humility, although he had the highest credentials that an Islamic institution could offer. His sermons provided us with the bare facts but encouraged us to apply our own rationale and logic to interpret the complex issues confronting human life. He taught us how to think, how to question, and how to teach ourselves. He always said, “This is only my view; if it makes sense to you, abide by it. If it doesn’t, seek someone else’s view.” Never afraid to admit that he made a mistake, he fought tirelessly for the truth and encouraged us to always do the right thing.

It is said that “He who teaches me a single word, I will become his servant.” Imam Khattab taught us many, many letters and lessons. For that we are all his servants.

It is with these memories and these profound words that he leaves us. We pray that God will give us the strength and the guidance to do the right thing and to continue in the path that Imam Khattab has so generously laid out for us. His mission and his methods will not be forgotten.

IN LOVING MEMORY OF IMAM ABDELMONEIM MAHMOUD KHATTAB

[1932-2001]
By S. Amjad Hussain

Imam A. M. Khattab, imam emeritus of the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo, passed away on September 15, 2001 in Windsor, Ontario after a brief illness. He was 69.

Born into a middle class family in a village near Cairo, Egypt on January 11, 1932, he attended the local village school and subsequently enrolled in Cairo’s Al- Azhar University. At that ancient seat of Islamic learning, he received a broad education in theology, social sciences, Islamic law and other related disciplines and graduated with a master’s degree. His quest for knowledge would later take him for a second master degree in sociology from the University of Alberta and an almost completed doctorate in sociology from the University of Waterloo, both in Canada.

After his graduation from Al-Azhar University, he served in the Egyptian consulate in Calcutta, India, for two years and later headed the Institute of Foreign Languages at his alma mater, Al-Azhar.

Realizing his unusual abilities in preaching and guidance, Al-Azhar University deputed him to head the Canadian Islamic Center in Edmonton, Canada, in 1964. This was a turning point in the life of the idealistic young man and for the next 34 years he used his genius and his intellectual curiosity to guide many Muslim communities in North America and he broke new ground in religious interpretations. After serving as director of the Islamic Center in London, Ontario and as director of social services department at St. Joseph hospital in Sarnia, Ontario, he came to Toledo in 1982 to head the Islamic Center.

While in Toledo, he guided the construction of the new Islamic Center in Perrysburg and was the driving force in uniting a diverse congregation of 22 different nationalities in the Center. For 16 years he served the Muslim community of Greater Toledo, and, in 1998, upon his retirement, he was named Imam Emeritus of the Center. In addition to his duties at the Center, he taught Arabic at the University of Toledo and the Bowling Green State University. He served on many regional and national organizations notably as Secretary General of the Council of Imams of North America, member of the World Call Council, and member of the Interfaith Round Table in Michigan.

Imam Khattab was an original thinker. He used the hitherto neglected and abandoned tool of ijtehad (interpretation of religion according to current times) to break new ground in religious thinking. At times, this forward looking and enlightened approach to religious interpretation put him at odds with traditional orthodoxy. However, the strength of his towering personality, his intricate knowledge of religion and of the history of religious traditions, and his simple approach to the practice of religion put him in the forefront of Islamic thinkers in North America. It would be decades before others would accept his interpretations on such sensitive issues as interest, banking, Islamic dress code, women’s rights, laws of evidence and the propriety of giving Zakat, the obligatory tithe, to a mosque or an Islamic Center. With patient persuasion, persistence, and an abiding sense of humor, he guided the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo to be one of the most enlightened and forward-looking centers in North America.

He was a great proponent of links between the community centers and the academia. In the mid 90's he led the effort to establish a chair of Islamic studies at the University of Toledo. He was also instrumental in establishing a training program for imams at the Islamic Center where Al-Azhar graduates could be trained to work as imams in American Muslim communities.

He was a pragmatic visionary and an eternal optimist. He believed and preached shared values with other religions and emphasized the common thread that binds Islam with Judaism and Christianity.

He will be missed by not only the local Toledo community but also by a large number of his friends and admirers the world over.

Imam Khattab is survived by his wife, Fawzia, and his two grown children, son, Khalid Khattab, of Flint Michigan, a daughter, Huda Khattab Moussa, of Round Rock, Texas and one sister and one brother in Egypt.

His funeral on Sunday, September 16, 2001, was attended by over 1000 people who had traveled from different parts of the US and Canada to pay their respects. He was laid to rest at the Highland Memory Gardens cemetery in Waterville, Ohio after the funeral services at the Islamic Center.

All gifts donated to Islamic Center in his memory will be used for the chair of Islamic Studies at the University of Toledo.

POSTSCRIPT

The dream of the Chair of Islamic Studies was realized when in the spring of 2006 the University of Toledo appointed Dr. Mashhad Al-Allaf as the first occupant of Imam A.M. Khattab Chair of Islamic Studies.