Al-Rahma mosque
Encyclopedia
The Al-Rahma Mosque is a Mosque
located on Hatherley Street in Toxteth
, Liverpool
, England
, and can accommodate between 2,000 and 2,500 people and serves as the main place of worship and focus point for Liverpool's 25,000 strong Muslim community. The Al-Rahma Mosque is currently the largest of Liverpool's three mosques, followed by the Penny Lane mosque and a proposed mosque and Muslim centre on the former Anfield Community Comprehensive School
site.
in England was built in Liverpool; it was opened at 8 Brougham Terrace by a solicitor
and Muslim convert William Abdullah Quilliam
on 25 December 1889 and the mosque he constructed was maintained until 1908. That mosque has recently been refurbished by the Muslim Enterprise Development Service and is now called the Abdullah Quilliam Society.
The Liverpool Muslim Society
was set up in 1953, by the late Al-Haj Ali Hizzam, a member of Liverpool's Muslim Community, when it operated from a room in his house. The society was determined to build a place of worship to meet the spiritual needs of Liverpool's small population of about 3000 Muslims which was ever expanding. The Muslim community had been without a mosque since the mosque William Abdullah Quilliam had constructed was closed in 1908, So In 1965 the construction of the Al-Rahma mosque started, with extensions to accommodate the ever expanding community, with the main prayer hall being completed in July 1974. During the Mosque's construction, on Fridays and Muslim festivals, the Pakistan Centre opposite and the car park was used as a temporary prayer space whilst the building was being completed. The first small floor, the madrassah and the imam’s accommodation was added in 1979.
The current three-storey mosque is much more traditional in appearance with a golden dome and crescent on top, It opened in 2008 during Liverpool's tenure as European Capital of Culture.
The current building is used primarily by the city's sizeable Arab and Somali populations whom constitute the vast majority of Liverpool's 25,000 strong Muslim community., At the mosque there are daily prayers as well as Jumu'ah
on Fridays, and the mosque also provides free meals, and its services include a day centre for the elderly, children’s sporting clubs, and weekend Arabic lessons.
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
located on Hatherley Street in Toxteth
Toxteth
Toxteth is an inner city area of Liverpool, England. Located to the south of the city, Toxteth is bordered by Liverpool City Centre, Dingle, Edge Hill, Wavertree and Aigburth.-Description:...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, and can accommodate between 2,000 and 2,500 people and serves as the main place of worship and focus point for Liverpool's 25,000 strong Muslim community. The Al-Rahma Mosque is currently the largest of Liverpool's three mosques, followed by the Penny Lane mosque and a proposed mosque and Muslim centre on the former Anfield Community Comprehensive School
Anfield Community Comprehensive School
Anfield Community Comprehensive School was a secondary school in the Anfield area of Liverpool, England. The school had over 1100 pupils. The Anfield code was "Committed to achievement in the community".- History :...
site.
Architecture and History
The first ever mosqueMosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
in England was built in Liverpool; it was opened at 8 Brougham Terrace by a solicitor
Solicitor
Solicitors are lawyers who traditionally deal with any legal matter including conducting proceedings in courts. In the United Kingdom, a few Australian states and the Republic of Ireland, the legal profession is split between solicitors and barristers , and a lawyer will usually only hold one title...
and Muslim convert William Abdullah Quilliam
William Abdullah Quilliam
William Henry Quilliam , who changed his name to Abdullah Quilliam and later Henri Marcel Leon or Haroun Mustapha Leon, was a 19th century convert from Christianity to Islam, noted for founding England's first mosque and Islamic centre.-Background:William Quilliam was born in Liverpool to a...
on 25 December 1889 and the mosque he constructed was maintained until 1908. That mosque has recently been refurbished by the Muslim Enterprise Development Service and is now called the Abdullah Quilliam Society.
The Liverpool Muslim Society
Liverpool Muslim Society
The Liverpool Muslim Society is a muslim society in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1953 by the late Al-Haj Ali Hizzam, a member of Liverpool's Muslim Community, when it operated from a room in his house. The Al-Rahma mosque which the society operates has been at its present site since the 1960s,...
was set up in 1953, by the late Al-Haj Ali Hizzam, a member of Liverpool's Muslim Community, when it operated from a room in his house. The society was determined to build a place of worship to meet the spiritual needs of Liverpool's small population of about 3000 Muslims which was ever expanding. The Muslim community had been without a mosque since the mosque William Abdullah Quilliam had constructed was closed in 1908, So In 1965 the construction of the Al-Rahma mosque started, with extensions to accommodate the ever expanding community, with the main prayer hall being completed in July 1974. During the Mosque's construction, on Fridays and Muslim festivals, the Pakistan Centre opposite and the car park was used as a temporary prayer space whilst the building was being completed. The first small floor, the madrassah and the imam’s accommodation was added in 1979.
The current three-storey mosque is much more traditional in appearance with a golden dome and crescent on top, It opened in 2008 during Liverpool's tenure as European Capital of Culture.
Today
Jumu'ah
Jumu'ah is a congregational prayer that Muslims hold every Friday, just after noon in lieu of dhuhr...
on Fridays, and the mosque also provides free meals, and its services include a day centre for the elderly, children’s sporting clubs, and weekend Arabic lessons.
See also
- List of mosques in the United Kingdom
- Religion in the United KingdomReligion in the United KingdomReligion in the United Kingdom and the states that pre-dated the UK, was dominated by forms of Christianity for over 1,400 years. Although a majority of citizens still identify with Christianity in many surveys, regular church attendance has fallen dramatically since the middle of the 20th century,...
- Islam in the United KingdomIslam in the United KingdomIslam has been present in the United Kingdom since its formation in 1707, though it was not legally recognised until the Trinitarian Act in 1812. Today it is the second largest religion in the country with estimates suggesting that by 2010 the total Muslim population had reached 2.869 million.The...
- Islam in EnglandIslam in EnglandIslam in England is the largest non-Christian religion, with most Muslims being immigrants from South Asia or descendants of immigrants from that region...
- Timeline of Islamic history
- Liverpool Muslim SocietyLiverpool Muslim SocietyThe Liverpool Muslim Society is a muslim society in Liverpool, England. Founded in 1953 by the late Al-Haj Ali Hizzam, a member of Liverpool's Muslim Community, when it operated from a room in his house. The Al-Rahma mosque which the society operates has been at its present site since the 1960s,...
- Liverpool Muslim InstituteLiverpool Muslim InstituteThe Liverpool Muslim Institute was founded by the Liverpudlian William Abdullah Quilliam in 1887.After proclaiming himself to be a Muslim, William Henry Quilliam changed his name to Abdullah and founded the Liverpool Muslim Institute with Mrs Elizabeth Cates. Within two years they had set up a...
- Abdullah Quilliam
- Islamic architectureIslamic architectureIslamic architecture encompasses a wide range of both secular and religious styles from the foundation of Islam to the present day, influencing the design and construction of buildings and structures in Islamic culture....
- Islamic artIslamic artIslamic art encompasses the visual arts produced from the 7th century onwards by people who lived within the territory that was inhabited by or ruled by culturally Islamic populations...