The Turkish-Islamic Union Ditib wants to introduce a muezzin call in Cologne soon. The psychologist Ahmad Mansour criticizes this as "a demonstration of the power of political Islam". He accuses the Mayor of Cologne, Reker, of naivety.
Cologne (dpa / lnw) - The Berlin Islamism expert Ahmad Mansour fears "fatal consequences" from the muezzin call planned in Cologne. "This is a demonstration of the power of political Islam," Mansour told the German Press Agency. The Turkish-Islamic Union Ditib may be allowed to call the muezzin to prayer in the central mosque for the first time this Friday.
Mansour, who grew up in Israel in an Arab-Palestinian family, is a psychologist and author of the book "Operation Allah - How Political Islam Wants to Undermine Our Democracy". He reminded that Ditib is the extended arm of the Turkish religious authority in Ankara and that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan personally opened the central mosque in Cologne-Ehrenfeld. "It is devastating when this organization of all people is now being given such public recognition." The Cologne initiative is not only noticed nationwide, but all over the world.
Cologne has announced that mosque communities can call their believers to prayer upon request and subject to conditions. The city refers to the freedom of religious practice enshrined in the Basic Law. While the bells rang in churches to call the faithful to the service, in the mosques it was the calls of the muezzin.
"I see it differently," said Mansour. "The ringing of the bells is about sound, the muezzin call is about concrete religious messages." The muezzin shouts that there is no god other than Allah and that Mohammed is his messenger. "So that's a distinct difference from just ringing." It is also easy to overlook the fact that many young Muslims in Germany appreciate that religion is not as visible in public space as it is in their families' Islamic countries of origin. "They find it relaxing, they find it good," Mansour said. "If you want to be on time for prayer, just turn on your cell phone."
On the other hand, Ditib said: "Friday prayer is the most important prayer of the week in Islam and its religious significance is comparable to Christian Sunday services or the Jewish Shabbat." The call to prayer reminds Muslims to pray together. "Community is very important to Muslims." Friday prayer can only be done in community.
In particular, Mansour criticizes the fact that the decision was simply announced by Cologne Mayor Henriette Reker (independent) without any discussion having taken place beforehand. This is about very fundamental questions: "What is the status of Islam in our society? Does it really have equal rights? If that's the case, then Muslims should also be able to demand public holidays and many other things. And that's exactly what's going to happen now: The conservatives feel confirmed, see this as an important step towards the Islamization of Europe and will always demand more." Of course everyone is for freedom of belief. "But simply placing the muezzin call in this context is criminally naïve."
At the Ditib central mosque, the muezzin could call for prayer over loudspeakers from Friday (October 14). According to the city of Cologne, it is about to conclude a corresponding contract with Ditib. If this happens, the muezzin may call for Friday prayers once between 12:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m. for a maximum duration of five minutes. Since this is a pilot project, the contract is limited to two years, according to the city. The Ditib must also inform the residents with a flyer and name a contact person.
