—FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE—
NEW YORK, NY (June, 25 th , 2022) – All Praises are due to Allah ﷻ, Lord of all that exists, and may His peace and blessings be on His final Messenger and his household. We hope and pray that this message finds you in the best of Imaan and health. Ameen.
During the Memorial Day weekend of 2022, the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) hosted its 47th annual ICNA-MAS convention in Baltimore, MD. The convention featured over 170 speakers and 200 sessions on wide-ranging topics focused on the theme of “Building a Just Society”. These sessions covered topics such as outreach (Da’wah), education (Tarbiyah), family & parenting, dealing with social problems such as LGBTQ, social services and humanitarian relief, social justice and activism, Islamic finance in an interest-based society, technological solutions, and character development. These sessions were led by scholars, intellectuals, activists, community leaders, interfaith partners, and politicians. The theme for the keynote session was UMMAH: Understanding Islam, Mutual Consultation, Moderation, Attachment to Allah and Humanity.
The convention also offered a huge, one-of-a-kind bazaar where hundreds of vendors offered unique products and services. A variety of Halal food vendors offered several ethnic cuisines which attendees and their families enjoyed throughout this holiday weekend.
Despite this being the first year back since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, over 22,000 Muslims were in attendance Alhamdulillah. In an ever-changing world where society’s core moral values continue to change and often decline, Muslims are seeking guidance on strengthening our moral values, and answers to complex societal issues with regards to finance, activism, building alliances and partnerships with other faiths. ICNA is blessed to be able to provide a platform for the development of the Muslim community without compromising its moral and religious values. All of this is done with the sole intention of pleasing Allah ﷻ.
The theme of this year’s convention was “Building a Just Society: The Mission Continues”. We want to specially recognize the role of the Convention Program Committee tasked with organizing the program for the convention. Selecting, inviting, coordinating, and communicating with more than 170 speakers is a huge undertaking for this fully volunteer-based committee. In this process, we recognize areas for improvements with regards to communication & collaboration with speakers. Our team does due diligence in selecting speakers that may either (1) bring benefit to our community through action or (2) through knowledge to inspire our community in their obedience to Allah ﷻ. However, inviting a speaker to ICNA cannot be an endorsement of every view that person holds or professes.
As we move forward towards building a just society, we understand the challenges our community faces regarding our values. We believe that building a moral foundation is the corner stone for a prosperous and just society. We at ICNA are committed to join hands with our community to solidify the moral foundation for our country on that which is based on divine guidance. We will continue to strive to establish a just society that is based on the moral and ethical principles of Quran and Sunnah. We understand this path will be challenging, but firmly believe in the Ayah of Allah ﷻ: “and [the believers are] never afraid of the blame of the blamers. That is the Grace of Allah which He bestows on whom He wills. And Allah is All-Sufficient for His creatures’ needs, All-Knower” (5:54). May Allah ﷻ help us achieve our goals.
We ask Allah ﷻ to join our hearts and actions in goodness, guide us to what is correct and true, and allow us to serve His Deen in the way that pleases Him.
Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA)
The Islamic Circle of North America is a leading American Muslim organization dedicated to the betterment of society through the application of Islamic values. Since 1968, ICNA has worked to build relations between communities by devoting itself to education, outreach, social services and relief efforts.
