SeyranAtes’ vision of a diverse mosque where all Muslims, from different sects, can pray together turned into reality Friday as dozens of people came together in Berlin to inaugurate a new house of prayer.
SeyranAtes’ vision of a diverse mosque where all Muslims, from different sects, can pray together turned into reality Friday as dozens of people came together in Berlin to inaugurate a new house of prayer.
Ates, a well-known women’s right activist and lawyer, preached in front of the crowd which filled the mosque.
“I couldn’t be more euphoric, it’s a dream come true,” Ates, the 54-year-old told The Associated Press this week with a smile.
Ates fought for eight years to establish a place of prayer where progressive Muslims in Germany can leave religious conflicts behind and focus on their shared Islamic values. The mosque is the first of its kind in Germany, she said.
The mosque is named Ibn-Rushd-Goethe-Mosque, combining the names of medieval Andalusian philosopher Ibn Rushd and German writer Johann Wolfgang Goethe.
Most Muslims started coming to Germany in the 1960s as workers to help rebuild the economy after World War II. While it was Germany’s intention to send them home after a few years, many stayed and brought over their families. Germany has also taken in more than a million refugees since 2015, most of them Muslims from war-torn countries such as Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan.
