The struggle that started in 1973 to acquire a place for the Community has now come to an end. The Muhammadi Islamic Centre is ready and will soon be in operation.

While the property is owned by the Muhammadi Islamic Centre, a private trust that was created to build the centre, the entire management responsibility is that of the Islamic Shia Ithna-Asheri Union of Toronto.

In this brief write-up, I shall try to explore various aspects of the Centre's Objectives as they relate to our aspirations and functions.

Conceptually, the Muhammadi Islamic Centre is an ideal translated into reality for a definite purpose. It therefore is imperative that the objectives and principles underlying the creation of the centre are understood because, successful functioning of the centre is contingent upon responsible use commensurate with its objectives.

The Centre is not a mere place of worship. It is much more than that. The main objective of the Centre is to project a clear and accurate picture of the message that came (1400) fourteen hundred years ago. To ensure that the people do not forget that message, 65 years later the grandson of our own Prophet Muhammad (SAWW) re-wrote it in his own blood at Kerbala.

As people who subscribe to that message, it is now our responsibility not only to deliver it to those who do not know, but to preserve it for those who will come when we are gone. The centre is an instrument to carry out this function.

It would be naive to under estimate the magnitude of the responsibility involved in the management of the centre, because it must be understood that, if we have accepted to manage two property, then we have in effect accepted the responsibility to bear the torch of the message.

From the foregoing analysis, it can be concluded that, while the struggle to achieve the centre is over, the struggle to live up to its expectations has only just begun. This is perhaps the longest struggle the community will be involved with and which will require many forms of contributions by the members.

The Centre is a source of dynamic force with a continuous struggle to create an atmosphere of common aspirations for all muslims in Canada. It is here that a common front should be built by muslims to effectively project the message.

Let us not sit and discuss what role the Centre should play in our lives, rather we should discuss our role in the fulfillment of the centre's objectives; in this regard, the following points must be considered in the planning of management strategy.

First of all, the heart of the Centre and source of inspiration for all efforts towards the fulfillment of the objective is the RESIDENT ALIM. Suffice it to say that the Resident Alim has most important role to play. If this is so, then it must be stated that there are specific qualifications inherent with the position. An attempt is made here to point out a few.

1. That the Resident Alim must have a sound knowledge and fluency in English language in addition to other languages he may have.
2. He must have an in-depth knowledge of the work done on Islam both in the east as well as in the west in addition to being well-versed with the
doctrines of other major organised religions, such as Christianity and Jewish.
3. He must be able to represent the Centre at all levels, including the theological Seminars and discussions.

I sincerely, hope that the above points will be taken into consideration in evaluating the candidacy of the Resident Alim. In this particular respect, I strongly feel that, both, the Muhammadi Islamic Centre and the Union's executive committee have a unanimity.

A word to my brothers and sisters in the community; that a little re-orientation of our attitude towards the religion and traditions will go a long way to help fulfillment of the objective.

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