Al-Mustafa Centre
Al-Mustafa Centre is used commonly to refer to a community organisation based in Bradford, UK. Al-Mustafa Cultural and Educational Centre (AMCEC) being the official name of the organisation. Its headquarters are based in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England.
Establishment
The Organisation was established by a Pakistani Islamic Scholar, Anwar Ul Mustafa Hamdami. He is the son of the late Shaykh Ul Hadith Ghulam Nabi Hamdami. Anwar Ul Mustafa was in the first class and one of the first students of world renowned Scholar Shaykh Ul Islam Dr. Muhammad Tahir Ul Qadri. He is also the elder brother of Mukhtar Ul Mustafa the composer and director of Islamic Documentaries and presenter of The Saturday Night Live show on Noor TV. Anwar Ul Mustafa came to UK to take a post as the Imam and Khateeb of the Jamia Masjid Hanfia in Bradford in 1998. He established his own organisation in 2002.
Activities
The organisation (Al-Mustafa Centre) is at the heart of the Girlington Community of Bradford. It carries out a variety of projects and activities for the social, religious, moral and spiritual betterment of the local community. Most notably it has a supplementary school with over 300 students attending daily to learn Arabic and Islamic studies. The Centre is one of few Islamic Organisations led and run by young people from the Community. For this reason, it has for many years been at the forefront in using innovative means and taking bold steps to carry out its projects. The Centre is one of few Islamic Organisations with an English speaking Imam delivering the weekly Jumu'ah lecture. Shaykh Saad al Attas joined the Centre in 2009 and took on a permanent role as an Imam and teacher. Shaykh Sa'ad is a well known English speaking scholar of the Ahlus Sunnah wal Jamaah and attends events and conferences throughout the UK delivering lectures. The Centre is also recognised as a provider of classes for adults to learn Islamic Subjects such as Tajweed, Hadith, Fiqh and Aqeedah and currently has 8 classes running per week for adults. Other activities that the organisation is known for include sports and homework clubs, Community Cohesion Conferences and guest lectures by internationally renowned scholars and annual Mawlid events with Nasheed artists from all over the world participating.
Alim Course
Arguably, the Centre is best known in the UK and particularly in the Bradford Sunni Muslim Community, as one of the most successful Dar ul Uloom's. The Centre has a number of Dars E Nizami (Alim Course) classes running from Monday to Friday under the supervision of its Head Imam Mufti Muhammad Fazal Bandyalwi. Mufti Muhammad is the younger brother of Mufti Aslam Bandyalwi, also of Bradford who is the Principle of another notable Dar ul Uloom in Bradford, Jamia Islamia Rizvia. Mufti Muhammad Fazal took on the role of head imam and head of the Alim Course in 2005 and has since been working steadfast in teaching the traditional sciences to students studying at a higher level and training to become Imam's in the UK. Mufti Muhammad has a strong reputation amongst scholars as being a very impressive and competent Muddaris (Teacher) and is particularly recognised for his great grasp of and ability to teach traditional Arabic grammar (Sarf and Nahw) and Hanafi Fiqh. In 2009, the first six students graduated from the Centre as Imams. These include Mawlana Wajid Iqbal, Mawlana Qari Imran Rizvi, Mawlana Hafiz Abdul Samee, Mawlana Hafiz Abdul Saeed, Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Aziz and Mawlana Muddasir Ul Haq. These Imams have been a great success story not only for the Centre but for the wider Sunni Community. As they, having studied in the UK are now themselves teaching the Alim Course to other students both at Al-Mustafa and other institution's. They Also have posts as Imams and teachers at other institutions in Bradford Including Jamia Tabligh Ul Islam Victor Street, Jamia Muhammadiya, Jamia Tabligh Ul Islam Toller Lane, Jamia Islamia Rizvia and others.
Shadhili Tariqa
The Centre is home to many Murids (students) of Shaykh Muhammad al-Ya’qoubi, the esteemed and world recognised religious Scholar from Syria. The students have weekly gatherings of Dhikr at the Centre as well as other classes and events.
