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On the weekend Milford Mosque opens to the public we ask: What is Islam?

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WE may think we may know, but do we understand this faith which is followed by approximately a quarter of the world’s population?

here are some facts about Islam on the same week that the Mosque in Milford Haven opens to the public:

  1. The core message of Islam is that the One God created everything in existence. This Eternal being is All-Powerful, and He is unlike anything in His creation — where no partners should be attributed to Him. Muslims will refer to this being as Allah — which is another name for God — more specifically ‘the God’ who is the only one who is worthy of worship. The name’s origin can be traced to the earliest Semitic writings in which the word for God was Il, El, or Eloah, the latter two used in the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament). Allah is the standard Arabic word for God and is also used by Arabic-speaking Christians and Jews. There are three core themes in the Quran (the final revelation from Allah to humans) about Him: (1) He is the Creator, Judge, and Rewarder; (2) He is unique (wāḥid) and inherently one (aḥad); and (3) He is omnipotent and all-merciful. Allah is the “Lord of the Worlds,” the Most High; “nothing is like unto Him,” and this in itself is to the believer a request to adore Allah as the Protector and to glorify His powers of compassion and forgiveness.
  2. This Creator created humanity to know Him and to worship Him. To worship God is the ultimate purpose of our existence. Worshipping God in Islam means remembering Him, being grateful to Him, praising Him, loving Him, and living righteous lives according to His revelation. Through this worship, we’ll find true inner peace in this life and attain paradise in the Hereafter as a reward for fulfilling our purpose. Although God created us to worship, He does not need our worship of Him — but we are in need of Him — the next point explains further.
  3. The Arabic term Islam, literally means “submission” which highlights the core religious notion of the faith — that the believer (Muslim) accepts surrender to the will of Allah. Islam as a religion provides a comprehensive explanation for why we at times suffer in this world, and why we go through hardships. God outlines in the Quran that He created life and death to test which of us are best in action and would try to do what’s right to please our Creator. If you hark back to the past, you may have experienced heartbreak when you loved a lost one. This is undoubtedly the most testing of times for most of us, but during this period, we should be conscious of our Creator; “Remember Me; I will remember you. And thank Me, and never be ungrateful.” [The Quran, Chapter 2 Verse 152].

As God will aid you in this time of need and in turn it becomes an opportunity to develop physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. Hardship enables us to practice patience and thus drawing closer to Him — putting our temporary existence into perspective — as we all have an expiration date, and paving the way to an Eternal life of bliss: “So, surely with hardship comes ease.” [The Quran, Chapter 94 Verse 5].

  1. Muslims believe Allah sent messengers throughout history to guide humanity and remind them of their Creator. Muslims believe in all the significant Biblical prophets of the past, such as Adam, Moses, Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, and Jesus (peace be upon them all) with Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) being the final messenger where Jesus him. Islam teaches us that these prophets were the best of humanity created by God, the perfect role models for their people and us to follow — however, they were not divine in any way. Their role was to wake people up to the reality of life and draw them away from worshipping created objects, bringing them back to the worship of the One true God. In essence they are the epitome of those who submit themselves to Allah — so every prophet is deemed as a Muslim. However, over time the message and scriptures of the previous prophets were corrupted by humanity hence Allah sending another messenger to replenish the original message.

In Christianity and Islam, there is the message that God wants to make Himself known to us; He wants a relationship, and that’s why He has sent messengers and revelation to humanity throughout history. The question we should ask ourselves is: “Are we willing to take the time and effort to seek out God’s truth?” This is the key to fulfilling the purpose of our creation, which will give us inner peace in this life and success after we pass away. The pursuit of the purpose of our lives is a noble endeavour; however, it should be an objective for everyone to achieve. What will be our means of attaining this lifelong objective?

One of the keys to unlocking the truth lies in the person of Jesus Christ. Islam holds a unique position among the world’s religions as it is the only religion, barring Christianity, that acknowledges Jesus as the Messiah — where believing in him is a compulsory component of being recognised as a Muslim. Even though Jesus is one of the most significant personalities in the world today, with nearly two billion Christians and around 1.8 billion Muslims believing in him, he is also perhaps the most misunderstood and misrepresented person in history. As we will explore, while Christianity and Islam share much in common concerning Jesus, they also make opposing claims that should be studied and discussed with love and compassion.

If we were living in first-century Palestine, then it would be straightforward. We could simply walk up to Jesus and ask him about his message. Since we obviously don’t have that opportunity today, we have to make use of the tools that are available to us, such as scripture, history and reason. We would love for you to attend this upcoming exhibition so we can together explore the life of Jesus, one of the most remarkable men to walk this earth and learn what Islam has to say about Jesus, his life, and his mission.

Those interested in learning more about Islam are welcome to attend the Milford Haven Open Days/Jesus Exhibition taking place on Sat 9th and Sun 10th September at the Hamad Bin Khalifa Islamic Centre, 122 Charles Street, Milford Haven (Post code for Sat Nav: SA73 2HW) The opening times of the exhibition are11:00HRS until 17:00HRS. Women are kindly requested to respect the traditions of Islam when dressing for the occasion.

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Rugby Weekly – Tenby’s promotion push continues

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It’s crunch time for all rugby clubs around the county, whether promotion is their aim or fighting relegation or even just trying to improve their league position, it’s now or never. 

Last weekend saw an important win for Fishguard in division two west which should put any relegation fears to bed completely. James Griffiths added an impressive 18 points for the Seagulls as they defeated Nantgaredig 33-19. 

Elsewhere in the second division, Milford were beaten 32-8 by a good Lampeter outfit. The Mariners are still a little too close for comfort with the drop zone but should have enough quality to see them safe. 

At the other end of the table Tenby sit in second place and have played fewer games than leaders St Clears and third place Lampeter. They won impressively again last weekend, beating Pontyberem 64-19 at Haywood Lane. Fletcher Broadhurst impressed with two tries as did Hywel Baker who also grabbed himself a brace. Another excellent performance in an outstanding season so far in which promotion would be the absolute icing on the cake. 

In Division Three West, Pembroke were well beaten by Laugharne 74-15 in which the outstanding Liam Price and Nico Setaro both crossed the whitewash 4 teams a piece. The latter also added 7 successful conversions. 

There was a local derby at Pill Parks where Llangwm hosted Pembroke Dock Quins and it was an exciting clash. The visitors won narrowly 28-23, Craig Barnett and Gethin Bradney both scored two tries for the Quins. The Wasps battled hard and will be proud of their performance, Gethin Thomas impressed for the hosts with two tries of his own but it wasn’t enough to secure the points. 

St David’s hosted the high flying Cardigan outfit and were unable to score in reply to the visitors 20 points, with it ending 20-0. The Saints however won’t be losing too much sleep over it as they have had a great season so far. 

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Stephen Crabb leads inquiry on retaining community bank services  

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PRESELI Pembrokeshire MP, and Chair of the Welsh Affairs Select Committee Stephen Crabb is leading an inquiry in Parliament that will investigate the closure of high street banks in Wales, as well as access to cash.

In November 2023, Pembrokeshire saw the closure of Lloyds Bank in St Davids, and in the coming months both Barclays Bank and Halifax in Haverfordwest are set to close. In recent years, Wales has experienced a rapid decline in the number of high street banking services available to the public. Already in 2024, 23 high street bank closures have been announced in Wales, while automated teller machines (ATMs) declined by nearly a quarter between 2018 and 2023.

The Committee willconsider how declining high street banking services are impacting vulnerable people and small businesses across Wales, who are often more reliant on cash than digital banking. It will also examine how Wales is being affected by the loss of high street bank services, and whether the problem is worse in Wales than other parts of the UK.

Mr Crabb is a staunch advocate for retaining community banking facilities, especially in rural communities like Pembrokeshire where many local branches remain the only source of face-to-face banking provision for miles.

Recently Mr Crabb challenged Barclays Bank senior management on their decision to close the bank branch in Haverfordwest– a move that will see Barclays not only pull out of the county town, but means they won’t have a branch left anywhere in Pembrokeshire. He has also engaged with LINK – the UK’s largest cash machine network – and continues to campaign on the basis that a Banking Hub is established and that ATM machines should be retained or installed, especially in areas worst affected by the closures.  

Following the launch of the inquiry, MP Crabb added: “It is really sad to see so many banks across Wales closing as online banking grows in popularity. Despite the advantages of online banking, for a rural community with an ageing population like Pembrokeshire, bank branches hold huge importance as they offer face-to-face customer service.”

“I am acutely aware of the inconvenience that the bank closures locally have already caused following hundreds of replies from constituents to my ‘online banking survey’ ”

“I am looking forward to gathering further evidence on this subject through the committee’s inquiry, and will continue to put pressure on the relevant stakeholders to ensure that adequate alternative provisions are made through the establishment of banking hubs as well as the instalment of ATM machines where necessary.”

“In this inquiry, we are particularly keen to hear from those likely to be directly affected by the shift away from cash and physical banks. I encourage anyone with first-hand experience of losing banking services to give evidence to the Committee”

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Trains resume between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock as works end

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TRAIN services resumed this morning (Thursday 28 March) after ten days of essential round-the-clock work to upgrade track and drainage between Carmarthen and Pembroke Dock.

The railway was closed from Monday 18 March to Wednesday 27 March to allow Network Rail teams to replace more than 200 metres of track and 300 tonnes of ballast (track stones) between Pembroke station and Pembroke Dock.

Work to improve the drainage between Narbeth and Kilgetty stations was also completed at the same time.

Nick Millington, Network Rail Wales and Borders route director, said: “This essential work in Pembrokeshire demonstrates our commitment to improving the reliability of the service we provide to passengers along our route.

“We know that replacing the track can be disruptive and very noisy, so I would like to thank the residents of Pembroke for their patience while our team carried out this crucial work.”

Colin Lea, Planning and Performance Director at Transport for Wales said: “We’re pleased that our colleagues in Network Rail have completed this essential work and that Transport for Wales rail services resumed today.

“We’d like to thank passengers for their patience while this work has progressed and look forward to welcoming passengers back in time for the Easter weekend.”

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