APRIL 7

Dawah Hotline

“Hello! Is there anyone to answer me? I am an American Jew, and I want to learn something about Islam. I rang several mosques in the USA, but failed to get a satisfactory answer. Please give me some information about Islam.”

It was a telephone call received at the office of the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) in Jamaica. The person present at the office answered the call, giving the caller the required information as best as he could. Later on it came to my knowledge that such calls are often received in American mosques. But with no competent person to attend to the telephone, the callers often fail to get proper and satisfying answers. At times even there is no one present in the office at all.

Ultimately this incident at the ICNA Islamic Centre resulted in the installation of a Hotline telephone in this centre. It is called the Dawah Hotline and its number is 1-800-662-ISLAM. A well informed person is always present in the office to provide the necessary information on Islam to the caller. For the time being, this centre has secured the services of two competent persons with a good command of English and a proper knowledge of Islam. The initial cost was one lakh dollars. (Dawat Daily, July 13, 1995)

In bygone times, the da‘i had to travel long distances to communicate his message to the mad‘u. Now modern times have seen such revolutionary changes, that the mad‘u himself is coming to da‘i. Clearly, the need of the hour is to arrange for such centres in all the cities in the world so that people may receive the desired information on Islam.