Assalamualaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuhu,

Ramadan and Eid Mubarak! In accordance with the Fiqh Coun-cil of North America, First day of Ramadan will be on Thurs-day, June 18th and Eid ul-Fitr on Friday, July 17th inshaAllah.

Our beloved Muqri Ismael Essa Abdelsalam Mabrouk will be leading the Ramadan Taraweeh prayer again this year.

This Ramadan Newsletter has been published for your convenience. Taraweeh start and completion times are approximate and can change based on recitation. As always, please visit www.iscj.org and www.facebook.com/ISCJ1 for latest official updates.

ISCJ Ramadan Newsletter June and July 2015 CE Ramadan 1436 Hijri

Ramadan Schedule (first 10 days)

Ramadan June Day Fajr Sunrise Dhuhr Asr Maghrib Isha Iqamah Taraweeh 8 Rakat

Complete 20 Rakat Complete

1 18 Thu 3:49 5:27 1:00 4:59 8:32 10:10 10:19 10:34 11:14 11:59 2 19 Fri 3:49 5:27 1:00 5:00 8:32 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:25 12:10 3 20 Sat 3:50 5:28 1:00 5:00 8:32 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:25 12:10 4 21 Sun 3:50 5:28 1:00 5:00 8:32 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 5 22 Mon 3:50 5:28 1:01 5:00 8:32 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 6 23 Tue 3:50 5:28 1:01 5:00 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 7 24 Wed 3:51 5:28 1:01 5:01 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 8 25 Thu 3:51 5:29 1:01 5:01 8:33 10:12 10:21 10:36 11:16 12:01 9 26 Fri 3:52 5:29 1:02 5:01 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:25 12:10 10 27 Sat 3:52 5:29 1:02 5:01 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:25 12:10

Ramadan Duas Dua before breaking the fast:

“Oh Allah! I have fasted for You, and with Your provision (food) do I break my fast.”

Dua after breaking the fast:

“The thirst has gone and the veins are moistened, and the reward for fast if Allah wills has become certain.”

Dua for the Night of Power (Lailat-ul-Qadr):

“Oh Allah! You are the Most Forgiving and Most Gracious! You love to pardon, so pardon me.”

Mark Your Calendars:

June 17 — Taraweeh Begins

June 18 — Ramadan Begins

June 27 — Ramadan Children’s Camp

June 27— Helping Hands Iftar

July 3 — Shaykh Yasir Fahmy Khutbah & Program

July 5 — Islamic Relief Iftar

July 13 — Lailat-ul-Qadr Celebra-tion

July 16 — Chaand Raat Bazaar

July 17 — Eid-ul-Fitr Prayer

July 17 — Eid-ul-Fitr Family Fun Festivities

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Assalamu Alaykum ISCJ Community,

I am personally very excited about this Ramadan as we are planning a vibrant month of activities and worship under the leadership of Imam Chebli headlined by the beautiful recitation of Shaykh Ismael Essa. We will, inshaAllah, con-tinue to ensure that we sustain the good we are doing while striving to improve in the many different areas.

Some of the highlights for this Ramadan are as follows: minimize the fundraising, complete 8 and 20 Rakat in a time-ly fashion, managed babysitting arrangements, weekend iftars, Community Youth Itekaf etc. With Allah Subhana Wa Ta'ala's help, and your cooperation, whether it is through your time, financial help and duas, we will inshaAllah, con-tinue to do our best to ensure we provide an optimal Ramadan experience for our beloved community who deserve the best services we are capable of providing. InshaAllah, our goal is to raise $250K with $100K going toward ISCJ Operations and the remainder towards paying off our remaining financial obligations for Phase 1 and Phase 2 con-struction of the school building.

Let us continue to work together to make ISCJ an excellent “House of Allah” — one in which everyone feels wel-come, our membership continues to grow, our youth are happy to attend and lastly, one that other masjids look up to as a role model. In closing, we are looking forward to see everyone for the start of Ramadan and staying with us daily thru Eid -Al-Fitr.

Wa Salam Alaykum, Arif Patel, President, ISCJ Board of Trustees

In summer of 2013, the ISCJ Board created a Masjid Renovation and Expansion Task Force to work with the ISCJ Board and the Building Committee in order to plan for and execute the masjid expansion approved by the Township of South Brunswick as part of the Master Plan. The Master Plan included an approved 10,000 sq. ft. expansion of the masjid building.

The Task Force began preparing a list of items needed in the reno-vation and expansion. The Task Force and Board approved a list that included among other things: (1) Increase prayer space (create a designated women’s prayer area) as per Township approval; (2) Increase the number of bathrooms for men and women;(3) In-crease the ablution area for men and women; (4) Expand kitchen area; (5) Improve traffic flow within the building; (6) Improve entry points to the building and increase foyer space; (7) Adequate built-in shoe racks/cubbies and built in benches near the shoe racks; (8) Designate a “daily” prayer area verses Friday prayer; (9) Classrooms; (10) Multipurpose room; (11) Office space; (12)

Medical clinic space; (13) Library; (14) Conference rooms; (15) Storage/Closets; (16) Utility areas; (17) Designated “Babysitting” Room – Mother-Child prayer area; (18) Update outside façade; (20) Improve landscaping; and (21) Wheelchair access.

The Task Force selected an architect thru a bid process and began working with him and several versions of the design were drafted. The Task Force, Building Committee and architect began working on switching the 4,000 sq. ft. basement to a 4,000 sq. ft. second floor. The Board agreed and preliminary discussions took place with key members at the Township. The Township advised that even though this was a “simple and straightforward change” an application would need to be filed with the Township. In March 2015, the Board approved the filing of the matter.

InshaAllah, ISCJ will be filing the application with the Township shortly and the ISCJ will be finalizing the floor plans and will be able to share them with the community before Ramadan is over.

Masjid Expansion and Renovation Update

1. Please DO NOT double park if you can avoid it. If all available parking spots are taken (including parking at the back) and you have no choice but to double park, please leave immediately after 8 Rakats of Taraweeh to move your car to an available parking space.

2. Please leave parking available near all ISCJ entrances for the elderly and expectant mothers in our community. You will be rewarded for every step you take towards the masjid. Park farther away and earn multiple rewards.

3. Drivers should NOT make a left turn onto Promenade Blvd when exiting from the ISCJ parking lot. A left turn is illegal and you will be ticketed if caught by the police. ISCJ is not responsible for any parking tickets.

4. Go-Green: Bring re-usable water containers from home; control food and liquid waste; be mindful of water wastage while making Wudu.

Miscellaneous Reminders

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Babysitting Arrangements Babysitting will be provided during Isha and Taraweeh prayers for all children ages 3 to 9 years. The timings are from the start of the Isha prayers until the end of 8 rakats of Taraweeh. This will be held in the Modular 1 trailer. All children must be

signed in. Mothers who are praying with small children should pray in the room adjoining the multipurpose room.

Parents are reminded that children should not be running around or making noise in the musallah area while people are praying.

Ramadan Schedule (last 19 days)

11 28 Sun 3:53 5:30 1:02 5:01 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 12 29 Mon 3:53 5:30 1:02 5:02 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 13 30 Tue 3:54 5:31 1:02 5:02 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 14 1 Wed 3:54 5:31 1:03 5:02 8:33 10:11 10:20 10:35 11:15 12:00 15 2 Thu 3:55 5:32 1:03 5:02 8:33 10:10 10:19 10:34 11:14 11:59 16 3 Fri 3:56 5:32 1:03 5:02 8:32 10:10 10:19 10:34 11:24 12:09 17 4 Sat 3:57 5:33 1:03 5:02 8:32 10:10 10:19 10:34 11:24 12:09 18 5 Sun 3:58 5:33 1:03 5:02 8:32 10:09 10:18 10:33 11:13 11:58 19 6 Mon 3:58 5:34 1:03 5:02 8:32 10:09 10:18 10:33 11:13 11:58 20 7 Tue 3:59 5:35 1:04 5:02 8:31 10:08 10:17 10:32 11:12 11:57

Ramadan June/July Day Fajr Sunrise Dhuhr Asr Maghrib Isha Iqamah Taraweeh 8 Rakat

Complete 20 Rakat Complete

21 8 Wed 4:00 5:35 1:04 5:02 8:31 10:07 10:16 10:31 11:11 11:56 22 9 Thu 4:01 5:36 1:04 5:03 8:31 10:07 10:16 10:31 11:11 11:56 23 10 Fri 4:02 5:37 1:04 5:03 8:30 10:06 10:15 10:30 11:20 12:05 24 11 Sat 4:03 5:37 1:04 5:03 8:30 10:05 10:14 10:29 11:19 12:04 25 12 Sun 4:04 5:38 1:04 5:03 8:29 10:05 10:14 10:29 11:09 11:54 26 13 Mon 4:05 5:39 1:04 5:03 8:29 10:04 10:13 10:28 11:08 11:53 27 14 Tue 4:06 5:39 1:05 5:03 8:28 10:03 10:12 10:27 11:07 11:52 28 15 Wed 4:07 5:40 1:05 5:02 8:28 10:02 10:11 10:26 11:06 11:51 29 16 Thu 4:08 5:41 1:05 5:02 8:27 10:01 10:10 10:25 11:05 11:50

As per our annual tradition, ISCJ will be hosting Iftar dinners.

During the weekends (Saturday and Sunday), food will be ca-tered through local food vendors.

If you are willing to sponsor, the suggested donation is $300 per family towards the cost of each dinner. If paying by check, please add “Iftar 2015” on the memo and drop off at the ISCJ office. If you are interested in donating for an entire Iftar, the cost is $3000.

Please contact SocialActivities@iscj.org or 732-655-ISCJ for additional questions or concerns.

During the weekdays (Monday-Friday), we encourages mem-

bers to bring their own dish (freshly prepared only!) and share with the community.

Sunday, July 5 Iftar will be held at the Clarion Inn, North Brunswick in partnership with Islamic Relief.

The Prophet (pbuh) said: “Whoever feeds a fasting

person will double his reward without decreasing the reward of the one being fed in the

slightest way.” [At-Tirmithi: Hasan Saheeh]

Iftar Program

Zakat-ul-Fitr should be paid as early as possible during Ramadan to benefit the poor and the needy (for food and clothing) on the Eid day. The Zakat-ul-Fitr is calculated as $10 this year.

Zakat-ul-Fitr Reminder

Volunteers needed: ISCJ has a great need for volunteers in all areas and specialties such as Fundraising, Iftar dinner arrangements, parking arrangements, clean-up, crowd control, community outreach etc. E-mail us at: volunteers@iscj.org to sign-up or to learn more.

© 2015 Islamic Society Of Central Jersey, PO Box 628, Monmouth Junction, NJ 08852 | Phone: 732-329-6995 | www.iscj.org

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Special Programs