Cologne Mosque project
Encyclopedia
The Cologne Central Mosque (German: DITIB-Zentralmoschee Köln, Turkish: Merkez-Camii) is a building currently under construction and commissioned by German Muslims
of the Organization DITIB for a large, representative Zentralmoschee (central mosque) in Cologne, Germany. After some controversy, the project won the approval of Cologne's city council.
The mosque is designed in Ottoman architectural style, with glass walls, two minarets and a dome. The mosque is proposed to have a bazaar as well as other secular areas intended for interfaith interactions. As the mosque will be one of Europe's biggest, it has been criticized for its size, particularly the height of the minarets.
.
(DITIB), a branch of the Turkish
government's religious affairs authority, bank loans, and donations from 884 Muslim associations. Cologne's St. Theodore Catholic Church has also decided to fundraise for the mosque. The architect of the mosque is Paul Böhm, who specializes in building churches.
The planned mosque will be in the Ottoman architecture style. It will have a concrete and glass dome, and two 55 meter high minaret
s. The mosque will have the bazaar
and entrance on the ground floor, lecture halls in the basement, the prayer area on the upper floor and include a Muslim library. A well is intended to be placed in the center to connect the two levels and to create a pleasant atmosphere. The mosque consists of flat-like wall screens which form a dome in the center.
It will also have glass walls, which according to DITIB spokesman Alboga will give visitors a feeling of openness. According to the architect, openness is further enhanced by an inviting staircase from the street. The developers have required that the secular areas of the mosque (e.g. the restaurant, event halls and stores) be open to people of all religions.
A plan welcomed by then mayor of Cologne Fritz Schramma
to build shorter minerets was dropped after the architects said the plan would leave the minarets out of proportion with the rest of the building and surrounding structures. Construction of the opposed higher minerets will continue.
, local residents, right-wing groups, and neo-Nazis. Jörg Uckermann, then local district's deputy mayor, has criticized the project saying that "We don't want to build a Turkish ghetto in Ehrenfeld. I know about Londonistan
and I don't want that here."
Markus Wiener of local activist group Pro Cologne, expressed his fear that the Cologne mosque will empower the Muslim population too much.
On June 16, 2007, 200 people gathered in a protest organized by Pro Cologne against the mosque including representatives from the Austrian Freedom Party and the Belgian Vlaams Belang
. Then district deputy mayor Uckermann seconded that he thinks many residents reject the mosque because they believe that Cologne is a “Christian city”. The prominent author Ralph Giordano
stated that he opposed the project as the mosque would be “an expression of the creeping Islamization
of our land”, a “declaration of war”, and that he wouldn't want to see women wearing headscarfs on German streets, likening their appearance to “human penguins”. Henryk M. Broder, a journalist, disagrees with Giordano's metaphor but said that “A mosque is more than a church or a synagogue. It is a political statement.” Giordano's remarks have turned the local dispute into a national debate about the place of Islam in Germany
. and other prominent Germans criticized the project as well. District mayor Uckermann stated that Giordano's comments “broke down the wall. Before if you criticised this monstrous mosque you were a Nazi. But we have a problem with the integration of Muslims. It's a question of language and culture.” Uckermann left the conservative CDU for right-wing Pro Cologne in 2008 after being voted out of office as the district's deputy mayor and reportedly facing party exclusion.
The city's official for integration Marlis Bredehorst stated that "it is important that the Muslims here get dignified houses of prayer" and added that "two hundred years ago, the Protestants had to pray secretively in Catholic Cologne [...] that is something we can't imagine anymore today." The city's mayor, Fritz Schramma
, who supports the project said that “For me, it is self-evident that the Muslims need to have a prestigious place of worship, but it bothers me when people have lived here for 35 years and they don’t speak a single word of German.” Christian leaders have taken similarly ambivalent stances: the Catholic Church has long supported the project, though recently Cardinal Joachim Meisner, Archbishop of Cologne, has been more cautious: when asked if he was afraid of the mosque, he said, “I don't want to say I'm afraid, but I have an uneasy feeling.” He also stated that Turkey should allow its Christian minorities equivalent rights. He said the mosque would change the skyline of Cologne. Wolfgang Huber
, Germany's top Protestant bishop, criticized the “male domination” he saw in Islam and said Muslims should be able to convert to Christianity without fearing reprisals and the penalty of death.
Public opinion seems “guardedly supportive, with a majority of residents saying they favor it”. A poll taken by a local newspaper among 500 Cologne residents showed that the project is supported by 63%, of whom 27% want its size to be reduced.
A protest planned by Pro Cologne for September 20, 2008 was canceled by police at the last minute in the interest of public safety, after clashes between police and protestors.
On August 28, 2008, the Cologne City Council
voted to approve the construction of the mosque. this position was taken by all parties except the Christian democrats
(CDU). Outside the hall, a group of 30 protesters demonstrated against the approval, while 100 demonstrated in favor of it.
The Cologne mosque project has been contrasted with a less controversial project in Duisburg
, Germany: in Duisburg, there was co-operation and good communication from an early stage between German politicians, church and community leaders and the developers of the mosque, though fears of Islamization continue.
Islam in Germany
Owing to labour migration in the 1960s and several waves of political refugees since the 1970s, Islam has become a visible religion in Germany., there are 4.3 million Muslims .Of these, 1.9 million are German citizens...
of the Organization DITIB for a large, representative Zentralmoschee (central mosque) in Cologne, Germany. After some controversy, the project won the approval of Cologne's city council.
The mosque is designed in Ottoman architectural style, with glass walls, two minarets and a dome. The mosque is proposed to have a bazaar as well as other secular areas intended for interfaith interactions. As the mosque will be one of Europe's biggest, it has been criticized for its size, particularly the height of the minarets.
Background
Cologne has 120,000 Muslims, who make up 12% of the city's population. Cologne also has nearly 30 other mosques. The proposed mosque is to replace the previous mosque, which housed up to 600 worshipers, and was located in a former pharmaceutical factoryFactory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
.
Design
The 48000 square feet (4,459.3 m²) mosque will cost £15–20 million to build, aiming to house 2,000 to 4,000 worshippers. The proposed mosque will be funded by Diyanet İşleri Türk İslam BirliğiDiyanet Isleri Türk Islam Birligi
The Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs , is one of the largest Islamic organisations in Germany. It was founded in 1984 as a branch of the Presidency of Religious Affairs in Ankara. The headquarters are in Cologne-Ehrenfeld....
(DITIB), a branch of the Turkish
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
government's religious affairs authority, bank loans, and donations from 884 Muslim associations. Cologne's St. Theodore Catholic Church has also decided to fundraise for the mosque. The architect of the mosque is Paul Böhm, who specializes in building churches.
The planned mosque will be in the Ottoman architecture style. It will have a concrete and glass dome, and two 55 meter high minaret
Minaret
A minaret مناره , sometimes مئذنه) is a distinctive architectural feature of Islamic mosques, generally a tall spire with an onion-shaped or conical crown, usually either free standing or taller than any associated support structure. The basic form of a minaret includes a base, shaft, and gallery....
s. The mosque will have the bazaar
Bazaar
A bazaar , Cypriot Greek: pantopoula) is a permanent merchandising area, marketplace, or street of shops where goods and services are exchanged or sold. The term is sometimes also used to refer to the "network of merchants, bankers and craftsmen" who work that area...
and entrance on the ground floor, lecture halls in the basement, the prayer area on the upper floor and include a Muslim library. A well is intended to be placed in the center to connect the two levels and to create a pleasant atmosphere. The mosque consists of flat-like wall screens which form a dome in the center.
It will also have glass walls, which according to DITIB spokesman Alboga will give visitors a feeling of openness. According to the architect, openness is further enhanced by an inviting staircase from the street. The developers have required that the secular areas of the mosque (e.g. the restaurant, event halls and stores) be open to people of all religions.
A plan welcomed by then mayor of Cologne Fritz Schramma
Fritz Schramma
Fritz Schramma is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union . He was mayor of Cologne from 2000 until 2009.-Career:...
to build shorter minerets was dropped after the architects said the plan would leave the minarets out of proportion with the rest of the building and surrounding structures. Construction of the opposed higher minerets will continue.
Controversy
The project has been opposed by author Ralph GiordanoRalph Giordano (writer)
Ralph Giordano is a German writer and publicist.Giordano was born to a Sicilian father and a Jewish mother....
, local residents, right-wing groups, and neo-Nazis. Jörg Uckermann, then local district's deputy mayor, has criticized the project saying that "We don't want to build a Turkish ghetto in Ehrenfeld. I know about Londonistan
Londonistan (term)
Londonistan is a pejorative sobriquet in use by parts of the media referring to the British capital of London and the British Government's alleged tolerance of the presence of various Islamist groups in London and other major cities of Britain as long as they carry out their controversial...
and I don't want that here."
Markus Wiener of local activist group Pro Cologne, expressed his fear that the Cologne mosque will empower the Muslim population too much.
On June 16, 2007, 200 people gathered in a protest organized by Pro Cologne against the mosque including representatives from the Austrian Freedom Party and the Belgian Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang
Vlaams Belang is a Belgian far-right political party in the Flemish Region and Brussels that advocates the independence of Flanders and strict limits on immigration, whereby immigrants would be obliged to adopt Flemish culture and language...
. Then district deputy mayor Uckermann seconded that he thinks many residents reject the mosque because they believe that Cologne is a “Christian city”. The prominent author Ralph Giordano
Ralph Giordano (writer)
Ralph Giordano is a German writer and publicist.Giordano was born to a Sicilian father and a Jewish mother....
stated that he opposed the project as the mosque would be “an expression of the creeping Islamization
Islamization
Islamization or Islamification has been used to describe the process of a society's conversion to the religion of Islam...
of our land”, a “declaration of war”, and that he wouldn't want to see women wearing headscarfs on German streets, likening their appearance to “human penguins”. Henryk M. Broder, a journalist, disagrees with Giordano's metaphor but said that “A mosque is more than a church or a synagogue. It is a political statement.” Giordano's remarks have turned the local dispute into a national debate about the place of Islam in Germany
Islam in Germany
Owing to labour migration in the 1960s and several waves of political refugees since the 1970s, Islam has become a visible religion in Germany., there are 4.3 million Muslims .Of these, 1.9 million are German citizens...
. and other prominent Germans criticized the project as well. District mayor Uckermann stated that Giordano's comments “broke down the wall. Before if you criticised this monstrous mosque you were a Nazi. But we have a problem with the integration of Muslims. It's a question of language and culture.” Uckermann left the conservative CDU for right-wing Pro Cologne in 2008 after being voted out of office as the district's deputy mayor and reportedly facing party exclusion.
The city's official for integration Marlis Bredehorst stated that "it is important that the Muslims here get dignified houses of prayer" and added that "two hundred years ago, the Protestants had to pray secretively in Catholic Cologne [...] that is something we can't imagine anymore today." The city's mayor, Fritz Schramma
Fritz Schramma
Fritz Schramma is a German politician of the Christian Democratic Union . He was mayor of Cologne from 2000 until 2009.-Career:...
, who supports the project said that “For me, it is self-evident that the Muslims need to have a prestigious place of worship, but it bothers me when people have lived here for 35 years and they don’t speak a single word of German.” Christian leaders have taken similarly ambivalent stances: the Catholic Church has long supported the project, though recently Cardinal Joachim Meisner, Archbishop of Cologne, has been more cautious: when asked if he was afraid of the mosque, he said, “I don't want to say I'm afraid, but I have an uneasy feeling.” He also stated that Turkey should allow its Christian minorities equivalent rights. He said the mosque would change the skyline of Cologne. Wolfgang Huber
Wolfgang Huber
Wolfgang Huber is a prominent German theologian and ethicist. Huber served as bishop of the Evangelical Church of Berlin-Brandenburg-Silesian Upper Lusatia until November 2009...
, Germany's top Protestant bishop, criticized the “male domination” he saw in Islam and said Muslims should be able to convert to Christianity without fearing reprisals and the penalty of death.
Public opinion seems “guardedly supportive, with a majority of residents saying they favor it”. A poll taken by a local newspaper among 500 Cologne residents showed that the project is supported by 63%, of whom 27% want its size to be reduced.
A protest planned by Pro Cologne for September 20, 2008 was canceled by police at the last minute in the interest of public safety, after clashes between police and protestors.
On August 28, 2008, the Cologne City Council
Cologne City Hall
The City Hall is a historical building in Cologne, western Germany, located off Hohe Straße in the district of Innenstadt, set between the two squares of Rathausplatz and Alter Markt. It houses part of the city government, including the city council and offices of the Lord Mayor. It is...
voted to approve the construction of the mosque. this position was taken by all parties except the Christian democrats
Christian Democratic Union (Germany)
The Christian Democratic Union of Germany is a Christian democratic and conservative political party in Germany. It is regarded as on the centre-right of the German political spectrum...
(CDU). Outside the hall, a group of 30 protesters demonstrated against the approval, while 100 demonstrated in favor of it.
The Cologne mosque project has been contrasted with a less controversial project in Duisburg
Duisburg
- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
, Germany: in Duisburg, there was co-operation and good communication from an early stage between German politicians, church and community leaders and the developers of the mosque, though fears of Islamization continue.
See also
- Controversies related to Islam and Muslims
- List of mosques in Germany
External links
- http://www.zentralmoschee-koeln.de/