Masjid Al-Istiqamah
Encyclopedia
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
in Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
which was completed in 1999. It is the only mosque in Singapore to have land allocated for it before the appointment of its Mosque Building Committee by the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore, MUIS
Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura
The Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura , also known as the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore is a statutory board in Singapore...
.
Profile
Yio Chu Kang
Yio Chu Kang is a sub-urban area in the northeast of Singapore, with proximity to the Ang Mo Kio, Seletar and Serangoon areas. Deriving its name from the Yio Chu Kang Village, it is still known for lush greenery and low-density housing with high-rise public housing in its southern fringes...
Road and Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio（宏茂桥） is a heartland new town located in north central Singapore, and is generally within the North-East Region. It contains many of the common features of the island nation's neighbourhoods, e.g. hawker centres, wet markets and HDB housing blocks. Singapore's Prime Minister, Lee Hsien...
Ave 3, with the front entrance at Serangoon North Avenue 2, directly facing Blk 139 on the opposite side of the street.
The new mosques built within this phase are named after virtuous qualities as a continuation from the first one - Masjid Al-Khair
Masjid Al-Khair
Masjid Al-Khair, or Al-Khair Mosque is a mosque in Singapore founded in the early 60s. The original building was located on a hilltop surrounded by vegetable farms along Choa Chu Kang Road. It was realized through the joint effort of the Muslim community residing in that area and the former...
(The Good). Initially, Muis had suggested the name "As-Sobr" (The Patient) for this mosque but after consultation with a few local Islamic scholars, the name "Al-Istiqamah" (the Constant) was chosen.
The three-storeyed mosque with a combination of designs from the Nusantara
Nusantara
Nusantara is an Indonesian word for the Indonesian archipelago. It is originated from Old Javanese and literally means "archipelago".The word Nusantara was taken from an oath by Gajah Mada, as written on an old Javanese manuscript Pararaton and Negarakertagama...
, Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and Mauritius
Mauritius
Mauritius , officially the Republic of Mauritius is an island nation off the southeast coast of the African continent in the southwest Indian Ocean, about east of Madagascar...
can cater to a maximum of 3,300 worshippers at any one time. Its convertible concept enables the optimisation of space and multiple functionalities of the rooms.
The building is divided into two general areas, viz. the i'tikaf section occupying the 'front' portion, and the multi-purpose section making up the 'rear'. The i'tikaf area which is roofed by solid timber can accommodate about 480, 330 and 270 worshippers on levels one, two and three respectively.
Founding
When the plot for the mosque building was purchased on August 12, 1992, the fund raising arm of the JPM (Mosque Building Committee) was not even formed! The estimated amount needed was SGD$700,000 for the basic requirements in the initial stage of building. So few people came forward to volunteer their services that an advertisement had to be put out in the Berita HarianBerita Harian
Berita Harian is a major Malay language newspaper in Malaysia. Its Sunday Edition is called Berita Minggu. It was founded on 31 August 1957, which also marks the date of Malaya's independence...
newspaper.
When the JPM was eventually formed in October 1994 together with JPM Pasir Ris
Pasir Ris
Pasir Ris is primarily a residential area in Singapore comprising many high-rise residential dwelling blocks, mostly public housing built by the Housing and Development Board in Pasir Ris New Town. The town is located in the eastern part of Singapore....
(which went on to build Masjid Al-Istighfar
Masjid Al-Istighfar
Masjid Al-Istighfar, or Al-Istighfar Mosque is a mosque in Singapore.This three-storey mosque is one of the most recent mosques built under Phase Three of the Mosque Building Fund programme. Completed in June 1999, it is located in the East, along Pasir Ris Drive 3. it can be recognized by its...
) and JPM Bishan
Bishan
Bishan is a neighbourhood of the city-state of Singapore situated in the Central Region, measuring approximately three by three kilometres. Primarily a housing estate, Flats here are generally more expensive compared to other estates due to its location in the central region, which commands a...
(Masjid An-Nahdhah
Masjid An-Nahdhah
Masjid An-Nahdhah, or An-Nahdhah Mosque, is a mosque in Singapore located in the Bishan district.This mosque is the sixth one to be built under Phase III of the Mosque Building Fund programme to serve the needs of the Muslim community around the Bishan area...
), a different challenge existed - that of the 'competition' to raise funds against the neighbouring, more established mosques: Masjid Haji Yusoff
Masjid Haji Yusoff
Haji Yusoff Mosque is a mosque located in Hillside Drive, Upper Serangoon Road, Singapore. It is a Wakaf type of mosque.This redeveloped mosque is located in the Northeast part of the island was first built in 1896. It underwent redevelopment in 1995 and can now accommodate up to 400 people...
in Kovan
Kovan
Kovan is a suburb and part of Hougang, in the North-East Region of Singapore. It is part of Aljunied GRC. A relatively small and almost-unknown suburb, it houses many bungalows and condominiums...
which sought to rebuild, and both Masjid En-Naeem
Masjid En-Naeem
En-Naeem Mosque is a mosque located at Hougang, Singapore. It is built under the Mosque Building Fund by MUIS Mosque Management.-En-Naeem Mosque:En-Naeem Mosque was built under the Phase Two of the Mosque Building Fund in 1983...
in Hougang
Hougang
Hougang is an urban planning area and a suburb in the north-eastern area of the city-state of Singapore. Under classification by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, the area is part of the North-East Region, an urban planning division. Hougang borders Sengkang in the north and Serangoon to its...
and Masjid Al-Muttaqin
Masjid Al-Muttaqin
Masjid Al-Muttaqin, or Al-Muttaqin Mosque is the fifth Mosque completed under the Mosque Building Fund Scheme Phase I. The mosque's official ground-breaking ceremony was officiated by Mr Syed Ali Redha Alsagoff, chairman of Lembaga Biasiswa Kenangan Maulud , on April 29, 1979 and it was officially...
in Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio
Ang Mo Kio（宏茂桥） is a heartland new town located in north central Singapore, and is generally within the North-East Region. It contains many of the common features of the island nation's neighbourhoods, e.g. hawker centres, wet markets and HDB housing blocks. Singapore's Prime Minister, Lee Hsien...
which planned to extend their existing structure. This, on top of the almost saturated 'Islamic fund-raising circle' constituting other mosques and madrasah
Madrasah
Madrasah is the Arabic word for any type of educational institution, whether secular or religious...
s throughout Singapore.
Through sheer hard work of the volunteers, and contributions from the Muslim community not only within the Hougang/Serangoon/Ang Mo Kio areas but islandwide, the construction was finally initiated in March 1998. On June 11, 1999, Masjid Al-Istiqamah was declared waqf
Waqf
A waqf also spelled wakf formally known as wakf-alal-aulad is an inalienable religious endowment in Islamic law, typically denoting a building or plot of land for Muslim religious or charitable purposes. The donated assets are held by a charitable trust...
(vested property) and began its operation as a full-fledged mosque.
On June 17, 2000, Masjid Al-Istiqamah was inaugurated by the then Permanent Secretary for Education Mr Mohamed Maidin Packer Mohd.
Operations
Ever since it began operation, Masjid Al-Istiqamah has never locked its gates. Its open policy allows for 24/724/7
24/7 is an abbreviation which stands for "24 hours a day, 7 days a week", usually referring to a business or service available at all times without interruption...
accessibility for the public to its main prayer hall and amenities, a rarity for the typical new generation mosque with valuable assets to look after.
In September 2000, with the official appointment of its Mosque Manager, it became the first mosque in Singapore to have its office administration 'fully accommodated' for the congregation with its opening hours from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. including Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. Its office closes only on the first two days of Shawwal
Shawwal
Shawwāl is the tenth month of the lunar Islamic calendar. Shawwāl means to ‘lift or carry’; so named because she-camels normally would be carrying a fetus at this time of year.-Fasting during Shawwāl:...
, for obvious reasons.
Past chairmen of Masjid Al-Istiqamah Management Board
- Hj Hashim Ismail (1999-2003)
- Hj Mohammad Suhaimi Mohsen (2003-2007)
- Hj Mohamed Sa'at Bin Matari (2007-present), Mosque Executive Chairman
See also
- IslamIslamIslam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
- Timeline of Islamic history
- Islamic architectureIslamic architectureIslamic architecture encompasses a wide range of both secular and religious styles from the foundation of Islam to the present day, influencing the design and construction of buildings and structures in Islamic culture....
- Islamic artIslamic artIslamic art encompasses the visual arts produced from the 7th century onwards by people who lived within the territory that was inhabited by or ruled by culturally Islamic populations...
- List of mosques
- Religion in SingaporeReligion in SingaporeSingapore is a secular multi-religious country due to its diverse ethnic mix of peoples originating from various countries. Most major religious denominations are present in Singapore....
- Islam in SingaporeIslam in SingaporeAbout 15% of Singapore's population are Muslims. A majority of Malays are Sunni Muslims. Other adherents include Indian and Pakistani communities as well as a small number of Chinese, Myanmar Muslims, Arabs and Eurasians. 17 per cent of Muslims in Singapore are of Indian origin...
- List of mosques in Singapore