Syed Mukarram Nazeer, Canada Correspondent
To celebrate the 112 years of Khilafat-e-Ahmadiyya, Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Canada held its Khilafat Day Jalsa across Canada. This year, the Jalsa was held at local Jamaat levels and were virtual in nature. Various online conferencing platforms were used to accomplish this.
Thanks to Covid-19 precautions, online conferencing usage has increased manifold within Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Canada. All amila meetings, from the local level to the national level, are being held online.
Recently, virtual jalsas were organised by Canada’s markaz on a national level, with Jamaat members joining from their homes. For Khilafat Day Jalsa, it was encouraged to have it at local level. In Jamaat Brampton Castlemore, such a Jalsa was arranged on 27 May 2020 from 7pm to 8pm. The conference’s time slot was booked for the time. The conference invitation link was created and made part of an email and WhatsApp message sent to inform members about the Jalsa. Once the invitation link was clicked, a screen would open and connect the user to the conference.
Many households were already familiar with using such conferencing platforms. Those who requested help were provided with help over the phone.
Once the presenters of the meeting – reciter of the Holy Quran, reciter of poem, speakers etc. – were finalised, they were invited to do a practice run. This allowed the presenters to become familiar with the conference feature. They were guided on how to share their slides, turn on their cameras, manage their audios, lighting, background etc. The conference was opened to participants about 20 minutes before the start time. Some members had difficulty joining and were given last minute individual help.
The Jalsa was presided by the local President of Jamaat Castlemore, Arshad Ahmad Sahib. The session started with the recitation of the Holy Quran and Urdu translation by Syed Mukarram Nazeer. The English translation was presented by a tifl, Ibrahim Chaudhary Sahib. Waqar Hashmi Sahib presented the poem and English translation.
Mahmood Yasar Sahib did a presentation on Blessings of Khilafat. He presented glad tidings of the Promised Messiah, peace be upon him, regarding the Second Manifestation (Khilafat). He went on to introduce each of the five Khulafa-e-Ahmadiyyat and how, under divine guidance, they have led the Jamaat through different challenges.
Missionary of Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya Brampton Castlemore, Aneeq Ahmad Sahib then spoke in detail on how God appoints a Khalifa. He highlighted how Allah helped each Khalifa in his responsibilities.
Closing remarks were given by president of Jamaat Castlemore and he also led the silent prayer.
An attendance of 35 connections was reached just before the start of Jalsa, which stayed relatively constant till the end. With an estimated average attendance of four members per connection, the estimated total viewership of the event was 130.
May Allah protect the institution of Khilafat and enable us to fulfil our responsibilities towards Khilafat. Amin
