Muezzin gone mad

The neighborhood mosque has gone crazy. They are calling the faithful to prayer, not five times a day as is customary, but more like ten times! Especially the early morning prayer- they are calling at 4:30am, and as if that's not enough to have woken the whole neighborhood, they do it again at 5:00! With an electric loudspeaker, of course.

Tonight, around 8:30 pm, after they called for the THIRD TIME for the night prayer, I asked Bob, "What is going on with this mosque??? Why are they calling two and three times for the same prayer?!?!" He answered that it's because this mosque was a hub for the radicals who want to break the union, which caused all the trouble a couple weeks ago. But after their "protest" became violent and destructive, many of their followers fell away. Now they are not attenting the mosque for the daily prayers. In an effort to try get people to come, they are calling more that once for each prayer time! Hhmmm, I think they need a different strategy! the only result they are getting this way is annoying everyone!

Ok, my soap-box is finished.

This afteroon we went for a walk and met many of our neighbor children walking home from chuoni, which is their classes at the mosque where they learn to chant (sing?) the Koran. In Arabic, of course, which they do not understand. But no worries, the Sheik tells them what it means and gives them a good lesson in Islamic apologetics and the  Lord knows what else.

 They spend three hours a day there, five days a week. They are dedicated. These people know what it takes to make a child into an ardent disciple! If only Christian families could take a lesson! The well-being and faithfulness of christian children here really are a great concern to us. More about that later. Enjoy your weekend, hopefully without a cumpulsory alarm alfajiri, before dawn!