For a few weeks now, the Muslim community in Mülheim has had a new imam. Sohaib Nasir was born in Iserlohn and is 28 years old.

After his seven-year training as an imam, which he completed in Riedstadt, he worked as an imam in Kassel for two years before coming to Mülheim. Now he is a theologian in the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community community, which has 400 members in Mülheim and the surrounding area.

Sohaib Nasir was raised religiously and daily prayers have always been important to him. Faith in God always gave him a lot of support and he wanted to gain the satisfaction of God. His congregation had its own training institute in Riedstadt, and when at the age of 15 or 16 the question arose as to what he wanted to be when he grew up, he decided to become an imam.

Lonely decision

In his school in Iserlohn he was the only one with this decision, because most young people his age tended to turn away from religion. His entourage in Iserlohn reacted with surprise to his decision. But people were interested in his path.
Before Sohaib Nasir started his apprenticeship at the age of 19, he graduated from high school in Iserlohn. He then moved to Riedstadt as one of 115 students.

After seven years, he completed his training and began working as one of over 100 imams in Germany.

In Mülheim, the theologian found a young congregation that welcomed him very positively. They didn’t have an imam before him, so the community members were very happy when Sohaib Nasir started there. Above all, they benefit from the fact that there is now always someone on site to help them.
The young imam wants to open up the community and promote interreligious events. He is planning an intercultural week in September and an open day in October. In this way, he wants to eliminate prejudices against Islam.

“It is important to us that our mosque is always open to everyone,”

Sohaib Nasir said. He welcomes people of all religions and is open to everyone.
He also reports that his parishioners include doctors, engineers, and students, which shows that the profession and faith are compatible.
Islam stands for peace and therefore the new imam wants to live the community motto “Love for all, hatred for none”.

Vertrauter der Gemeinde

Zu Sohaib Nasirs täglichen Aufgaben zählen die Gebete mit der Gemeinde, die Arbeit im Büro, Übersetzungen und Telefonate mit Gemeindemitgliedern, denn er ist nicht nur Imam, sondern auch Seelsorger. Ihm ist es wichtig, immer ein offenes Ohr für die Mitglieder zu haben und ein Vertrauensverhältnis zu ihnen aufzubauen.

Die Ferienzeit wird für gemeinsame Aktivitäten mit den Kindern und Jugendlichen genutzt. Sie können in die Gemeinde kommen, um Fragen zum Koran zu stellen, zu lernen und um gemeinsam zum Mittag zu essen.

Sie betätigen sich auch gern sportlich, in dem sie zum Beispiel Volleyball oder Fußball spielen. Das stärkt die Beziehung innerhalb der Gemeinde.

Insgesamt gefällt dem jungen Imam am besten, dass er jeden Tag seine Gemeindemitglieder sieht. Für sich selbst ist ihm das Gebet sehr wichtig, um seine innere Ruhe zu finden und seine spirituelle Entwicklung zu fördern.

The Young Imam

When the parishioners learned that Sohaib Nasir was still very young, they reacted positively. Many older members are pleased that he speaks Urdu.

The mothers and fathers are happy that their children have a young contact person in the community. For the young people, it is a great advantage to have someone who experienced a similar childhood and grew up as a Muslim in Germany.

In the meantime, more and more children and young people are coming to the prayers and activities.
For the future, Sohaib Nasir would like to find a mosque, as the congregation is currently praying in the prayer hall. In addition, he wants to continue to promote and involve the cohesion of the community and especially children and young people, because they are the future. Sohaib Nasir as the new Imam.

If you have any further questions or concerns, please contact Sohaib Nasir by phone 017642934680 or by e-mail at sohaib.nasir@ahmadiyya.de.