We know you have been eagerly awaiting this moment for a long time.
The management team of AMA is pleased to announce that Masjid ar-Rahmah has reopened in a limited capacity.
We would like to ensure the safety of our community. Furthermore, even though we will be partially opening we still encourage you to pray at home according to darura (necessity or difficult circumstances). There is more information about this point later in this post.
There are important details you must be aware of, so please read this post in its entirety.
Reopening Details
The prayers will be held in the community hall (i.e. basement floor). This decision was made as the floors can be effectively sanitized after each prayer. The full capacity of this hall with the 30% limitation is 120 congregants.
Furthermore, the only open entrance to the building will be the outside entrance to the downstairs hall.
For the community’s safety, staff and volunteers would complete all Public Health recommendations and necessary precautionary steps.
The Registration Process
To manage the limited capacity we will be following a first-come-first-serve basis at the door. That means all congregants will be welcome to enter the masjid as long as the capacity is not reached.
When you arrive at the door one of our volunteers will take your information (eg. name, phone #). Alternatively, you can sign up online to speed up the process. Please keep in mind that registration does NOT guarantee you a spot for any prayer. The best way to find a spot is to come on time.
Click Here to Register Today
As per our privacy policy, we do not share your information with any 3rd parties. However, in the case of an emergency, we may be required to share relevant information with Ottawa Public Health.
What You Need to Know Before Coming
To protect the health of our congregation we have guidelines in place that everyone must abide by, otherwise you may not be permitted to enter:
- Face Masks: all congregants are responsible to bring their own face mask.
- Prayer Mats: you are responsible to bring your own prayer mat and take it with you after each prayer. Prayer mats will be placed 6 ft. apart, in accordance with Public Health guidelines.
- Shoe Bags: you will need to bring a bag to place your shoes in and keep it next to you while you pray.
- Sunnah Prayers: we ask our congregation to pray their sunnah salah at home to minimize the amount of time spent in the community hall.
- No washroom access: our washrooms will be closed so you must make wudhu at home before you come.
Prayer Times
The masjid will be accessible for limited hours and will be closed immediately after each of the following prayers (Dhuhr, Asr, Maghrib, and Isha). The masjid will be open 10 – 15 minutes prior to iqaamah and will close immediately after prayer.
The first Jumuah is at 12:45 PM and the second is at 2:00 PM.
To see the prayer times for regular prayers please visit this page.
Who Can Come to the Masjid?
The masjid will be open to brothers and sisters. For the sake of the well-being of our community, the permitted age range will be 15 to 70 years of age. For our beloved members who are outside of this range and those with chronic illnesses, we ask that you pray at home. We appreciate your patience and understanding during this time.
We also ask that you pray at home if you:
- Have traveled outside of the country within the last 14 days
- Are experiencing a fever, sore throat, or flu-like symptoms
- Have underlying health issues or a compromised immune system.
Will My Reward Be Less if I Pray at Home?
This is a question that many of you have asked us. For those who would regularly come to the masjid but cannot due to quarantine, illness, underlying health issues and similar factors, the answer is that you will receive the reward of praying in jama’ah (with the congregation in the masjid) even if you pray at home, insha Allah. The situation we are dealing with is very different from what life was like before COVID-19.
Here are the proofs for the reward if you pray at home (such as in an unusual, unprecedented time like we’re dealing with now):
(1) Anas bin Malik reported on the authority of his father, The Prophet of Allah(ﷺ) said “ You left behind some people in Madeenah who did not fail to be with you wherever you went and whatever you spent (of your goods) and whatever valley you crossed. They asked the Prophet of Allah(ﷺ) how can they be with us when they are still in Madinah? He replied “They were declined by a valid excuse.
(2) I heard Abu Burda who accompanied Yazid bin Abi Kabsha on a journey. Yazid used to observe fasting on journeys. Abu Burda said to him, “I heard Abu Musa several times saying that Allah’s Messenger said, ‘When a slave falls ill or travels, then he will get a reward similar to that he gets for good deeds practiced at home when in good health.”
(3) It has been narrated on the authority of Umar b. al-Khattab that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
(The value of) an action depends on the intention behind it. A man will be rewarded only for what he intended.
When will Physical Programs Return?
At this moment in time we will continue to offer our regular programming virtually. As the COVID-19 situation unfolds, we will assess when it will be safe to resume programs in the physical space of the masjid.