Ibn Rushd-Goethe Mosque

The Ibn Rushd-Goethe Mosque is located in the Mitte district of Berlin, Germany. It is special because it is the only mosque in Germany that calls itself a liberal mosque, and it was the first one like it in the whole world. It started in June 2017, thanks to a woman named Seyran Ateş. She is a lawyer and someone who works for rights for women in the Muslim community. She comes from both Turkish and Kurdish backgrounds.

The mosque was named to honor two important thinkers: Ibn Rushd, a smart person from a long time ago who lived in a place called Andalusia, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a famous German writer and leader. This mosque has some special rules: people cannot cover their whole faces when they pray, women and men can pray together, and everyone is welcome, including people who love others of the same sex.

Overview

The Ibn Rushd-Goethe Mosque in Berlin, Germany, welcomes people from many Muslim backgrounds, including Sunni, Shia, and others. Everyone, including gay and lesbian Muslims, can worship together there. Women and men pray side by side, and women do not have to wear a headscarf. Full-face veils like burqas or niqabs are not allowed.

The mosque began in June 2017, started by Seyran Ateş, a lawyer who supports Muslim women. She thinks the teachings of the Quran should focus on kindness, love, and peace.

History

The Ibn Rushd-Goethe Mosque was started on June 16, 2017, by Seyran Ateş, a German lawyer and feminist. She is of Turkish and Kurdish background. The mosque is named after Ibn Rushd, a wise thinker from long ago, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, a famous German writer.

Seyran said that people wearing certain full-face veils would not be allowed inside for safety and belief reasons. In July 2022, this mosque was the first in Germany to show a rainbow flag to support the LGBT community.

Reactions

After the mosque opened, its leaders talked about the scary threats they got. They asked for kindness and respect for their special way of reading the Quran. Because of these threats, extra safety measures were added to protect the mosque’s leader, Seyran Ateş.

Some news reports in Turkey said the mosque was linked to a group called the Gülen movement, but the mosque and the group said this was not true. Seyran Ateş faced criticism and danger from different people in Germany and other countries. A religious group in Egypt also opposed the mosque and made a formal statement against it, which led to more threats toward Ateş.