Mosque on Wheels Takes Islam to the German Streets

On a recent Friday afternoon, a truck with a large trailer pulled up across from the historic town hall in Hanau, near Frankfurt. Oriental music blasted from the speakers, attracting attention.

A stage had been built on top of the trailer. A cupola and two minarets soared above the roof. Pillars and arches decorated the sides. Alongside was written "Islamobil," a word made up from the German words for Islam and automobile.

The Islamobil is a sort of travelling mosque, one that aims to inform Germans about Islam. A group of young Muslims from the small city of Brühl near Cologne came up with the idea in 2001 and will travel around Germany with it this summer.

One of the founders, Gülüzar Keskin, said the idea was born out of the desire to explain and illustrate Islam on-the-spot.

''First we established an organization with the goal of informing Germans about Islam,'' Keskin said. ''Then we thought it would be a very good and practical idea to create a mobile mosque and travel around Germany in it."

The image of Islam and Muslims has deteriorated in Germany since the terrorism attacks on Sept.11, 2001. Many citizens associate the religion with terror, fanaticism and the repression of women. The organizers hope the Islamobil will correct this picture.

Religion on display

Inside the Islamobil, a cool, comfortable atmosphere dominates. On the ceiling, mounted lights illuminate the room. Some visitors pause to read from the information boards hung on the walls that explain the history and basic principals of Islam. Others keep themselves busy looking at small monitors. Here, at the touch of the fingers, visitors can find information about Islam and also access a call to prayer.

Tayyib Shamsuddin, from the Muslim Working Committee of Hanau, said the display allows people to ''find out about Islam, what it means to be Muslim and the basic principals of the religion like fasting, praying and this and that.'

To the rear of the room is a large flat screen that shows a short film about the different kinds of mosque construction and the meaning that mosques have for Muslims. In front of the screen, theater-style chairs have been set up. A school group from Hanau recently settled down and watched the film with visible interest.

''I think it's great that they take this into the public,'' said one of the German students. ''We also talk about these things in the school. We have a high number of foreigners, especially Turks,'' she said, adding that it is important to bring the Islamobil to people ''who normally aren't interested in the subject.''

Attracting all ages

The mobile mosque attracts visitors of all ages. One elderly woman said she found it good that the Islamobil answered questions about social groups like families and women.

''There is a lot of information here that I've never seen in this form before. I think it's very interesting,'' she said.

The goal of the project is for Muslims to reach out to non-Muslims, instead of waiting for the reverse to happen, said Keskin, thus, the idea to bring the cultural dialogue directly to the Germans where they live.

''For us it was important to be provocative," Keskin said. "We wanted to confront people directly and say either inform yourself or don't.'' The confrontation should be understood as positive, not negative, Keskin added.

The Islamobil costs 250,000 euros ($315,000.) On top of that there are the monthly maintenance costs. But Keskin believes the positive feedback from the visitors has made it a good investment.

''Many visitors have already asked us if we have addresses for mosques nearby, so that they can get more information about Islam.'' Keskin said.