RTÉ One is to mark the Muslim holy month of Ramadan with a series of weekly, high profile Ramadan Diaries, in which, just before the Six One News, four Muslims living in Ireland share their stories and their faith in a series of short films.
“When the month of Ramadan begins, the gates of the heaven are opened and the gates of Hell are closed, and the devils are chained – Sahih Bukhari, Hadith on Ramadan
Saturday 18th June, 1750, RTÉ One – Episode 2 of 4
In December 2013, while working in Dublin’s Beaumont Hospital, neuro-surgeon Dr Taufiq Al-Sattar received the news that his wife and three children had been burned to death in an arson attack in Leicester. He described himself afterwards as “a bird without wings.” With his wife, he had recently purchased a site for an Islamic centre in Blanchardstown and, with little else to live for but his work and his faith, he decided to press ahead with their ambitious plans to build a mosque, football pitches and a community centre. That centre will forever be dedicated to Allah and to the memory of his lost loved ones. By serving not just the Muslim community but the wider community of his adopted city, Dr al-Sattar, is determined to foster faith, friendship and hope. In the process, he has re-discovered glimmers of hope in his own life.