Khilafat Centenary Souvenir 1908-2008 — Page 182
Khilafat Centenary man walked and moved far ahead. Be steadfast. Your determinations should not weaken. Look through the eye of wisdom that Muzaffar is alive today. He has achieved more life than ever before. Peace be upon you, 0 Muzaffar. After you, hundreds of thousands of Muzaffars are eagerly waiting to move forward and take your place. And those who put an end to his life should know that they have only given him the eternal life. He received life while death had been written as the destiny of his murderers. " A Closer Relationship is Built In the course of his Friday Sermon delivered on November 3, 1989 in the Fazal Mosque, London, Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih 1vna had announced that in the future he would himself supervise all the auxiliary organizations worldwide, and each respective organization would be responsible to Khalifatul Masih and would invariably obtain instructions directly from him. The sphere of central auxiliary organizations at Rabwah were then designated as 'Sadr' (President). In light of this, Qamar Shams who was elected in 1989 became the first Sadr Majlis for MKA, USA. Qamar Shams reflecting back on his thoughts as Sadr, said, "My first thought was to figure out a way to establish here in the US what I had learned in Rabwah. I began to work with people who were familiar with the Nizam and tried to establish Qaideen throughout the country. Interestingly enough, I was the first MKA Sadr in the United States. In this capacity, I reported directly to Huzurr ta rather than the International Sadr in Rabwah. At this time, I wrote to Huzurr ta asking him to allow us to call our National Amila members Mohtamimeen (Director) rather than Nazimeen (Secretary). Huzur rta agreed and thereafter the National Amila members were given the title of Mohatrnim. I think the most influential person in my life was Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih rvr ta. When I was in Pakistan, I did not develop a direct connection with Khalifatul Masih II because he was sick at the time, and when I first arrived in the US, I was only able to meet Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih m ra a few times during his brief visits. But Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih rvrta lived in England during my tenure as Sadr, so I was able to maintain a continuous connection with him. During my time, our focus was to increase attendance at the Ijtema, but the budget was always an issue. However, through the hard work of several dedicated members, attendance at the National Ijtema increased steadily. " "Offering regular salat and obeying the institution of Khilafat are two responsibilities, in my view, that are essential for the success of Majlis Khuddamul Ahmadiyya," remarks Munurn Naeem, current Naib Amir Jama' at USA, who served as Sadr MKA, USA from 1994-1999. "In October 1993, then Sadr Qamar Ahmad Shams asked me to represent MKA, USA at the International MKA Ijtema in Germany. I remember Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih rvrta introduced all the Presidents of the J ama'at and included me as one of them. I felt embarrassed and upset because I was not the President of theJama 'at, only the Sadr's representative. In a later session, I mentioned to Huzur ra that I held no official office, but I was merely representing the Sadr. Huzurr ta looked at me for a few seconds and responded: "Don 't worry- you will become a Sadr too". That comment stuck with me my whole life. To my absolute astonishment, just one year later, I was elected Sadr. Huzur'srta comment motivated me to work to my utmost capacity to serve theJama'at. Without a doubt, Hadhrat Khalifatul Masih rv rta was the most influential for me. I'd work tireless hours in service of the Jama' at, and any time I'd feel weary or fatigued, I'd recall Huzur'sr ta inspirational couplet: " Wake up! The moment is going away-look at th e son of the Messiah, how long he has be en waking you up!" Closer Bonds Build a Closer Community In the mid 1990's, the strengthened relationship between MKA , USA and the institution of Khilafat- e-Ahrnadiyya became even stronger and more apparent. With the dawn of the information age, the Majlis began to utilize information technology to its full advantage and created a virtual "Khuddam Village. " With the growing need of audio-video support , Majlis-e-Amila submitted a proposal to create the Department of Sami-o-Basri, (audiojvideo) and received approval from Huzur ra in 1995. This year, 10 videos were created, highlighting all of the major events of the Majlis including the National Ijtema and the Qaideen Refresher Course (QRC). The QRC was created in 1995, as a training seminar for Qaideen across the nation. This program has proven to be an