Washington -- Fifteen years of planning, six years of building and $15 million went into the creation of a new Detroit mosque that now ranks as the largest mosque in the United States.  The two-story building has room for more than 1,000 people in the main prayer hall and over 2,000 in the banquet hall. 

The mosque, which opened on May 27, is part of the Islamic Center of America (ICA), an organization founded in 1961 and currently under the leadership of Imam Sayed Hassan al-Qazwini.

Imam Qazwini, who was born in Karbala, Iraq, and studied Islamic jurisprudence in Qum, Iran, came to the United States more than 12 years ago.  He says he has been “impressed on how diverse this country is and how Muslims are thriving in this country.”  He was attracted to Michigan because of its large concentration of Muslims and now feels at home in what he refers to as the “American Middle East.” 

As the imam of a mosque in such a large and influential Muslim community, Qazwini hopes to affect the area by working to create a greater understanding of Islam.  One of his personal goals, which he hopes to achieve through his role in the center, is to establish an interfaith program. 

“Due to the prominence of my center, I am given a golden opportunity to build a bridge with non-Muslims … in the state of Michigan and the United States as a whole,” he said. 

Already he has spoken at more than 170 colleges, universities and churches since the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.  In addition, he noted that the mosque itself is located between two churches: one Armenian and the other Greek Orthodox. 

In order to realize his goal of promoting interfaith understanding, he plans to create an Interfaith Liaison Department, which will spread the word of Islam, showing that it is “the word of peace, love and mutual respect.”

Qazwini also intends to engage the community in the center’s activities.  His vision is to see the ICA as more than just a place where people come to pray.  Instead he “would like, for example, to see youth taking over” and using the center as their platform. 

For now, the center is gaining recognition in the United States and beyond.  Al-Maktoum, a charitable organization based in Dubai, donated $700,000 to the construction of the mosque in addition to the more than $6 million that community members gave.  Moreover, this summer over 400 groups are scheduled to tour the mosque, which Qazwini refers to as “a piece of art” and the governor of Michigan calls “a jewel.”

The new Michigan mosque stands tall, visible even from airplanes flying into Detroit, but according to Qazwini, the construction of the building was only the first challenge.  He now faces the task of building the community.