Hibat ul Mohsin Abid, Mohtamim Talim MKA UK
Majlis Khuddamul Ahmadiyya UK held the Annual Spring Retreat (Talim and Tarbiyyat Class) in Jamia Ahmadiyya UK. The retreat was held from 1 to 7 April and was attended by 150 Atfal and Khuddam. Participants were split into six groups based on their age and learning abilities.
The daily programme started with Tahajjud prayer followed by Fajr. After breakfast the participants heard lectures on the Holy Quran, Salat, History of Islam, Islamic Knowledge and Ilm-ul-Kalam (doctrinal matters), which were taught by Jamia students. On Wednesday, a day of programmes was run in collaboration with different partnering organisations such as Khidmat-e-Khalq, Research Association and Humanity First around basic life skills and disaster relief. National Tarbiyyat department held seminars on the topic of “Purity, Puberty and Hygiene”.
During the Retreat, guest lectures were held including:
- Zikr-e-Habib [A Beloved Remebered]: Dr. Zahid Khan Sahib
- Persecution of Ahmadis and Experiences of Hazrat Khalifatul Masih Vaa in Pakistan’s Prison: Farooq Mahmood
- Life Story of Accepting Ahmadiyyat: Ibrahim Noonan Sahib
- Becoming a Successful Ahmadi in the 21st Century: Dr. Aziz Hafiz
A question time was also held where questions on Atheism, Marriage and Homosexuality were also asked. These were answered by an engaging panel.
Mentoring sessions were a highlight of the Spring Retreat, where every evening after Maghrib, members of National Amila MKA and a group of young missionaries sat with small groups of participants and engaged in a friendly and open discussion on contemporary issues and provided views of Jamaat’s perspective.
The feedback received from participants and their parents has been very positive and the results of exams show the average score from participants as 70%. For the closing session, Ataul Mujeeb Rashed Sahib delivered an inspiring speech after which the event came to a close.