CHAPTER SEVEN
EACH FRIDAY, devout, dedicated congregants begin arriving at The Islamic Institute of Greater Chicago—the Masjid or mosque located on North Michigan Avenue—long before Dhuhr, the regular span of time during midday when Jumu’ah or Friday prayers are observed. As the Muezzin issues his call to prayer in hauntingly melodic tones over a state-of-the-art sound system located in a modern-looking minaret atop the roof of the one time, downtown commercial structure, the faithful perform their ablutions, bathing in the manner prescribed by the Hadith. Each worshipper enters the mosque’s main meeting hall shoe-less to jockey for the nearest prayer rug position remaining available adjacent to the outer wall of the hall, or Qibla, oriented exactly in the direction of the Muslim holy cit
