Background

Muslim Foundation Inc. was established in New Jersey over two decades ago to address the religious and social needs of the Muslim community. The Foundation then published many religious books that have proven to be of a great value for our youths and the adults alike.

With the ever-increasing Shia Ithna-asheri population in Central Jersey, MFI embarked on the noble cause of building a mosque, and, purchased a building on a 3.3-acre parcel of land at a cost of $550,000. This was a major milestone on a journey to fulfill an absolute need and a long-cherished dream of the community. Most of our members live within a radius of 20 miles of the property.

On 17th Rabi-ul-aw’wal 1422 AH we held our first gathering at the newly acquired property to celebrate the Wiladat of our Holy Prophet (pbuh). Since then we have been holding daily Maghribain salaat, and regular majalises and jashns to observe the wafats, shahadats, and wiladats of our Masomeens (a.s). We have held programs during the months of Muharram, and Iftari, dua, and amaal programs during the months of Ramadan. This initially was all done in the building that was designed as a residential property. Over time, to accommodate the ever increasing congregation, some programs were held at a larger rented facility.

We have been conducting religious classes for our youth for the past ten years as Ja’faria School. Currently the classes are held at a rented facility with enough classrooms to accommodate the more then 80 children and the more then a dozen volunteer teachers and administrators. The school maintains a comprehensive syllabus in Qur’an, Fiqh, Tareekh, and Akhlaq. In addition, we have offered preparatory classes for SAT for high school students.

Now, with the blessings of Allah we are taking a leap forward in building a mosque complex - Masjid-e-Ali (a.s). The ground breaking was held on 15th Shaba’an 1427 A.H. and the first phase (site plan) started on December 13th, 2007 after Namaz-e-Fajr The mosque complex will have total floor area of 30,000 sq. ft. along with sufficient parking space for 120 cars, and a recreational area. 

The complex is being designed with a large inviting foyer and a masjid section, with a good visual access to the mihrab. There will also be a Minaret and a dome, the visual symbol of a masjid. In addition to the masjid, the building complex will include multi-purpose community halls for men and women, a library, a ghusal-e-mayyat facility. There will be classrooms on the second floor that will be used for the religious classes. Also, MFI has obtained an approval from the Franklin Township to establish a school system from Pre-K to 3^rd grade. The total project for the first phase (site plan) is $1.3 million. The building phase is expected to cost an additional $3 million.

One of the first tasks that our Prophet (saw) undertook upon arriving in Medina was to construct a mosque - Masjidul Quba. It is following the sunnah of the Prophet (saw) that Muslims build mosque(s) in the area where they live.

Mankind owes to the child the best it has to give. This truth is one that Muslim Foundation Inc. takes quite seriously. Our children are a vital part of our community and they help to build for a great future of the community. We cannot think of a better gift to give our children and grandchildren than establishing a mosque and a school system where they can learn and upkeep the values of Islam and the Ahle Baith (a.s).

The long-cherished dream of the Muslim community can now be materialized by the generous donations from our Muslim community.

We have ijazah from Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani to collect and apply the amount of Sehme-Imam towards the project. Ijaza Ayatullah Seestani.