Posted on: Saturday, March 22, 2003

Muslim cleric joins Honolulu mosque

By Mary Kaye Ritz
Advertiser Religion & Ethics Writer

As of Monday, the mosque in Honolulu will have an imam, or cleric, Ismail El-Shikh.

An imam is a spiritual leader who leads prayers and tends to the community's spiritual needs, said Hakim Ouansafi, president of the Muslim Association of Hawaii. The last official imam was Sheikh Houssain, who stepped down about three years ago. In the interim, Ouansafi served in that capacity.

"We had some strict requirements we were looking for in an imam," he said. "He must not only have memorized the Quran, but must have spent some time in America, to understand the American society, as well as having an Islamic degree from a reputable university. That's why it took so long."

El-Shikh arrived in Hono-lulu from Detroit, where he was imam for a mosque there. The 30-year-old studied at the prestigious Al-Azhar, an Islamic university in Cairo, Egypt.

He said he's already enjoying the weather and "the open hearts" he's finding in Hawai'i.

He and his wife, Dana, will live in Honolulu.