MUSLIM LỚN NHƯ THỔI (EXPONENTIALLY) - AUSTRALIAN TRÔNG MÀ KHÔNG HẾT HỒN (TỈNH BƠ)./-Mt68

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New mosque opens in Young, NSW as Muslim community grows 'exponentially'

14 Aug • 3 min read • Updated 16h ago

(Exponentially means growing or increasing at a rate that becomes faster and faster as the amount gets larger. Instead of adding a steady amount each time (like 1, 2, 3, 4), an exponential increase multiplies (like 2, 4, 8, 16), turning a slow start into a massive leap very quickly)

A newly built mosque in Young, NSW is one of the largest in regional Australia. (ABC Riverina: Lauren Pezet)

After years of planning, the small cherry growing town of Young in the NSW Riverina is now home to one of regional Australia's largest mosques.

With Muslims making up 10 per cent of the town's population of 11,000, they had long outgrown the old facility.

"The mosque was at the time already full on Friday prayers and we had people praying outside, it needed to happen," long-time worshipper Abdul Ghoneim said.

Gamel Kheir from the Australian Lebanese Association, which owns the mosque, said the previous facility was a makeshift one established in the 1990s.

The new build is five times larger and accommodates around 1,000 worshippers.

"[The Muslim community is] growing at an exponential rate that the old mosque just doesn't fit the community anymore," Mr Kheir said.

"It proves that for the Muslim community, as we enter into our fourth and fifth generation here, is not living in enclaves anymore.

"We are actually expanding into Australia and we are part of the fabric of multicultural Australia and Young is testimony to the fact that multiculturalism is alive and succeeding."

'Attracting' worshippers to the country

Abdul Ghoneim, who left Sydney to settle in Young 10 years ago, said he was not the only one who escaped city life to live in a tighter-knit community.

"A lot of the communities from overseas have come from villages," he said.

"The pressures of the city, people want to get out."

Hilltops Council mayor Brian Ingram said construction of a new mosque, alongside the existence of an Islamic school, had become a major drawcard for Muslim families.

"[It's] played a big part in drawing more of the community here because they knew they would have somewhere to follow their beliefs and their cultures," he said.

"And that's not available in a lot of regional areas in NSW."

Mr Kheir said much of Young's Muslim community is of Lebanese descent, but also included people from South-East Asia and Egypt.

He said the mosque had become more than just a place of worship.

"That's what makes it so beautiful about Young, is they find solace in being one community," Mr Kheir said.

A 'thriving' community, despite challenges

Cr Ingram said the Muslim community was largely embraced.

"They're really endeavouring to be part of what I call our community, one community," he said.

The mosque has also become known for its community outreach, delivering free meals across the Hilltops region and outreach days for people to ask questions about Islam.

But the journey has not been without controversy, with Cr Ingram acknowledging some national headlines had cast a "dark shadow" in Young.

So-called ISIS bride Mariam Raad was arrested in Young in 2023, accused of willingly entering Syria to be with her Islamic State husband.

She was later discharged conditionally.

Earlier this year, principal Sheikh Abdulghani Albaf of a local Islamic school stood down after the NSW Education Standards Authority (NESA) deemed he did not "meet the fit and proper requirements" after posting comments about Zionism on social media.

The Supreme Court ruled last month that NESA had failed to provide him with procedural fairness.

"It brings with it some doubt in the community and sets those tongues wagging," Cr Ingram said.

"But day to day, we haven't got a problem."

Mr Ghoneim said the actions or views of individuals should not be used to define an entire community.

"If there's one person that has done something wrong, we can't paint the whole community with the same brush," he said.

"We're trying to focus on the positives and just bring happiness to the wider community."

For Mr Kheir, the opening of a new mosque represented a significant milestone, not just for those who worship there today, but for the generations expected to follow.

He said it could become a place where the Muslim community could continue to grow, while remaining connected to the broader Hilltops region.

"There's no taboo questions we are shying away from answering," Mr Kheir said.

"We open our doors to all."