Annual Interfaith & Intrafaith Conference: Unity as Resistance
Muslims for Peace cordially invites community members, faith leaders, and neighbors to our 20th Annual Interfaith & Intrafaith Conference on Sunday, September 27, 2026, at the Monroe Township Senior Center.
Timed in honor of the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), this year’s theme—”Unity as Resistance: Prophetic Principles in the Face of Modern Oppression”—examines how universal prophetic teachings serve as a blueprint for global solidarity, justice, and human rights.
The conference will explore the shared moral principles across Abrahamic traditions, highlighting how the core message of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) aligns with the teachings of Prophets Jesus and Moses (peace be upon them). Attendees will engage in discussions on translating these spiritual values into collective, practical action to confront modern injustices—with a dedicated focus on standing in solidarity with the marginalized and addressing the urgent humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
Event Program & Details:
Date: Sunday, September 27, 2026
Appetizers & Registration: 1:00 PM
Program Time: 1:30 PM – 4:30 PM (Complimentary Dinner to follow)
Location: Monroe Township Senior Center, 12 Halsey Reed Road, Monroe Township, NJ 08831
Admission: FREE (RSVP required; complimentary dinner included. Voluntary donations to support Muslims for Peace non-profit initiatives are warmly appreciated.)
Join us as we bridge religious boundaries, foster intrafaith understanding, and build a unified coalition committed to peace and justice.
Syed Rizwan A. Rizvi was born in a family of ʿulamā in Hyderabad, Pakistan. His father, Syed Tilmiz H. Rizvi, migrated from India with his grandfather, Hujjatul Islam Syed Izhar ul Hasnain Rizvi.
In the early 1990s his family migrated to United States. His basic schooling was done in New Jersey, and he graduated from high school in 1998. Since early childhood he had the inclination and desire to attend Ḥawzah Ilmiyah for extensive Islamic education. He started his religious studies in Chicago, Illinois under the tutelage of H.I. Amir Mukhtar Faezi at Imam Ali Seminary where he studied for one year.
Thereafter he attended the Islamic Seminary of Qum in 2000 and studied under some of the best and renowned theologians of the Hawzah. After completing general coursework in Arabic literature, Jurisprudence, Qurʾānic Exegesis, Principles of Uṣūl, Kalām and Manṭiq, Syed Rizvi focused his attention towards Islamic philosophy and during the latter part of his studies on Irfān-e-Islāmī.
Throughout his six years of studies at the Ḥawzah, Syed Rizwan obtained 204 credits and received Bachelor’s in Theology and Philosophy.
Following his studies in Qum he felt the need to improve his fluency in Arabic. In pursuit of this goal, he travelled to Damascus and enrolled in advanced Arabic courses at Damascus University’s Arabic Language Institute and completely immersed himself in an Arabic speaking environment. During his stay in Syria, he also periodically travelled to United States and lectured at various Islamic Centers.
Raja Abdulhaq is a Palestinian political analyst and community organizer. Raja is the president of Tamkeen Movement, co-founder of Quds News Network, and former Executive Director of Islamic Leadership Council of New York. Raja has a masters degree in Political Science from Brooklyn College.
Adéyínká “Muhammad” Mendes (Adé) is an Imam, scholar, institution builder, and translator whose life’s work is the formation of spiritually grounded people, flourishing families, and enduring communities. For more than two decades, he has developed practical models of leadership, rites of passage, ecological stewardship, and community renewal by integrating the Qur’an, the Prophetic tradition, the Muslim scholarly tradition, Black Muslim intellectual heritage, and Indigenous American and West African wisdom traditions.
Born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1975 to an African American mother and a Nigerian father, Adé was raised in a home where intellectual curiosity, public service, and respect for diverse cultures and faiths were woven into everyday life. His mother, a retired attorney, dedicated her career to combating workplace discrimination, while his late father, a physician, modeled a life of compassion through the care of the sick.
In 1982, his family relocated to Lagos, Nigeria, where seven formative years immersed him in Yoruba culture, traditional African lifeways, and the rhythms of a vibrant multireligious society. Those years instilled a lasting appreciation for hospitality, reverence for elders, communal responsibility, and the inseparability of spiritual life, family, work, and the natural world.
After returning to Houston in 1989, a life-changing journey to Jerusalem in 1993 awakened in him a lifelong pursuit of Islam, the Way of Love and the path of the Prophets. He later studied Arabic at The Ohio State University before pursuing more than three decades of study with scholars across the United States, England, Syria, Sudan, Morocco, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, The Gambia, Egypt, Yemen, and Haiti. His scholarship spans Qur’anic studies, Hadith, Arabic, Maliki jurisprudence, theology, spirituality, contemplative practice, and the rich intellectual traditions of West Africa. Since 2001, he has devoted himself to teaching, translating, mentoring, and community leadership.
Adé is the founder of Marhama Village International, the Hero’s Journey Umrah & Rites of Passage Leadership Program, and a co-founder of the African-American Healing, Ancestry, and Development (AHAD) Collective and the Muslim-Indigenous Circle. Through these initiatives, he is creating innovative pathways for spiritual formation, family renewal, youth leadership, ecological stewardship, economic resilience, and community flourishing.
Central to this vision is Marhama Village—a land-based educational and leadership campus envisioned as a living model of faith-centered community. Imagined as a multi-generational institution, Marhama Village will integrate spiritual formation, ecological restoration, vocational training, scholarship, entrepreneurship, retreat, and the arts to cultivate resilient individuals, flourishing families, and enduring institutions for generations to come.
An accomplished translator of Arabic Islamic scholarship, Adé is the English co-translator of Imam Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti’s Rafʿ Sha’n al-Ḥubshān, published by CelebrateMercy as The Spirits of Black Folk (2021), and continues translating important works by West African Muslim scholars for contemporary audiences.
His scholarship examines Qur’anic spirituality, contemplative practice (tafakkur and muraqabah), leadership formation, rites of passage, sacred ecology, and the intellectual traditions of Africa and its diasporas. He has a particular interest in the theological, philosophical, and institutional contributions of Black American Muslims, exploring how their models of scholarship, community development, economic cooperation, and moral leadership can inform the renewal of Muslim communities and the common good. His work seeks not only to recover neglected traditions but also to translate them into practical frameworks for contemporary life.
Throughout his career, Adé has served as Imam and resident scholar in Georgia, New Jersey, and Texas, and has taught at mosques, universities, retreats, and conferences throughout the United States and around the world. He currently serves as Resident Imam of the River Oaks Islamic Center in Houston while continuing to teach internationally through organizations including CelebrateMercy, Wasat, Good Tree Institute, and other educational institutions.
Adé is currently pursuing the Doctor of Ministry in Islamic Leadership through Bayan Islamic Graduate School and Claremont School of Theology. He and his wife, Ustadha Rukayat Yakub—a Montessori educator, award-winning children’s author, and educational leader—are raising seven children. Together, they are committed to cultivating spiritually grounded leaders, flourishing families, and enduring institutions rooted in faith, beauty, service, and human flourishing for generations to come.
Sarah is a Lebanese-American writer, academic, and filmmaker interested in how people make sense of the world and all its absurdities.
She is a 2022 Film Independent Episodic Lab fellow and a 2024 Sundance Feature Film fellow. Her short film, Cigarettes, premiered at the 2025 SXSW Film and TV Festival. She just wrapped principal photography on her first feature film, supported by the Sundance Feature Film program and the Hamptons Screenwriters Lab.
A graduate of Harvard College and current PhD student at NYU, her academic writing has been presented or featured in or at the Columbia Journal for International Affairs, the American Oriental Society, Princeton Islamic Studies Colloquium, Harvard Divinity School, and others.
The first thing she’s asking for in heaven is the sequel to Brothers Karamazov.
Yasmeen Syedda is a community organizer, speaker, and co-founder of MSL, a women’s athletic and wellness organization in NY. With a BS in molecular neuroscience and a passion for community engagement, she has organized and hosted events and panels centered on faith, social action, and meaningful dialogue
Rev. Paul Shoaf Kozak was ordained as an Episcopal Priest in 2019. Paul received a Master of Divinity from the Clough School of Theology and Ministry at Boston College. He currently serves in the Diocese of New Jersey at Cristo Rey in Trenton, NJ. Prior to ordination, Paul lived abroad in El Salvador and worked as a human rights accompanier in Colombia. He also ministered as a full-time prison chaplain for five years at a county jail in Massachusetts. Paul engages in interfaith efforts, particularly as an active member of the New Jersey chapter of the Poor People’s Campaign. He and his spouse, Rebecca, have three children and reside in Mercer County.
Rev. Susan Rack
M.Div., Th.M.
Susan is a Presbyterian Minister of Word and Sacrament of the Presbyterian Church USA. She graduated from St. Olaf College with a BA in Religion and Psychology and Princeton Theological Seminary with a Master of Divinity and a Master of Theology in Old Testament. From 2003 to 2020 Susan served as pastor of Christ Presbyterian Church in Martinsville, New Jersey. There her interfaith friendship work intensified after 911. She and her congregation offered interfaith worship and peace events for people of the Abrahamic traditions with Peace Islands Institute. Her congregation welcomed the AlFalah Muslim Center community to use the church’s worship space for their Ramadan prayers and supported their 10 year struggle with the township to found a Mosque in Bridgewater, NJ.
Susan’s heart breaks for Palestine. She studied in Jerusalem in 1983 with professors from both Birzeit University and Hebrew University, and participated in a work project in Jabalia, Gaza. She returned to Palestine in 2012 with Christian Peacemaker Teams to bear witness to Israeli activities in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Al Khalil. She last traveled to Palestine in 2014 with her husband Paul to plant olive trees in the Beit Sahour area. Ever since, she has offered her eyewitness testimony to the Palestinian struggle, and supports groups concerned with justice for Palestine, including Jewish Voice for Peace.
Susan and her husband Rev. Paul Rack now reside in Trumansburg, NY.
Fr. Timothy Graff
Director of Mission, Archdiocese of Newark
Fr. Timothy Graff is a dedicated priest of the Archdiocese of Newark who has served the Catholic Church and the broader Northern New Jersey community for over four decades. Ordained to the priesthood in 1985, Fr. Tim has devoted his ministry to pastoral leadership, social advocacy, and fostering meaningful interfaith dialogue.
Throughout his tenure, Fr. Tim has served in numerous parish assignments and key archdiocesan administrative positions. Currently serving as the Director of Mission for the Archdiocese of Newark, he oversees initiatives aimed at advancing the Church’s pastoral vision, community engagement, and charitable outreach.
A passionate advocate for social justice, Fr. Tim has spent years working on the frontlines of community concerns, focusing on poverty alleviation, immigrant rights, human dignity, and civic engagement. His extensive work in interfaith relations has established him as a trusted voice in building bridges of mutual respect, cooperation, and understanding across diverse religious communities throughout the region.
Somayah Elsamra
Inspiring us to build a peaceful community
MFP Community Service Award
Somayah Elsamra is the proud daughter of Egyptian immigrants. Born and raised in New Jersey, she developed a deep appreciation for diverse cultures and languages from an early age. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration and Public Affairs, along with New Jersey teaching certifications in ESL, Social Studies, and Curriculum and Instruction. For the past 15 years, she has been an educator passionate about fostering inclusive, equitable learning environments where all students can thrive. Outside the classroom, she dedicates much of her time to advocacy—supporting students, families, and underserved members of the community. She is a founding member of the Monroe Township Muslim Community Network and serves on the Monroe Township Human Relations Commission. Trilingual in English, Arabic, and Spanish, she values communication and connection across cultures. During her free time, she enjoys spending time with her four children—creating passion projects, participating in community service events, and engaging in meaningful discussions about the social issues that shape our world.
Muslim Center of Greater Princeton Leadership Team
Building bridges of unity and standing together across communities
MFP Interfaith Leadership Award
The Muslim Center of Greater Princeton was established more then 30 years ago. We started off in a small one room office space which allowed the few Muslim families in the area a common place to pray. The vision of the founders was always to expand the center as the community grew to more than just a place where people come and pray. They wanted to create a space for their kids, family, neighbors and friends to come and strengthen the ties within the community. Over the years the center expanded and we moved into a bigger office space and then even a bigger one! This was the time when the Institute of Islamic Studies was established as the prominent Muslim center in the Mercer county area of New Jersey.
The center started to grow and offer additional services such as educational space for a weekend school for kids in KG – 9, a place for sisters to come together and share ideas and learn about their faith, religious lectures, youth groups, guest speakers, community volunteers, interfaith activities and many other services. As we continued to expand and grow we needed a dedicated space and were able to purchase land and fund raise through our community to build our new mosque and community center in West Windsor.
The new center gave them a fresh start and established the Muslim Center of Greater Princeton. The new center not only allows to continue to provide a space for the Muslim community to practice and learn about their faith but also a community center where people from all backgrounds and faith are welcomed. We wanted to provide our kids and future generations a center where they can learn to be model citizens while also helping them understand their Muslim identity.
MCGP Leadership Team
Board of Directors Members
Murad Lodhi – Chairman
Zakaria Maniya, MD – Vice Chairman
Haseeb Ahson
Sajid Syed
Nadia Bandukda, Esq.
Tahir Zafar
Usman Mustafa, MD
Hammad Alam
Adam Arif
