A few are Pennsylvania Dutch. Their religion acts as a unifying force, they said. While Islam teaches that the Old and New Testaments were authentic revelations from God, the religion's fundamental text is the Koran. Muslims follow the creed of Mohammed, who taught morality and is regarded as the final prophet of Allah. During services at the Whitehall mosque, the prayer leader recites verses in Arabic from the Koran and then repeats them in English.
Muslim women wear clothing that covers their arms and legs as well as a hijab, or head scarf.
It was not the case for all members of the congregation, but Bugaighis said devout Muslims were looked at suspiciously in his native country, Libya. He said he is thankful for the opportunity to worship freely in the United States. Others, like Ahmed, emigrated for economic reasons and developed a deeper religious devotion while facing the challenges of living in an unknown culture. We didn't come to the United States to teach Islam. We came to make a living.