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14 v r saturday march 302002 economist sun slouffville tribune missionaries leadmfe of staff photomike barrett irshad ahmad one of the few missionaries in york region points to the place where islams ahmadiyya movement originated by gianni colavecchia staff writer the best and most beautiful things in the worlds cannot be seen or touched they must be felt with the heart m- opking at irshad ahmad it i takes only a few moments i to realize there is some- tiling about the man that separates him from the vast majority of men his eyes are a curious blue- reen arid contrast starklywith his brown skin but more than their striking physical appearance they draw observers into his peaceful demeanour and compelling warmth if eyes are windows to the soul a cursory glance reveals the 61 7 yearold is prepared for a mission that would scare trie toughest men half his age visiting a third world country and forsaking the comforts of modem life to share the truths of islam i want to serve the lord and spread the word of god from my childhood that was the aim of my life he said inside maples ahmadiyyamosque mr ahmadisohe of only a few missionaries who live study or work in york region no matter their religious denomination they all hold to the same unwavering conviction the greatest fulfilment comes in expe riencing gods lovethrough serv- ice to others their geographical destina- tioris often differ but all mission- aries share the goals of helping needy people through education- al health or infrastructure proj ects arid disseminating the truths of their religious faiths though he has yet to embark on a major trip mr ahmad has the makings of a strong mission ary leader his preference is to visit a third world nation but he said hes pre- pared for a rhission to any country his superiors choose he has studied in the mosque for nearly a year after studying many years in saskatchewan where he gave up the comforts of north american society mr ahmad has lived an aus tere lifestyle renouncing secular diversions that might take his mirid off allah to prepare for the trip v- in spite of living 35 years iri canada ive kept my life very sirri- ple for that reason he said the religious minister helping mr ahmad prepare joked about the- ease with which the mission aryintraining renounced the behaviours many assume are irievitablein north america he considers them ameni ties afzal mifza said in reference to various temptations explain- ing they are simply pleasant diversions that can be cast aside when one is devoted to what is important the renouncing of worldly val- see missionaries page 15- ron csillag boomers shall we baby boomers have been blamed for a lot of things urban sprawl crowded schools depleted pension funds but not for singlerhandedly rescuing religion until now sort of i qualify that because boomers the eight million richest besteducated canadians born between 1946 and 1964 while a spiritually restless lot ever searching wondering and brooding on their own mortality are nevertheless shunning established religions iri favour of that amorphous term spiritu ality v for them spirituality isnt h apperiing in the mainstream churches syna gogues mosques and temples the numbers speak to that in 1945 60 per cent of canadians claimed weekly attendance at a house of worship arid 82 per cent professed membership in one of the mainstream faiths by1990 only 23 per cent attended regularly and 29 per cent claimed to follow an accepted religion just 16 per cent of boomers are weekly attenders at united and anglican churches an angusreid poll in 2000 found 84 per cent of canadians believe iiv god with almost that many saying their per gonal beliefs are more important than the official teachings of their faith church seems to get in the way of wor ship but fear not for boomers are leading the way in a different direction per haps while most boomers are staying away from houses of worship in droves fully 65 per cent of them say spirituality is important 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