Although the LGBT Muslim Retreat has operated for the last five years in the Philadelphia suburbs, it’s not widely known.
Due to privacy concerns, its exact location is only shared with participants. But Shan C., a member of the planning committee for the 2016 retreat, extolled the virtues of LGBT Muslims forming connections with each other.
“The most beneficial part is the sense of community you feel,” he said. “Once you’re there, there are so many interesting people to meet. It’s hard not to feel at home.”
The Muslim Alliance for Gender and Sexual Diversity, a coalition that launched at the 2013 Creating Change conference, sponsors the retreat. A group of volunteers from across the country organizes the activities for the long weekend, which include prayer, workshops and social events like speed networking.
The planning committee for the 2017 retreat hasn’t formed yet, Shan said. When it does, more information about the retreat and the application to attend will be available at www.lgbtmuslimretreat.com. Applications open a few months before the retreat, which usually takes place at the end of May.
Costs vary from about $125-$750, depending on how long participants plan to be onsite and if they will stay with roommates, as a couple or have a single room. People can apply for scholarships based on financial need.
About 70 people attend each year.
The upcoming retreat may be the last time LGBT Muslims meet near Philadelphia. Shan said organizers are thinking of moving the retreat to the West Coast for a while, so people from that side of the country have an easier time attending.
Shan happened to stumble upon the retreat while searching online and attended in 2014 and 2015.
The recent University of Pennsylvania graduate said, “The most eye-opening part of the retreat was the un-gendered prayer and the ability of anybody to stand wherever they want and anybody can lead.”
He said a workshop led by representatives of the El-Tawhid Juma Circle Mosque in Canada stuck with him.
“They talked about organizing in the queer Muslim community,” Shan said.
He also shared the sense of purpose he gets from practicing Islam and being in the company of others who do likewise.
“When I was younger and looking for an identity for myself, it gave me an idea of something bigger than myself,” Shan said. “It provides me with peace.”