One of the most popular and interesting tours of Odessa is a tour of its many and varied temples. And it is not surprising, Odessa has always been a city of international and multi-confessional. Along with Orthodox churches, Odessa has a synagogue, Catholic temples, Greek and Armenian churches, and a recently built center of Muslim culture.
Odessa was not without a slice of the east. In 2001, by order of Syrian businessman Kivan Adnan, a mosque of the Arab Cultural Center was built, which can be visited at 49, Rishelievskaya Street (tel. (0482) 37-91-60).
The Arab Cultural Center stands for justice and democracy. Its main slogan is the phrase
«It doesn’t matter what religion you practice, what matters is that you practice spirituality.» That is why the Arab Center has open doors for anyone and everyone.
The mosque halls are free to visit on any day (11 a.m. to 5 p.m.) except for pilgrimages, usually Friday.
Upon entering the prayer hall, men and women must remove their shoes, and women are given long robes with hoods.
The prayer hall is very beautiful and spacious. Openwork ligature on the stair railings and architectural elements make the interior of the mosque elegant and airy. Apart from a few small shelves for books on the sides of the hall, there is no other furniture. The entire floor is covered with a soft carpet, the pattern of which divides the carpet into equal squares.
As an employee of the mosque explained to us, these squares serve as a conventional delineation of seating for worshipers. At the front of the hall is an altar with Arabic script. And under the ceiling the main decoration is a large crystal chandelier shining with hundreds of lights.
The Arab Cultural Center is open not only for excursions acquainting people with the Arab culture. The Center’s educational and outreach activities include an active school for teaching Arabic language to everyone — free of charge.
The Arab Cultural Center has a library. There are various books that tell about the present and ancient traditions of Arab countries, their customs and cultures.