Australian Muslim Destinies

Images of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, Opera House, Centre point Tower, and Darling Harbour flank the mosques of Mecca and Medina on this greeting card designed and printed in Australia. This card reflects on the theological and cultural struggles experienced by Australian Muslims since their period of mass migration to Australia in the 1970s, particularly among the most influential of Australia’s Muslims: the migrants and the Australian born and bred generation. The experiences of both these groups may be understood through a remark made in a recent article published in Salam, the official magazine of the Federation of Australian Muslim students and Youth (FAMSY): ‘It is our destiny that we found ourselves here (Australia). However, the rest is a test.’ 1 Destiny is a fundamental pillar of the Islamic faith. However, as with the practice of Islam, the ways in which destiny is perceived differs between particular places, periods, cultures and peoples. How have members of the Australian Muslim population conceptualized their destiny? Where will it lead them?