JEDDAH, 6 November 2004 — A record number of pilgrims — nearly three million — from within and outside Saudi Arabia thronged the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah for the Juma prayers yesterday. The mosques and their vast courtyards overflowed with worshippers and many had to line up in nearby roads and pathways to join the prayers.
Dr. Saleh Bin-Humaid, one of the imams of the Haram Mosque in Makkah, called upon Muslims to work earnestly for changing their situation for the better. “God will not change a nation until they change themselves,” the imam told the faithful, quoting a verse from the Holy Qur’an. “The means of treatment and success are not far away from us. We are the nation of the Qur’an and the Prophet (peace be upon him),” said Bin-Humaid, who is also chairman of the Shoura Council, delivering his Juma sermon.
