Russian President Vladimir Putin has held a high-profile ceremony in Moscow to mark the opening of what he described as Europe’s largest mosque, a soaring and stunning piece of religious architecture.
The building replaces a mosque built in 1904 and will seat 10,000 adherents in a city that is estimated to have some 2 million Muslims, though no official data is published.
The structure is estimated to have cost $170 million, all of which was paid for by private donations. Its formal title is the Moscow Cathedral Mosque, employing religious terminology borrowed from the Russian Orthodox Church.
Mr. Putin used Wednesday’s opening ceremony to praise peaceful Islam and castigate its extremist elements.
Putin, who enjoys mixed reviews at best among ordinary Muslims in the sprawling Russian Federation, went on to warn against exploiting feelings.
Russia, home to some 20 million Muslims, has fought two wars against Chechen separatists in the mainly-Muslim North Caucasus region where an Islamist insurgency is still simmering.
The mosque was completed after 10 years of local controversy in Moscow, echoing tensions in numerous cities around Europe where burgeoning Muslim populations face a paucity of places to pray and restrictions on mosque-building.
Moscow has only three other working mosques. The architect of the Cathedral Mosque incorporated traditional Russian motifs in the design.
The Times notes that, the dome — of the onion family, if not exactly an onion, is circled by quotations from the Koran and fits into the religious landscape of gilded Orthodox domes nearby.
The BBC reports that among the mosque’s private funders were Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who contributed $25,000, and Dagestan-born billionaire and politician Suleiman Kerimov, who gave $100 million.
The Christian Science Monitor / ABC Flash Point News 2025.
Mr. Putin used Wednesday’s opening ceremony to praise peaceful Islam and castigate its extremist elements.
Over 10% of all Russians are Muslims.