Courtesy Photo | Chaplain Lt. j.g. Mohammed Lawal (left, pictured in uniform), one of six Navy Muslim...... read more read more
Subscribe
By: Lt. Kevin Radford
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. – Chaplain Lt. j.g. Mohammed Mamsur Lawal’s life journey has taken him across the world, literally. Born in 1968 in Accra, the capital of Ghana, Lawal spent his childhood and early adulthood in West Africa.
Years after matriculating to the Ghana Institute of Journalism where he received his undergraduate degree in journalism in 1993. Lawal migrated to New York City in 2002, and shortly thereafter moved to Los Angeles. Here he worked a series of odd jobs before his cousin asked him to help say prayers and lead congregations at a local mosque. He accepted and began to immerse himself in the Muslim community of South Central Los Angeles, a long underserved area of the city.
Lawal’s work opened up other opportunities and soon he accepted a position as a chaplain in the prison system, seeking to help inmates better understand Islam. Lawal’s first stop was Salinas Valley State Prison, a level-four penitentiary holding individuals who committed serious offenses. Lawal soon understood that two versions of Islam were in existence in southern California. On one hand, a normal version of Islam was practiced at local mosques outside of the corrections system. On the other, appointed “shot-callers” in prison were preaching a warped version of Islam informally known as “Prislam.”
Lawal made it his mission to help inmates have a better understanding of the religion. “Prislam” was geared towards violence and the “shot-callers” would hand out punishments to those unwilling to participate or comply. Inmates would take part in the gang-like culture “not because they wanted to, but because they sought protection.”
Thankfully, “Prislam” had its boundaries. Inmates swore to never enact violence in the prison chapel, or family visitation area, which allowed Lawal to hold congregations with inmates and practice a proper, more traditional version of Islam. Lawal worked at two more facilities, Soledad State Prison and Richard Donovan Correctional Facility, before accepting the Mohammad Ali Scholarship to pursue his Master of Divinity at Chicago Theological Seminary in 2020. The scholarship is awarded to individuals who perform exemplary work in underserved communities.
While in the program, Lawal was approached by a military recruiter seeking Navy chaplains. Looking for a change of direction professionally after graduating in 2023, Lawal received an age-waiver and at the age of 55 joined the military as one of six Muslim Navy chaplains in November last year. After attending initial military training, Lawal now serves the Hampton Roads community as a Navy chaplain, which includes Information Warfare Training Command (IWTC) Virginia Beach.
Lawal is available to meet with and counsel Sailors and Marines, staff and students alike, who fall under IWTC Virginia Beach, or work in the schoolhouse. He holds Jumu’ah prayer at the chapel (where inside there resides a mosque) on Naval Air Station (NAS) Norfolk every Friday, for which, he said, participation has been steadily increasing; helping four Sailors to convert to the Islam since his arrival.
As Ramadan came to a close, Lawal talked about his favorite part of the month. He described how on Friday, 30 Sailors, and their families, came to an Iftar, a fast-breaking sunset meal, that promotes community, and of course feasting, at the chapel on NAS Norfolk. The group connected as a community, ate lasagna, pizza, chicken, lamb, and dates, and enjoyed each other’s company.
IWTC Virginia Beach currently offers 74 courses of instruction in information technology, cryptology, and intelligence with an instructor and support staff of over 300 military, civilian, and contract members who train over 7,000 students yearly at five training sites. It is one of four schoolhouses for the Center for Information Warfare Training (CIWT) and also oversees learning sites at Fort Huachuca, Ariz.; Jacksonville and Mayport, Fla.; Kings Bay, Ga.; and Groton, Conn.
With four schoolhouse commands, two detachments, and training sites throughout the United States and Japan, Center for Information Warfare Training trains over 26,000 students every year, delivering trained information warfare professionals to the Navy and joint services. Center for Information Warfare Training also offers more than 200 courses for cryptologic technicians, intelligence specialists, information systems technicians, electronics technicians, and officers in the information warfare community.
| Date Taken: | 04.11.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 04.11.2024 08:25 |
| Story ID: | 468307 |
| Location: | VIRGINIA BEACH, VA, US |
| Web Views: | 180 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Mohammed Lawal’s Journey to Navy Chaplain: IWTC Virginia Beach Welcomes One of Navy’s Six Muslim Chaplains to the Command, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
No keywords found.
LEAVE A COMMENT