More and more mosques are being built in Germany. They are signs of religious self-consciousness and successful integration, but also give reason to fierce controversies. The Merkez-Mosque in Duisburg is the biggest mosque all over Europe and is considered a role model of successful religious integration. The construction of the big and architectonically modern central mosque in Cologne-Ehrenfeld could, however, only start amongst fierce public protests. The mosques in Duisburg und Cologne are two prominent examples for social changes in Germany. Both have since years been very publicly discussed. Meanwhile, there are 206 mosques and around 2,600 houses of prayers in Germany. Most of them were already constructed in the 1970s. Around 120 more mosques are currently being built or planned.
Photographer Wilfried Dechau travelled through Germany in March and April 2008 in order to record the houses of worship of Islam in the context of German cityscapes: their interior, the Friday prayer, imams and the people that constitute the Muslim communities.
From February until April 2012, Goethe-Institut will be showing the result of his photo coverage in Surabaya, Yogyakarta and Bandung within the event series JERIN.
_Gathering_Flowers.jpg)