Order Michael Finch’s new book, A Time to Stand: HERE. Prof. Jason Hill calls it “an aesthetic and political tour de force.”
Sign up to attend Michael’s talk in Los Angeles on Thursday, November 20: HERE.
The grand opening ceremony of a sprawling 150,000-square-foot “milestone for the global Shia Ismaili Muslim community and a transformative addition to the city’s cultural landscape” has opened in Houston. “The Ismaili Center opens in Houston — a first for the U.S.,” by Shafaq Patel, Axios, November 6, 2025:
The stone tapestry, with its triangular patterns, illuminates at night and has shadows in the day.
The Ismaili Center, Houston, an architecturally grand cultural and religious space and one of only seven worldwide, has completed construction and is opening to the public next month.
Why it matters: The 150,000-square-foot center — the first in the U.S. — blends Islamic and contemporary design. It spans 11 acres and sits along Buffalo Bayou.
- While its prayer hall will serve Ismaili Muslims daily, the center and its gardens are designed as a community gathering space open to all Houstonians.
Context: Ismailis, a branch of Shia Islam, are guided by a hereditary imam — currently His Highness Prince Rahim Aga Khan V, who succeeded his father in February. Believed to be a direct descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, the imam leads a community of millions across more than 70 countries.
- Houston has the largest population of Ismailis in the U.S. Tens of thousands of Ismailis live in the greater Houston area and attend the region’s several Jamatkhanas, or prayer halls.
Driving the news: At a Thursday dedication ceremony, the Aga Khan and Mayor John Whitmire officially opened the center.
- The imam will visit the Ismaili community in events through Sunday in Houston — his first visit to the U.S. in a religious capacity — marking a deeply spiritual moment for the community.
Flashback: The land was purchased in 2006 by the Aga Khan Foundation, and construction began in 2021….
One would think such a “milestone” would be in a Muslim country, not Texas. There’s a reason why it is regarded as such.
Where does the Ismaili Center stand with regard to Sharia law and texts in the Qur’an that are diametrically opposed to Western law? These are important questions for the sake of national security.
The Ismailis today renounce violence. Nevertheless, they have a significant history of conquest by the sword; most significantly, the Fatimid Caliphate that resulted in the conquest of Egypt. The Fatimids founded Cairo as their new capital and persecuted Christians and Jews. Their dynasty included North Africa, Egypt and Syria. This major imperial power was in rivalry with the Abbasids.
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, many other churches, synagogues, Torah scrolls, religious artifacts and buildings in and around Jerusalem, were destroyed under Fatimid Caliph Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, aka “the mad Caliph” and also “Nero of Egypt.”
History is forgotten by most today, under the spell of Islamic taqiyya.
According to Christianity Today:
Some Christians have raised concerns. Houston’s conservative talk radio channel KTRH has broadcast the increased wariness many have toward Muslims. And its reporter B. D. Hobbs recently featured former president of Southern Evangelical Seminary Alex McFarland, who warned about the “growth of Islam in the West” and an alleged Muslim goal of replacing the US Constitution with sharia law.
Christianity Today further noted:
Earlier this year in North Texas, the East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC), one of the largest mosques in the region, proposed a residential development of thousands of homes centered around a mosque and Islamic school.
See more about EPIC City HERE.
In Florida, Islamic leaders are now fighting attorney general James Uthmeier’s claim that taxpayer vouchers pose national security threat. It does. Read more HERE.
Sharia law is divine in Islam and adherent Islamic institutes hail the Sharia above American and all other laws. Islam is expansionary today as it has been for 1400 years.
