Hidden Jewels Of Our Faith

Ganesh Temple on Bowne street resembles temples in India.

By Iman Khan

Often the epicenters of their homelands, religious institutions of many of the immigrant communities in Queens often remain in quite hidden places, in proximity to, but away from main roads and centers of business.

For immigrant communities, religious institutions in America are much different places than they are back home. One thing however, seems to have carried over for many of the immigrants – that is the architecture and inspiration used when these structures were erected in their new communities.

A gold emblem representing various Hindu symbols adorns the front of the temple.

On Bowne Street in Flushing, walking between 42nd and 43rd Avenues, two distinct temples coexist, both adding to the area a sense of temples from the homelands of many of the devotees. In particular, the Ganesh Temple at 45-57 Bowne St. looks as though it was taken right from India and transported all the way to Flushing. A bit down the road at 43-38 Bowne St., you have the Swaminarayan Hindu Temple directly across the street from the Kissena Jewish Center.

Not far from this temple there is an Islamic Mosque, Masjid Hazrat Abubakar, on 33rd Avenue between Union Street and Parsons Boulevard, which appears as though it was lifted directly from the deserts of Arabia and planted in its location.

This Kingdom Hall is located within a block of a temple, mosque and tabernacle. ribune Photos by Iman Khan

Just around the corner from the mosque, the Pillars of Faith Tabernacle is a Christian church which actually works in conjunction with many other churches in the area to focus on what they refer to as the oneness of God’s message rather than the many cultural, ethnic or other differences found in such a diverse community.

Queens is now famous for being the most ethnically diverse community in the nation. These hidden religious structures are yet another representation of just how diverse.