A formal reception to mark the inauguration of the Mosque was arranged for that evening, where Huzoor was due to deliver the keynote address.
Prior to the main function, Huzoor held a meeting with local dignitaries and a brief Press Conference in his office.
At exactly 5pm, Huzoor came to his office and noticed that the chairs were arranged in the same way they would be for a ‘family Mulaqat’, with Huzoor sitting at his desk across from the guests.
Upon seeing the arrangement, Huzoor said:
“This is not the way to set up for meetings with dignitaries.”
Thus, Huzoor instructed us to change the seating and told us where to put each chair. He said that instead of sitting at his desk, he would sit with the dignitaries on the other side of the office.
Just as we had rearranged the seating according to Huzoor’s direction, the Mayor of Philadelphia, James Kenny entered Huzoor’s office and welcomed Huzoor to Philadelphia. A few minutes later, another dignitary, Congressman Dwight Evans, also joined the meeting.
During the meeting, Mayor Kenny offered his congratulations to Huzoor on the inauguration of the Mosque.
Mayor John Kenny said:
“Your Holiness, I congratulate you and the members of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community on the opening of this beautiful Mosque. We believe in multiculturalism and tolerance and so we are delighted that the local Ahmadi Muslims now have a place of worship here in Philadelphia.”
Congressman Evans also congratulated Huzoor on the opening of the Mosque and informed Huzoor that he was a member of the Congressional ‘Agriculture Committee’. Huzoor was interested to hear of the work of the committee and enquired about local farming conditions and agriculture.