[Adeniinteme]

You're right to a certain extent brother. This was my first involvement and I can't say I agreed 100% to what I saw at these events, there was what most would view as free mixing (family sections) and also the playing of music. Of course I could unwield a whole bunch of fatwas from lamppost, suhaibwebb.com and other such american modernist websites justifying these things (and you'd have no means of retort since there will now be 'ikhtilaaf' on the issue=)...but I won't as I didn't feel these things were right.

Those issues aside, most people dont go to the masjid anymore. That's a sad reality and it seems you need these gimmicks (auctions, nasheeds etc) for our people to part with cash. At the end of the day the people in Gaza, earthquake victims etc who are in dire need, the vast amounts of money that these dinners can raise helps them significantly. The means does not justify the end and I'm certainly not advocating any dubious practices (music, free mixing etc) but to do them within halal boundaries.

I'm not sure I fully agree with you with not using charity dinners simply because it's a non-Muslim 'invention', if it works and done in a halaal way why not? They probably also invented credit cards, paypal etc should we stop Muslims donating using these too. Our deobandi ulemah also utilise fund raising dinners http://www.sunniforum.com/forum/show...raising-Dinner! so I don't think there's anything particularly wrong with these dinners per se, as long as they adhere to Shariah boundaries.