Islam in Sierra Leone Mauvi Sadeeur Rahman. In the early 18th century Fulani and Mande-speaking tribesmen from the Fouta Djallon region of present-day Guinea converted many Temne of northern Sierra Leone to Islam. During the period of British colonization, attempts to spread Christianity were mostly ineffective. Islam continued to spread after independence in 1961; in 1960 the Muslim population was 35 percent and grew to 60 percent by 2000, and then to 71% in 2008. It is difficult for people from Sierra Leone to travel to Mecca for the Hajj, the fifth pillar of Islam, due to the distance between the two places and
Our Lady of the Pillar Church (San Simon) Our Lady of the Pillar Church (San Simon) The Our Lady of the Pillar Parish Church, also known as the San Simon Church, is a 19th-century Baroque church located at Barangay San Juan, San Simon, Pampanga, Philippines. The parish church, under the protection of its patron saints, the Virgin of the Pillar and Saint Peter, is under the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of San Fernando. The convent of San Simon was established by the Augustinians in April 20, 1771 and was placed under the patronage of Apostle Simon Peter. The town was formerly named after its secondary patron, Our Lady of