Little Mosque on The Prairie
“You call the mosque ‘the cross-less church’?”
“Sometimes…”
“What do you call a synagogue?”
“Synagogue. I don’t want to offend anybody.”
Not just one of my favourite shows on television, Little Mosque on The Prairie is a sitcom about the fictional town of Mercy, Saskatchewan and its residents, including the small but vibrant Muslim community. Since the pilot episode, it’s been clear that there are Jewish parallels. 
There was a great episode where the imam goes homes to Toronto and is interrogated by his parents about what he’s doing with his life, why he hasn’t married yet, and why he has to be so Muslim. Watching the episode with a bunch of MOT during Sukkos, we all felt they could have been Jewish.
If you’re in Canada, it airs on CBC. If you’re in the US or elsewhere, there are websites that let you watch online. And stay tuned: Fox bought the rights to the show and will be remaking it (something about how Americans wouldn’t watch a show set in Saskatchewan; even though it shows in the original version in Dubai, Finland, Turkey, Israel, France, and Switzerland).
Ha! The Jews of Saskatoon totally love this show – it’s the closest thing to a representation of their/our community on TV. Now if only there was an episode about never getting a minyan… do they have a prayer quorum in Islam?
i love this show!! yes, i’ve thought from the beginning that there are a lot of parallels, and its so nice to watch a show about religious people on prime time tv. the only other one i can think of is Big Love…
@Spice, I agree it’s nice. I’ve been watching since the pilot, and keep introducing folks to the show.
It’s unfortunate that you’d have to put Little Mosque in the same category as Big Love… Friendly sitcom versus mafioso meshagas? Clearly a sign that there ought to be more shows about religious people on tv.
@Yonah, a prayer quorum isn’t needed. But the episode in the first season about the mechitzah definitely touched on arguments I’d heard in minyanim.
The only thing close to a quorum being needed is for Friday, Jumuah service which needs at least 3 people: an Imam/Khateeb(sermoniser) and two male muslims (not obligatory for women). The same for the ‘Eid festivals (prayers with a khutbah/sermon).