Muslims living in the West are always somewhat confused about Christmas. Some Muslims of orthodox persuasion think it is against the spirit of their religion to celebrate Christmas. They reason that because Christmas is a Christian holiday, it is not appropriate for Muslims to celebrate. To reinforce their argument they point to Jews who don’t celebrate Christmas.
Underlying the argument is the fear that by celebrating Christmas they would somehow minimize their own faith. There is enough evidence in the life of Prophet Muhammad to suggest that he did not hesitate adopting from Jewish and Christian traditions.
According to one authentic story when the Prophet entered the city of Medina he noticed that the Jews of the city were fasting that day. On inquiry he learned that Jews were fasting to commemorate God freeing the children of Israel from bondage. He was told that Prophet Moses had fasted in gratitude on that day. Invoking kinship with Moses, the Prophet asked his followers to fast on that day as well. A large number of observant Muslims around the world still fast on the day of Ashura in remembrance of the Jewish tradition established by Moses. For Muslims the fast on Ashura is not obligatory, but optional.
In their somewhat exclusionary view, some Muslims forget that their religion accords a very high honor to Jesus and his mother Mary. In the Quran, he is mentioned as Isa and Ruh Allah, meaning the breath of God, that points to Jesus’s miraculous birth. Jesus is also referred to as the anointed one and as Promised Messiah.
There is an entire chapter in the Quran devoted to Mary. It says of her, ‘And remember her who guarded her chastity. We breathed into her of our spirit and we made her and her son a sign for all people.’ She is seen as one of the most righteous women and is mentioned 34 times in the Quran. She is also referred to as the purified, the exalted, mother of Messiah, keeper of chastity, mystic, queen of the saints and Syeda Maryam (Lady Maryam). Maryam is one of the common names given to Muslim girls and Isa to Muslim boys.
While commercialization of Christmas has somewhat diminished the true spirit of the holiday, it has also, conversely, made it possible for many non-Christians to celebrate the season minus the religious overtones. It is uplifting and enjoyable to celebrate the season.
Growing up in Pakistan, Christmas was not just another day for us. While the Christians celebrated the day with fervor by having family dinners and special church services, Muslims participated by sending gifts of food and sweets to their Christian neighbors and friends. I remember my father, a civil servant in provincial government, made a visit to his English boss to take a gift of fruit and sweets.
While the ruling Brits never reciprocated by visiting their Christian and non-Christian subordinates, colleagues from different religions did visit each other on holidays and brought gifts of flowers, cake or sweets. On the second day of the annual Muslim holiday of Eid ul Fitr there would be a steady stream of visitors, Christians, Muslims, Hindus and Sikhs, to our ancestral home in the old city of Peshawar to offer Eid greetings to our family. Alas the tradition all but died out with the creation of Pakistan in 1947 when our world became more polarized.
My own introduction to Christmas holiday and Christmas spirit came soon after my arrival in Toledo in 1963. Robert and Wray Barber, well-known residents of our area, invited me to their farmhouse for Christmas dinner and asked if I would like to join them for midnight services at St Paul Episcopalian Church in Maumee.
It was with a bit of hesitation that I accepted their kind invitation for I had never attended a Christian service before. During the service I faithfully followed the movements of my hosts during the liturgy and tried to sing hymns with the congregation. It was a wonderful experience. So was listening to the uplifting sermon delivered by Reverend Graham.
(The affable Rev. Graham lived in the rectory after his retirement, and my late wife Dottie and I would visit him there. We had some very stimulating and enjoyable conversations.)
So, a belated Merry Christmas to my readers and a sincere wish for a happy, prosperous and fulfilling 2019.
S. Amjad Hussain is an emeritus professor of surgery and humanities at the University of Toledo. His column appears every other week in The Blade. Contact him at: aghaji@bex.net.
First Published December 31, 2018, 11:30 a.m.
