After all, many pre-Islamic festivals or festival traits/rituals of various races who are today mainly Muslim, are preserved. Malay races commonly light lamps in the last week of Ramadhan in anticipation of the Eid – which is a tradition reminiscent of our pre-Islamic time, but which still brings a beauty to the night in the holiest week of Ramadhan. I’m pretty sure that red is still an auspicious and festive colour for Chinese Muslims.

Before recent times when this issue is debated to death, in my country the norm was that we wish for someone according to their faith and not ours. I reckon the reason is not that we express support or agreement with their religious festival but merely that we wish them well on the day that means something to them, as we would appreciate the same good timing for us. So one would send Deepavali cards to Hindu friends, who would *not* return the favour but would send you an Eid card for Eid instead. On the other hand, if we get a wish that is inconsistent with our faith, we say thank you on the basis of appreciating their good intention, and if it was due to mistaken assumption, we would clarify that actually we belong to another faith. This is a lot simpler.

But I also agree that we need to think about our own festivals. There is a good reason why our festivals celebrate effort and sacrifice, and spiritual progress rather than worldly diversions. But at the same time, there is a distinct lack of celebratory feel even when not compared to other religions. It is as though it is wrong to adorn the defining aspects of the two Eids with happy and fun things. The consequence is that little children see Muslim festivals as being unremarkable things – and this is more so in countries where they would inevitably compare it with other celebrations. please remember that to taste the spiritual happiness of the Sacrifice and fasting requires a certain period of practice and inner progress not typically present in children and teenagers.

I think the main difference between Christmas and our festivals is really the tacit agreement of the culture to devote preparation time to its celebration. For many Christian/Christian-influenced nations, they still devote this time. We do not. Why not and what should be done, I don’t know.

Can someone answer Charles because I would also like to know the answer to his question.

JAK

Very nice article mashaAllah. Glad to see an article of this view on this website.

As hamza said below, Eid al-Adha is about Abraham which is an interfaith point. Eid al-Fitr is just celebrating thanks for the blessing of Ramadan and that after completion we may eat regularly again whereas Christmas are celebrating things which we don’t believe in.

I would advise against this. Especially in Muslim countries, we should always keep good relations and make the non-Muslims feel comfortable and welcome on a regular basis. Don’t allow your gatherings to be simply on special occasions rather make the occasions companionship and for them to experience Islam and if you build good ties you might be able to teach them about it. While in Kuwait I saw tons of conversions from local businessmen and military personnel. Most was through a cultural center for Arab American understanding.

I’m not alim but my understanding is having a party ON December 24th isn’t a problem. Having a party FOR Christmas eve is. The former is a just a date the latter is a form of religious celebration.

As far as “Christmas” Cake” I was raised a Catholic and I never heard of that before. Unless you mean a fruit cake. Which is a traditional food item during the holiday.I can’t see why eating a fruit cake would be deemed haram unless it contains alcohol which many do.

@ abu zakariya

You can tell non-muslims that partaking in Eid celebration doesn’t require anyone to believe in anything but gratitude. It’s a celebration of thanks to the creator. Easter,Christmas,etc are celebrations of certain beliefs that Muslims reject. Say to them Our Eids are centered around certain universal VALUES while your holidays are centered around certain BELIEF systems. You can celebrate with us because we share the same values but we can’t celebrate with you because we don’t share the same belief system.

I keep wondering about this. It makes a lot of sense, but I wonder if the time and place and people make a difference. For example, Richard Dawkins is a well-known atheist who attacks religious beliefs. At the same time, he enjoys celebrating Christmas (see http://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-1100842/Why-I-celebrate-Christmas-worlds-famous-atheist.html). Yet no one would think that he is imitating or trying to be like Christians.

Elsewhere, an American Buddhist quoted his teacher: “When I asked one of my teachers recently how he feels about Christmas, he said, “When I’m at the temple, we celebrate Buddha’s Enlightenment Day [the first week of December]; when I’m with people celebrating Hanukkah, I celebrate that; when I’m with people celebrating Christmas, I celebrate Christmas.”” Again, no one would think the Buddhist was becoming Jewish or Christian or accepting the teachings associated with these religions. Most would just think that he was showing respect to those he was with.

And as Abu Zakariya mentioned, although I imagine that some are curious about Islam with the intention of learning more, others are likely being friendly and polite to an invitation. No one mistakes them for imitating Muslims or being a Muslim. That requires the shahada.

It would seem that by participating in a celebration, to a certain degree, that there is an acceptance of the meaning that accompanies the celebration. But what is that meaning exactly? There are Christians who do not believe that Jesus is divine, such as Unitarians. I would imagine that they celebrate Christmas more as a celebration of a prophet. In that case, it would be similar to celebrating the birthday of Prophet Muhammad, on which, as noted elsewhere on this site, there is a legitimate difference of opinion as to whether it is permitted or not.

Back to my original point, I was told some time ago that in Turkey, one could tell a man’s political affiliation by the way he grew his moustache. Obviously, to imitate the style of mustache would be to join that group. In the US, there is no political identification associated with mustache style. On the other hand, in the US, religious identity is associated with hijab, kufi, and yarmulke. So, is it possible that some actions are considered imitation (or part of one’s identity) while others depend on the time, place, and people? And is it possible that for people living in the time of the prophet in Arabia that to imitate was to join while in this time and in the US, it wouldn’t necessarily have that meaning but would be dependent upon the specific action in a particular context?