Today, 25th December is being celebrated as the Xmas Day by many Christians world wide. In spite of that, there are many other Christians who are not celebrating the day as the birthday of Jesus. They are of the opinion that he was born in either June or October, not December. This controversy is difficult to resolve because neither the bible nor historical documents state the exact date of his birth. The Christian bodies hold different views.
The God Kingdom Society (GKS), for example, says Jesus was not born in December but October and that it is a pagan festival dedicated to the god Saturn, which was “later adopted by early Christian leaders with the motive of converting pagans.”
The Jehovah Witness does not celebrate Xmas on the same basis as GKS. Seventh Day Adventist church is also against it because it is a pagan ritual.
Both Deeper Life and Mountain of Fire Ministries (MFM) do not celebrate it.
They all call attention to the Bible, Luke 22:19, wherein Jesus said during the Last Supper ” Do this in remembrance of me”. Xmas was not mentioned as one of the things Christians should do to remember Jesus. We can then conclude safely that Xmas celebration is not biblical.
That notwithstanding, majority of Christians worldwide commemorate the birth of Jesus on the 25th December every year. Majority of Nigerian Christians do celebrate it.
As some Christians refrain from celebrating Xmas and call on people not to join them in the celebration, some Muslims have joined them by also calling on all Muslims to distance themselves from its celebration because it is Kufr; they call on Muslims not to interact with Christians, not to sell anything to them or patronise them in any way that could promote the celebration of Xmas. Some even call on proprietors of Muslim schools not to observe Xmas day as a public holiday.
The point needs to be made that Islam believes in multicultural, multifaith and pluralistic society where no group would claim absolute exclusiveness of others. Muslims and Christians live together in this country, Nigeria, sharing many things in common, including family, inter-marriage, work place, profession, business, political association and of course, neighborhood. Social interactions inevitably occur between Muslims and Christians. There is no segregation or ostracization as they do many things in common, including greetings and exchange of food and drinks during festive occasions.
Islam, as we all know, loves peaceful coexistence. It is an embodiment of peace. It promotes peace and spreads peace through greetings and demeanour. It allows Muslims to eat lawful (halāl) food of Christians and Jews, while it makes the food of Muslims lawful for them, too (Q5:5). The food and drinks served during Christmas can not be an exception. The food is not dedicated to any god or idol, neither is any animal sacrificed to any god nor required to be so done by Christianity.
In point of fact, many Christians do not even slaughter any animal but chicken or turkey mainly to entertain their guests and for domestic consumption. Q5:3 which some Muslims invoke as justification for declaring Xmas food as harām is irrelevant. Q5:5 declares Christian food lawful for Muslims to consume. It is halāl as long as it does not contain any harām item.
On greetings, Islam does not teach us not to respond to the greetings of non-Muslims, not even during their festivals. Instead, the Qur’an (Q4:86) says whenever we are greeted we should respond in a better way, or in the same manner. When a Christian says ” Merry Xmas to you”, you greet him back saying “Compliments of the season”, ” Happy Holidays”, or “Merry Xmas to you”, or we simply say “Thank you”. Islam does not teach us to keep mute when someone greets us. Those who say that we should not respond to Christian’s greetings have no Qur’anic support. They rely on the opinion of some scholars (not all scholars), not the Qur’an, not even any sound hadith. No human opinion is required once the Qur’an and the Prophet have ruled on any matter (Q33:36).
Peaceful interfaith coexistence is the norm in Islam, not exclusiveness, as long as other faiths do not show any sign of hatred, hostility, aggression or suppression to Muslims. Q 60:7-9 is quite explicit on this position. See also Q8:61 & 29:46. Q9:6 encourages Muslims to accommodate or provide protection for Mushrik ( a polytheist) and make his stay comfortable, perchance he could see the beauty of Islam through the nice manner he is treated by his Muslim host and accept Islam.
Good neighbourliness is stressed in Islam (Q4:36) irrespective of the neighbours’ religions. They all have rights on us in order to sustain peaceful coexistence in the society. Islam advocates and maintains peaceful coexistence where adherents of different religions practise their religions freely unhindered.
We Muslims however have the duty of inculcating Islamic values and culture in our youth in particular and the family in general. Let them understand Islam, let them appreciate Islam. Let them imbibe Islamic values and prefer them over and above any other. Do not allow them to visit father Xmas or attend Children Xmas Party. It is the Christian Party where anything including harām food and drinks may be served. Muslims do not eat nor drink harām. It is halāl food and drinks only.
We Muslims should not think that Christians will embrace Islam simply because we boycott them and by not extending our hands of fellowship to them. Everyone will not and can not be Muslims. It is not the design of Allah that everyone should become a Muslim (Q10:99). What should be paramount to us is the protection of our religious rights and freedom. Other people, too, should be allowed to enjoy their religious freedom and rights (Q109). Islam maintains that there is no compulsion in religion and everyone should be allowed to practise his religion freely as truth is distinct from falsehood (Q2:256).
In shā’a Allah, we shall discuss January 1 celebration next week.
Prof. Yasir Anjola Quadri.
20th Jumādal Awwal 1443 / 24th December 2021
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Muslim News Nigeria.
I can see that the author of this article and the publisher are just apologetic Muslims who usually feel inferior of their christain counterpart,they can only convinced me with this kind of message if they can only do same every August 20 to rejoice with the ogboni people or are they not our neighbors as well or we don’t need to show them the love and beauty of Islam .
If we can see some christain who are bold enough to criticize and not hididing and compromising their faith that they don’t celebrate Christmas they will not respond their greeting or honoured any gift affliated to it that is not biblical how come a Muslims a professor for that matter.
Islam clarify how to relate with non Muslims we can do everything together with the exception of religious affairs which festivities is among
Responding to greetings of Christian’s on their festive holiday doesn’t mean that we are rejoicing with them or happy with what they are doing.It is just like when a Christian greet you with Salam i learnt The Prophet Muhammad SAW taught us to respond to their greetings with”Wa alaekun or Wa alaekun Islamiy” He didn’t teach us to keep quiet when Christian greet us but taught us the response to their greetings.
Having said that, there is something that is still bothering my mind as to how The Prophet Muhammad SAW respond to greetings of Christians during their feasts or how He taught Muslims to respond to christians’ greetings during their feasts.I believe nobody can tell me Christianity doesn’t celebrate their festivals during the time of The Prophet Muhammad SAW.
Am highly disappointed in the publisher if a prof could turn the table up down with applying what he learned in is article the right of the publisher is to fix the linking brain where neccesery because i belived in that as regard thier name but claiming that the opinion of the write is not their offical stand as regard to the article ,it show that,they like others new paper in Nigeria not for islam.if i should accept your claim then why publishing is trash because Allah say :
An-Nisa’ 4:140
وَقَدْ نَزَّلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِى ٱلْكِتَٰبِ أَنْ إِذَا سَمِعْتُمْ ءَايَٰتِ ٱللَّهِ يُكْفَرُ بِهَا وَيُسْتَهْزَأُ بِهَا فَلَا تَقْعُدُوا۟ مَعَهُمْ حَتَّىٰ يَخُوضُوا۟ فِى حَدِيثٍ غَيْرِهِۦٓۚ إِنَّكُمْ إِذًا مِّثْلُهُمْۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ جَامِعُ ٱلْمُنَٰفِقِينَ وَٱلْكَٰفِرِينَ فِى جَهَنَّمَ جَمِيعًا
And it has already come down to you in the Book that when you hear the verses of Allah [recited], they are denied [by them] and ridiculed; so do not sit with them until they enter into another conversation. Indeed, you would then be like them. Indeed Allah will gather the hypocrites and disbelievers in Hell all together.
Back to professor ,pls stop this your confusionist because you shall be asked in the day of judgment about this your fatwa.what wonder me are those who are learned but like hypocrisy because the same chapter he used as evidence to permit that permit muslim to eat the food of people of book(Alul-kitab) is the one that distinguish the food that is forbidden .
Al-Ma’idah 5:3
حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمُ ٱلْمَيْتَةُ وَٱلدَّمُ وَلَحْمُ ٱلْخِنزِيرِ وَمَآ أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ ٱللَّهِ بِهِۦ وَٱلْمُنْخَنِقَةُ وَٱلْمَوْقُوذَةُ وَٱلْمُتَرَدِّيَةُ وَٱلنَّطِيحَةُ وَمَآ أَكَلَ ٱلسَّبُعُ إِلَّا مَا ذَكَّيْتُمْ وَمَا ذُبِحَ عَلَى ٱلنُّصُبِ وَأَن تَسْتَقْسِمُوا۟ بِٱلْأَزْلَٰمِۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ فِسْقٌۗ ٱلْيَوْمَ يَئِسَ ٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ مِن دِينِكُمْ فَلَا تَخْشَوْهُمْ وَٱخْشَوْنِۚ ٱلْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِى وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ ٱلْإِسْلَٰمَ دِينًاۚ فَمَنِ ٱضْطُرَّ فِى مَخْمَصَةٍ غَيْرَ مُتَجَانِفٍ لِّإِثْمٍۙ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
Prohibited to you are dead animals, blood, the flesh of swine, and that which has been dedicated to other than Allah, and [those animals] killed by strangling or by a violent blow or by a head-long fall or by the goring of horns, and those from which a wild animal has eaten, except what you [are able to] slaughter [before its death], and those which are sacrificed on stone altars, and [prohibited is] that you seek decision through divining arrows. That is grave disobedience. This day those who disbelieve have despaired of [defeating] your religion; so fear them not, but fear Me. This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved for you Islam as religion. But whoever is forced by severe hunger with no inclination to sin – then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
i want to ask professor ,please is christmas festival dedicated to Allah ?