| Do Muslims Celebrate Easter? |
| Monday, 02 April 2007 00:00 | |||
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In these days of excess entertainment and consumption, it is easy to get caught up in the so called "holiday season", rarely stopping to consider its significance. I say so called, because the very word holiday is derived from the two words holy and day. However, under closer scrutiny from the Judeo Christian and Islamic perspectives, these days are anything but holy. Celebrations such as Easter, Christmas, All Saint's Day, and Halloween all find their roots in pagan traditions, alien to the prophets (may peace and blessings be upon all of the prophets). Proof of this lies in the lack of historical evidence that the prophets ever celebrated their birthdays, decorated eggs, placed ornaments on trees, or dressed up in costumes. Through an examination of these holiday myths as religious innovation, or bid'ah, this article is a small attempt at warning people of the dangerous implications and subtle attitudinal changes that come with such celebrations. Bid'ah: Religious Innovation Before any discussion on the origin of holidays such as Christmas and Easter, it is important to define a term called bid'ah. A bid'ah is any invention, creation or addition of any religious matter, which was not found in the original teachings. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "He who innovates something in this matter of ours (religion), will have it rejected." (Bukhari and Muslim) To illustrate the bid'ah involved in Christmas and Easter simple questions beg asking. Did Jesus (peace be upon him) celebrate his birthday? Did his mother, Mary (peace be upon her)? Did his disciples? The answer, of course, is no. Did Jesus (peace be upon him) speak of an Easter bunny? Did he decorate evergreens? Of course not. To believe that Jesus (peace be upon him) came with the truth, and to then add or delete from his message is to mix truth with falsehood. The above practices find their origins in pagan rites and rituals. I have heard with my own ears, Christian learned men and leaders acknowledging the true origins of Easter and Christmas, but putting it off as "all in good fun." So, I ask, would Jesus (peace be upon him) approve of mixing his teachings with those of the pagans? Furthermore, to illustrate the gravity of bid'ah and of immitating non believers, I refer you to the words of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who said what translates as follows: "Whoever imitates a people is one of them." (Related by Ahmad) Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once saw the Ansaar celebrating a certain day. He inquired about that and was informed: This is one of two days that we used to celebrate in Jaahiliyyah (pre Islaamic ignorance) and we continue to do so. He replied: "Nay! Allaah has substituted for you two better days: the day of al-Fitr and the day of al-Adhhaa." (related by Ahmad, an-Nasaaee, and others) Â
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