Although it respects the rights of Malaysian Christians to practice their faith and celebrate their religious festivals, Malay-Muslim rights organisation Ikatan Muslimin Malaysia (ISMA) says Muslims in the country should not be wishing their Christian friends a Merry Christmas, as it would undermine their own core beliefs.
ISMA activist Abu Ameen wrote in a column in the organisation’s official web portal that despite the exhortation for Muslims to respect the faith of others, to wish non-Muslims a joyous celebration of their faith and to participate in those festivals would be an acknowledgment of the articles of an outside religion.
In a surprisingly level-headed set of arguments, the ISMA columnist admits that Islamic scholarly thought on the issue of wishing Christians a Merry Christmas is divided; he writes that classical and traditional Islamic scholars regard the practice as haram (forbidden), while more contemporary scholars are of the opinion that it is harus (permissible).
Abu Ameen then states that he personally subscribes to the teachings of clasical Islamic scholars, hence his stand on this issue.
He also writes that Malaysian Muslims should not regard the opinion of not wishing Christians to have a Merry Christmas as a call to disrespect other faiths – instead, to refrain from celebrating Christmas is an act of paying respect to the Muslim belief in Allah and the status of Jesus, whom Muslims regard as a holy prophet (and not the Son of God).
It’s not every day that somone from the usually controversial ISMA can put forth a decent and polite argument for the group’s stand on an issue … could this be a Christmas miracle?
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