Wishing "happy" unislamic holidays?

Amica

Amica

Well-Known Member
Messages
649
Reaction score
11
Points
18
Are we allowed to wish someone a happy holiday, their religion's holiday? Some sources state that it is haraam to do so because you would be congratulating them in their unbelief in Allah SWT?

Should a Muslim totally refuse to acknowledge another person's holiday or should h/she wish them happiness out of courtesy?
 
I have listened to a video on youtube about this topic, and it is stated not to do so. I am really concerned about this. I do not want to be rude towards people I know and who are not Muslims, yet I do not want to sin about this either. What is a Muslim to do?

For example, certain holidays have a rather evil origin. One example is the New Years Eve. Based on what I have just found, in 46 BCE it was Julius Ceasar who decided that the first month of the new year should be called January, because of their idol Janus. Janus, it is said was idol of doors and gates, so the first month would be "door" to the new year. In that year, to celebrate new year, Ceasar violently attacked Jewish revoluntionaries in Gallilee. Later, new years was celebrated with orgies to reenact chaos that "existed prior to the order established by idols."

So, that holiday, has a history of dedication to a pagan idol and quite a bloody start. Modern world, especially in the West, has adopted the day as their holiday. Should a Muslim wish them a "happy" new year, then?

I must say, that for the longest time in my life I did not know about the history of new year's celebration. Like many, I believed that Christian world celebrates it to commemorate Jesus pbuh. But, today, I found what I wrote above.

Seriously, what is one to do without coming off as rude? I work with these people...
 
What does it mean "holiday"?

It is "Holy Day", is it possible for there to be a day which is not holy?

Holy simply means Whole, it points at Tawhid, the indivisible nature of Him.

For me "Happy Holidays" simply reminds the other to remember God, it is a shame that it is only customary during this season.
 
Is Muhammad not a door to Allah?

Please do not trouble yourself with such nonsense, does Allah not love? Why should you limit your love to only Muslims? And what is a Muslim anyway? It simply means one who has surrendered, as islam means to surrender. It is to God, understand Muhammad is nothing but a messenger, then fix yourself upon where the message has come from.

It is true that surrender is the only true religion, but can only Muhammad be surrendered? It is not enough to obey, that is slavery not surrendering. Can Nanak not have been surrendered? He has come after Muhammad, but Muhammad is the last messenger so Nanak's surrender is invalid?

Muhammad has warned against fanaticism, but what is this? It means you are favoring your own "team" over another, so much so that you become hysterical in proclaiming your "team" as superior. Do not become a fanatic, it is not necessary to hate in order to show love. Part of love is that you respect that person, do not look down on their customs simply because yours differ.
 
Amica said:
For example, certain holidays have a rather evil origin. One example is the New Years Eve. Based on what I have just found, in 46 BCE it was Julius Ceasar who decided that the first month of the new year should be called January, because of their idol Janus. Janus, it is said was idol of doors and gates, so the first month would be "door" to the new year. In that year, to celebrate new year, Ceasar violently attacked Jewish revoluntionaries in Gallilee. Later, new years was celebrated with orgies to reenact chaos that "existed prior to the order established by idols."
Click to expand...

Just because a holiday has an evil origin doesn't mean the holiday itself is evil. It sounds almost like superstition, where you ascribe qualities to a holiday based on past symbolism, but where the original meaning has been lost.

Whatever evil the holiday represented died a long time ago, along with whatever threat to Allah or Hashem it posed.

This is how Paul dealt with the issue:

Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules? Colossians 2:20

Christianity, as you may know, is where stories about a Jewish miracle-worker and religious teacher are mixed with Greek mythology in order to distort the true meaning of Greek paganism, thereby destroying the "evil" and impurity in Greek mythology. When you mess around with pagan traditions, you effectively eliminate the idolatry.

This is why Christmas is so important. The evil in the New Years' holiday was destroyed by Christianity.
 
It is perfectly fine to say "Merry Christmas" to a Christian, "Happy Hanukah" to a Jew, etc., even if the speaker is not a Christian, Jew, etc. There is nothing wrong with one person mentioning that the other person is celebrating something.

Does Islam really forbid this?
 
I do not pretend to know and understand all that Holy Qur'an says, but after my post I thought hard and was reminded of the words from Surat al-Ankabut where it discusses Muslims interracting with non-Muslims. In one ayat (verse) I remember that it said to speak to Jews and Christians kindly. Also, I remembered that Allah SWT stated in the Qur'an that He created different peoples who will believe differently. At the same time, He tells us to compete in good, and not make mischief in the world.

After all of that, I figure that I have not been wrong all along and that I can wish someone a happy holiday to them. For, it is their holiday, and to be kind and respectful of them as a people.
 
I dont know why you got your feathers in a flurry Sister Amica, for most Scholars do say that we can wish people happy holidays; it's only wishing them well in their religious celebrations or for specifically their religious holidays that there seems to be a difference on!

you probably heard just one fatwa from the hardliner Salafi's and are getting your feathers in a twist over it before googling up any mainstream opinions on it! :D

there's even an opinion from the mainstream Maaliki school that we can greet them for their religious celebrations too, like saying happy Christmas!:


Maliki Madhab:

What is the ruling on greeting the non-Muslims on their holidays
> if the intention is to spread love and give a positive image of
Islam. Such as saying "Merry Christmas" or "Happy New Year" or "Happy
Mothers Day"
>
> What about buying Christmas gifts for Christian friends or Passover
gifts for Jewish friends to spread a positive image to Islam and Muslims.
>

The short answer here is that yes. You may give a greeting as it was
the practice of the Prophet (May Allah bless him and give him peace) not to totally reject all outstanding holidays of Jahiliyyah - especially the
ones that do not directly contradict our basic principles. You should also know that the two `Id holidays which have now were replacements for two similar holidays which the people of Yathrib used to enjoy.

Also, in the Qur'an we are told not to defame the gods [or other marks,
such as holidays] of the non-Muslims such that they may harbor respect for Allah [and the marks which He has revealed] days also [{6:108}].

We are also told about the different rituals Allah prescribed to
different nations. [{22:34}]

And we are also told about specific holidays of the Christians and
Jews, such as Exodus, the Last Supper [{5:114}], and the birth of `Isa [{Surah Maryam}].

However, more detailed references would be needed in order to write a
public statement about this.

> What is the ruling of celebrating non-religious secular holidays
which have a good meaning. Thanksgiving, Fathers Day, Grandparents Day, and Mothers Day.

The recommendation here is to downplay the importance of these secular
days and not make them of the level of our mandated holidays such as `Id al-Fitr and `Id al-Adhaa. Otherwise, these holidays would be mubah (Allowed) again
references would be similar to those needed above from the Prophet's life
indicating he did not reject all of the special days of Jahiliyyah (such as the commemoration of some Jahiliiyah treaties and wars which were still remembered after Islam among the early Muslims).

> What about Birthdays? What about Mawlid al-Nabi? The scholars have
mostly said that it is not an innovation, so can we celebrate the non-religous Christian holidays with the intention not to imitate the non-Muslims.

The ruling for birthdays is hinted in footnote 295.d of the Explanatory
Notes of the Guiding Helper. The ruling is that celebrating the Prophet's birthday is mandub (Recommended) and celebrating one's own birthday or some other person's birthday is mubah.

It is based upon a less-authenticated hadith report that the Prophet
(May Allah bless him and give him peace) observed his own birthday by fasting on that day "[I am fasting since] it is the day on which my mother gave birth to me."


Wassalamu `alaykum wa rahmatullah

Abuqanit Hasani
Main Author
Guiding Helper Foundation
 
I honor Amica for attempting to learn, and trying to do the right thing according to her beliefs. And for Abdulla to step in to inform and comfort, albiet a tad of sarcasm thrown in for flavor. And then Amica, again, immediatley after receiving information which she believed to sanctify what apparently her heart already knew and desired, immediately started the thread that was waiting in the wings for this thread to come to a conclusion of...

tis a beautiful thing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top