With Christmas just gone by, I feel that it is an opportunity to write about the Sunna Files Community’s beliefs and views about Christmas and its related celebrations. Muslims do not celebrate Christmas. Many people know this, but they may not know why. If Jesus, peace be upon him, is so revered in Islam, why do we not celebrate his birthday? It is necessary to point out that Jesus and his mother, Hazrat Maryam (Mary), are highly revered by Muslims.
The other question that needs to be addressed regarding Christmas is whether 25 December is the actual date of the birth of Jesus. According to the Bible, in the hands of Christians nowadays, when Jesus was born, shepherds slept outside in the open to tend to their sheep and date palms were the seasonal fruit. When the baby (Jesus) was born, Hazrat Maryam shook a date palm tree and ate the dates that fell. She drank water from a nearby stream. It was the season of the ripening of dates, probably around August or September. Both the Quran and the Bible (New Testament, Luke 2:7-8) give evidence of the actual time of Jesus’ birth as autumn rather than winter.
Winters, and especially winter nights in Bethlehem, are too cold to sleep in the open. Christians themselves are unsure of the actual date of the birth of Jesus. The consensus was to adopt the date of the ancient rituals related to the Winter Solstice as the day of his birth (Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th edition).
When the authenticity of the date of an event is doubtful, how can it form the basis of a celebration reflecting Christian faith and beliefs? And last but not least, the Christmas spirit has become a business and marketing venture, leading to wasteful expenditure and activities that negate the spirit and teachings of Christianity.
Today, Christmas has been all about receiving and not giving. Children expect adults to give them expensive gifts, rather than being content with what they have.
In a nutshell, Muslims do not celebrate Christmas for many reasons; we mentioned only two here, which are:
1. People should follow the teachings of their prophets and take the time for reflection, rather than make their birthdays occasions for merriment and enjoyment
2. The Quran and Bible both give evidence that 25 December is not the date of birth of Jesus (peace be upon him).
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