BARKA DA SALLAH: Let us understand our differences
What is Eid al-Adha? According to Islamic sources, at the end of the Hajj (annual pilgrimage to Mecca), Muslims throughout the world celebrate the holiday of Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice). During the Hajj, Muslims remember and commemorate the trials and triumphs of the Prophet Abraham. One of Abraham’s main trials was to face the […]
What is Eid al-Adha?
According to Islamic sources, at the end of the Hajj (annual pilgrimage to Mecca), Muslims throughout the world celebrate the holiday of Eid al-Adha (Festival of Sacrifice).
During the Hajj, Muslims remember and commemorate the trials and triumphs of the Prophet Abraham. One of Abraham’s main trials was to face the command of God to kill his only son. When Ishmael was about 13 (Abraham being 99), God decided to test their faith in public. Abraham had a recurring dream, in which God was commanding him to offer his son as a sacrifice. This was the son God had granted him after many years of deep prayer. Abraham knew that the dreams of the prophets were divinely inspired, and one of the ways in which God communicated with his prophets. When the intent of the dreams became clear to him, Abraham decided to fulfill God’s command and offer Ishmael for sacrifice.
Although Abraham was ready to sacrifice his dearest for God’s sake, he could not just go and drag his son to the place of sacrifice without his consent. Ishmael had to be consulted as to whether he was willing to give up his life as fulfillment to God’s command. This consultation would be a major test of Ishmael’s maturity in faith, love and commitment for God, willingness to obey his father and sacrifice his own life for the sake of God.
Abraham presented the matter to his son and asked for his opinion about the dreams of slaughtering him. Ishmael did not show any hesitation or reservation even for a moment. He said, “Father, do what you have been commanded. You will find me, Insha’Allah (God willing), to be very patient.”
When both father and son had shown their perfect obedience to God and they had practically demonstrated their willingness to sacrifice their most precious possessions for His sake — Abraham by laying down his son for sacrifice and Ishmael by lying patiently under the knife – God called out to them stating that his sincere intentions had been accepted, and that he need not carry out the killing of Ishmael. Instead, Abraham was told to replace his son with a ram to sacrifice instead.
This is mentioned in the Qur’an as follows: “O my Lord! Grant me a righteous (son)!” So we gave him the good news of a boy, possessing forbearance. And when (his son) was old enough to walk and work with him, (Abraham) said: O my dear son, I see in vision that I offer you in sacrifice: Now see what your view is!” (The son) said: “O my father! Do what you are commanded; if Allah wills, you will find me one practising patience and steadfastness!” So when they both submitted and he threw him down upon his forehead, We called out to him saying: O Ibraheem! You have indeed fulfilled the vision; surely thus do We reward those who do good. Most surely this was a manifest trial. And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice. And We perpetuated (praise) to him among the later generations. “Peace and salutation to Abraham!” Thus indeed do We reward those who do right. Surely he was one of Our believing servants.[Q37:99-105]
As a reward for this sacrifice, Allah then granted Abraham the good news of the birth of his second son, Is-haaq (Isaac):
And We gave him the good news of Is-haaq, a prophet from among the righteous.[Q.37: 112]
Abraham had shown that his love for God superseded all others: that he would lay down his own life or the lives of those dearest to him in submission to God’s command. Muslims commemorate this ultimate act of sacrifice every year during Eid al-Adha. [The Sunnah of Eid al-Adha]
Why do Muslims sacrifice an animal on this day?
During the celebration of Eid al-Adha, Muslims commemorate and remember Abraham’s trials, by themselves slaughtering an animal such as a sheep, camel, or goat. The meat from the sacrifice of Eid al-Adha is mostly given away to others. One-third is eaten by immediate family and relatives, one-third is given away to friends, and one-third is donated to the poor. The act symbolizes their willingness to give up things that are of benefit to them or close to their hearts, in order to follow God’s commands. It also symbolizes their willingness to give up some of their own bounties, in order to strengthen ties of friendship and help those who are in need. Though the Qur’an does indeed state that Adam and Eve
sinned, according to Islamic belief, they repented and were fully forgiven so that their sin had no repercussions for the rest of human race. For the non-Muslim therefore it is very important to understand that the sacrifice itself, as practised by Muslims, has nothing to do with atoning for sins or using the blood to wash away sins. This is clear from the Qur’an where it is said: “It is not their meat nor their blood that reaches Allah; it is your piety that reaches Him.” (Qur’an 22:37)
The symbolism of this episode in the life of Abraham and his son Ismael is in the attitude – a willingness to make sacrifices in our lives in order to stay on the Straight Path. Each of us makes small sacrifices, giving up things that are fun or important to us. A true Muslim, one who submits his or herself completely to the Lord, is willing to follow God’s commands completely and obediently.
It is this strength of heart, purity in faith, and willing obedience that God desires from us. This same narrative is found n the Jewish scripture which constitutes the first part of the Christian Bible referred to as the Old Testament. However, unlike the Jews, the Christians interpret this Abrahamic story a pre-cursor to the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary. The reason for this has to do with the Christian understanding of human nature, hence the concept of original sin.
From the Christian perspective, sin and salvation are central categories in their theology and spirituality. Christianity teaches that the effects of original sin have corrupted the world and the human beings who exist in it. In Islam, however, there is no such a thing as original sin as pointed out above.
Original Sin
The Bible and Qur’an both talk about the Fall but the implications are different. While Christianity affirms the concept of original sin, Islam denies it, this is where the interpretation of the sacrifice of Abraham’s son is understood differently. I believe the Islamic rejection of original sin is really the rejection of a ‘specific understanding’ of original sin. Islam rejects the doctrine of original sin that asserts that all human beings inherited the guilt — the culpability — of the sin of Adam and Eve. This seems unfair to the Muslim: Why should we have to accept guilt for someone else’s disobedience?
To respond to such a question, Christians must move beyond a narrow Augustinian understanding of original sin, the view that “in Adam’s fall we sinned all.” The Calvinists later carried this view to an extreme, saying that the result of Adam’s sin is total human depravity; that is, that original sin has made human beings completely incapable of doing anything good without the assistance of divine grace! Such a notion is thoroughly incomprehensible to Muslims! However, sin indeed has a “snowball effect”: it accumulates throughout human history, impacting upon all who are born into the world. What started this off was the sin of Adam and Eve — the first, or original, sin in this process.
In presenting this concept to the Nigerian Muslim, it is the opinion of this writer that there is a need to turn to the Eastern Christians for some help. For the Eastern Christians ( Arabs and Orientals)to say that all suffer the effects of original sin is not to say that all are “born guilty” but rather that all human beings have to deal with the powerful force of sin that has accumulated from the sin of our First Parents until the present day. It is this Eastern understanding of original sin that I would request my Muslim neighbour to consider.
Because Muslims do not recognize the universal and corruptive power of sin, unleashed as a result of original sin, they see no need for salvation in the Christian sense. If there is no sin that has a throttle-hold on you, you do not need to be saved from it. What you should do, according to the Islamic view, is to live a good life, pleasing God in all that you do. Submit to God and follow His directives. Religion, to the Muslim, does not mean salvation from sin; it means following the
right path, or the shari’a, mapped out by Islamic law. While Christianity is a faith concerned primarily with “orthodoxy,” or “right belief,” Islam is a faith concerned primarily with “orthopraxy,” or right practice. It is a religion of law, and it sees Christianity’s rejection of the Law (as taught by St. Paul in his writings, especially Romans and Galatians) as a serious deficiency in the Christian way of life. This, of course, does not mean that Islam is not at all concerned with right doctrine or that Christianity is not at all concerned with right practice. It simply means that the emphasis is different in the two religions.
The festival of sacrifice Eid al-Adha challenges all Muslims and Christians to demonstrate the complete obedience of Abraham to his Maker in their lives. If all would like Abraham be willing to give up what is priced most in life for the benefit of humanity, corruption would be reduced, fighting and killing one another for political power will also reduce, there will be a sense of safety in the country and we will be each other’s keepers.
The theological arguments on which son was offered, on which mountain the sacrifice took place and several others though important, have political undertones. We will understand very clearly on the day of judgment. Meanwhile, let us in the words of Sir Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto and first Premier of Northern Nigeria: …learn to “understand our differences”. Barka da Sallah. Eid Mubarak.
Fearon (Ph.D) ABU is Bishop of Kaduna Diocese (Anglican Communion)