Waleed Basyouni – Perspective on Holiday Season

			In Alhamdulillah, Hamad who want to stay in who want to study who want to start Pharaoh 102 Billahi
min Cerulean Pacino min Satya Medina Maja de la ilaha illallah wa
		

			sallahu wa shadow Allah Allah in La la la sharika wa shawanna Mohammed Abu rasuluh Allahumma salli
ala Muhammad wa ala Muhammad. Kamal salata Ibrahim Ibrahim A inika hamidah Majeed Eva de la. opera
is due to align His praise and blessings and peace be upon prophet muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa
sallam, his family, his companions and all of his followers until the day of judgment. I bear
witness that Allah is the only one worthy of worship and Muhammad Sallallahu Sallam his last and
final messenger.
		

			My dear brothers and sisters, these days are holiday days where people take off having a good amount
of time in their hand most of the people and children and kids out of the school and not only kids,
even adults, you know, and I see some of the college students are ready with us in this hot bath.
Which makes me happy to see them and makes me happy to feel that people have kind of break in their
life. Also a lot of good discounts. People go to the mall people go for shopping. In general the
environment since we're living in a in a Christian country, dominating it by Christian faith. You'll
see it's a it's a it's like the same amount of joy and happiness that you see in a Muslim country
		

			when you are in the time of read. People happy celebrating and so forth. I'm saying this because
it's important to realize this which is obvious, but when you know that your children, your family,
everybody around you see everybody's happy and celebrating mood. It will be so important for us with
your children in your family, not to be in turn off mood. And to be always not in a grumpy mood. You
always make sure that this is also days where the field the connected to the family, to the Father
to the mother a time where they can spend time together. I don't want for a second for a second that
anyone ever will think you know what I wish i'm not i wish i hobby this I have that you still can
		

			spend a good time with your family during these days as the days where we can come together. I
always believe since I moved to America, we have a we're blessed community that we will celebrate
our ends and we get off and other Institue and other people's or other faith communities get
advantage of it as well.
		

			There is no harm at all for taking advantage of the you know of the chance that you have if you want
to go shopping you want to go get advantage of the all what's going on these days. And Lima Malika
rahima Hello to Ana once was asked about the Christians celeb celebrations and AIDS holidays so you
know American Idol can eyes that he said that Muslim will go to their celebrations and where they
gather. So they will purchase or sell clothes, food, goods and items taking care of that you taking
advantage of that social interaction. And he said Would that be fine that Eman Malik Rahim Allah
said it is fine as long as they don't enter their churches any they don't go celebrate with them in
		

			a religious form. Also mohana ohana bin Yahya, one of the students of Lima Mohammed Rahim Allah, he
said in a sham or his from from Syria, he said in the na totalboat where they are you will ashba who
yeah definitely will be hidden dasara he told him about certain solid holidays and celebrations that
the Christian in Sham celebrate and he said they bring like animals and bring food and things people
celebrate and having fun and the market that became like a big big days. And he said Would it be
okay for the Muslim to participate? Go eat and basically eat in these markets and and bring goods
and purchase good. He said as long as they don't enter the churches. It is okay.
		

			These holidays are mainly we have to sit with the Christmas then you have the new year. And from a
pure Islamic perspective, we differentiate between the Christmas and the New Year in certain areas
and they are similar and other areas where the main issue for making a distinguish between the
Christmas the Christmas and the new year. And keep that in mind that Christmas is that a religious
holiday? is a religious holiday related to Christmas.
		

			belief.
		

			And there is no doubt that it is a religious holiday. Even though some scholars today and some
student of knowledge today, try to reframe that holiday or this occasion, by saying it's became a
culture more than just a religious celebration. And I agree it is part of the culture. But cultures
are made of multiple things, how cultures developed, any culture, how it's developed, it's developed
from many different items and elements that would make the culture. So no doubt that the Western
culture today, part of what contribute to making it is that a logistic believer the faith that
Western people in the West believe in and dominated by Christianity, and no doubt that this whole
		

			concept of Christmas, it is about Jesus, the birth of Jesus.
		

			That's why it is actually the word Christmas, if you look at the root of that word, where the broad
word Christmas came from, it's the Christ mass. And after that these two words, basically joined
together to make a new word, which is Christmas.
		

			And you might ask, why Christmas in the 25th of December, if it's a religious, if it's about the day
of Jesus's birth, or the birth of Jesus, the birthday of Jesus, we know that he was not born on the
25th of December.
		

			Most of Christians theology and we'll agree on that will tell you, yes, no Christian theology or
most of the theology and will agree that Jesus wasn't born in the 25th of December. Why, because as
we have in the Quran, they have also in the Bible, the story of Mary when she delivered Jesus, that
she basically needed a date. So the date was
		

			ready to be collected, and the date will never be ready during December. It has to be in the summer.
And that story, it is exists in the Bible, and it's exist in the Quran. So the No, it never wasn't
in the winter season. It must be was in the summer. That's why a lot of Christian believe he was
born in July. Also, you'll see some other theology and believe that
		

			Christmas should have been in March. And in Egypt, for example, until today, they don't celebrate it
in 25th.
		

			of December, orthodox in general celebrate Christmas and January 7. But the reason for this theology
to make Christmas on the 25th it is because the want, if, if I can say that Kristen, is a Roman
festival, that known at that time in the 25th of December, that it is was the celebrated by the
Roman Emperor, and the Roman culture that time it called the festival off the God of the sun. And
the say that because the sun in the winter come to bring war, many you can imagine all this Roman
believes in these many different gods. So at that time, there were christianizing, the Romans and
transferring them to Christianity. So in order for them to appeal to them, they said, since this is
		

			the biggest God that the Romans recognize, because it's the sun, we have the Son of God. So the four
somehow these decide to make that as a Christian celebration as well, so they can get the Romans to
celebrate it as well, through centuries and hundreds of years, it became part of the tradition. So
what is our position from it as Muslim and you see clearly it is has a religious roots and it it is
basic by though what I just said it's one of the theories about why they celebrate Christmas in the
25th of December, and one of the
		

			only the most respected theory I come across.
		

			So why what our position is Muslim from Christmas. Number one, we don't recognize Christmas as a
religious celebrations or holiday for us Absolutely not. Because of that religious roots that
related to the Christmas as recognize Jesus as Son of God, and he born to free the humanity from the
sense that they inherently carried on this. This belief is something that we don't believe in it as
Muslims.
		

			So that's number one. Number two, we do not
		

			oppose our view of not celebrating Christmas over Christians. So one of the things that you hear
these days in the media, oh, Muslim offended by seeing Christmas or I get offended of some side
hobby, Christmas or hobby, or hobby that I never just like I get offended if I hear or I see
		

			Someone have a Christmas celebrations, or have a Christmas tree in their stores, or their shops as
they get offended as Muslim. And that's something very weird. I don't know where they got that, from
that we get offended by that. I don't get offended by seeing a Christian celebrating his own
religion. That doesn't doesn't offend me. It's like seeing anyone practicing whatever religion that
they have, I get offended if I don't get offended if I see Christians have his own cross or carrying
his own cross every day, I don't get offended if I see a Jew who wears the harmonica or though the
hat I don't get offended by that, claiming that the Muslims get offended by that. And now we have to
		

			change the culture to do holiday instead of Christmas. You know, what if you want to do that for a
secular reason, and I think the one who pushing this agenda or not the Muslim, it is the far left
liberal and the country who want to strip any religious identity from the society. And that's
basically the whole entire discussion. I think putting the Muslims in the middle is not a true is
not the right way, is not a fair way of portraying the discussion. And you can imagine just throwing
Muslim in the middle. It is for a very cheap political game. So you can make every Christians feel
offended by every Muslim exists in the world. Exactly. similar to this. What do we have today in the
		

			country, one of the biggest discussion in the country we have is what about guns, about the rules
controlling guns, when it was looking into one of the
		

			Christians, right wing Christians, universities called freedom in Virginia,
		

			established by a very racist, right wing, even though he's very famous, Jerry Falwell, and his son,
leading the university today, he was talking about how the country should arm themselves and have
license and all this kind of, and this is Obama is wanting to strip us from our rights, our
constitutional right of having guns, all this good discussion, then all of the sudden, so the
hobbies, he threw the Muslims in the middle under the bus, he said, so when Muslim come to your
gathering with an arm, you can have your gun to defend yourself. That's a very nasty way of putting
it. Because this year, we have over 300 300 urban shooting in America.
		

			Two of them only done by circle Muslims,
		

			two or three,
		

			while the rest of them are done by your own people, or mostly by your own people, the last person
who's speaking, so to put the Muslim in the middle of what he call, choosing the circumstances just
to make Muslim hate and by the public, and to make them always look negative. So anyway, so I just
want to make sure that this also it is something clear.
		

			As for us as well, we cannot be taking part of any celebrations has to do with the Christmas.
		

			It has a religious nature, because Allah Subhana Allah said clearly in the Quran, why am I an amine
and mushrikeen? I am not among them, we should again, I don't do like them. I don't act like them
and don't celebrate like them. I'm different. So I don't pray to other than a law. I don't recognize
any other anyone other than last month, Allah as a God is the only God that we believe in and we
will pray for the What about the social interactions, not the religious interactions with a Muslim?
What is the limit for Muslim to deal and Christmas when it comes to social interactions, and social
interactions? I will put it in two areas number one, greeting. And this a lot of people ask these
		

			days about the issue of greeting and this common way of greeting it. It's not a new issue. It's an
issue that in America, Mahalo to Ana, debated over it. And I wanted to know that that is two
opinions among the scholars in regard to the issue of greeting non Muslims and their holidays.
Number one, there are before even this disk before the difference of opinion, I want to make
establish one point that everybody agree upon, which is if you agreed them and Christmas in a form
or awards that shows that you believe in the concept that Jesus Son of God, that's absolutely
forbidden. on everybody agree on that. You know, in the old days, they give examples, I couldn't see
		

			it fit in modern days. Like in the old days, you see the talk about like you tell them May God bless
some preserve your religion, may or your religion be victorious or May this he said these kinds of
statements are absolutely not for not allowed. So in his statement that shows that you're pleased
happy of the COVID or the schoodic that they do it
		

			It is absolutely forbidden. I couldn't think of anything that we do today as social interaction, if
any way when you agreed or you congratulate a Christian persons for their religion, it indicates
that you know what I really like the idea that Jesus Son of God, and that words mean, hey, you doing
good? You're fine. I couldn't think of anything by just saying happy holiday or Happy Christmas or
anything, it doesn't really necessarily means that.
		

			But still,
		

			if you said a word in general, some economists said even if your statement, not necessarily clearly
saying clearly saying that you support this action, which is you don't agree with from theological
point of view, just the greeting in itself give a form of comfort that you confirm what you'd be
doing.
		

			It's when you say Happy days or hobby, a hobby Christmas or something like that, in the sentence
Exactly. Like someone telling you I'm going to Vegas and you know, you know what happened in Vegas.
So, I mean, not everything happened bad in Vegas, but let's say just as it is the reputation that
Vegas has, so let's say someone's telling you, I'm going for gambling, I'm going for this then you
tell him Hey, Happy Happy trip and happy time. You nobody's going to drink he's going to forget to
go to gamble are going to do all this thing. Then you Tell him I'll be holiday or hobby trip. You
know, have a safe trip, have a good trip, have a good time. They said that's exactly like that. So
		

			when you say Happy holiday and you are saying happy to the action that they do, which is recognize
Jesus as the Son of God worshipping Jesus. And that's what he said. It's not all to say. That's the
perspective that led many scholars said you cannot read any people who make her religious and
religious celebrations with any type of greedy. Other group of scholars said no hold on you taking
it too far. Celebrating or saying happy holiday or Happy Christmas or things love that nation to
someone who is Christians. You don't really say that because in your mind and your intention to
connect the two together. It's like telling them it's off days, you're going to be having time with
		

			your family. I just wish you to have a good time with your family. I wish time during these two
days. I just simply wishing you to have a good and happy time. Has nothing to do with belief has
nothing to do with supporting whatever ideas or believe that they have. And they said Allah subhanaw
taala said in the Quran, Lionheart kumala anila Deena lemon hokum Allahu Allah Lydian LMU partido
COVID-19, credo community article unterberger oho matsudo la in the law of Moses in that our last
caller said, Allah does not forbade you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do
not expel you from your home from being righteous, good towards them, and acting justly toward them.
		

			The Saudi said to be nice and good and righteous toward them, to recognize their special days and to
say, I wish you a good time, I wish you a happy time, and so forth.
		

			And they said it's also just unfair because of the greed you endured holiday you greet them their
holiday so and when someone greet you with something you greet them better, and return. It's very
ironic, if you I don't know if you ever paid attention to this verse. Listen carefully. Maybe some
of you never pay paid attention to this point. Lyon how como la de la Vina. This very stark by
negation, a lot does not forbade you from those. One might say, what's the difference between saying
Allah does not forbid you from doing this? And Allah ordering you to do this and that?
		

			There is this question a lot didn't say in the verse Hey, Allah ordered you to do to be this and the
city does not forbade you from being this and that to them, which is being good and being just why
they sent because the natural state, common sense that you should the default roles, that you should
be nice and good and fair and nice to everybody.
		

			And maybe because of their religion, you might think is there is any question here Allah saying no,
because these good manners should be with everybody doesn't matter what their religion is, as long
as they are people who are friends and people who share with you the life with no aggressions. So
this is just an idea of how the other model human law debated over that Allah, Allah order us to say
nice things to people in general to make them feel good. You know, it's ironic that in Egypt rapa
avenham it which is a companions was walking in one of the streets of Egypt, and he found that a
Christian guy interacted with him and he told that Christian person, he told him up Allah hieratic,
		

			waka Malik, whoa la de Malaga.
		

			Your Long live mela give you a lot of wealth May Allah subhanaw taala give you a lot of children do
you think that companion he said this to the Christian person? He was connecting the two together?
May Allah give you a long life so you can make more shirts so you can make Do you think he was
thinking that way? Now he just was asking him to have a good time a good life. Same thing a good
vacation good holiday, the same concept. You know when even Ambassador the law and it's an amazing
they've been a bus and also reported by Buhari for generations, I've been an ambassador they allow
answered locata leaf round barakallahu fig, La Jolla horriffic Allahu Akbar, Allahu baddeck it if I
		

			told him he may Allah bless you, I will tell him Allah bless you do.
		

			That's what I've been ambassador. So to take that and to push it too far to the extent that would
lead a lot of scholars especially in the modern days, don't agree to save for to forbade any form of
greeting when it comes to holiday. I think it won't be one of the safest way to say it is
distinguish somebody happy holiday, taking consideration that the concept of at the handy greeting
people is absolutely going back to the to the customer has nothing It is what's the opposite. In
order for you to say this type of greeting is how long in this Okay, just hold on, you need a proof.
And I think that what the other group really failed to produce a specific proof to forbade that
		

			because every other proof is not very explicit, that the use and by the way, there is no consensus.
A lot of people quote what am said, I'm saying this because I know you read maybe come across this,
and a lot of people listen to this talk, but as well, a lot of people usually have no pay him said
there is agreement between the scholars that going and greeting the Christian in their holidays, and
celebrating Christmas with them is worse than eating pork worse than drinking alcohol worse than
fornication worse than this and that, you know what if no, Khayyam was talking about someone who
will say and greet them to recognize that their religion is correct. their belief in Jesus is
		

			correct. Because that's a data issue is not is worse than LD sins that you mentioned. But not the
case that we're dealing here with in America May Allah Spanish Allah subhanahu COVID de
		

			la
		

			hamdu Lillah wa salatu salam, Ala Moana Ba Ba Ba,
		

			the other form of social interaction is Christmas parties and celebrations. It that means going to
the churches and being in the masses. And the prayer absolutely is not allowed for us. If it's a
family gathering, you have family members who are not Muslims, or non Muslims, and they invite you
for it. I think that's allowed and permissible for you to go as long as you don't participate in
anything considering our religion has done. The same thing with
		

			husband and wife, your wife if she is a Christian, and remember, the hammer law said you're not
allowed to prevent her from celebrating the Christmas having her own even tree or or whatever
practice that she does, it is not up to you to prevent them. And if this is the case, this applies
to your employees as well. If you have a company, you have a business and one of them want to have
their own celebrations or whatever they do, you give them that right because it is
		

			they are they have their freedom and their religion and one of the meaning of there shall be no
compulsion in religion is to forbid them from practicing it as well.
		

			In the end, my brother and sisters asked for the celebrating the New Year. Celebrating the new year
is not a religious matter, but it makes sure that you don't participate in anything haram or to
regulate it in a way that it is not from the way of 100 Islam like you know closing the light and
you know dancing and kissing and making wishes and all these things that is not part of the
etiquettes of Islam wasting money is not directly related to us as a community but when you hear
country spend millions and millions and millions and billions of sometimes if you add them together
on celebrating it by fireworks Why do we have our brothers and sisters all over the world could not
		

			find a place to sleep or to cover their naked body with it became very sad reality today
		

			and then don't want to say take advantage of the time spend the quality time with your children talk
to them about what Christmas what's the eight is what's up need as how was our religion Allah save
it for us. No changes happen to take advantage of participating in conferences either locally we
have Texas documentation conference coming in December Christmas or outside travel to another state
to attend one of the conferences spend time with your family will be my first priority in this
		

			holidays. My last panel data and final Jacobi Luminato when the Geneva Yakuza do and after our
jacobina genome and cofina one a man you know and Gemma at home hope you know not only Bella kena la
vida de na lamalfa la vida de de la mer for the last 18 a lot more for the Muslim and non Muslim as
well meaning or may not even know what am What are bannerghatta Delphia una Villa Linda de la mano
Robin attina for dunya Hassan, Hassan Okinawa but not a la mirada dynafit Natalie I mean when I met
Tom in Calgary cavalry and well salam wa sallim ala Nabina, Muhammad Rama Satyam como la
		

			la la la