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BY JULIO P. YAP JR.
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CHRISTMAS is the time of the year to remember and celebrate the birth of Jesus.
It’s a fact that Christians all over the world follow the teachings of Jesus, but what is less understood is that the Muslims also love and revere Jesus as one of God’s greatest messengers to mankind.
As respect and tribute to our Muslim brothers and sisters, please allow me to share with you a message that was posted on the www.islamawareness.net website, which might bring awareness and enlightenmentto everyone.
The personality of Jesus plays a central role in Islam.
Muslims believe that God delivered the Gospel – Injeel to Jesus, just as Ta’wrat to Moses and the Old Testament (Zabur) to David, and the Qur’an to Prophet Muhammad.
It is critical for Muslims and non-Muslims to understand that a person is not considered a Muslim unless he or she believes in Jesus, and Islam is the only religion that testifies to Christianity.
Islam also assigns a very high degree of respect to the mother of Jesus, Mary (Mariam).
There is an exclusive chapter in the Qur’an on the mother of Jesus by the name of “Sura-e-mariam.”
The life of Jesus Christ is a momentous event for Christians and non-Christians alike.
Jesus Christ’s birthday is a signpost, and of all the great people born through the ages. Imagine that Jesus is so important that his life divides time between B.C. and A.D.
Both Muslims and Christians can learn a lot from Christmas.
This annual celebration is the victory of paganism over the religion of Jesus and no one disputes that many of its symbols came from the pagan religions rather than the birth or teaching of Jesus Christ.
The incorporation of these pagan rituals with Christianity has taken a toll by corrupting the original Christian principles of spirituality, simplicity, humbleness, kindness, and generosity.
Christmas is an awesome time of the year, but the irony is that the Prophet Jesus and his teaching are becoming more and more absent from the celebrations.
However, there is a positive side of Christmas becoming increasingly secular. I think it’s awesome that Christmas brings some of the greatest truths of the gospel to light.
If it were not for the Christmas or Thanksgiving holidays, family relationships would be worse than they are.
In fact, these are the only times that many families make an attempt to mend broken relationships.
As the forces of hate in this country try to pull Muslims and Christians apart, we are in desperate need of a unifying force.
That force could be the message of love, peace, and forgiveness taught by Jesus and accepted by the followers of both faiths./PN
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