Jummah Kutbahaykum: Should you be allowed to celebrate Christmas if you don't like it? Do you have a problem with it? Is it a bad thing? Should you boycott it if it doesn't offend you? I speak to a Muslim woman about her experience with Christmas and how she dealt with it.
00:00:00.000And shirk is one of the things that we don't like, however, it does not mean just because I dislike it, it means that I have a problem with you celebrating it, do you get it?
00:00:09.620And I think it should be fair because if Muslims have the right to celebrate eat, why should you in your own country not be allowed to celebrate Christmas?
00:00:30.000As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, my dear friends, I'm here with Santa Claus, I'm not talking about him, I'm talking about this one here.
00:00:51.100So there's a big misconception obviously that's going around, and I was speaking to a lady here regarding this issue as well, that there is misconception that we as Muslims, that Easter bothers us, you know, when we go to Tesco's and we see those chocolates, besides wanting to eat it, that it really, really offends us, that for example when there's Christmas carols here, when there's a Christmas tree here, or when there's Santa Claus here, that it really, really bothers us.
00:01:14.620To be honest, Santa Claus doesn't have a direct link with, because they say Christmas is based upon Jesus' birth, right, but I don't know how Santa Claus comes into that, yeah, it doesn't, I don't know, he's just busy looking after his dears, flying around, giving gifts around, yeah, so thank you very much for that.
00:01:30.820So yeah, I just wanted to say, like, this big misconception, it's a lie, you know, and I was speaking to this lady as well over here, that she was, I think, 20 years ago?
00:01:40.100Yeah, 20 years ago, what happened exactly?
00:01:41.520My children had just started primary school in Hackney, and the school said, no, there's going to be no nativity play, the Christmas holidays, we're going to call them winter break, and I said, why is this?
00:01:58.040And they said, because we don't want to offend the Muslim community and the pupils at the school.
00:02:03.220So I went and asked the Muslim parents, and none of them were offended by it, they all thought it was a little ridiculous, they were cancelling it.
00:02:11.520And especially as the school were always, all the other culture's celebrations were acknowledged, but they were too scared to acknowledge Christmas, because they didn't want to offend the Muslims.
00:02:22.000But the Muslims weren't offended, because I asked them, and so I went back to the staff, and I said, they're not offended, they say, oh no, no, we still can't do it.
00:02:29.120And that was 20 years ago, and I wish I knew now, what I knew then, I should have started a petition, I should have done more about it, and got all the Muslim parents to sign it.
00:02:39.440But they cancelled Christmas, and because the left wing, which is a very left wing borough, they were being offended on the Muslims' behalf, and it was unnecessary.
00:02:51.740Yeah, you're right, you know, it causes a divide.
00:02:54.880Exactly, exactly, it's like they don't want to cause divide, but they are causing a divide.
00:02:58.800You know, as a Muslim, I'm an Orthodox Muslim, you know, I don't sugarcoat my religion, I don't, you know, I believe Islam in every single text that it has, yeah.
00:03:07.020So I can tell you very clearly, yeah, we do not celebrate Christmas, however, we are not offended by you celebrating Christmas, you singing the Christmas carols.
00:03:15.240Because whatever it involves, it doesn't bother us, yeah, I'm telling you to your face, I'm not even sugarcoating, some people say, oh, he's doing taqiyah, taqiyah is not even part, I don't even know what taqiyah is, yeah.
00:03:25.760This is a certain group in Islam, Shias, they use it, and that's even then, in context, that is if your life is in danger.
00:03:33.440If somebody comes and says, I'm going to kill you, renounce your religion, even then, that's when you use it, yeah.
00:03:40.600So the issue is, I'm being very blunt with you, I do not have no problem, yeah, because we came, you know Amy, there was a lady, she came once and she had bacon in her hand and she was waving in her face.
00:03:50.060And I felt like, like, you know, I'm not like a vampire with garlic, not the bacon.
00:03:55.840You know, the thing is, it's, look, bacon doesn't offend us, these things, we, just because we don't, we're not allowed to eat it, doesn't mean we think the animal's evil, yeah, we don't hold that animal's evil.
00:04:04.600Now, Christmas, obviously, if they, if, now it's become like, you know, it's like a cultural thing, do you get it?
00:04:09.420So, the thing is, it's like, it's not like the celebration of the birth of Jesus, to us, it's a big sin in Islam, it's a major sin in Islam.
00:04:16.960And, um, shirk is one of the things that we don't like, however, it does not mean, just because I dislike it, it means that I have a problem with me celebrating it, do you get it?
00:04:26.040And I think it should be fair, because if Muslims have the right to celebrate Eid, why should you, in your own country, not be, not be allowed to celebrate Christmas?
00:04:36.100Can I just ask you, Ali, I mean, there's been a few, like, a couple of Christmas massacres, there was one recently, I think, was it in France?
00:04:42.580Why was a Muslim guy, I mean, what was his denomination, why was he behaving like that?
00:04:46.360Okay, so, now the thing is, with these people, I think so, I heard he had a Muslim name, but I don't know his intentions, I think he was influenced by ISIS, yeah?
00:04:54.520Now, the thing is, with these people, most of them you see, is that they're young, most of them are young and naive, yeah?
00:05:00.340So, the Prophet, peace be upon you, when he lived with the Christians and the Jews, he said that there was covenants that were made, yeah?
00:05:05.480He said, your cross, your place of worship, yeah?
00:05:09.260Your laws, your regulations, your livelihood, whatever it may be, nobody can harm you guys, okay?
00:05:15.220Okay, because that's your religious beliefs, so, if we had a problem, if the Prophet had a problem, yeah?
00:05:20.300So, we want to look at what these guys are doing and what the Prophet did.
00:05:23.520Did the Prophet, when he was living with the Christians and the Jews, when he wasn't in power and when he was in power, yeah?
00:05:29.500Okay, when the Sharia was in power, okay, the Sharia law that everybody talks about,
00:05:36.120when the Muslims were in power, they never, never forced or oppressed the Christians or the Jews to go.
00:05:41.400So, imagine, are we in power now? Are the Muslims in power?
00:05:44.380Is there a, is there a, no, is there a caliphate?
00:06:00.460So, these people who follow, they're a bunch of young, naive, I guarantee you, let me tell you something, let me tell you something, let me tell you something, yeah?
00:06:10.020Most of these people, they are brainwashed, yeah?
00:06:12.460Because if you go to the experts, look, let me show you something, yeah?
00:06:15.060If you go to the experts who have dealt with this matter, you will see some shocking statements.
00:06:19.840Let me show you something, very interesting.