With the holiday season here we should be mindful that not all of us share the same beliefs.
Since my conversion to Islam I have been asked how do I deal with my family as it relates to the holidays. This can be a very uncomfortable time for many revert Muslims because alot of our families aren't as accepting or respectful of the fact we don't share the same views as it relates to the holidays. It can be a time of isolation, an alienation. When I took shahada(Muslim declaration of faith) it was in the middle of October some years back and I remember the holiday season was fast approaching. I was conflicted because I was concerned about the reaction of my family. Most didn't know of my conversion so it was going to be a total shock to them. It wasn't that I was keeping my new faith a secret, I simply wasn't near family at the time I took shahada( I was living in Chicago). I replayed the scene over and over again in my mind....."what was I going to say when some said Merry Christmas to me?" How was I going to handle my children as it related to Santa Claus and the idea of gift giving. I spoke to several of my non Muslim friends and they all said the same thing, "you cant just do it for your kids?" Wasn't you brought up on Christmas? Yes I was and I responded by saying, If you learned one day the sun was the moon and the moon was the sun, would you tell the very people(my kids) who depend on you to prepare them for the world to tell them the truth? Or do you continue with the lie and hope they understand when they get older and find out for themselves. I always told my children if they ever asked me anything I would ALWAYS tell them the truth no matter what! So how could I not tell them the truth as I BELIEVED it to be about CHRISTMAS? I mean I learned what I learned about the real story behind CHRISTMAS as a christian! Islam afford me the opportunity to learn the TRUTH about who Jesus(r.a) really was.
When I finally encountered my family for the first time as Waheed Abdul Muhaimin i was met with mixed views. Some dismissed my conversion as "oh he confused" and that not what your mother raised you to be", or the best one is "I heard Muslims don't worship G-D....Jesus(r.a.) to them." Funny thing is, if they took the time to study anything outside their religion they would know we as Muslims recognize Jesus (r.a.) in the Qu'ran. I resisted getting into religious debates with many because I felt the people calling themselves Christians at that very moment were acting in complete contradiction to what they said they believed. My children handled my conversion probably better than any adults that I encountered.....when my daughter asked me what was wrong( i was really distance with her on Christmas) I asked her did she know what Christmas really meant? She said Santa Claus came to give people presents who have been good. So I asked did she know who's birthday it was, and she said Jesus(r.a). So i asked did Ashton(my son) get presents on YOUR birthday? She said no because his birthday is in October. So i asked why are you getting presents on Jesus(r.a.) birthday? Confused she asked why do I then? At that moment I explain to my children in the simplest way I could find for a 2 year old and a 4 year old to understand. I know Allah was with me that day because I couldn't have found the words to say myself. Of course their mom was extremely upset with me for this but I asked her the same question. How does it feel to know your parents lied to you about something? No matter the size of a lie, isn't it still a lie? I have since discovered that this is the very way rituals became woven into the fabric of our lives.....as the saying goes.."you tell a lie long enough and it becomes the truth".
Many in my family wasn't very supportive in the beginning and I caught flack from many friends as well. This I contributed this to their own lack of understanding. See by nature we fear, despise or hate what we don't understand. If we took the time to learn about things other than what we know a lot of the walls that separate us would come crumbling down. Stereotypes would be debunked, peace and harmony would exist. What we call religion has done more to divide us more than unite us. So on December 25th I don't shy away from my family, I am mindful of their beliefs but I stick to mine, for when we strip away all the trappings of religion we find the core principles that The Creator has instilled in us all, BELIEF IN A HIGHER POWER, LOVE AND RESPECT FOR ALL HIS CREATIONS! So I bid to you all Asalaam Alaikum....... HAPPY HANUKKAH......HAPPY KWANZAA........HAPPY HOLIDAYS
TEACHING A HEALTHY APPROACH TO A HAPPY EXISTENCE
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