RAMADAN
June 6 -July 5, 2016

Ramadan is the ninth month on the Islamic calendar. It is the month that Islamic tradition teaches that Muhammad began to receive his revelations that would eventually be put in writing to form the Koran. As a result, Ramadan is the holiest month on the Islamic calendar.

According to the Koran, it is a religious obligation for Muslims to fast during the daylight hours of Ramadan to commemorate Muhammad receiving his revelations. The English version of the Koran reads as follows. I have used a hyphen when writing the name of the Islamic deity in keeping with the biblical command not to mention the name of other gods, nor let it be heard from your mouth (Exodus 23:13).

“In the month of Ramadan the Koran was revealed, a book of guidance with proofs of guidance distinguishing right from wrong. Therefore whoever of you is present in that month let him fast. A-l-l-a-h desires your well-being, not your discomfort. He desires that you fast the whole month so that you may magnify A-l-l-a-h and render thanks to him for giving you his guidance” (Koran 2:185).

In addition to the purpose stated above, the fast of Ramadan is similar in purpose and practice to the Biblical-Jewish fast day of Yom Kippur. In fact, the traditional Muslim interpretation of a verse in the Koran (2:183) is that Muhammad borrowed the idea of fasting from Yom Kippur. Traditional Islamic teaching is that those who observe Ramadan will have all their sins forgiven. It is said that when Ramadan arrives, the gates of heaven are open, the gates of hell are closed, Satan is bound and jinns (desert spirits) are locked up and whoever dies while observing Ramadan will enter paradise. Sound familiar?

Since the Arabic word for fasting (sawm) means “to refrain,” during Ramadan, Muslims refrain from normal physical and worldly thoughts and deeds. They spend their daylight hours contemplating spiritual matters, soul-searching, doing good deeds, seeking forgiveness, practicing charity, reading the Koran, praying, etc. Like Yom Kippur, It is a time of self-denial and purifying the body and soul. Observant Muslims refrain from eating, drinking, smoking and marital sex during the daylight hours. They rise early to have a pre-dawn meal called the suhoor. After sunset they have a post-fast meal called the iftar. Fasting is not required, although acceptable, for children who have not reached puberty, the sick, elderly, chronically ill and women who are pregnant, nursing or menstruating.

Let us pray that during this time of prayer, fasting and soul searching, observant Muslims will have a revelation of the One True God – the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. May it be so from our mouth to God’s ears.