Post date: 23-Dec-2011 07:33:57
Muharram and Christmas Greeting 2011
Last Sunday morning I received a text message from the international azadari group ‘The Voice of Truth’ inviting me to the Matami Jaloos (mourning procession) to be held on Christmas Day in Birmingham. My first reaction was a silent “oops” and within an hour I had received a number of texts and e-mails from committed local Shi’i Muslims concerned that the sensibilities of practicing Christians might be disturbed in anyway during one of their Holiest Celebrations.
This year the Muslim commemoration of the martyrdom of Imam Al-Husayn (as) and the Christian celebrations for the birth of Hadhrat Jesus (as) have once again coincided and given both communities the opportunity to demonstrate the good will that exists between us. We in our masjids and you in your churches have focussed peacefully upon our faiths in the security of being good neighbours.
In past years members and friends of Birmingham’s Clifton Road Shi’i community have been able to invite our neighbours to blood donations and inter-faith events that confirm our belief in the universal humanitarian message of Al-Husayn’s (as) struggle and sacrifice. It is unfortunate that this year the City and Police authorities would only grant permission for the public demonstration of our deep religiosity upon Christmas day when we know our Christian brothers and sisters will be fully engaged in their churches and homes. Fortunately we have years of experience in working alongside and supporting each other in a multi-cultural community of many faiths. The £5 Million pound government spending on, amongst similar projects, “a resource for Christians” in a predominantly Muslim district of the city provoked little comment except from Christians concerned for Muslim sensibilities. However, most of us realise that the somewhat colonial Cameron view of Christianity and the Nation, which ignores the authority of Church leaders, is one that is only viable in a very small, narrow room and does not reflect the way we live in Birmingham.
After consulting with leading figures in the various established local Muslim organisations within Birmingham and the organisers I am delighted to offer, on my own and their behalf, our sincere wishes for your successful celebration of the Christmas season and that they are not diminished by our commitment to our own religious customs. The coincidence of these events is we believe an opportunity for our communities to once again demonstrate how people following different paths can readily share the same small urban space without losing their distinctive cultures and without diluting their beliefs. Rather, as the mourning followers of Al-Husayn (as) march past your churches and homes they also celebrate the aspirations that we share for mankind and we hope that you will accept our invitation to pause for a moment to contemplate that in celebrating the birth of our great leaders we are aware of their living and return to the source of all good.