CHRISTMAS AND MAWLID CELEBRATIONS: THE MEETING POINT

By

Ibn Abdillah As-sudaisiy Al-Iloori

Christmas is to Christians what Maolid is to People of Bid'ah. Both have no basis in the Sunnah (Islaam). What this means is that Christmas has no bearing in Christianity. It was innovated into their faith by their leaders. Pastor Kumuyi, may Allaah guide him to Islaam, had said this many times. The same way, Maolid has no bearing in Islaam, it was innovated by the People of Bid'ah. Those who innovated Maolid did it to imitate the Christians. Many of those who celebrate Mawlid today are either ignorant of its genesis or carried away by their desires. Allaah's aid is sought!

So, People of Bid'ah are like the Christians in the ways they practice their religion. They copy from them span by span, and they introduce  anything they deem fit into their religion just like the Christians. The Prophet said in a saheeh hadith: you will follow the (wrong) ways of those before you (Jews and Christians). That is why we must be very careful.

In fact, those who celebrate Maolid and leave out Christmas are upon clear hypocrisy. They claim to be celebrating Muhammad صلى اله عليه وسلم, and leave Jesus عليه السلام uncelebrated. There is clear and direct connection between Christmas and Maolid. The celebrants of Maolid had to fight for its holiday just as the Christian did for Christmas holiday. I hope you can spot the conections now?

Celebration of Christmas is not for Muslims. We do not greet, feast or rejoice in respect of it. It is against the Sunnah for a Muslim to imitate the non-Muslims in their religion or celebrate their festivals with them. Greeting, feasting and rejoicing with kuffar on their festivals is like giving them an impression that they are on the right path. The best way to show love to non-Mislims is to call them to Islaam with wisdom, and not by celebrating their festivals with them

However, this doesn't mean that all those who celebrate Maolid are upon kufr that take them out of Islaam. But bid'ah, if not curtailed, could later grow to the extent of taking its perpetrator out of Islaam