It’s just great that Raheel Raza, as a practicing Muslim, finds Al-Quds Day abhorrent. I wish that more practicing Muslims did so as well. Unfortunately, her article contains a number of inaccuracies and misleading statements.
The participants in the anti-Israel rally in downtown Toronto were not shouting “God is great.” They were shouting “Allahu akbar,” which does not mean “God is great.” It means “Allah is greater,” that is, greater than your god or anything else that one may regard as an authority or power. It is, in other words, a declaration of Islamic supremacy that the translation “God is great” entirely glosses over.
“Conflict” is not “prohibited” during Ramadan. On the contrary. During Ramadan, an observant Muslim strives to conform his or her life to the will of Allah. And what is the will of Allah? A hadith has a Muslim asking Muhammad: “Instruct me as to such a deed as equals Jihad (in reward).” Muhammad replied, “I do not find such a deed.” (Bukhari 4.52.44). If jihad is the deed that brings the greatest reward, it is a perfect deed for Ramadan, in which Muslims strive to please Allah and do things that will bring them his rewards. That is why so many Muslims say that Ramadan is the month of jihad. A small sampling:
“Ramadan is not a month of laziness but rather a month of activity, of effort, and of hard work, and as it also was in the life of the Prophet, a month of jihad, conquest, and victory.” — Palestinian Authority Supreme Sharia Judge Mahmoud Al-Habbash
“Ramadan is a month of holy war and death for Allah. It is a month for fighting the enemies of Allah and God’s messenger, the Jews and their American facilitators.” — Qaedat al-Jihad
“Ramadan is the pious month of ‘Jihad-o-Qital’ (Jihad and killing). Those who attain martyrdom while waging Jihad, doors of heaven remain open.” — Maulana Bashir Ahmad Khaki
“Our fight is Jihad and an obligatory worship. And every obligatory act of worship has 70 times more reward in Ramadan.” — Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid
Raheel Raza might dismiss all these as jihadis who are twisting and hijacking her peaceful Islam, and that’s fine by me. The more Muslims she manages to convince of that, if she convinces any at all, the better. But the reason why she likely has trouble convincing Muslims that “conflict” is forbidden during Ramadan is because these four sources I just quoted are not ignorant of Islam and what it teaches. Habbash is a Sharia judge. Khaki is a maulana, a scholar of Islam. They didn’t draw their views about Ramadan out of thin air. They drew them from Islamic sources such as the hadith I quoted. And other Muslims do as well, which is one reason why there has been not just the abhorrent Al-Quds Day rally this Ramadan, but also 138 jihad attacks with 782 people killed.
Raza rejects the authority of “the ayatollahs and mullahs” and claims that “there is no official clergy in Islam,” but then clouds the point she is trying to make by adding: “Muslims believe in a direct connection with the Almighty, without the need for an intercessor.” That’s true, but it really doesn’t establish whether or not there are religious authorities in Islam, even if they aren’t considered intercessors between Allah and human beings (neither are Christian priests, which she apparently doesn’t know, but that’s beside the point). Generally in Sunni Islam, the ulama of various countries are recognized and respected authorities whose understandings of various issues take precedence over the understanding of the individual believer. In Shi’ite Islam the ayatollahs, to whom Raza refers directly here, have even greater authority. The word “ayatollah” itself means “sign of Allah,” which is the same designation given to verses of the Qur’an, and the ayatollahs are considered to be superior in Islamic learning; their opinions are not to be taken lightly or idly dismissed.
And finally, it must be noted that jihadis do not consider their acts of jihad to be manifestations of “hate” or “revenge” or “anger.” They are, rather, acts of piety and devotion to Allah, performed in the hope of reward from Allah. So when Raza says that there is to be no hate or revenger or anger during Ramadan, that may be true, but to a jihadi, or a participant in Al-Quds Day, that wouldn’t negate screaming “Allahu akbar” to the announcement of an attack on the Jews, whom the Qur’an designates as the worst enemies of the Muslims (5:82).
In light of all this, while Raheel Raza’s piece no doubt comforts those who are ignorant about these issues, her arguments would do nothing to deter a jihadi or change the mind of a participant in Al-Quds Day. And that’s what is really needed.
“Raheel Raza: As a practising Muslim, I find Al-Quds Day abhorrent,” by Raheel Raza, National Post, April 26, 2022
On April 24, there was an anti-Israel rally in downtown Toronto, at which participants could be heard shouting “God is great” after it was announced that Israel had been hit by two rockets. Such hate-filled events are not uncommon in Toronto, as we witness every year at the Al-Quds Day parade. As a practising Muslim observing the sanctity of the holy month of Ramadan — which is about contemplation, reflection and the renewal of our ethics and morals — I feel I must speak out….
First of all, conflict is prohibited during the month of Ramadan, as it is a time when hate, revenge, anger and rage are to be subdued. Thus, orchestrating an event that is nothing but a hate fest is totally against the essence of Ramadan.
Secondly, while some people believe they are following a legal edict by an ayatollah, according to many learned scholars, there is no official clergy in Islam. Muslims believe in a direct connection with the Almighty, without the need for an intercessor.
The ayatollahs and mullahs who take it upon themselves to impose their ideas on the Muslim masses are not divine and neither are they “sanctioned” by Islam. They are not in a position to promote violence and hate against anyone. In fact, Islam promotes knowledge, debate and discussion.
The Prophet Muhammad advised Muslims to attain knowledge even if you have to go to China (China at that time being considered the farthest point). Muslims are also told that if you possess knowledge and do not share it, you are like a donkey carrying a burden of books. The ayatollahs and mullahs who perpetuate Al-Quds Day are like the donkey, because they don’t share knowledge, but only incite divisions….
In May 2021, I wrote an article in this newspaper about violence perpetrated against two young people, warning that the roots of antisemitism are based on hate and if hate-fests are allowed to take place on our streets, then we are headed in the wrong direction. After it was published, I received a message from a member of the Sufi Centre, which I had attended for many years, saying that they were “Not happy at all with your recent article about Israel and Palestine. You are not one of us.” The stench of antisemitism was strong.
I was shocked and dismayed at this veiled threat (you have to be part of the faith to understand the underlying implication, the results of which can be life-threatening). What was more astonishing was that it came from the Sufis. Sufism is the mystic path of Islam that is known for tolerance, moderation and inclusivity….
mortimer says
These Muslims who disagree with the Al Quds Day hate festival, but we cannot be certain of their sincerity. Is it just another trick? And how would we kafirs know if it is a trick?
There is, of course, TAQIYYA (sacred prevarication) in Islam. In fact, there are six different ways that Muslims may deceive:
•Taqiyya (Shia) or Muda’rat (Sunni): tactical deceit for the purposes of spreading Islam.
•Kitman: deceit by omission.
•Tawriya: deceit by ambiguity.
•Taysir: deceit through facilitation (not having to observe all the tenets of Sharia).
•Darura: deceit through necessity (to engage in something “Haram” or forbidden).
•Muruna: the temporary suspension of Sharia to make Muslim migrants appear “moderate.”
However, these Al-Quds-opposing Muslims may actually believe that Jews are required to live in ‘The Land’ Israel, because the Koran says so. Sheikh Abdul Palazzi of the city of Rome believes that.
The “Quran explicitly refers to the return of the Jews to the Land of Israel before the Last Judgment” – Sheikh Abdul Palazzi PhD
Sheikh Palazzi believes that Israel exists by divine right and that the Koran clearly states (Sura 5:21) that God granted the Land of Israel to the Children of Israel and ordered them to settle there.
mortimer says
addition These Muslims who disagree with the Al Quds Day hate festival MAY BE SINCERE, but we cannot be certain of their sincerity. Is it just another trick?
gravenimage says
Raheel Raza seems to be quite supportive of Israel. Needless to say, she is *not* an orthodox Muslim.
mortimer says
When Raheel Raza suggests that aggressive jihad is forbidden during Ramadan … well … the record shows that the very opposite is true. Jihad during Ramadan carries GREATER REWARDS for the jihadi.
Islam’s TOP AUTHORITIES explain the DEADLY MEANING of Ramadan … out of fasting there flows the violence of jihad … The following authorities PRAISE violent jihad during Ramadan.
-“The month of Ramadan is a month of HOLY WAR and DEATH for Allah. It is a month for FIGHTING the enemies of Allah and God’s messenger, the Jews and their American facilitators.” – Qaedat Al-Jihad terror organization
– Ramadan “is and has been throughout Muslim history, the month in which Allah helps the Muslims to prevail over their enemies and grants them mighty victories.” (-former Mufti of Egypt ‘Ali Gum’a )
-“The commandment of jihad, which is of SUPREME importance at all times, assumes even GREATER importance during this holy month and gains precedence over all other commandments.” (-former Mufti of Egypt ‘Ali Gum’a)
-“There is a close CONNECTION between fasting and JIHAD, for the former (fasting) is jihad of the soul, aimed at restraining it from sinning, while the second is JIHAD AGAINST THE ENEMIES, aimed at preventing them from spreading “corruption” in the world. Moreover, fasting is a powerful means to PREPARE the soul FOR JIHAD, i.e., to school oneself in obedience, devotion, resilience and endurance, which are the virtues of the jihad fighter that allow him to vanquish his enemies. On Ramadan Allah grants fighters special strength, despite – or rather by virtue of – their fasting. (-former Mufti of Egypt ‘Ali Gum’a)
-“Those who gain MARTYRDOM during the month of Ramadan are DOUBLY REWARDED in Paradise.” (former Mufti of Egypt ‘Ali Gum’a)
-“During Ramadan, the Muslims are especially beholden to protect the sanctity of the Muslim holy places and keep the infidels from “desecrating” or threatening them.” (- former Mufti of Egypt ‘Ali Gum’a)
-“Jihad fighters everywhere! This month of jihad has come with all its blessings and with the double reward [granted to jihad fighters] in its course. Come closer to Allah through the BLOOD OF INFIDELS, do not relent in spilling [their blood], and through [this blood] wipe out humiliation and disgrace from among your Muslim nation! Make this month like the month of the Battle of Badr, the conquest of Mecca, [the conquest] of Shaqhab, and other Islamic victories.” (-Sa’ud Bin Hamoud Al-Utaybi of Al Qaeda)
-““Ramadan is the pious month of ‘Jihad-o-Qital’ (Jihad and killing). Those who attain martyrdom while waging Jihad, doors of heaven remain open.” — Maulana Bashir Ahmad Khaki
–“Men of jihad, this is your festive season, since jihad in a state of fasting has a particularly delectable taste for the believers, especially [when together] with the dignity of the month of Ramadan. How wonderful it is to delight in the breaking of the fast and to TASTE THE KILLING of infidels, to DELIGHT in the sound of the WAILING of tyrants and lowly degenerates, and [in the sound of] the voices of the condemnations on the part of EVIL PEOPLE and their collaborators broadcast on the TV stations… condemning the DEATH of their INFIDEL masters and their servants. [Ramadan] is a MONTH of FIGHTING, of self-sacrifice, of military VICTORIES, of the victory of religion and the HUMILIATION of the kafirs (infidels). The most courageous and finest forays took place in Ramadan: in the battle of salvation – the Battle of Badr – the HEADS of the bravest infidels from the tribe of Quraysh were SENT FLYING, and Allah gave His Prophet and the believers VICTORY [aiding them with] an army of His Hosts…” (Sheikh Aamer Bin Abdallah Al-Aamer)
-Ramadan “… is a month in which the marketplace of JIHAD opens. So seize this blessed month, oh servants of Allah, to perform acts of obedience to Allah, for your REWARD (for killing and martyrdom) is doubled in this month…” (- Caliph Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi of ISIS)
-“Ramadan is the month of victory for those who wage jihad for Allah. Transform the month of fasting into a training camp that will aid you in jihad when the time comes. Be prepared, since the Muslims’ victories over their enemies occurred during the month of Ramadan, when the jihad fighters were fasting…” – from website of Muslim Brotherhood
-Fasting accustoms the soul to bearing hunger and thirst with patience, and to holding back desires – so much so that the soul becomes immune to weakness, and stronger under pressure… Similarly, we find that the jihad fighter is able to go for long hours without food or drink while fighting the enemy. Apparently, fasting trains a Muslim in endurance and in tolerating [hardship]…(Hussein Shehata, a lecturer at Al-Azhar University)
-“We call upon those who fast… to remember their brothers, those who wage jihad for the sake of Allah: in Palestine, against the Jews, the descendants of apes and pigs; in Iraq, against the Americans; in Bosnia-Herzegovina, against the crusader Serbians; in Chechnya, against the Russians; in Kashmir, against the idolatrous Indians; in Eritrea, against the Zoroastrian Habeshas; in Somalia, against the arrogant Americans; and everywhere in [the lands of] the Islamic ummah, against those who fight the Muslims.(Hussein Shehata, a lecturer at Al-Azhar University)
-“Allah the Almighty wanted the [Ramadan] fast to coincide with fighting, so that the Muslims would win and deal their enemies a crushing blow that the world would speak of… Allah did not mandate [the fast] of Ramadan so that [we] sit idly and avoid jihad, action, and da’wa for the sake of Allah. The fast is not intended to be an excuse to avoid one’s obligations at work or one’s social commitments. Rather, it is a month of action and movement, of conquests and victories – the month in which most of the defeats of the nation’s enemies occurred.” (General Guide of the Muslim Brotherhood Muhammad Badi’)
gravenimage says
Canada: Moderate Muslim’s rejection of Al-Quds Day is welcome, but misleads
…………
Well, this is good as far as it goes.
She actually does appear to be a real reformer–but I doubt she has much support among pious Muslims.