My first Sunday mass before Christmas

I am a Muslim. Growing up, my parents only celebrated the Islamic holidays. During my school years, my ustaz and ustazah taught me that Muslims do not and should not celebrate any other holidays.

Throughout the years, I made a conscious decision not to take part in any cultural or religious celebration that weren't my own. 

But it wasn't easy, I must say – living in a melting pot that Malaysia is, the impulse to be part of these celebrations was quite difficult to resist.

Islam, as practised in our country for many years, is a result of a vast array of interpretations from many religious scholars and religious institutions.

More often than not, it is the same intolerant strands of Islam as taught by many adults throughout my childhood – one which encourages Muslims to cut themselves off from the non-Muslim community and view others with contempt.

It took me many years to build up the courage to stop accepting, to start questioning and to begin challenging these interpretations – and the reason I found the strength to do so were my children.

I simply did not want to raise my children in a world full of conflict where Muslims viewed non-Muslims with contempt, and non-Muslims viewed Muslims as if they had only one agenda – to convert the world by any means necessary (or at least destroy anyone who stood in the way).

A new tradition

In the hope of eliminating these conflicts from our lives, my children and I began celebrating non-Islamic celebrations nine years ago, including Christmas. 

I strongly believed back then as much as I do now, that the non-Islamic celebrations which have now become part of our family tradition will not deter our faith and aqidah as Muslims.

This year, in addition to our Christmas tree, presents and dinner, I attended the Sunday mass before Christmas in the true spirit of Malaysia.

I must say, my experience attending the mass in a well-known church in the heart of George Town was wonderful. The atmosphere for a truly great mass was all there – families, music, joy and smiles.

Being accustomed to ceramah agama, I found the Sunday sermon at the church focusing on the concept of peace and love, very insightful and delightful.

Apart from everything else, one thing that most stood out and really touched my heart during my experience at the church on that day was a reading by a member of the church. This reading included the lines from the Book of Isaiah:

"He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes/ Or decide by what he hears with his ears/ But with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth."

I found the content so beautiful and relevant to our current context, where Malaysians of different races and religions rest our hopes on our new leader who embodies the true spirit of our country – wise and understanding, powerful and effective, and able to judge for the benefit of the people.

A leader who would rule in such a way that the poor are treated righteously, the meek given a fair hearing, and the wicked prosecuted. 

A leader who would protect the most vulnerable in the society, encourage people of different races and faiths to dwell in harmony and ending violence stemming from our differences.

A leader who would fight the oppressors and not leading them or living among them.

Reframing our thinking

I know there will be many who would label me an infidel for celebrating Christmas and attending church. 

I suppose Christmas activates all kinds of anxieties for many, especially since it is a religious celebration that challenges other interpretations of Jesus.

I find it sad that many in Malaysia see the world today in black and white, where everything is either good or evil – where there is no place for Muslims to learn from non-Muslims, and see that the goodness in their teachings do not stray far from the teachings of Islam itself.

I find it frustrating that people who are open to the celebrations and religion of others in the true spirit of Malaysian brotherhood are often thrown together with the kafir and blamed for our ‘lack of understanding’ of the religion.

I believe the thought process of many Muslims belonging to mainstream Islam in Malaysia needs reframing. They must be made to understand that creating conflict against non-Muslims is not jihad.

At the same time, Muslims who call themselves liberals should also be straightened out. Merely stating that Islam as a peaceful religion repeatedly at every arising conflict does nothing to promote acceptance as much as it does nothing to reduce conflicts.

I believe the Muslims in Malaysia should be open to learning about other religions and their traditions, and join in their celebrations. That is how we can find our common ground and learn to accept each other in the true spirit of Malaysia.

As my first Sunday mass before Christmas has taught me, God commands us to seek peace and make effort to do what leads to peace. 

There will be some people who do not desire peace, but as long as we keep our hearts and minds secure, we can still do our utmost to be at peace with them.

Alhamdulillah.

Merry Christmas.

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FA ABDUL is a passionate storyteller, a growing media trainer, an aspiring playwright, a regular director, a struggling producer, a self-acclaimed photographer, an expert Facebooker, a lazy blogger, a part-time queen and a full-time vainpot. - Mkini