Christmas and Easter are major landmarks on Christians’ calendars. If you can get someone to talk about what they think about Christmas and Easter and how to celebrate them you’ll probably find out what they think about God before they’ve finished talking. In the same way, asking our Muslim friends about their festivals is a great starting point for talking about what they believe, and potentially also about what we believe.
Muslims have two major festivals (“Eids” is pronounced /eeds/): Eid ul Fitr, last weekend, marked the end of Ramadan fasting, and Eid ul Adha, which is coming up in July. Eid ul Adha celebrates Abraham’s obedience, which he showed by his willingness to sacrifice his son. Muslims celebrate it by sacrificing an animal either in person or by proxy, by relatives in their home countries.
You may have caught Greg’s talk on James 2:14-26 Sunday at church online. If you did, you’d have learned that Abraham’s obedience was a key example of the fruit of genuine faith:
You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. (James 2:22-24)
The Muslims we’ve spoken with don’t see the animal sacrifices made at Eid ul Adha as symbolic reminders like the Lord’s Supper but to earn God’s favour for themselves or for dead relatives. They also look for God’s approval by giving one third of the meat from each sacrifice to the poor.
There’s a huge difference between Eid ul Adha and Abraham’s faith. James explains where God’s blessing of eternal life comes from:
Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. (James 1:16-18)
What a great discussion to have with a Muslim you know! Here are some tips to guide your conversations:
Pray, ask questions, listen and take your time.
Don’t be afraid to show you know and love God’s Word, the Bible, by sharing a passage or story with them. Using a Bible app takes away any confusion about handling the Word appropriately and makes it easier to share it in languages other than English, if you need to.
We celebrate different festivals because we believe different things. If someone says that Christianity and Islam are the same, disagree politely. Talk about how we view Jesus’ identity and death and resurrection for our sins. Note that Muslims firmly believe that God asked Abraham to sacrifice Ishmael, not Isaac (read Genesis 22 for the full story).
Most Muslims are taught from a young age that the Bible is inaccurate because it has been changed. Try not to argue about this. See if they’re willing to read the Bible with you instead.
Ladies, here is a helpful Christian resource for reaching Muslim women.
