Similarities between infidels, Jews, and Christians
Celebrating Christmas Day is similar to Paganism. The teacher of humanism, Prophet Muhammad ﷺ has described the one who adopts the customs and traditions, celebrations and festivals, habits and manners of other nations and leaves his own as one of them as is mentioned in a hadith. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“He who copies any people is one of them.”
(Sunan Abi Dawud 4031)
Imitating others in their beliefs, practices and habits is a way of expressing and propagating their false religion and worship. It is similar to resembling the Disbelievers in habits and attributes. For the Ummah, it ought to be a feeling of humiliation, weakness and degradation. Why the Muslims are commanded to oppose the following of such activities is to preserve Islam and prevent its deterioration. In the same way, reconciling with them in an activity in which adopting them is forbidden is harmful to the religion and leads to riots and corruption.
Innovation in Religion
The term ‘innovation’ in Shariah refers to the introduction of something in the religion that did not exist before or to invent something in religion that seems similar to Shariah and is intended to become closer to Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ) and His worship. Yet, such an act is not prescribed in our religion as per the Prophet ﷺ or mentioned in the Qur’an.
To celebrate Christmas Day for Muslims is an innovation in Islam and it is not a part of our Deen to begin with. In Islam there are only the two Eid that are prescribed as celebrations. The third Eid does not exist anywhere and issuing innovation in Islam is forbidden in the light of the Qur’an and Sunnah and this is the consensus of the Ummah. Doing so is tantamount to opposing and violating Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ) and His Messenger ﷺ. This is enough for man to end up in hell. Therefore, innovation is a detestable and reprehensible act and its doer is also deserving of condemnation. The Ummah has been warned of its evil and warned of its evil consequences. Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ) says:
أَمْ لَهُمْ شُرَكَاءُ شَرَعُوا لَهُم مِّنَ الدِّينِ مَا لَمْ يَأْذَن بِهِ اللَّهُ ۚ وَلَوْلَا كَلِمَةُ الْفَصْلِ لَقُضِيَ بَيْنَهُمْ ۗ وَإِنَّ الظَّالِمِينَ لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ ﴿٢١﴾
Or have they other deities who have ordained for them a religion to which Allah has not consented? But if not for the decisive word, it would have been concluded between them. And indeed, the wrongdoers will have a painful punishment. (21)
[Ash-Shura: 21]
In this verse, the inventor of innovation is reprimanded and the verse indicates that Allah Almighty has considered innovation as bad and the act of innovation as bad. In Sunan Abi Dawud, there is a hadith that is sufficient to condemn innovation. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“Avoid novelties, for every novelty is an innovation, and every innovation is an error.”
(Sunan Abi Dawud 4607)
Excess in Religion
The meaning of ghulu (Excess/Exaggeration) is to go beyond the limits set by religion in faith and practice. For example, the limit of honoring the Prophets is to consider them the best of Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ)’s creation, going beyond this limit, calling them God or God’s son is an excess in belief. Religions that came before Islam also contained excess. The Jews claimed the divinity of Uzayr (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ), which is also stated in the traditions and reflected by the Qur’an.
The Holy Qur’an has quoted this mythic theory as follows:
وَقَالَتِ الْيَهُودُ عُزَيْرٌ ابْنُ اللَّهِ وَقَالَتِ النَّصَارَى الْمَسِيحُ ابْنُ اللَّهِ ۖ ذَٰلِكَ قَوْلُهُم بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ ۖ يُضَاهِئُونَ قَوْلَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِن قَبْلُ ۚ قَاتَلَهُمُ اللَّهُ ۚ أَنَّىٰ يُؤْفَكُونَ ﴿٣٠﴾
The Jews say, “Ezra is the son of Allah “; and the Christians say, “The Messiah is the son of Allah.” That is their statement from their mouths; they imitate the saying of those who disbelieved [before them]. May Allah destroy them; how are they deluded?
[At-Tawba: 30]
There is a strict prohibition of exaggeration in Islam and there are arguments for it in the Holy Qur’an and the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ, so in the Holy Qur’an, exaggeration regarding Isa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ) has been condemned and the doctrine of the Trinity has been negated.
يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ لَا تَغْلُوا فِي دِينِكُمْ وَلَا تَقُولُوا عَلَى اللَّهِ إِلَّا الْحَقَّ ۚ إِنَّمَا الْمَسِيحُ عِيسَى ابْنُ مَرْيَمَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَكَلِمَتُهُ أَلْقَاهَا إِلَىٰ مَرْيَمَ وَرُوحٌ مِّنْهُ ۖ فَآمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرُسُلِهِ ۖ وَلَا تَقُولُوا ثَلَاثَةٌ ۚ انتَهُوا خَيْرًا لَّكُمْ ۚ إِنَّمَا اللَّهُ إِلَٰهٌ وَاحِدٌ ۖ سُبْحَانَهُ أَن يَكُونَ لَهُ وَلَدٌ ۘ لَّهُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْضِ ۗ وَكَفَىٰ بِاللَّهِ وَكِيلًا ﴿١٧١﴾
O People of the Scripture, do not commit excess in your religion or say about Allah except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, was but a messenger of Allah and His word which He directed to Mary and a soul [created at a command] from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers. And do not say, “Three”; desist – it is better for you. Indeed, Allah is but one God. Exalted is He above having a son. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And sufficient is Allah as Disposer of affairs. (171)
[An-Nissa 171]
After the Qur’an, there has been a strong statement about excess in religion in the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ. It was narrated that Ibn ‘Abbas said:
On the morning of ‘Aqabah, when he was atop his she-camel, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: ‘O people, beware of exaggeration in religious matters for those who came before you were doomed because of exaggeration in religious matters.
(Sunan Ibn Majah 3029)
Participation in Festivals of Disbelievers
Attending or felicitating the festivals of the disbelievers, knowing that these are their festivals, is a sin in the following cases.
1. Haraam (Prohibited)
A person who gives the greetings is more likely to be in deliberation of this act than a person who participates in such an even as a social aspect, not intending to honor these festivals or to believe that they are of any true faith. Giving the greeting is prohibited because it leads to testifying their falsehood. Also, it becomes a means of respecting their religion and giving their religion a kind of certificate of integrity. A large number of the Salaf in the interpretation of the following verse have taken it to mean “Passing by the feasts of the polytheists”.
وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَشْهَدُونَ الزُّورَ وَإِذَا مَرُّوا بِاللَّغْوِ مَرُّوا كِرَامًا ﴿٧٢﴾
And [they are] those who do not testify to falsehood, and when they pass near ill speech, they pass by with dignity. (72)
[Al-Furqan 72]
Also, the statement of the Prophet ﷺ is very clear proof that every nation has its own specialty in matters of Eid and festivals. The Prophet ﷺ said:
“There is an Eid for every nation.”
(Sahih al-Bukhari 952)
2. Extremely Haraam (Extremely Prohibited)
The second case is that there is a desire to be involved in this participation, for example, that there will be alcohol or dancing or a crowd of women, etc. Its ruling is that it is more serious than the previous case in terms of sanctity.
3. Innovation and Deviation
The third case is that the purpose of this participation is to draw closer to Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ), for example to say that “Isa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ) was a chosen messenger of Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ), so I am participating in the birthday of Isa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ).” As some people celebrate the birthday of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. Its ruling is that it is innovation and deviation. It is far more serious than celebrating a birthday because they participate in such an event where the celebrants are celebrating the birth of the ‘Son of Allah’.
4. Kufr (Disbelief)
The fourth case is that a person does not consider their religion to be objectionable at all, but is pleased with their teachings and considers their worship to be valid. As in the past it was said that, “All worship the same God, but the paths are different”. And today, this theory is interpreted with words such as “Unity of Religions” and “Brotherhood of Religions”, which are actually slogans given by the Free Masons. So, its ruling is that it is disbelief that excludes a person from the Ummah. Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ) says:
وَمَن يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ الْإِسْلَامِ دِينًا فَلَن يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ وَهُوَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ ﴿٨٥﴾
And whoever desires other than Islam as religion – never will it be accepted from him, and he, in the Hereafter, will be among the losers. (85)
[Aal-i-Imran 85]
Participation in Haraam Activities
Participating in Christmas Day is actually participating in activities forbidden by Shariah because nowadays Christmas Day is celebrated at twelve o’clock in the night with dance, music and fireworks. On the contrary, Islam strictly forbids dancing, drinking alcohol, the intermingling of men and women, and obscenity.
Commentaries of the Companions and Jurists of Islam on Christmas
Umar Farooq (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) said:
“Avoid the enemies of Allah in their festivals. Do not enter their places of worship on their festivals, because Allah’s displeasure descends upon them.”
(Sunan al-Bayhaqi 18862)
Abdullah ibn Amr (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) said:
“If a Muslim living in the land of non-Muslims celebrates their Nowruz (Iranian New Year) and their Eid like them, and if he dies on this attitude, he will be raised with these non-Muslims on the Day of Resurrection.”
(Sunan al-Bayhaqi 18863)
Ibn al-Qayyim (may Allah have mercy upon him) said:
“Greeting the disbelievers on Eid is like congratulating someone for prostrating before the cross.”
(Ibn al-Qayyim’s Ahkam Ahl al-Dhimma 3/211)
Imam Abu Khafs Kabir al-Hanafi said:
“If a person worships Allah for fifty years, then on the occasion of the Eid of the polytheists, while honoring that day, gives a single egg to a polytheist, then he has committed disbelief and lost all his deeds.”
(Al-Durr al-Mukhtar 6/745)
Slogans of Disbelief and Shirk
Greeting each other by saying Merry Christmas or Happy Christmas on December 25th is shirk, avoid this and save your Muslim brothers and sisters from this shirk. In the normal routine, if you hear, people saying these words to others, in a humorous, funny or sarcastic way, at that time, they are making others laugh by saying such words, but one thing is clear; They are disbelieving and associating partners with Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ).
The Qur’an has warned us of shirk in many places and has also forbidden us to get close to it by explaining as many types of shirk as possible. Far from shirk, all the means that can lead to shirk have also been prohibited. Those who are taking wishing of Merry Christmas very lightly and issuing a fatwa that there is nothing wrong in it are either not familiar with the ugliness of shirk, or they are unable to recognize the nature of the Shariah. There is no doubt that Muslims regard Isa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ) as a servant of Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ) and His prophet, but when you want to share the joys of a Christian instead of warning him of his filthiest faith, you are inviting the wrath of Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ).
Love and Friendship with the Disbelievers
Any festival or Eid is a part of the belief of that nation and its rituals, so showing harmony or participating in the Eids of that nation is like agreeing to the rest of its rituals. Christians commemorate the birth of Isa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ) on this day. He is a prophet for us, while Christians consider him as Lord. A nation with the doctrine of Trinity, who considers its Prophet to be the son of their God, travels all over the world spreading this incomprehensible and unacceptable polytheistic belief and goes to great lengths to prove this belief. Participating in this is a sign of love and friendship with them. Which is forbidden according to Islamic teachings.
Allah (عَزَّوَجَلَّ) says in the Qur’an:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَتَّخِذُوا عَدُوِّي وَعَدُوَّكُمْ أَوْلِيَاءَ تُلْقُونَ إِلَيْهِم بِالْمَوَدَّةِ وَقَدْ كَفَرُوا بِمَا جَاءَكُم مِّنَ الْحَقِّ يُخْرِجُونَ الرَّسُولَ وَإِيَّاكُمْ ۙ أَن تُؤْمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ رَبِّكُمْ إِن كُنتُمْ خَرَجْتُمْ جِهَادًا فِي سَبِيلِي وَابْتِغَاءَ مَرْضَاتِي ۚ تُسِرُّونَ إِلَيْهِم بِالْمَوَدَّةِ وَأَنَا أَعْلَمُ بِمَا أَخْفَيْتُمْ وَمَا أَعْلَنتُمْ ۚ وَمَن يَفْعَلْهُ مِنكُمْ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ سَوَاءَ السَّبِيلِ ﴿١﴾
O you who have believed, do not take My enemies and your enemies as allies, extending to them affection while they have disbelieved in what came to you of the truth, having driven out the Prophet and yourselves [only] because you believe in Allah, your Lord. If you have come out for jihad in My cause and seeking means to My approval, [take them not as friends]. You confide to them affection, but I am most knowing of what you have concealed and what you have declared. And whoever does it among you has certainly strayed from the soundness of the way.
[Al-Mumtahina: 1]
At the end of this verse, Allah Almighty clearly said that whoever among you takes polytheists as his friends will go astray from the straight path of Islam.
In several verses of the Holy Qur’an, Allah has strictly forbidden us to make friends with infidels, polytheists, Jews, and Christians. Allah says:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَتَّخِذُوا الْيَهُودَ وَالنَّصَارَىٰ أَوْلِيَاءَ ۘ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ ۚ وَمَن يَتَوَلَّهُم مِّنكُمْ فَإِنَّهُ مِنْهُمْ ۗ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ ﴿٥١﴾
O you who have believed, do not take the Jews and the Christians as allies. They are [in fact] allies of one another. And whoever is an ally to them among you – then indeed, he is [one] of them. Indeed, Allah guides not the wrongdoing people. (51)
[Al-Ma’ida 51]
The ruling of the verse is clear, “friendship with the enemies of Allah is not good”. What can be greater enmity than to associate a son with Allah?
Anas ibn Malik (رَضِيَ ٱللَّٰهُ عَنْهُ) said:
When the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) came to Medina, the people had two days on which they engaged in games. He asked: What are these two days (what is the significance)? They said: We used to engage ourselves on them in the pre-Islamic period. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: Allah has substituted for them something better than them, the day of sacrifice and the day of the breaking of the fast.
(Sunan Abi Dawud 1134)
This hadith makes it clear that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, disliked that any joy celebrated at the time of ignorance or even the slightest trace of it should please the Muslims.
That is why the Messenger of Allah ﷺ gave the Muslims the gift of Eids in exchange for the festivals of ignorance and forbade following them, because the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was well aware of the fact that if the door of imitation of others in the Ummah is left open even a little bit, then the doors of many temptations will be opened. As the situation is in front of us today, the deviation from the Sunnah of the Prophet has brought many kinds of suffering. That is why the Messenger of Allah ﷺ encouraged Muslims everywhere and on every occasion to “act against the polytheists”.
The reality of Christmas day has become clear from all the above arguments. We pray to Allah Almighty to protect the Muslim Ummah from Western immorality and save us from falsehood, such as the belief related to Isa (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ). (Ameen)
