BY ROSE HAMID
Guest column, Charlotte Observer
The idea of fasting during the longest (hottest) days of the year had me worried, but it’s amazing how much will power God gives me when I’m fasting for His pleasure, as opposed to when I’m just dieting.
For Muslims, fasting during the holy month of Ramadan means not eating or drinking from dawn to sunset. It’s a time for reflection and spiritual renewal, for increased charity and prayers. It’s a time to empathize with those living in a perpetual state of not having enough food or water.
Muslims try to adjust daily routines to accommodate their fast but continue to do the things that need to be done. Most people go to work as usual. Athletes practice and play while fasting, and students attend school when Ramadan falls during the school year.
Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, a lunar calendar that is 10 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar. That means the month rotates, moving 10 days earlier every year. This year, Muslims living in America will be celebrating the Fourth of July during Ramadan.
When we break our fast (around 8:40 p.m.) we may eat hot dogs, hamburgers and apple pie. We may attend a fireworks display. Afterward we may attend the mosque for extra evening prayers. Observing Ramadan doesn’t stop us from things we find enjoyable and meaningful.
The Fourth of July is not just a time for fireworks, food and family. It’s a celebration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. Aside from a list of 27 grievances against King George III for the way he was treating the colonists, the most memorable part of the document is the line, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Notice it doesn’t say the government gives these rights, but the CREATOR grants them. The document goes on to say it is the role of the government to ensure these rights are protected. Islam has similar concepts, the Quran says:
“O Mankind, We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know each other. Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is he who is the most righteous of you.” (49:13)
And in his Last Sermon Prophet Muhammad said:
“All mankind is from Adam and Eve, an Arab has no superiority over a non-Arab nor a non-Arab has any superiority over an Arab; also a white has no superiority over a black nor a black has any superiority over white except by piety and good action.”
Unfortunately, governments, societies and people fall short of such lofty ideals. As I celebrate the Fourth of July during Ramadan I will be saying extra prayers asking that the ideal of “all men are created equal” will become a self-evident reality around the world.
Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/living/religion/article26064487.html#storylink=cpy