What are we celebrating today? We are celebrating Eidulfitr, we are celebrating the break of the fast, we are celebrating the end of Ramadan, we are celebrating our efforts in worshipping Allah throughout the blessed month, we are celebrating the mercy, the forgiveness, and the protection from Hell fire that had come to cover all of us in Ramadan. Yes, indeed, we are celebrating all this today, but we are also celebrating something much more important. Some of you might ask what can be more important than Ramadan, the fast, the prayers, the forgiveness…? Yes, there is something far more important than all this — the fact that we are Muslims.
Today, we are in fact celebrating our Islam, our being members of the greatest faith ever revealed to mankind, our being believers in the most beautiful and the most comprehensive scripture that ever descended from heaven to earth, our being followers of the greatest man that ever walked on the face of the earth, our being believers in Allah, the One and Only. Had we not been Muslims, we would have not been here today. We would have not known Ramadan, not experienced the sweetness of the fast, not tasted the beauty of the prayers, we would have not known that today is Eid.
Today we are celebrating, first and foremost, that we are Muslims. We are celebrating the greatest blessing of our lives: our Islam. Islam is the faith that defines us, defines who we are, defines our identity.
Islam is the religion that Allah has chosen for us, has perfected for us, and has granted us as the Quran has eloquently expressed:
“This day I have perfected your religion for you, completed my favor upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion.” (5:3)
Islam is a favor, Islam is a privilege, Islam is a bounty from Allah. Islam does not need us. We need Islam. All we have to do is to be grateful for such a great blessing and say,
“Praise be to Allah who has guided us to this: never could we have found guidance, had it not been for the guidance of Allah”
(7:43)
But why is it that we believe that Islam is such a tremendous bounty from Allah? Because there is nothing like Islam on earth:
It is Islam that has taught human beings that the Lord their God is One and Only. That He has no partners, no wife, and no son, and that there can be no compromise on the unity of God.
It is Islam that has taught human beings that they are all equal and that no Arab is superior to non-Arab, nor a non-Arab is superior to an Arab and that the best of all of us is the one who is most righteous.
It is Islam that has taught human beings that they are all brothers and sisters created from a single pair of a male and a female.
It is Islam that has taught humanity the value of the intellect, the importance of reflection, and the role of the mind in attaining faith. It is through continuous reflection on the wonders of creation that faith can be obtained, maintained, and nurtured.
It is Islam that has has taught humanity that people of all races, all colors, all ethnicities are perfectly capable of attaining faith in the One and Only God. Hindus believe that Hinduism is just for those privileged to be born in the faith and therefore they do not invite the “less privileged” to embrace their faith. Jews believe that they are the chosen race and even when they accept others to embrace Judaism, those converts are always lower in rank than those born as Jews. Islam rejects all that and calls upon all people of all backgrounds to submit themselves to their Creator. Once they do, they automatically become members of the community of Islam with the same rights and duties as any other Muslim. Islam is not, and can never be, the monopoly of one race or a certain linguistic group.
LET US CELEBRATE THE UNITY OF ISLAM TODAY!
EID UL FITR MUBARAK!