Today, the Philippines is non-working holiday in observance Feast of Sacrifice of our countrymen Muslims. Though the red date is September 13 which is Tuesday in our calendar but our government made the holiday today which is Monday.
Filipinos are mostly Christians comprising of around 90 percent of its population. Most of Christians belong to Roman Catholic religion which is around 75 percent and other Christians that includes Iglesia ni Kristo (Church of Christ) and Protestants.
Muslims can generally be found in Mindanao region. But today, Muslims now can be found all parts of the country including the northernmost part of the country which is Ilocos. The diaspora of Muslims is because of generally because of business. But more than that, a reason that they are escaping the war thorn place is one of the biggest reasons why they are living now in our provinces.
Mosques now are located almost in all major cities and capitals of the provinces of the country. Prayer places are also established in towns and cities in the country.
Imam Hamdani who is one of the imam in Ilocos explained the importance of the eid il adha to their lives as Muslims. He explained how it started in the story of Abraham. He also said the feast is one of the most important in their religion. Some of them may slaughter goats and cows and distributed it to the needy people.
He urged everybody for unity, Christians and Muslims, because we are all brothers. We are all belong to Malay race and there is no reason for war. He said this because their region is a war thorn place that started decades ago. He said he himself is a child of war in their place of Maranao. They family used to be a rich family but because of war, it was all gone now.
They are now living in a region where Islam is not yet much accepted and he shared that sometimes he and his children experienced discrimination but said he understand it. He just said he pray for them. But it’s getting good now because people are now more educated and informed what Islam is through education and media especially social media. He himself volunteered to one elementary school for this purpose.
He then urged the countrymen let there be understanding in the country and a unity for the people so that a peaceful living can be attained.###
photo credit, pixabay
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The news I woke up to this morning was about a mosque being vandalized in broad daylight. I guess the vandal was taking advantage of the holiday being celebrated. I don't know the whole story. But I do know these acts don't solve any problems or correct anything. The good news is that they were caught on camera.
That is really a bad news because Muslims are celebrating the feast of sacrifice. Respect for other people's belief should always be given importance. We might have difference in faith but we are all still brothers and sisters and nobody will respect each other but us. Those suspects should be punish.
I had also experienced this kind of celebration in another country. The Muslim close friends of mine during my mission in Central Asia. It was a totally different way of celebrating this special event. In out country, it wasn't much seen by the local people. The fact it is located in Mindanao part of the Philippines. On the other hand, we are so lucky that our fellowmen Muslims showed their way how it was being celebrated.
I have heard some stories and even view in facebook updates that some of our Overseas Filipino Workers especially the Domestic Helpers can received some gifts from their employers. In my interview with Imam, he said this is common, they slaughter some animals and give the meat to the needy and poor people.
Oh..This is a good development towards religious tolerance. Even then,in some parts of Philippines, there are some stray incidents over religion take place. We can not find fault with them as they happen with a spur of emotion. However, such incidents are very rare in every country. Clashes over religious grounds are almost fading away but are being replaced with terrorist activities. This is the sorry state of affairs prevailing in every country.