Sacrifice
Monday August 20th is the beginning of Eid al-Adha, one of the most important holidays in the Islamic calendar. Muslims who can afford it will buy a sheep or a goat, and sacrifice it. Throughout the region shepherds have gathered, flocks in tow. Makeshift stalls are in prominent places, and butchers are a dime a dozen for those who would rather not do that part of the work themselves.
In preference, the animal sacrificed will be a ram. By killing, sharing and eating, Muslims commemorate God’s call to Abraham. The Quran teaches them that he was told to sacrifice his son and that God’s provided a ram in the son’s place. In the Bible we know more details. We understand that it was the son of promise, “Isaac,” whom Abraham had to take up the mountain to sacrifice. The Quran simply says, “son.” Muslims are taught that the son he went to sacrifice was Ishmael. Most of them haven't read the Quran, which although ambiguous about "son" a few "surahs" or verses later indicates that it was Abraham and Isaac that were blessed after that.
Some Muslims celebrating this Feast of Sacrifice view the day a bit like the Jews do the Feast of Atonement. It is hoped that by obeying and sacrificing, that their good deeds will be weighed on the scales of life and tilt in their favor. Therefore it is ceremonial and important to give meat to the poor. It is a time when everyone visits relatives and their elders, families wear new clothing, and extensive prayers are offered in the mosque.
The neighborhood we raised our children in has special value for Muslims during holidays. If you come here to sacrifice your animal, there is favor from Allah. Also, there are many shrines, so you may go and ask your special petitions at these graves. This is also a region of holy waters, so these may be taken home and used with hoped for outcomes.
The Muslim calendar is lunar, so the holiday drifts around the seasons, moving about eleven days each year. As children we would always hope that Eid al-Adha would not be in summer, for the smell of sacrifice, and the blood of animals in the gutter would have a gut wrenching smell in the torrid heat. Swarms of flies would settle on anything, and the dust blew in little sighs around the shrines, kicked up by many pilgrims.
Nowadays, sacrifices can be ordered with an app, and people can forgo the gore in favor of time at the mall. It is appropriate to tithe largely, and mobile giving directs you to good causes. It also directs you to support what the west views as terrorism, but Islam deems as necessary. Either way, it's but a click away, and you have done your duty. A simple thing now, this "sacrifice" and off one goes to mosque with the new clothing and the party after. It's really a very pleasant thing to have the whole nation doing the same thing at the same time. A sort of almost utopian harmony gives off it's own special energy. Everyone giving, everyone sharing, everyone donating. What's not to love?
And really, for many people raised Muslim today, that's what they know of Eid al-Adha. So when you see them at work, or in your neighborhood on Monday or Tuesday, greeting them with blessings for their holiday. They will appreciate it, like you would value a "Merry Christmas." It's a great time to get to know them. Especially for those who do not have a Muslim community around, this can be a lonely time, when they feel the different-ness of the west more sharply. It's hard for them to comprehend a society that is not dictated by religion. It's easy for them to agree with their talking heads that the "christian" west is evil because we condone evil behavior.
This is because Islam has no grid for Free Choice. It is only in the Bible that we have Adam and Eve kicking off life on the planet with a God who so clearly wants them to choose to worship on their own that He is wiling to risk His own life on the cross to pay for the sin they would commit. (Galatians 3:13) Telling the stories of the Torah without free choice creates the Quran with a very different tilt.
Perhaps you may want to take some fresh time with Jesus and ponder the mystery of a Love so deep that He laid down His life before the creation of the world for our sakes. (Revelations 13:8) This is the Sacrifice the Ram in the bushes pointed towards. As you listen to the Holy Spirit rekindling your awe of this Grace, you may have a seed of love and hope to share with your Muslim neighbor or co-worker this coming week. Since God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that All who believe in Him may be saved (John 3:16) is an invitation for them to celebrate a new Sacrifice Holiday. One where there are no good deeds needed to buy one's way into paradise, but a Good God, who paid their debt, and our gratitude for this incredible Love, from which we then Choose to let our lives overflow in good deeds.