Ruling on decorating the Masjid minaret with Christian decoration
Question:
First: Last year, people placed the word “Allahu Akbar” (Allah is the Greatest) on the minaret of the Islamic Center in Ramadan after Christmas was over. They decorated it and the facade of the Masjid (mosque) with the same lights used on Christmas Day. I blamed them arguing that this action involves imitation of non-Muslims and it was not permissible to be done in the Masjid or Muslim houses. They advised me to wait until the Shaykh (Imam of the Masjid) would come back, but I told them that the matter was very clear so there was no need to ask him. Nobody responded. I asked the Imam once he returned about what people did in his absence, and he said that this was just a sort of analogy. I replied that it was imitation of the disbelievers, but he drew my attention to the fact that people used to hang the lights and put Christmas Trees in their houses and streets and they no longer do so now. This is actually correct. The lights are brought out of the streets, but they are still available in the houses and people use them in Masjids in the same way. To me, this is not permissible.
Now, what worries me a lot is that Ramadan this year mostly corresponds to the month in which people celebrate the Christmas and many of the youth break their Sawm (fasting) in order to celebrate that Day. Moreover, next year, Christmas Day will correspond to ‘Eid-ul-Fitr (the Festival of Breaking the Fast). These countries need instructions regarding this matter where ignorance prevails among Muslims’ children who gradually thaw in that society. For instance, we held an international contest for the memorization of the Qur’an and prizes will be given on Laylat-ul-Qadr (the Night of Decree). The interested participants were about 520 boys and 30 girls who took part just for the sake of the prizes. Some of them have not even memorized Al-Fatihah and another one said that he never hears the Qur’an recited in his house though his father is Muslim. Please, advise.
Second: There are four chairs inside the Masjid that has room for 850 people and another two in the entry. These chairs resemble those I used to sit on in church before I embraced Islam. Please, advise. May Allah reward you!
Answer:
It is not permissible for Muslims to imitate the disbelievers in their festivals, their places of worship and the like. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “Anyone who copies a people is one of them.” 1 You must all avoid that and advise those who imitate them not to do.
Abu Dawud, Sunan, Book on clothing, no. 4031; Ahmad, Musnad, vol. 2, p. 50. ↩
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