In recent weeks, I had the opportunity to accompany several friends to a remote village for the Islamic holiday, Eid l'Kubir (The Big Celebration). Here, I spent another week with my good friend Sa'id, a brother for about five years now. He is the lone Christian in his family, but more and more his wife and mother are beginning to develop strong interest in the stories we tell. This particular week two stories seemed particularly appropriate: Abraham's sacrifice and Jesus, the lamb of God.
For a moment, contemplate with me the typical holiday season in America. There are several major events that lead up to Christmas. Thanksgiving begins everything with copious amounts of turkey, mashed potatoes, and a healthy portion of pie. A more modern Thanksgiving tradition has been added in the form of several primetime football games. Immediately following Thanksgiving, the official Christmas music season begins. Perhaps that next week the tree goes up, the greens are hung, and lights are placed outside most homes. Finally, Christmas Eve often involves a trip to the local church, the opening of a few gifts, and setting out cookies and milk for the phantom gift giver. And then, what every child counts the days for, Christmas.
As a kid, I remember waking up early every Christmas, often long before my parents. For several hours I would anxiously meander around the house watching cartoons or counting pine needles. I would always attempt a facade of nonchalance when my parents slippered feet finally appeared atop the staircase. And with a sudden burst of excitement, the family was ushered in and presents were torn into. Lunch would ensue followed by hours of fiddling with various gizmos and gadgets and their endless manuals.
For the Muslim, the atmosphere is very similar. Forty days of Ramadan end with a night of power. All the mosques fill as this is the one night of the year the prayers go straight to God. Next is the three day celebration where we eat, eat, and then eat some more. The final celebration occurs a month and a half later. This is called the Big celebration and often lasts several days. The average family will have saved for several months for that $500-$1,000 sheep. The wealthier families will purchase several. In the days before the celebration, every city, town, and village fills with the cries of millions of sheep.
On the actual celebration day, everyone wakes up early in anticipation. For hours the family mulls around anxiously watching television or counting spots. Out of a facade of indifference erupts all the bottled up excitement as the father finally goes to get his knife. At 10am the throat is slit. The streets, sewers, and rivers fill with blood as the sheep are hung to drain. Throughout the rest of the day the celebration continues as the sheep are prepared for feasting. For the next three days, families eats together and make the various trips to the mosque for special prayers times.
As I have asked many Muslims about this specific festival, the universal understanding is that the meaning comes from God's provision for Abraham of a sacrifice on the mount. But this is as deep as the understanding often goes. Why we continue to slaughter sheep every year is simply a matter of tradition. Therefore, the first story we told in the village was the story about Abraham and his only son. This is a point of agreement between Christians and Muslims.
The second story, was given to me to tell. This is what I shared, and the interest was sincere on the part of our Muslim friends as the story was explained.
"About 900 years after David, came John. He came proclaiming and said, 'Repent from your sins, the kingdom of God is close!' People came to him confessing their sins and being baptized at his hands and he told them, 'Do works in keeping with repentance. Do not say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father!' I tell you, God can make these rocks the children of Abraham. The axe is laid at the root of the tree. And every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.'"
"One day John saw Jesus coming and said, 'Behold, the lamb of God come to bear the sin of the world!' Just as the son of Abraham needed someone to be sacrificed in his place in order to deliver him from death, so all men need a sacrifice to deliver them from death. When Adam ate from the forbidden tree, he died spiritually. The relationship between him and God was broken. All men sin."
"About 600 years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah said, 'All of us like sheep have gone astray. We have wandered from the path. But God has put on him all our sins. Yet he did not open his mouth. Like a sheep led to the slaughter. Like a sheep silent before his shearers, he did not open his mouth.' Jesus fulfilled the prophecy that says, 'I am the lamb of God that bears the sin of the world!'"
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