. . . while the Christians are preparing for Christmas and the
Jews for Chanukkah, Muslims recently celebrated as well.
It's good to keep up with the world's largest religious sect, and
fortunately, I have Muslim friends who are willing to explain
this to me (it commemorates Abraham's willingness to sacrifice
his son—apparently, here they sacrifice a goat).
This story looms fairly large in the Christian Bible, so I wonder
why we don't acknowledge it in some way too.
Well, there is probably some observance in the Jewish traditions. But the Torah describes the near-sacrifice of Isaac, the forefather of the Hebrews, while the Koran says the near-sacrifice was of Ishmael, the forefather of the Arabs, and subsequently an ancestor of their Prophet Muhammed. Even the pilgrimage to Mecca involves retracing a narrative of Abraham and Hagar, the mother of Ishmael, to a house of worship built by Abraham. I think the Torah has Hagar and Ishmael cast out, and primacy of inheritance, and God's promise, goes to Isaac, son of Abraham's wife, Sarah. Two different plot-lines, earnestly believed. I'm still picking up on this stuff myself, here and there.
ReplyDeleteHmmm. Very interesting. I remember the story of Abraham. Now I'm just wondering why some animal rights group hasn't put an end to these sacrifices---but we happily buy meat at the butcher's, so I see not much difference.
ReplyDeleteI love a good story...especially if it's told well. USelaine...well said girl! ;-) Alexa, I love that you get around with that camera of yours. You really give us a great sense of life in NYC. BTW...I woke up today thinking it was Friday. Wishful thinking, I guess, but I hate that when it happens. lol Have a good Thursday all!
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