Few things foster a sense of common humanity as much as the adherents of one religion offering warm holiday wishes to members of another. Yet some people reject this geniality on principle. Islamists—Muslims intent on returning to a medieval law code—despise any holiday not sanctioned by Islam. This archaic and bigoted attitude provides context for the New Year’s Day massacre in New Orleans that left 14 dead and dozens injured.
Islamic theologians of the Middle Ages set out the general approach. Ibn Taymiya (1263-1328) argued that joining non-Muslims in their festivals is equivalent to “agreeing to infidelity.” His student Ibn al-Qayyim (1292-1350) specified that congratulating non-Muslims on their holidays “is a greater sin than congratulating them for drinking wine, having illegal sexual intercourse, and so on.”
Of all infidel holidays, Islamic authorities most detest Christmas, when Christians believe God became man. ...
Read the full article at the Wall Street Journal.
