Christmas and Hanukkah and Jihad … Light Outshines Darkness
Last week a devout Christian told me that she celebrates Christmas daily. The world would change overnight for the better if all Christians just do that. She didn’t know I wrote a 190-word ‘Christmas … the Ultimate Sacrifice.’
It’s a bit deeper than the typical Christmas wish. It also connects to a short excerpt of a Christmas Message, ‘Christ is Our Peace … est pax nostra,’ delivered by Saint Pope John Paul II on Christmas Day 2001.
This season is special. In 2019, Christmas and Hanukah fall on the same dates. What do they have in common? Christmas and Hanukkah are both festivals of light. And, the true meaning of ‘Jihad’ complements the spirit around Christmas and Hanukkah. There is more convergence than divergence in our Abrahamic Faiths. Jihad: “striving in the path of God (al-jihad fi sabil Allah).” Jihad, Arabic: جهاد jihād, is an expression of hope, literally striving or struggling, especially with a praiseworthy aim.” (‘Christian Zionism … Enraptured Around a Golden Calf’ Page 16: Kindle Locations 146-148).
It’s time for real Jihad and Real Christmas and REAL Hanukah,
Abraham A. van Kempen
Building the Bridge Foundation, The Hague
A Way of Getting to Know the Other and One ANOTHER