Happy New Year!!!
Q: Is it permissible for me to say to
non-Muslims "And the same to you" when they wish me a Happy New
Year or say Best Wishes?.
A: Praise be to Allaah.
It is not permissible to greet or congratulate the kuffaar on the
occasion of Christmas, New Year or any of their other holidays, and
it is not permissible to respond to them when they greet us on
those occasions, because they are not festivals that are prescribed
in our religion, and returning their greeting is an affirmation and
approval of them. The Muslim should be proud of his religion and
its rulings, and he should be keen to call others and convey to
them the religion of Allaah, may He be glorified and exalted.
Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) was asked
about the ruling on greeting the kuffaar on the occasion of
Christmas and how we should respond when they greet us on this
occasion. Is it permissible to go to the parties that they hold on
this occasion?
Is a person sinning if he does any of the things mentioned without
intending to, and he only does it to be nice, or because of or
shyness or embarrassment or other reasons? Is it permissible to
imitate them in that?
He replied:
Greeting the kuffaar on the occasion of Christmas or any of their
other religious holidays is haraam according to scholarly
consensus, as was stated by Ibn
al-Qayyim in his book (Ahkaam
Ahl al-Dhimmah), where he says:
"Congratulating the kuffaar on the rituals that belong only to them
is haraam by consensus, as is congratulating them on their
festivals and fasts by saying 'A happy festival to you' or 'May you
enjoy your festival,' and so on. If the one who says this has been
saved from kufr, it is still forbidden. It is like congratulating
someone for prostrating to the cross, or even worse than that. It
is as great a sin as congratulating someone for drinking wine, or
murdering someone, or having illicit sexual relations, and so on.
Many of those who have no respect for their religion fall into this
error; they do not realize the offensiveness of their actions.
Whoever congratulates a person for his disobedience or bid'ah or
kufr exposes himself to the wrath and anger of Allaah." End
quote.
Congratulating the kuffaar on their religious festivals is haraam
to the extent described by Ibn al-Qayyim because it implies that
one accepts or approves of their rituals of kufr, even if one would
not accept those things for oneself. But the Muslim should not
accept the rituals of kufr or congratulate anyone else for them,
because Allaah does not accept any of that at all, as He says
(interpretation of the meaning):
"If you disbelieve, then verily, Allaah is not in need of you, He
likes not disbelief for His slaves. And if you are grateful (by
being believers), He is pleased therewith for you..." , {إِن تَكْفُرُوا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ
عَنكُمْ ۖ وَلَا يَرْضَىٰ لِعِبَادِهِ الْكُفْرَ ۖ وَإِن تَشْكُرُوا
يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ}, Transliteration: 'In Takfurū Fa'inna
Allāha Ghanīyun `Ankum Wa Lā Yarđá Li`ibādihi Al-Kufra
Wa 'In Tashkurū Yarđahu Lakum
[al-Zumar 39:7].
"This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My
favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islaam as your
religion...", {الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ
لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَأَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ لَكُمُ
الْإِسْلَامَ دِينًا}, Transliteration: Al-Yawma 'Akmaltu
Lakum Dīnakum Wa 'Atmamtu `Alaykum Ni`matī Wa Rađītu Lakumu
Al-'Islāma Dīnāan [al-Maa'idah 5:3].
So congratulating them is forbidden, whether they are one's
colleagues at work or otherwise.
If they greet us on the occasion of their festivals, we should not
respond, because these are not our festivals, and because they are
not festivals which are acceptable to Allaah. These festivals are
innovations in their religions, and even those which may have been
prescribed formerly have been abrogated by the religion of Islaam,
with which Allaah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allaah be
upon him) to the whole of mankind. Allaah says (interpretation of
the meaning):
"Whoever seeks a religion other than Islaam, it will never be
accepted of him, and in the Hereafter he will be one of the
losers", {وَمَن يَبْتَغِ غَيْرَ
الْإِسْلَامِ دِينًا فَلَن يُقْبَلَ مِنْهُ وَهُوَ فِي الْآخِرَةِ
مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ}, Transliteration: Wa Man Yabtaghi Ghayra
Al-'Islāmi Dīnāan Falan Yuqbala Minhu Wa Huwa Fī Al-'Ākhirati Mina
Al-Khāsirīna [Aal 'Imraan 3:85].
It is haraam for a Muslim to accept invitations on such occasions,
because this is worse than congratulating them as it implies taking
part in their celebrations.
Similarly, Muslims are forbidden to imitate the kuffaar by having
parties on such occasions, or exchanging gifts, or giving out
sweets or food, or taking time off work, etc., because the Prophet
(peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: «Whoever imitates a people is one of
them» [Narrated by Abu Dawoud & Classified as Shaheeh by
Al-Albany], Shaykh al-Islaam Ibn
Taymiyah said in his book (Iqtidaa' al-Siraat al-Mustaqeem Mukhaalifat
Ashaab al-Jaheem): "Imitating them in some of their
festivals implies that one is pleased with their false beliefs and
practices, and gives them the hope that they may have the
opportunity to humiliate and mislead the weak
End quote from (Majmoo' Fataawa
al-Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen, 3/44).
And Allaah knows best.
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