INTERFAITH PREENING: CHRISTIANS FASTING DURING RAMADAN….BY TAMARA AUDI….SEE NOTE PLEASE
http://www.wsj.com/articles/christians-join-muslims-in-fasting-for-ramadan-1437040802?mod=trending_now_2
It is so kumbaya…Perhaps they should also celebrate Ashura the holiday where the Shi’ites flagellate themselves with chained blades. The prigs should be far more concerned with the plight of Christians being murdered and harassed and driven from their homes by Moslems throughout the Middle East….rsk
Like 1.6 billion Muslims around the world fasting during the holy month of Ramadan, Jeff Cook has been rising before dawn each morning to have breakfast. He doesn’t eat again until breaking his fast with dinner.
But Mr. Cook isn’t Muslim, doesn’t have close Muslims friends, and has never been inside a mosque. The Christian pastor from Greeley, Colo., is fasting for the 30 days of Ramadan, which ends Friday, as part of a nascent effort among American Christians to better understand and support Muslims.
ENLARGE Mr. Cook posted a photo of himself on Twitter holding a sign that read: “I’m Jeff—A Christian in America. I’ll be fasting in solidarity #Christians4Ramadan.”
Muslims make up less than 2% of the U.S. population, and are expected to remain a small minority in the U.S. for decades, even as Islam grows rapidly in other parts of the world. Still, aggressive recruiting efforts by Islamic extremists in the West and calls for attacks from within has affected the larger Muslim community here, and colored many Americans’ views of them.
According to a recent Pew Research Center survey, Americans have more negative feelings toward Muslims than any other religious group.
“I’m fasting to remind myself there’s people all over the world that matter to God who embrace Islam,” Mr. Cook said recently. “I want to remind myself and my culture that we can have a different posture in our hearts toward those who embrace Islam.”
His fasting has been tested daily, most severely by a bag of Corn Nuts his family munched on during a five-hour road trip to South Dakota. His wife and two small sons support him, but aren’t fasting themselves.
He remembers thinking, “Those Corn Nuts look like filet mignon right now.”
Mr. Cook has persevered, though “it’s been tough.” Still, he said, Ramadan is proving to be a valuable spiritual experience.
Mr. Cook and others say they decided to fast for Ramadan after some Muslim Americans participated in the Christian tradition of sacrificing for the six weeks of Lent earlier this year. That movement took off on social media; Muslims posted photos of themselves with handwritten signs saying what they were giving up for Lent—everything from Lucky Charms to shopping—using the hashtag #Muslims4Lent.
During Ramadan, a period in which Muslims abstain from food and water during daylight hours, Christians like Mr. Cook posted photos of themselves on Twitter and Facebook. “Hi! I’m Katy. I was so inspired by #Muslims4Lent that I’m doing #Christians4Ramadan Salaam!” @NilesKaty posted, using the Arabic expression for peace.
The two movements are “a great way to bridge the gap between religions,” said Faria Akram, a 22-year-old college student from College Station, Texas. Ms. Akram, a Muslim, said she gave up Coca-Cola for Lent this year.
“I really love soda. It was hard,” she said. Ms. Akram made it for 25 days without soda. Her breaking point came when she needed to quickly take some medication before boarding a plane, and the only liquid available was her sister’s Coke.
“I definitely value the practice of Lent. I feel like it’s something inherently good,” Ms. Akram said.
EidPrayLove, a Muslim interfaith group, encouraged Muslims to participate, posting photos of those participating. “No gummy candy and fried food” read the sign of a young woman named Rana. Other things sacrificed included sour cream and onion-flavored snack chips, PlayStation, and online shopping.
Christians fasting for Ramadan say they’ve mostly received support from others of their faith, but some have drawn criticism from Christians who wonder how they can claim to follow Christ while adhering to an Islamic ritual.
Anthony Manousos, a Quaker from Pasadena, Calif., said his wife, an evangelical Christian, “had a little trouble” with his fasting during Ramadan. “But once she understood I was doing it to be a better Christian, she thought that was nice,” he said. His decision to fast “is all inspired by the simple Christian command to love thy neighbor and love thy enemy,” he said.
Mr. Manousos, 66, has been fasting during Ramadan on and off since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. His own “fear and anxiety” after that prompted him to seek out his Muslim neighbors and visit a mosque. Muslim friends have helped him get through fasts, and he advises other Christians wanting to participate in Ramadan to do so with a Muslim community.
For his part, Mr. Cook says he’s learned fasting in “isolation” has been difficult. The experience, he says, has taught him: “I need some Muslim friends.”
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