Blessed Ramadan to Canadian Muslims

Midnight Sun Mosque -- Inuvik 

Ramadan Mubarak, or Blessed Ramadan to the nearly five percent of Canadians who are Muslim. Last evening marked the beginning of this month-long period of fasting with the sighting of the crescent moon.

 Muslims believe that Ramadan is the month when the first verses of the holy book Quran were revealed to the Prophet Muhammad more than 1,400 years ago.During Ramadan Muslims fast from from pre-sunrise to sunset, so anywhere from 12 to 18 hours, depending on where you are in the world. 

Ramadan is also a time to be charitable and there is an emphasis this year in Canada on providing support for those who are food-insecure. One of the organizations is Give 30 and I've written in the past about corresponding with its founderer, Ziyaad Mia.

Ramadan moves around in the calendar and I recall reading a few years ago about the challenges for Muslims living in Canada's Far North when Ramadan occurred nearer the Summer Soltice and the sun barely set each day. The decision was made to follow the daily  schedule for Ottawa to give these folk in the north a break for their fasting regime. 

I appreciate that Ramadan is determined on a lunar rhythm, as is Jewish Passover, and Christian Easter. After the sun sets, moon sighters face west, with a clear view of the horizon to look for the new moon to begin the month. We will be in Israel during the intersection of Ramadan, Pesach, and Easter this year and, needless to say, we hope this will be a calm time as tensions rise in the country which is so important to all three religions. 

I pray that this can be a contemplative season for Muslim observers, and a safe one. We know that Islamaphobia is a reality in Canada with cowardly attacks on Muslim women going about their everyday lives and on mosques where folk engage in prayer.It really is disturbing.  We uphold freedom of religion in this country and becoming better informed moves us toward acceptance and meaningful interfaith dialogue.