{"id":611,"date":"2014-12-21T16:48:43","date_gmt":"2014-12-21T21:48:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/commonwordcommonlord\/?p=611"},"modified":"2014-12-21T16:48:43","modified_gmt":"2014-12-21T21:48:43","slug":"christmas-in-the-quran","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/commonwordcommonlord\/christmas-in-the-quran\/","title":{"rendered":"“Christmas in the Qur’an”"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the Name of God: The Infinitely Merciful and Compassionate Beloved Lord<\/em><\/p>\n

In my last post<\/a>, we discussed how Jesus Christ is part of my life, even if I am not celebrating the religious festival marking his birth. \u00a0Yet, the verses in the Qur’an regarding the birth of Jesus Christ were only quickly mentioned. Here they are in detail.<\/p>\n

Chapter 3, verses 45-49:<\/p>\n

Lo! The angels said: “O Mary! Behold, God sends thee the glad tiding, through a word from Him, [of a son] who shall become known as the Christ Jesus, son of Mary, of great honor in this world and in the life to come, and [shall be] of those who are drawn near unto God.\u00a0And he shall speak unto men in his cradle, and as a grown man, and shall be of the righteous.<\/p>\n

Said she: “O my Sustainer! How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me?” [The angel] answered: “Thus it is: God creates what He wills when He wills a thing to be, He but says unto it, ‘Be’ – and it is. And he will impart unto thy son revelation, and wisdom, and the Torah, and the Gospel,\u00a0and [will make him] an apostle unto the children of Israel .”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Yet, by far, the most eloquent verses regarding Jesus’ birth come in Chapter 19, verses 16-33:<\/p>\n

AND CALL to mind, through this divine writ, Mary. Lo! She withdrew from her family to an eastern place\u00a0and kept herself in seclusion from them, \u00a0whereupon We sent unto her Our angel of revelation, who appeared to her in the shape of a well-made human being. She exclaimed: “Verily, ‘I seek refuge from thee with the Most Gracious! [Approach me not] if thou art conscious of Him!” [The angel] answered: “I’ am but a messenger of thy Lord, [who says,] `I shall bestow upon thee the gift of a son endowed with purity.'” Said she: “How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me? – for, never have I been unchaste?”\u00a0[The angel] answered: “Thus it is; [but] thy Sustainer says, `This is easy for Me; and [thou shalt have a son,] so that We might make him a symbol unto mankind and an act of grace from US. And it was a thing decreed [by God]:<\/p>\n

and in time she conceived him, and then she withdrew with him to a far-off place.\u00a0And [when] the throes of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm-tree, she exclaimed: “Oh, would that I had died before this, and had become a thing forgotten, utterly forgotten!”\u00a0Thereupon [a voice] called out to her from beneath that [palm-tree]: “Grieve not! Thy Sustainer has provided a rivulet [running] beneath thee;\u00a0and shake the trunk of the palm-tree towards thee: it will drop fresh, ripe dates upon thee.\u00a0Eat, then, and drink, and let thine eye be gladdened! And if thou should see any human being, convey this unto him:\u00a0`Behold, abstinence from speech have I vowed unto the Most Gracious; hence, I may not speak today to any mortal.<\/p>\n

And in time she returned to her people, carrying the child with her. They said: “O Mary! Thou hast indeed done an amazing thing!\u00a0O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man, nor was thy mother unchaste!”\u00a0Thereupon she pointed to him. They exclaimed: “How can we talk to one who [as yet] is a little boy in the cradle?”<\/p>\n

[But] he [Jesus] said:\u00a0“Behold, I am a servant of God. He has vouchsafed unto me revelation and made me a prophet,\u00a0and made me blessed wherever I may be; and He has enjoined upon me prayer and charity as long as I live,\u00a0and [has endowed me with] piety towards my mother; and He has not made me haughty or bereft of grace.\u00a0“Hence, peace was upon me on the day when I was born, and [will be upon me] on the day of my death, and on the day when I shall be raised to life [again]!”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

These are the verses about Jesus with which I was raised. These are the verses I have read countless times, in all parts of the year. Theses are the verses which, along with other Prophetic traditions, have made me love, revere, and honor Jesus Christ in my life. They are indeed beautiful, recounting a beautiful and special event in the history of humanity, for both Christians and Muslims alike.<\/p>\n

And just as Jesus Christ himself said – “Peace was upon me on the day when I was born, and [will be upon me] on the day of my death and on the day when I shall be raised to life [again]!” – thus, O Lord, I pray that this very same peace reign over our world and over all of us who live on it. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the Name of God: The Infinitely Merciful and Compassionate Beloved Lord In my last post, we discussed how Jesus Christ is part of my life, even if I am not celebrating the religious festival marking his birth. \u00a0Yet, the verses in the Qur’an regarding the birth of Jesus Christ were only quickly mentioned. 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Hassaballa","description":"Hesham A. Hassaballa is a Chicago doctor and writer. He has written extensively on a freelance basis, being published in newspapers across the country and around the world. He has been a Beliefnet columnist since 2001, and has written for the Religion News Service. He is also a columnist for Patheos. His articles have been distributed worldwide by Agence Global, and he was also a guest blogger for The Chicago Tribune and has blogged on ChicagoNow\" . In addition, Dr. Hassaballa has appeared as a guest on WTTW (Channel 11) in Chicago, CNN, Fox News, BBC, and National Public Radio. Dr. Hassaballa is co-author of The Beliefnet Guide to Islam (Doubleday), and his essay, \u201cWhy I Love the Ten Commandments,\u201d was published in the award-winning book Taking Back Islam (Rodale). His latest book, Noble Brother, is the story of the Prophet Muhammad told entirely in poetry, and it is now published in its second edition. 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