Regarding the Dec. 30 letter ("Events overlooked") decrying the front-page story on a Muslim convention held in Chino over Christmas weekend:
Point one: A newspaper's job is to report the news - not just the stories some people may want to read on the pages they might prefer to read them on. I salute the Daily Bulletin for reporting Inland Valley-related news with timely impartiality.
Point two: Jesus (peace be upon him) was not even born on Dec. 25 anyway - that honor belongs to the Roman sun god Sol Invictus (along with dozens of other pagan gods) whom Christianity replaced with Jesus as the "son" God, setting his birthday on Dec. 25 once Christianity joined the prior pagan beliefs to become a state-sanctioned religion in the early 4th century AD. (Look it up at www.POCM.info.) And in the New Testament book of Luke, 2:8, it says Jesus (pbuh) was born when shepherds stay outside with their flocks at night, which is only up until late August or September, after which time it gets too cold.
Point three: Ask any kid who he or she thinks of when you say "Christmas" and I'm betting it's Santa, not Jesus (pbuh). And who encourages this idolatry? Christian parents. Perhaps if they spent more time telling their kids about Jesus instead of lying to them about a fat white guy in a red suit whose flying reindeer pull a sleigh with presents for every Christian kid on the planet then maybe - just maybe - their kids might associate Christmas with Jesus in some meaningful, spiritual way.
Is it any wonder that when children are old enough to realize they've been lied to about one part of the Christmas "story" they are less and less inclined to believe in the religious part?
You would think this kind of idolatrous brainwashing that replaces Jesus with Santa would be more than enough to motivate Christians to do something to save their own holiday from spiritual extinction.
- JONATHAN M.A. GHAFFAR, Chino
The writer is a co-host on the twice-weekly radio show "Understanding Islam with Imam Shamshad" and has been an Ahmadi Muslim since 1994.
Source/Credit: Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. By Jonathan M.A.Ghaffar | January 11, 2011
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