US Muslims try to balance Eid rituals with virus concerns

Eid al-Fitr — the feast of breaking the fast — marks the end of Ramadan, when Muslims abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset. Just like they did during Ramadan, many are resorting to at-home worship and relying on technology for online gatherings, sermons and, now, Eid entertainment.

“We don’t want to have gatherings and congregations,” Sheikh Yasir Qadhi, who prepared the council’s fatwa, or religious edict, said in an interview. “We should try to keep the spirit of Eid alive, even if it’s just in our houses, even if we just decorate our houses and wear our finest for each other.”

On Sunday, Qadhi, resident scholar at East Plano Islamic Center in Texas, and just a few others chanted “Allahu Akbar” from a mosque that he said remained closed to worshippers. Normally, it would have been packed with thousands of believers.“Today we are celebrating Eid like we have never celebrated before,” Qadhi said in a sermon streamed online. “It’s an atypical celebration but it is a celebration nonetheless.

“Eid is important but more important is the health of the people,” said Maulana Abdulrahman Patel, the imam. “We’ve been taking a lot of precautions,” and not acting on “sentiments or emotional feelings,” he said before the holiday, adding they have been consulting with health and other officials. The Masjid Taqwa prayer was open for men only, the mosque said, citing “constraints.” Plans for men-only prayers announced by at least one other mosque have prompted objections by some about excluding women. For Masjid Taqwa, the decision to include just men was taken because having families together would make crowd control more difficult, Patel said.

In Michigan, the Michigan Muslim Community Council is organizing a televised Eid ceremony. It includes the Eid sermon, greetings from local elected officials and members of Muslim communities, said council chairman Mahmoud Al-Hadidi.

AP

Philippines Latest News, Philippines Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

Before Eid
Source: ANCALERTS - 🏆 26. / 50 Read more »

Filipino Muslims celebrate Eid'l Fitr at home as virus threat lingers
Source: ABSCBNNews - 🏆 5. / 83 Read more »

New York Times marks grim US virus milestone with front page victim listLOOK: As the United States approached 100,000 coronavirus deaths, The New York Times on Sunday marked the grim milestone with a stark memorial on its front page — one-line obituaries for 1,000 victims. (📷 from New York Times) Read: It's a negative publicity of POTUS in the Philippines. Americans, who did it to you homeland? Your president Trump or communist China?
Source: inquirerdotnet - 🏆 3. / 86 Read more »

South America named virus epicenter as Trump seeks U.S. reopeningBrazil leads the surge across South America, its death toll passing 21,000 from 330,000 infections, the third highest caseload of any country in a pandemic that has infected 5.2 million globally and killed more than 338,000. coronavirus
Source: rapplerdotcom - 🏆 4. / 86 Read more »

China says virus pushing US ties to brink of ‘Cold War’BEIJING — China said Sunday that its relations with the United States were "on the brink of a new Cold War," fuelled partly by tensions over the coronavirus pandemic that has killed ChinaLiedAndPeopleDied ChinaMustPay Chinamustfall
Source: inquirerdotnet - 🏆 3. / 86 Read more »

Premier League says 2 more people test positive for coronavirusMore virus cases turn up just weeks before the Premiere League’s proposed restart.
Source: rapplerdotcom - 🏆 4. / 86 Read more »