Name: Khalifa al-Haddad
From: Qatar
I heard about Valentine’s Day through the media, but I always need someone to remind me on which day of the year it falls. I have also heard of how it is celebrated in the West, in a way that goes against our culture and traditions.
I know for example that you buy the person you love a gift on this specific day, but I don’t understand why this shouldn’t be the case all the year round. Love, by the way, can be expressed by other means rather than presenting gifts on one day of the year.
I want to be a loving and beloved husband, father, son, and brother each day of my life and it would be a mistake if we specify one day for that otherwise you are actually giving love a social value.
That’s one reason why all of our Islamic scholars are against Valentine’s Day. No one can say that Islam goes against love but obviously it should be within the family frame and within boundaries that everyone knows.
The main reason for prohibiting Valentine’s Day in Islam is that celebrating such an event is accompanied with ‘weird behaviour’; something that our culture and religion totally rejects. If our western guests want to practice such an event, they should do it behind closed doors.
Personally, if someone gifts me a flower on Valentine’s Day I would not reject it, but I would ask him or her to do it more frequently than once in a year. Why not everyday?
Name: Ravi Narayan
From: India
Valentine’s Day is certainly alien to our culture. If I am not mistaken the first 40 years of my life I had not heard of Valentine’s Day.
I grew up in Mumbai, certainly one of the most westernized cities in India, and I still had not heard of it in my adolescent years.
According to me these are all marketing gimmicks which have been very effectively promoted with commercial interests in mind.
But I do not have any objection to anyone celebrating Valentine’s Day or for that matter any other day and having some fun.
In a modern progressive society people should have the freedom to decide and adopt what they like as long as it does not infringe on others’ rights.
No one has any authority to take on the role of a moral police and dictate terms to others. This should be strongly discouraged in any society.
Fortunately, in India we still have a large majority who believe in being fair and not judgmental of others.
Name: Maite Naudan
From: France
Yes, of course I do, I love to participate in this big commercial action, basically the next big advertising campaign after winter sales!
How romantic to buy a present on the same day as everyone else (thanks to the placard I pass by every morning on my way to work, otherwise I might have forgotten I had to buy a present to the one I love). How romantic to go to a crowded restaurant and have a very expensive menu in form of a heart in a red decor for the occasion! How romantic to spend an evening surrounded by hundreds unhappy couples trying to save their relationship and even more singles on a date, desperately looking for a soul mate (thanks to the Internet that reminds them every day since January 14th they should not be alone on Valentine’s day). How sad!
Seriously, there are so many occasions during the year on which you can celebrate love, why should you pick only one day and why the 14th of February? I don’t even know who Saint Valentine is and where the tradition gets its origin from… and I bet not even 1% of the persons who celebrate it know either. It’s like these mother and grandmother days, a formatting of society and a very lucrative business.
If the man I love writes me a poem or draw me a heart on February14, I will not tear it apart, but if he only does it on this one day, he might better not do it at all.
Name: Bil Gurung
From: Nepal
I don’t think it is correct to specify a date for love whether it is concerning a boy and girl or a husband and wife. Love is too precious to be celebrated on one day. I prefer to celebrate it seven days a week.
According to my religion, as a Buddhist everybody should love each other. It doesn’t mean that we have to expose our love in society on any specific day. If we specify the date for love, we are not giving it value. It shows that love is for celebration. Love is an expression to maintain peace and harmony in society, not for celebration.
As I heard Valentine’s Day is celebrated as a lovers’ day and this is ok for me. Let us say, it is not harmful as the young couples exchange their gifts and cards to each other on this day. Maybe one will propose love with him or her on this specific day.
Anybody can celebrate this day. Even married couples can celebrate it by exchanging their gifts and cards. Maybe a husband will give a special gift to his wife.
Buddhism is a religion of love and peace. We want development and progress in our life as well as our region too. These things will become true through peace. And peace will come through love.
Name:Saed Chibi
From: Tunisia
Yes, I celebrate Valentine’s Day because I want to go with the flow.
Everyone would say that he prefers love to be in every moment, but it is also nice to remember love as a value on one specific day - exactly like every country celebrates an annual national day in order to remind its citizen about the love of their homeland, but obviously that love should be present in every minute.
I can disagree with the way it is celebrated, but I know for sure how to do it and that is enough for me. Some say that you just buy a flower or a hand watch for your beloved person, but it is not just that. It is also to remind the other side that love should be refueled.
This year, I plan to celebrate Valentine’s Day along with my wife in our home like we did last year. She was surprised with the gift I chose for her last year but this year, I think nothing will surprise her. Through this gesture, I want to express my genuine feeling towards her in an original way.
Valentine’s Day celebrations can be seen in my country more than here, maybe because of the conservative society here in the Gulf that we respect very much. If I judge the occasion by last year’s, I don’t think that westerners here are excited by the event.
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hisashi_mitsui said
"The main reason for ..."The main reason for prohibiting Valentine’s Day in Islam is that celebrating such an event is accompanied with ‘weird behaviour’; something that our culture and religion totally rejects. If our western guests want to practice such an event, they should do it behind closed doors."
it all boils down to religion again eh?!?!....
---------------------------------------------------
"The grass is always greener...over the Septic Tank"
qatarisun said
people ridiculously mix ...people ridiculously mix things..look at that:
..presenting gifts on one day of the year....
who says that you have to "present gifts on one day of the year"?
Present them every day if you want! there are NO Un-Valentine's days during the year, nothing is prohibited! Go and express your feelings the way you want every single minute.. but having Holidays makes our lives more excited, don't you think so? Even if you express your crazy love every hour and presenting gifts every day, it becomes routine by the time, and you need something DIFFERENT from your daily activities of your mad love expressions!
*********************
“You become responsible forever for what you have tamed”. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
Keith Brown said
Then why not boycott Mothers ...Then why not boycott Mothers Day and Fathers day as well as they are days specifically set aside to appreciate our parents , granted there is no religious significance to these days but doesnt it boil down to much the same principal that we should not need to nominate a day to express something we should be doing every day .????
owen said
"weird ..."weird behaviour?"....lol..sorry this made me laugh...Islam do have lots of...errrr never mind...:P
Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood.
MagicDragon said
I agree with Keith. I also ...I agree with Keith. I also "boycott" Eid celebrations.
TrueFriend said
Take care my dear Magicdrgon ...Take care my dear Magicdrgon otherwise they will "boycott" you from -------?
this is an advice only
PITSTOP said
MagicDragon,, ...Islam prohibits Muslims to follow the other religions practices. We as Muslims have two Eids to celebrate. Just like Christmas, and other Religion associated celebrations.
I think the scholars should ban the shops and malls from displaying all the red hearts and Valentine related items if they were serious about boycotting.
Keith Brown said
Pittstop, the sad fact if ...Pittstop, the sad fact if you like is this . Valentines is not considered a religious holiday by most, infact its religious significance is negligable nowadays which is why I and many others categorise it along with the likes of Mothers Day and Fathers Day.
Factor in the profit motive of card and niknak manufacturers and Hotels, it seems the religious significance is gone completely.
Example. Christmas cards with Nativity scenes , or Cute penguins wearing santa hats.
Have you ever ever seen a Valentines card with a depiction of St Valentine on it .
britexpat said
In some Arab countries I ...In some Arab countries I have seen valentine day celebrated where cards / gifts are sent to parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles etc..
dmigtysolomon said
Valentine celebration ,... ...is still a religious celebration with commercial things attached to it. Of course, the commercialism aspect already tends to alienate the celebration as religious one.
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
nigelreid said
christmas tree ...well it depends on what sort of society people want to have.. the face that the powers that be in Qatar have not banned symbols of hearts and flowers and so on Feb 14 suggests they want to be more 'diverse' in their society and not so empathically on one particular side. Thus the speaker Khalifa al Haddad above seems to take a different position to what the authorities have taken.
for the last two years (that I have been here, anyway) Villaggio has had a tree that would compete with the Rockefeller Christmas tree. Surely this is even more 'weird behaviour' than just the very minor Valentines knicknacks and cards and is also a celebration of an alien religious celebration.
do people really feel threatened by such things? is there really such a danger in having different symbols from around the world? is anyone forcing people to participate in something against their will?
I always think that in Islamic countries, one stern conservative voice seems to carry more force than ten liberal ones - it's the same reason newspapers tend to self-censor, and everyone is on eggshells about saying something that might 'offend' someone else, even when those statements are meaningless and harmless!
where, really, is the harm in such trivial little symbols? also, why be so arrogant to say "the rest of the world can learn plenty from our culture and religion, but there is nothing of theirs that we want to know about" .. ?
nigelreid said
dmightysolomon ...a religious celebration? well, myself and hundreds of millions of other people would certainly enjoy you enlightening us on what makes Valentines a religious 'celebration' and indeed how, in the first place, you would even define what a 'religious celebration' is, and in what way sending flowers and chocolates constitutes any kind of religious ritual - because i can tell you for sure that there are entire countries in the world who wouldn't be able to answer that point, even if they phoned a friend - or twelve.
what this is actually about is power - groups of people who possess power and influence, led by religious scholars, are worried about losing some of it with change coming from outside groups - and try to block off the pass by prohibiting any change from happening at all. 'religion' and 'tradition' is usually invoked to make argue against any change from coming to pass.
dmigtysolomon said
Nigelreid, I don't know what kind of teacher are you,... ...but if you knew, even the origin of the word "valentine" or who he is, the you will know that it was indeed a religious celebration. All the things you mentioned are the commercial aspect of the celebration, just like Christmas celebration which is basically, another Catholic religious celebration. Now, if you don't know that, again, I ask, what kind of a teacher are you?
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
notfromhere said
"weird behaviour" ...Check out this weird behavior, also found in today's GT:
"Students at Doha College came to school on Thursday wearing something red to show that they care for others. The colour red was chosen as it coincides with Valentine's Day, which falls today. Students also made a small donation to the work of the Charities Committee. Money raised will go to Reach Out to Asia and the chosen charities supported by the Charities Committee. As well as wearing red, roses were sold between the students and staff joined in too."
Deviants!
DoraTheExplorer said
It should be ...It should be banned....bloody rip off! for what?!! Baaaa humbug...
britexpat said
Dora.. ...Don't tell me he bought you another Toon Football shirt..
DoraTheExplorer said
brit....I would be delighted ...brit....I would be delighted if I even got that....but nowt this morning.......grrrrr......not even a steroid enhanced red rose with no smell......
nigelreid said
Valentines day is a saint's ...Valentines day is a saint's feast day, and every day of the year is designated as such for a different saint. for instance, Saint Antony of Padua is celebrated on June 13th. it comes from the church's Calendar of Saints. the difference of the celebration would be in mentioning St Antony's name rather than St Valentine's during a mass in church. there are least three saints recognised by the church who share the name Valentine but the one usually remembered (if indeed a church even bothers to mention this nowadays, which most don't)
therefore, to try to criticise sending hearts and flowers on Feb 14 as though it were in anyway linked to the actual religious celebration in church of the martyrdom of St Valentinus at the hands of a Roman emperor is ridiculous - as you can see, it is connected in name only. thus, your 'religious celebration' argument holds no water that i can see.
dmigtysolomon said
Well well well, Nigelreid,... ...nobody is arguing about sending flowers and gifts here, my friend. We are just stating facts. Nobody is criticizing anything here! You are daydreaming, my friend?
For your info also, Valentine was already removed a long time ago on the list of Catholic saints, do you know it, as a teacher?
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
AbuAmerican said
Its apparently a day ...Its apparently a day connected to religion, just you people forgot about why.
http://en.wikipedia....
Saint Valentine
For more details on this topic, see Saint Valentine.
Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine.[4] Until 1969, the Catholic Church formally recognized eleven Valentine's Days. The Valentines honored on February 14 are Valentine of Rome (Valentinus presb. m. Romae) and Valentine of Terni (Valentinus ep. Interamnensis m. Romae).[5] Valentine of Rome[6] was a priest in Rome who suffered martyrdom about AD 269 and was buried on the Via Flaminia. His relics are at the Church of Saint Praxed in Rome.[7] and at Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin, Ireland.
Valentine of Terni[8] became bishop of Interamna (modern Terni) about AD 197 and is said to have been killed during the persecution of Emperor Aurelian. He is also buried on the Via Flaminia, but in a different location than Valentine of Rome. His relics are at the Basilica of Saint Valentine in Terni (Basilica di San Valentino).[9]
The Catholic Encyclopedia also speaks of a third saint named Valentine who was mentioned in early martyrologies under date of February 14. He was martyred in Africa with a number of companions, but nothing more is known about him.[10]
No romantic elements are present in the original early medieval biographies of either of these martyrs. By the time a Saint Valentine became linked to romance in the fourteenth century, distinctions between Valentine of Rome and Valentine of Terni were utterly lost.[11]
In the 1969 revision of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints, the feastday of Saint Valentine on February 14 was removed from the General Roman Calendar and relegated to particular (local or even national) calendars for the following reason: "Though the memorial of Saint Valentine is ancient, it is left to particular calendars, since, apart from his name, nothing is known of Saint Valentine except that he was buried on the Via Flaminia on February 14."[12] The feast day is still celebrated in Balzan (Malta) where relics of the saint are claimed to be found, and also throughout the world by Traditionalist Catholics who follow the older, pre-Vatican II calendar.
The Early Medieval acta of either Saint Valentine were excerpted by Bede and briefly expounded in Legenda Aurea.[13] According to that version, St Valentine was persecuted as a Christian and interrogated by Roman Emperor Claudius II in person. Claudius was impressed by Valentine and had a discussion with him, attempting to get him to convert to Roman paganism in order to save his life. Valentine refused and tried to convert Claudius to Christianity instead. Because of this, he was executed. Before his execution, he is reported to have performed a miracle by healing the blind daughter of his jailer.
Legenda Aurea still providing no connections whatsoever with sentimental love, appropriate lore has been embroidered in modern times to portray Valentine as a priest who refused an unattested law attributed to Roman Emperor Claudius II, allegedly ordering that young men remain single. The Emperor supposedly did this to grow his army, believing that married men did not make for good soldiers. The priest Valentine, however, secretly performed marriage ceremonies for young men. When Claudius found out about this, he had Valentine arrested and thrown in jail. In an embellishment to The Golden Legend, on the evening before Valentine was to be executed, he wrote the first "valentine" himself, addressed to a young girl variously identified as his beloved,[14] as the jailer's daughter whom he had befriended and healed,[15] or both. It was a note that read "From your Valentine."[14]
______________________________________________
Brazilian Jujitsu in Qatar
http://iloveqatar.ne...
expat bnota said
i don't know about the ...i don't know about the religious aspect of this celebration, but " no matter what name you'll give to a rose. wouldn't it smell just as sweet???"
If it bothers you, then change it's name. Make it LOve day and it would not change a thing.
The truth is that we might say " i love you!" every day and prepare soul food for our loved ones and small attentions, but one day in year it's nice to feel extra special, to receive and to give something extra. I feel happy in this day, i go a full week thinking how i can surprise my love, what is that special thing that will surprise him the most. This day is not just for women. Man like it too, they are more sensitive that they would like to recognise
MagicDragon said
TrueFriend, I appreciate ...TrueFriend, I appreciate your "intolerance". God bless you.
Bik Mety said
My last name is Valentine, ...My last name is Valentine, deos that means not good to be in Qatar?
donald_duc168 said
you can't please ...EVERYBODY
dmigtysolomon said
Nowadays, PM, yes,.... ...the commercialism about it already somehow seem to make everybody believe that it was created not as a religious celebration but the fact remains it was.
Did you read Abu's posting (from Wiki..)?
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
Dracula said
Can i have a "Dracula's ...Can i have a "Dracula's Day"?
.
dmigtysolomon said
Only Dracula's Nights, no day........ ..."dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
Dracula said
"Dracula's Night"?...i love ..."Dracula's Night"?...i love that!!
Any religious issue?
Huh? :(
adey said
An anology ...I have a manual for repairing my Suzuki 125cc motorcycle - it clearly states that one should not aquire spare parts from any dealership other than official Suzuki suppliers.
Therefore others parts are weird and If Yamaha, Kawazaki etc owners want to repair their bikes, they should do it behind closed doors.
See how silly it sounds.
"Deaths in the Bible. God - 2,270,365
not including the victims of Noah's flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, or the
many plagues, famines, fiery serpents, etc because no specific numbers
were given. Satan - 10."
MR PAUL said
Well ive just come from Bahrain city center mall, and in there, ...there are 2 (yes 2) Valentines day shops with all the red floral and heart shaped crap that comes with it.
Indeed, ive seen a few Bahraini girls carrying said gifts to give to their men today, and do ya know what, not ONE person has complained or commented..............
---------------------------------------------------------
I think you have me confused with someone who gives a [Let's not get blocked by the Telco].
nice_man said
very good subject ...very good subject.
dmigtysolomon said
PM, let me put it this way,... ...why celebrate this on this particular date when you can always show you love on other dates? This is not the same as Mother's day or Father's day or a particular hero's day. There's no religious connotation for such ( and usually declared by the state or universal declaration by a governing body). But Valentine day was created by the Catholic Hierarchy and was to honor a Catholic saint in particular. But as I said, the commercial matters already tends to diminish the religious aspect of the celebration.
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
Dracula said
You have my heart! ...oopsss
dmigtysolomon said
That was exactly on the minds,.... ...of those who created this celebration, commercialism!
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
adey said
I see I waisted my time ...I should have just joined in tha throng with YES/NO
Yar/Boo sucks!
Actually the negative response from some muslim sections concerns the horror/dread/threat of the sexes talking to each other - it has nothing to do with it being a 'religious' holiday.
SHOCK HORROR - I know muslims in the ME and UK that send Xmas cards and presents to non muslim friends!
"Deaths in the Bible. God - 2,270,365
not including the victims of Noah's flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, or the
many plagues, famines, fiery serpents, etc because no specific numbers
were given. Satan - 10."
PITSTOP said
PM ...I didn't say that Valentines Day was a religious holiday. I was commenting on boycotting Eid. Maybe used the wrong example.
I personally think we are so busy in our lives that we forget to love and show love to our friends, family and loved ones. Valentines day is just a reminder to boost up the love in ones life.
My brother visited my house today just to give me a lovely red rose. I loved his sweet gesture. If only all the men were like him.
Happy Love Day everyone :D
AbuAmerican said
Its a religious holiday. ...Its a religious holiday. People just forgot that is one.
Comparing the invention of the internet to the forgotten customs of a religious holiday is a bit.... reaching..
______________________________________________
Brazilian Jujitsu in Qatar
http://iloveqatar.ne...
dmigtysolomon said
PM, Abu is right,... ...until the word valentine is there, it will still be associated with St. Valentine of the Catholic church.
"dgoodrebel will always be the rebellious good one"
Eco-savvy said
PM in my state it is religious day, ...Just like Three Kings festival,Easter, this festival is celebrated with Mass. Entire Church is decorated with flowers.....and order of flowers is placed months in advance
Dracula said
Valentine’s Day (in its ...Valentine’s Day (in its Western culture acceptation) has not been celebrated in Romania!
:P
Alexa said
Why can't people decide for ...Why can't people decide for themselves wether or not to celebrate Valentine's Day or any other celebration?
Are people not intelligent enough to do that? Is it that one person has to tell another what to do...or not to do?
Makes me wonder....
You mess with the cat, you get the claws....
flicker said
my choise to celebrate or not :) ...well , my mom's name is Valentina and although we are not catholics we are celebrating today . We celebrated before 3 days too when was Orthodox Valentina:)But above all we celebrate today the feast of the grape and the wine!! So we have here love and wine!!It coincide perfect! Despite my 3 years relationship just have ruined and my life lost purpose and direction,we are celebrating today!!
http://www.flickr.co...
Platao36 said
Adey: I have seen muslims ...Adey: I have seen muslims here that participate in Easter and Christmas meals and giving presents in christmas, just don't take part on religious celebrations.
Only God Can Judge Me
الله فقط يمكنه محاكمتي
I am you and you are me, if you love i love, if you suffer i suffer
أنا أنت, و أنت أنا, إذا أحببت نفسك أحببت نفسي, إذا عانيتَ عانيتُ
notfromhere said
Pitstop, to me that's what ...Pitstop, to me that's what it's all about. Just taking the time to tell someone you care, whether they are friends or family.
Of course it's not the ONLY day in the year that we tell them this, but why NOT set aside one special day, or a few minutes out of that day, just to remind our loved ones how much they mean to us. Who is it hurting?
Why do the anti's have to make it out to be something lurid and sleazy??
Eco-savvy said
Owen feel free to discuss weird ...things in Islam and You know I LOVE TO
EXPOSE LIARS
Eco-savvy said
Owen just for your pleasure ...these advices aint wierd
http://www.rhreality...
Alexa said
Eco...those are some very ...Eco...those are some very disgruntled women...maybe they never got a Valentine's card? lol
You mess with the cat, you get the claws....
Alexa said
Well, why not do what is ...Well, why not do what is happening, EVERY YEAR, in Saudi then?
Muttaween come and crush every red rose they can find....the destroy every heart shaped item...well, you get the gist......
But the locals ain't stupid....they celebrate it anyway....at least the ones who WANT to do it.
You see, you can't force people to do what YOU think is right....
As it is said....you have been given a free will to decide what is right or wrong for you.....EVERY person on this earth has the right to decide for themselves......this is their GOD given right, as long as they don't hurt another person.
You mess with the cat, you get the claws....
Alexa said
PM......you really made me ...PM......you really made me laugh...envisioning one of those in your embrace....the poor man would probably have a seizure........;)
You mess with the cat, you get the claws....
King Edshel said
That is a sad thing .... crashing ...everything that had a hear shape and red roses also? :(
Hope that they don't also put people down and step on them because they got a real heart and not a heart shape hidden somewhere ...
Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. (Gautama Buddha)
AbuAmerican said
there something wrong with ...there something wrong with beards? I like mine.
______________________________________________
Brazilian Jujitsu in Qatar
http://iloveqatar.ne...
MagicDragon said
Some Italian mafioso also ...Some Italian mafioso also have beards. And Hitler had one. Were they Muslims?
haripot42 said
I THINK TO CELEBRATE ...I THINK TO CELEBRATE VALENTINE'S DAY NOTHING IS WRONG IN ISLAM,VALENTINE IS NOT JUST FOR GIRL FRINED,BOYFRIEND THIS IS FOR EVERYBODY WHO FEEL LOVE TO OTHER'S THIS IS NOT BETWEEN ISLAM OR OTHER RELIGION.
heero_yuy2 said
Re:topic ...I heard about Valentine’s Day through the media, but I always need someone to remind me on which day of the year it falls. I have also heard of how it is celebrated in the West, in a way that goes against our culture and traditions.
Why is it easy for people living around here to say "against" on any 'occasion' or conduct that is not within their 'culture'?
"Everything in this book may be wrong." Illusions: The Adventures of The Reluctant Messiah by Richard Bach
carol2008 said
"The main reason for ..."The main reason for prohibiting Valentine’s Day in Islam is that celebrating such an event is accompanied with ‘weird behaviour’; something that our culture and religion totally rejects.If our western guests want to practice such an event, they should do it behind closed doors." (Khalifa Al-Haddad)
Yes... of course, such clever statement might be from someone from this TOTALLY NOT weird place.
I wonder what would happen if we,weird westerns, decided to do like they do in western countries at the first suspicion of criticism on their believes.Lucky them on week days we are busy at work trying to make this place work!(and at night we are busy doing the "weird" stuff)
GET A LIFE!
MR PAUL said
Yesterdays Gulf times writes.................... ...Scholars urge youth to stop aping the West
By Anwar Elshamy
SENIOR Islamic clerics yesterday urged young Muslims to boycott the celebrations of Valentine’s Day, saying that the day’s practices were a “blind imitation of the West” which could lead them astray.
In his Friday sermon, Sheikh Abdullah Omar al-Bakri said the celebration of the so-called Love Day around the world was “merely part of globalisation which the West seeks to impose on the Muslim world and make them lose their identity”.
“Globalisation has its own social and economic aspects. It aims to weaken the culture and identity of all the non-Western nations,” al-Bakri told a congregation of the faithful at the Omar bin al-Khattab mosque at Khalifa South Town.
“The so-called Love Day is only part of the plot the West is hatching against Muslim communities. It clearly flouts the Islamic teachings.”
He said: “Marking special occasions like the Love Day is an innovation that has no religious backing. Many irreligious practices occur during the celebration of that day. It does not even stop at the level of a man showing love to his wife.”
The scholar urged principals of schools and colleges to ban the celebration of the day among their students.
“Many of the appearances linked to the Love Day are undermining virtue and promoting vice. Celebrating the day is part of Westernisation of our societies,” he said.
“It is shameful to find girls in schools dressed in red on this Day and even exchange red gifts and flowers in a way which is far from innocent friendship.”
Another scholar, Sheikh Mohamed Hassan al-Mureikhi, also warned Muslims against “exchanging flowers, congratulating one another on the day, or buying any of its associated goods”, saying that such practices contributed to the promotion of the day among youths.
“Islam does not recognise Valentine’s Day. It is just a pagan day which promotes immorality and love outside marriage,” al-Mureikhi told a congregation at the Al-Wakrah Mosque.
Sheikh al-Mureikhi hit out at what he called the “way of life of the Western communities”, saying that homosexual marriages had been legalised in many Western nations.
“The West has been plagued by a moral chaos as women and men are allowed to have sex outside wedlock. They even allowed homosexual relations and provided them legal protection. Now they want to export such chaos to Muslims to corrupt their creed,” he said.
“Muslims should be cautious against showing any celebrations for the day. Whoever is participating in the promotion of such irreligious practices would be guilty,” he maintained.
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I think you have me confused with someone who gives a [Let's not get blocked by the Telco].
Gypsy said
ROFL. All this fuss, just ...ROFL. All this fuss, just because Hallmark wants us to buy more cards and flowers.
TrueFriend said
dear All ...The Messenger of Allah (SAW) said , " The worst practice is the introduction of new practices in Islam and every Bid`ah is a misguidance.''
Abu Hurairah (RA) reported: Messenger of Allah (SAW) said, "If anyone calls others to follow right guidance, his reward will be equivalent to those who follow him (in righteousness) without their reward being diminished in any respect, and if anyone invites others to follow error, the sin, will be equivalent to that of the people who follow him (in sinfulness) without their sins being diminished in any respect".
Send this to all ur friends , call them to the right path .
May Allah always protect us in His mercy.... Ameen!
Platao36 said
As far as i know, going out ...As far as i know, going out with girlfriend/bride/wife on valentine's isn't a religious celebration
Only God Can Judge Me
الله فقط يمكنه محاكمتي
I am you and you are me, if you love i love, if you suffer i suffer
أنا أنت, و أنت أنا, إذا أحببت نفسك أحببت نفسي, إذا عانيتَ عانيتُ
Alexa said
Geez...apart from Hallmark i ...Geez...apart from Hallmark i don't think anybody in the West gives a hoot if they celebrate it elsewhere or not....i think people have much better things to do than to hatch conspiracies to introduce "Love Day " to other cultures.....oh...and corrupting people in the ME.....well, truthfully, the West could learn a thing or two from them......;0
You mess with the cat, you get the claws....
stress_in_babel said
TrueFriend, why do you take ...TrueFriend, why do you take things so seriously? Why everything has to be so black and white?
People will celebrate Valentine's Day as long as they wish to...and those who do it don't think about any religious issues, they just like the idea of one special day just for the loved ones...it's never too much when it comes to celebrating love..
So, please just take it as a joke an a funny activity, it's not like people are attacking islam just for buying few red roses...
As much as I know, Valentine was a catholic priest that used to marry couples ilegally (without the consent of their families), something like Romeo and Juliet case, when families wouldn't agree. So that's why they celebrate true love in his name.
TrueFriend said
DEAR STRESS ...LIFE is not a joke -----Is there anyone in this land who will save from death ----- so life is not a joke, we all have to get ready for death because it will come one day to you also ----- and it will not come as per your wish
So if death is not as per your wish and what about your life ------ so please make your life also as per Allahs and his massagers wish
TrueFriend said
Help people the Allah ( God) ...Help people the Allah ( God) will help you
Vegas said
Giving your wife flowers and a card is wierd???? ...Good thing I did it here at the house...
You can't teach experience...
mjamille28 said
apparently, it is.. well, according to them... :/ ...carol2008 said
reallt... people who think ...reallt... people who think loving and caring (and holding hands in public) is weird... really... I think the problem with them is that they get very little to do, to fullfill their days... after years and years of having nothing to do... it is hard to be normal.
GET A LIFE PEOPLE! And if western habits were so freak... what are you guys doing going to western countries? Stay home then.