Eid Mubarak! (and date controversy)

(Belated) Eid Mubarak to all readers.

Those of you who celebrate Eid are probably aware there’s been controversy over the date of Eid again. My own views have been settled on this topic for a while now. Personally I think we should move beyond Ludditism and accept the (scientific) astronomical calculations. But this has to be by consensus: unity is more important. I’m not going to celebrate Eid on the ‘right’ day (scientifically) if most of the community is doing it on the ‘wrong’ day (based on reports of when someone claimed to see the new moon).

The thing people seem to forget is that consensus is not needed simply at a local level. Eid-ul-Adha, in particular, is when many Muslims will feel a spiritual bond with the pilgrims performing Hajj. It is, after all, supposed to be the day after Arafat, when the hujjuj return to Mina and being the days of tashreek. Celebrating Eid on a different day is just ridiculous. And once you accept that principle for Eid-ul-Adha, you really have to be consistent and accept it 12 months a year, including for the start and end of Ramadan. For better or worse that position means acceding to the rulings of the Saudi authorities since they basically control the Hajj. (I was there last year, supposedly we went to Arafat on the ‘wrong’ day – but surely no-one would suggest breaking with with everyone else and doing it on the ‘right’ day instead?)

So, in short, I support the decision of the London Co-ordinating Committee of Mosques (basically London Central Mosque, East London Mosque and the other big non-sectarian ones) to follow the decisions of the Umm-ul-Qurah in Makkah. There may be a few occasions when we should celebrate Eid the solar day before them (as we are about 3 hours west) but we should never be celebrating the day after. Those who feel passionately about celebrating Eid on the astronomically correct date should seek to engage in an educational dialogue with the Muslim world beyond these shores so that a new consensus can be reached.

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