Jesus Christ has had to go into hiding in our schools today, while Prophet Muhammad roams the halls freely.
In the U.S., the media mocks those who make their Christian practices public—such as praying for victims of terrorism or young people committing to abstain from sexual relations until married. Yet that same media attacks those voicing concerns about terrorism’s link to Islamic beliefs as being Islamophobic.
In America, we see a nation so intimidated by political correctness that people in positions of responsibility make illogical decisions concerning the observation of a Christian holiday.
Recently, Eujin Jaela Kim, a new principal at Public School (PS) 169 in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, New York, decided to prohibit the use of the word “Christmas” or displays of anything related to it including Santa, angels, gift-giving, a star, etc. Not only was Christmas taboo, Kim also mandated the Pledge of Allegiance be eliminated along with references to Thanksgiving Day.
Fortunately, when this story broke last week, Kim’s boss, School Superintendent Anita Skop, took immediate action. While the Pledge had not been heard since the beginning of the school year at PS 169, it was recited loud and clear a few days after the story was published over the school’s public address system by two fifth graders. The Christmas and Thanksgiving bans were also lifted.
Kim is not the only person in the school system trying to drum Jesus Christ out of it by eliminating any celebration of His birth.
After the ACLU took legal action, Concord Community schools in Indiana were prohibited by court order from including any historical account of Christ’s birth during its annual Christmas program.
A preliminary injunction was issued, justified on the basis the program “conveys a message of endorsement of religion, or that a particular religious belief is favored or preferred.”
Meanwhile, Blaine, Minnesota school officials instruct students to sing a song in their Christmas program saluting the Muslim holiday of Ramadan. The words “Allahu Akbar” are included in the song—words attesting to the greatness of Allah.
Ramadan is a Muslim holiday occurring many months earlier with no connection in timing to Christmas. Clearly, school administrators—who defended their actions on the basis of voluntary participation—lacked knowledge about Islam but nonetheless felt political correctness compelled them to recognize a Muslim celebration of some sort.
School officials at Riverbeds High School in Virginia instructed students, as part of an assignment on learning calligraphy, to write the “shahada”—Islam’s statement of faith. One of Islam’s five pillars, the shahada declares, “There is no god but Allah, and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
While a teacher justified this assignment as an opportunity to learn calligraphy, it did not explain why female students were also invited to wear the “hijab” or headscarf.
In Massachusetts, schools have been guilty of undertaking field trips to mega-mosques where students are subjected to Islamic propaganda. This included the false assertion Muslim women were given the right to vote before women in the West were (Muslim women today either have no such right or very limited rights as recently demonstrated in Saudi Arabia). Male students visiting the mosques had to prostrate themselves before Allah alongside Muslim male worshippers.
In a Chicago, Illinois high school, an event dubbed “Walk a Mile in Her Hijab Day” was held ostensibly to give non-Muslim girls a “better understanding of the Muslim faith.” This event was sponsored by the Muslim Student Association (MSA)—which is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood, which is a group banned in several Muslim countries as a terrorist organization. Additionally, MSA has also been declared by the U.S. justice system as “an unindicted co-conspirator in the largest terror-financing trial ever held on U.S. soil.”
A former Muslim in Iran and now a Christian pastor, Shahram Hadian, asks the obvious about this group, “…how is MSA now getting access to our high schools? And…how is that not the state promoting a religion?” Another question arising is where is the ACLU?
Daniel Akbari, also a former Iranian Muslim, is an expert in sharia. He says the hijab is a clear symbol of Islamic law and in no way does wearing it promote humanity. What it does represent, he says, is “support for a hard-line ideology that leads to sharia, honor violence and honor killings.”
Outside U.S. borders, Christ is on the run as well. In Iraq—a country that has hosted a Christian population for two thousands years—the religion is doomed.
Meanwhile, Christians living in other Muslim countries run risks attempting to celebrate Christmas.
In oil-rich Brunei, by virtue of implementing sharia last year, the Sultan—for Christians—has become the Grinch who stole Christmas. One who celebrates Christmas “excessively and openly” today could well end up serving a five-year jail sentence.
Somalia recently imposed a similar ban. Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, has long had such a prohibition in place—not even allowing churches.
What is it that Muslim governments fear about public celebrations of Christmas or Christians openly practicing their religion.
They fear exposure to other religions might motivate Muslims to leave the nation’s official religion of Islam. (Any Muslim leaving Islam would then be subject to death under sharia.)
Under Islam’s doctrine of supremacy, it is the dominant religion. Others may only be practiced if non-Muslims pay a special tax known as “jizya” to do so.
The ban in Brunei against Christmas symbols sounds eerily similar to that initially imposed at PS 169 in New York. Fortunately, Principal Kim did not threaten children violating her mandate with jail time.
Many other Muslim countries outlaw Christmas celebrations as well. The heavily Muslim, former-Soviet republic of Tajikistan, bans Christmas trees and gift-giving in its schools.
Situated northeast of Afghanistan, Tajikistan does not even tolerate one festively dressing up as Santa Claus. After a Muslim cleric discouraged his flock to participate in the Christian celebration of the new year, a celebrant who had donned the costume of a Russian Santa was stabbed to death on New Year’s Eve in 2011.
Interestingly, while the birthdate of Prophet Muhammad is celebrated on December 12 and 17 by Sunnis and Shiites respectively, in an effort to undermine Christian’s celebration of Christ’s birth, the UAE has now officially declared December 24 as the day to celebrate Muhammad’s birth.
While it is sad enough to see Christian practices outlawed or forced underground in Muslim countries, it is a travesty to see American schools voluntarily doing it. But most disturbing is that educators and political correctness advocates fail to grasp the hypocrisy of eradicating Christian values in our schools while promoting those of Islam.