AL-HIKMAT SERVICES INC. The Wisdom Website - Serving the Muslim and Non-Muslim Community for the past 32 years, through the distribution of publications, DVDS, CDS, radio & TV shows, lectures, seminars, dialogues etc.,establishing tolerance and better understanding among different faiths and cultures. AL QUR'AAN Ch: 16 V: 125 “Invite To the Way of Thy Lord With Hikmat” (Wisdom).
WHETHER It's Day or Night, This Site Will Bring Into Your Life A Blessed LIGHT, You Are About To Travel Through A Journey Of WISDOM. Inshaa Allaah
Submitted by Rev. Thomas Graf Professor at BC College, Florida U.S.A.
How quickly time passes… I can hardly believe that as I sit to write this reflection, we have already begun the first week in the Mainline Christian tradition of Advent. Most scholars separate the Christian traditions into two main divisions: The MAINLINE CHRISTIAN DIVISION (Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Byzantine, Anglican/Episcopalian, Moravian, Lutheran, Methodist and Presbyterian) and the FUNDAMENTALIST CHRISTIAN DIVISION. (Baptist, Pentecostal, Evangelical and Non-Denominational) Within the Mainline Christian division, ADVENT begins the Christian New Year. Many religions have a separate “Religious Calendar” that facilitates their celebration of important feasts/holy days. The Islamic Hijri New Year begins at the first sighting of the new moon in the month of Muharram. (Which this year fell on November 15th) Our Jewish brothers and sisters began their New Year on September 16th, with the celebration of Rosh Hashanah. In Mainline Christianity, ADVENT (Which began on Sunday, 12/2/12) heralds the beginning of the Christian New Year. The word ADVENT is an Anglicized version of the Latin word ADVENTUS (Translates: Coming) which comes from the Greek word PAROUSIA, which refers to the Second Coming of Christ. Advent actually is celebrated for 4 weeks, and begins the fourth week prior to Christmas. The four weeks of Advent are meant to be a special time of prayer and preparation. In the early Christian Church, Advent was very similar to LENT (The 40 days prior to Easter) in terms of fasting, prayer and seeking pardon for any sinful behavior. The Advent Season, as it is often termed, should be a special time for Christians to reflect on several things: 1. The memory of Jesus’ coming into the world and their understanding of his role as Messiah. 2. Their looking forward to, and the understanding of Jesus’ Second Coming. 3. The reminder that each day we are called to see Christ in each and every person we encounter. Each religion, and even the divisions within these religions, develop annual events/feasts/holidays, which serve as instruments of teaching that hopefully lead to learning. However, such true learning should lead us to understand better the many ways our brothers and sisters throughout the world struggle to connect to God and one another. After all, religion translates: Re-Connection. Advent Blessings…Salam Alaikum.
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