Tomorrow, Ghanaian Muslims will join others across the world to observe Eid-ul-Adha, which in Arabic means festival of sacrifice.
It is a date on the Islamic calendar which follows the climax of the annual Hajj, the ascent on Mount Arafat in Saudi Arabia.
The festival commemorates the sacrifice Abraham was ordered by God to make with his son Ishmael. He passed the test when just as he was on the verge of fulfilling the Divine order his maker presented him a ram for the sacrifice.
Shouldn’t we as humans who follow the faiths of Abraham learn to sacrifice for humanity in various forms?
Abraham’s action offers lessons for us in sacrifice in whatever form, because doing so has its spiritual and physical dividends.
The highlight of tomorrow’s occasion is the slaughter of animals by Muslims in commemoration of what Abraham did.
Muslims are enjoined to give a third of the sacrificed animal to their neighbours, a third to the poor, and the rest for their consumption.
The National Chief Imam, Sheikh Osman Nuhu Sharubutu, in a statement on tomorrow’s occasion has made a number of critical observations which will go a long way in addressing both local and international challenges facing humanity.
The Chief Imam hinged his statement on peace, reconciliation and unity, the dearth of which has impacted negatively on human advancement.
The occasion, the Chief Imam tells us, should be used not only for celebration but to reflect about life in general, which for us is instructive.
God is not interested in the flesh and blood of the animals sacrificed on the day of the Eid, but in our commitment to piety as captured in the cleric’s statement.
As a day of reflection, not only for celebration as the Chief Imam said, we call on all Muslims to reflect upon developments and challenges facing humanity, both at the local and international levels.
Such reflections will put us in a better stead to comprehend better the challenges and how to address them.
Attitudes in our societies have deteriorated and cannot be in tandem with the dictates of the Abrahamic faiths to which Islam belongs, and therein lies the challenges facing us as a people.
Unless we change our negative attitudes as demanded by our various Abrahamic faiths, society will not move forward but degenerate towards the state of nature.
We cannot but agree with the Chief Imam when he said that we would not benefit from the virtues of the occasion of Eid-ul-Adha unless we exhibit our capacity to guarantee attitudinal cleansing and moral ascendancy in our society.
Let us be mindful about the supreme interest of society and do what is right, and avoid negative behaviours which add nothing to growth.
Tomorrow’s occasion offers us another opportunity to cement the moral basis of interfaith harmony among members of the Abrahamic fraternity.
The contribution of sharing meat on this occasion is enormous, adding to the cementing of interfaith harmony.
The Grand Imam, therefore, calls on members of the Abrahamic family to regard the Eid as another opportunity to reaffirm their commitment to interfaith harmony.
The dividends of interfaith harmony as being enjoyed by us here in Ghana can best be appreciated when juxtaposed against what is happening in places where this attribute does not exist.
Let us continue to build upon what we have achieved so far in this direction and avoid actions and remarks which are not only reckless but threaten the status quo.
To our Muslim compatriots we say happy celebration or Barka da Sallah to you all.