Praying for Muslims during Hajj
By Brad Thayer December 19, 2007
You’ve probably noticed from the news coverage that this week is the annual Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca, i.e. Hajj. It’s been particularly news-worthy because the president of the predominantly Shi’a Muslim and Islamic Republic of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, is on the pilgrimage and thereby inadvertently causing sectarian tension in the Sunni dominated kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The Hajj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam expected of all adult Muslims physically and financially able (Quran 2.196-203). It is a once in a lifetime pilgrimage to Mecca located in Saudia Arabia, the birthplace of Islam. It is a week long festival filled with a variety of activities. Circling the Kabah that is centered in the Grand Mosque (picture above) and kissing the “Black Stone” is the apex of the Hajj. Yesterday pilgrims visited and prayed on the plains of Arafat where the Prophet Muhhammad preached his last sermon. Last night they gathered stones for today’s “Stoning the Devil” where they cast stones at the rock of Mina. At the end of the Hajj, pilgrims will sacrifice an animal, usually a sheep, in remembrance of Abraham’s willingness to sacrifice his son, Ishmael, not Isaac according to Islamic tradition.
If you want to know more about the Hajj, here is a good internet source. But in this post I want to point out two ways I think Christians can be praying for Muslims during Hajj.
1. Safety: Every year a number of Muslims die either to, from, or on the Hajj. They are trampled to death by the crowds, die from heat exhaustion, killed by sectarian violence (oh the irony since they dress in solid white garments symbolizing purity and global unity), and the list goes on. In addition, a Muslim is immediately granted Paradise and considered a martyr to die while on the pilgrimage. So it’s fitting to pray that God would see fit to spare many lives during this year’s pilgrimage.
2. Freedom from Spiritual Deception: From a biblical worldview, one of the best ways to describe Muslims is that they are spiritually deceived into believing in a false god and false gospel (injil). For example, they believe Allah is the only true, eternal, wise, omniscient, transcendent god. He begot none nor was he begotten. Furthermore, Jesus was only a prophet and Muhammad came as the “seal” of all prophets with the fullest and final revelation - the Qur’an. In addition, Jews and Christians (”People of the Book”) have perverted and falsified the scriptures. Thus, they can no longer be trusted. And for a Muslim to find favor with Allah, he is required to observe a number of things and included are the Five Pillars; one of which they are observing this week.
Pray that Muslims will hear the gospel and know that God is finally not pleased with their sacrifices and pilgrimages. Pray that they will no longer be deceived by the devil into believing the falsehood of Islam but will experience the freedom of knowing Jesus Christ who is “the way, the truth, and the life”.