In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful,
I greet you all with the Islamic greeting of peace: Assalamu Alaykum! Peace be upon you!
On behalf of Muslim Student Life, I wish our Muslim students, faculty, and staff, Ramadan Mubarak! May you all have a blessed Ramadan!
Ramadan marks the Islamic month of fasting and the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. Every day for one month, Muslims around the world will abstain from eating and drinking (including water) from dawn until sunset. This is a time marked by worship, spiritual reflection, and community. Ramadan this year will definitely be unique, given the current state of the world. However, Muslim Student Life is committed to supporting our Muslim students virtually through sharing religious reminders and spiritual resources online.
I invite all of us observing Ramadan, to use this quarantine and time at home as a means to bring us closer to God. Muslim scholars have reminded us how there are blessings to be found in isolation. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) received his prophethood in the isolation of Mount Hira. Prophet Jonah was forgiven by God while in the isolation of the belly of the whale. Every Friday, as we read the Chapter of the Cave in the Qur’an where we learn how the People of the Cave, a group of believers who were persecuted for their monotheism, were protected by God through isolation in a cave.
I invite all of us who will be observing Ramadan use this time to find blessings in the isolation of quarantine by remembering these examples from our religious tradition. Let us increase our acts of worship, give to a charity, and learn more about our religion. Finally, let us commit to reading more Qur’an this Ramadan as we are reminded that this is the month of the Qur’an. We learn in the second chapter of the Qur’an that, “It was in the month of Ramadan that the Qur’an was revealed as guidance for mankind, clear messages giving guidance and distinguishing between right and wrong.”
I pray for everyone’s safety and health. I pray that God accepts our fast and our worship this holy Ramadan.
Ramadan Mubarak!
Kienan Taweil
Program Coordinator
Muslim Student Life
