9th Annual Eid Dinner

Sponsored by UCJC, Club International, and Muslim Students Association (MSA)

February 5th, Ellis Ballroom, 6:00 PM

Statement read by Javaid Zeerak of Muslim Students Association at the opening of 2005 Eid Dinner:

Thank you Sarah.

Fellow Juniatians, members of the community, and guests, Assalamu Alikum, and welcome to Eid Dinner. This is the 9^th year that Eid is being celebrated in Juniata, and my third year helping with organizing it; and I can say that every time it is with a sense of amazement and fascination that I take part in this tradition that means so much to me as a Muslim, and yet I have the opportunity to share with so many individuals of various backgrounds.

Celebrating Eid is always a happy and lavish occasion for Muslims the world over. From Indonesia to Morocco, from India to Azerbaijan, and from that remote village in central highlands of Afghanistan where I spent years of my childhood, to this rather remote town in central Alleghenies of Pennsylvania that I have grown so much attached to; Muslims of all races, tribes, languages, cultures, and socioeconomic backgrounds put aside their differences and give in to the joy of Eid. Although Eid has become interwoven with the local customs and traditions of people in various lands, its origins lie in our religion Islam. Eid literally means recurring festivity. In the Muslim calendar, there are two Eids every year: the first is Eid ul Fitr, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan during which Muslims fast, and the second, Eid al Adha, meaning the feast of Sacrifice. The significance of the second Eid dates back to when God ordered prophet Abraham PBUH to offer the life of his only son as a sacrifice. Abraham complied in an act of absolute faith that is an enigma to humanity until this day, but at the last moment God sent a ram to be sacrificed in his son’s stead. This is a story that is corroborated by the scripture in both Islamic and Judeo-Christian traditions.

During both the Eids, in addition to offering thanks and gratitude to God, and celebrating his countless blessings, Muslims are also obligated to help their fellows in need. The happiness of Eid respects no boundaries, race, and color; it should not respect limits imposed by socioeconomic status. This is the logic that moves Muslims to offer their gifts to those who are less well off. It is in the same spirit that we have included a fundraiser for the South Asian tsunami’s young and most vulnerable victims in tonight’s celebration of Eid. We will tell you more about this later in the program.

One more word about tonight’s program: those of you who have been attending the Eid Dinner over the years, you will notice that your programs this evening does not feature the belly-dance performance. The omission was made in the best interest of giving all of you a factual and true image of Islam. At a time when understanding of other cultures and their intricacies is of such paramount importance, my colleagues in MSA agreed that the performance might serve to reinforce a misconception about Islamic culture rather than remove any. We know that for many of you this may not be the most popular decision, but we also trust that you understand the motives of our decision.

Yet, notwithstanding the missing performance, the rest of our program features a long list of performances by some very talented Juniata students, who have gone through painstaking work of rehearsing during the past two weeks. Similarly the work that has gone into preparing the food, setting up the ballroom, and organizing the event has been tremendous and long. Please join me in applauding my colleagues in UCJC, Club International, and Muslim Students Association for their hard work.

There are a number of other individuals and departments whose help has been instrumental in making the Eid Dinner possible. I thank the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, the Center for International Education, the Food Services, and the Facilities Office for accommodating our various requests. Lastly, thanks to all of you for coming here tonight and giving us the opportunity to share the happiness of Eid with you.

Thank you very much and enjoy your evening!