Ramazan Bayram



The Ramadan fast is over and the "Bayram" (festival) has begun. For three days Muslims celebrate with friends and family... and lots of food. Families dress up in their nicest clothes and make their rounds to see all of their relatives and close friends. In fact, we have to be prepared for spontaneous visits at any time during these three days. We're discovering that people don't do the traditional visits as much in our new city as they did in Malatya, but we did have some kids come to the door yesterday asking for candy, which is a bayram tradition. And a few people have given us warning that they'll be stopping by tonight.


When a family visits us its our job to greet them at the door, where they will take their shoes off. We'll show them to the living room and my wife will be expected to take the seat closest to the door. Then the small talk begins. We'll ask several times how our guests are, how their family is doing, and we'll exchange small tidbits of news.


Shortly after we sit down, Ness will begin serving tea and baklava (or other desserts) to our guests, making up a plate for each person. A "bayram" visit doesn't usually last very long, but it's a great excuse to visit people we want to get to know better. When the guests are ready to leave, they'll excuse themselves and make their way to the door. We will walk them to the door, offer them some lemon cologne for their hands on the way out, and make sure that everyone, especially the children, gets some candy before they leave.


I sent a text message to all of my Muslim friends today. I wanted to find a way to bring their attention to the gospel at least a little bit, so this is what I wrote (in Turkish): Happy Bayram! "The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord makes his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace."


The verse is a blessing from Numbers 6:24-26. Pray with us that God will bless our Muslim friends, that He would truly turn his face toward them, and that they would find peace in Jesus.

Comments

Mamasita said…
One of my favorite passages. Well done!
October 30, 2007 at 8:57 PM
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