Muslims's Christmas Wish

May this Christmas open our hearts and minds to each other and let there be peace on earth. One of the most frequently used words during Christmas season is peace. Indeed, it is a reflection of the innermost desire within each one of us, whether we are Christians or not. Christmas is an annual milestone that intensifies the desire to have peace for oneself and for the world.

Christmas evokes kindness, empathy and goodness toward fellow beings; it's a euphoric feeling of renewal that Jesus taught to the world, it is a sense of completion one feels when he or she finds in tune with humanity. Jesus showed the way by embracing the whole humanity regardless of who they were. He is my hero, he is my mentor, and he is the first known pluralist on the earth. Christmas is a celebration of that refreshed feeling.

Jesus holds a special place in every one's heart, but particularly among Christians and Muslims, comprising over half the population of the world.

The Muslims call him Isa-Masih, the one who heals and one who brought life to the dead. The name of Jesus appears 27 times in Quran and one of the 114 Chapters is dedicated to Marryam, Mother Mary and the virgin birth.

Continued  http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/a-muslims-christmas_b_1167258.html

 
"Festivals of the World" is an educational series that I have been writing for the last 20 years. When we live in a community as neighbors and work together as colleagues, we might as well learn about each other. The best way to build cohesive societies is to participate in festivities as well as commemorations of each other, or at least understand each other's' joys and sorrows. A cohesive society, neighborhood or a community shapes up when no one lives in apprehension, discomfort or fear of the other.

The Essence of Christmas

Christmas is about celebrating the message of Jesus, which each one of us can appreciate in our own way. The spirit of Christmas is encapsulated in the acts of kindness to fellow beings.

First of all, it has become a season of peace, where every human becomes super conscious of his or her responsibility towards fellow human beings, and is encouraged to bring joy to their lives. If you don't stand up for others, why should anyone stand up for you?

Secondly, we cannot remain invincible forever; there comes a time in every one's life when he or she becomes vulnerable and needs help. When we were born, we simply did not walk out of our mother's womb and say: "Hi, world. I am here, and have made it on my own, and I am ready to roll!" Similarly, we cannot bury or cremate ourselves, we need others' help to enter, as we depart from, and live in, the world.

Thirdly, the entire Christian world gears up to bring the joy in the lives of children who may not have a toy or parents to give them that joy. This is one big event of the world where you see hopes on the faces of children. It's not too late; you can still deliver a toy through your local church or store, and see the difference you can make on the face of that unknown child.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/festivals-of-the-world-es_1_b_4492571.html
 

Interfaith Christmas: Making God Boundless | Mike GhouseChristmas is about celebrating the birth of a man who taught us how to build a cohesive society, which he called the kingdom of heaven. Whether we are Christians, or even believe in God, it simply means building a society that is free from arrogance, hate, malice, prejudice and insecurities, firmly built with love and forgiveness, the panacea to the conflicts we face today.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/interfaith-christmas-making-god-boundless_b_2347856.html

Standing up for Christians http://standingupforothers.blogspot.com/2012/01/standing-with-christians.html

Muslims pray for Christians http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/muslims-to-dedicate-frida_b_5679118.html

A Muslim's Easter www.huffingtonpost.com/mike-ghouse/...celebrates-easter_b_2976582.html

Thank you
mike
Mike Ghouse
(214) 325-1916 text/talk
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Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism at work place, politics, religion, society, gender, race, culture, ethnicity, food and foreign policy. He is a staunch defender of human rights and his book standing up for others will be out soon, and a movie "Americans together" is in the making.  He is a frequent guest commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post. All about him is listed in 63 links atwww.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are at www.TheGhousediary.com and 10 other blogs. He is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.

Texas Faith: A cup of coffee and other holy rituals

A good cup of Coffee or Tea in itself is not divine, but it has the ingredients to offer that blissful moment that connects us with ourselves. There is nothing like it.

Texas Faith: A cup of coffee and other holy rituals

Rudolph Bush Follow @dallaspolitics Email rbush@dallasnews.com

Published: December 4, 2014 12:15 pm

Every faith has its rituals. Hopefully these help put us in the mind of being with God and make us more present in our prayer. Our lives have their little rituals too.

In a recent article,Rabbi Patrick “Aleph” Beaulier wrote about the ritual of a morning cup of coffee.
The coffee is a pleasure certainly, but it is also a moment set aside, at best, for a little peace, perhaps silence and reflection. These moments apart are important to our lives as people of faith, as people who are trying to draw ourselves nearer to God. We have our rituals in our religious ceremonies too, often freighted or filled with symbolism and intended, in their own way, to draw us away from the run of our thoughts and into the peace we hope faith will bring.

How can our little daily rituals bring us closer to God? How can we make sure that, in everyday moments, we are building our path to the divine?

(This question was inspired by panelist Cynthia Rigby.)

MIKE GHOUSE, President, Foundation for Pluralism and speaker on interfaith matters, Dallas

A good cup of Coffee or Tea in itself is not divine, but it has the ingredients to offer that blissful moment that connects us with ourselves. There is nothing like it.

I just finished drinking a cup of tea and what a joy it was! Every now and then I give myself a 100 for making that perfect cup of tea. Tea is about color, taste, looks, texture, cup and the whole shebang! It gives me the same joy that my grandson expresses when he walked a few steps for the first time.

Indeed a good cup of Tea is divine if we make a ritual out of it, and that is how the ritual prayers have evolved; to dedicate the time and bring peace to oneself.

A few minutes of meditation or a prayer unclutters the mind, and a few minutes of silence restores the mind whether on believes in God or not. It frees us from momentary chaos and prepares us to be collected and help us refocus on what is important to us. It is good to be free.

To get the maximum benefit out of Tea on a daily basis, we have to dedicate a few minutes to sipping it instead of rushing it. I have watched a few friends who say, “I have to drink this cup to get my day going” and dash to the car and resort to expletives if someone cuts them off or slams the break ahead of them. Where is the joy in it? How much time does it take to sit down and smell the coffee? It takes no more than 5 minutes but the return on it is immense.

I compare this to rebooting my computer. When everything slows down due to multiple programs running on it, we get frustrated to wait to see the words appear on the screen after typing… even if it were a split second it is not worth the frustration, reboot it, and see how it functions!

Those of us, who can free ourselves from tension, pain, anxiety, apprehension, hostility, malice, pressure, stress, strain and conflicts, are showered with blessings of peace and joy. The Spiritual freedom is indeed the greatest achievement in one’s life and it sticks to you if you practice dedicating time to everything you do including drinking a cup of Coffee or Tea, it is worth it and you deserve it, just do it!

To read the other Panelist's take, go to Dallas Morning News at http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/2014/12/texas-faith-a-cup-of-coffee-and-other-holy-rituals.html/

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Mike Ghouse is a public speaker, thinker, writer and a commentator on Pluralism at work place, politics, religion, society, gender, race, culture, ethnicity, food and foreign policy. He is commentator on Fox News and syndicated Talk Radio shows and a writer at major news papers including Dallas Morning News and Huffington Post.  All about him is listed in several links at www.MikeGhouse.net and his writings are atwww.TheGhousediary.com and 10 other blogs. He is committed to building cohesive societies and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day.