Remembering Christ on Christmas
So I may not actually celebrate Christmas as a day in itself, but I do recognize that it is a commemoration of the Virgin Birth of Jesus. So I guess to sort of join in on the holiday spirit, I wanted to share those verses from the Qur'an that describe the miracle of the birth of Jesus to the Virgin Mary. It's a really beautiful and emotional story, to think of a woman alone and pregnant carrying the burden of Divine Will.
Anyway, this is from the chapter titled 'Mary' (Chapter 19 of the Qur'an)
(Btw, the chapter begins with the description of John the Baptist's birth. You can skip to verse 16 for Mary and Jesus)
[19:2](This is) a recital of the Mercy of thy Lord to His servant Zachariah.
[19:3] When he cried unto his Lord a cry in secret,
[19:4] Praying: "O my Lord! infirm indeed are my bones, and the hair of my head doth glisten with grey: but never am I unblest, O my Lord, in my prayer to Thee!
[19:5] Lo! I fear my kinsfolk after me, since my wife is barren. Oh, give me from Thy presence a successor
[19:6] Who shall inherit of me and inherit (also) of the house of Jacob. And make him, my Lord, acceptable (unto Thee).
[19:7] (His prayer was answered): O Zachariah! Lo! We bring thee tidings of a son whose name is John; we have given the same name to none before (him).
[19:8] He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren and I have reached infirm old age?
[19:9] He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me, even as I created thee before, when thou wast naught.
[19:10] He said: "My Lord! give me a Sign." "Thy Sign," was the answer, "is that thou, with no bodily defect, shalt not speak unto mankind three nights."
[19:11] Then he came forth unto his people from the sanctuary, and signified to them: Glorify your Lord at break of day and fall of night.
[19:12] (And it was said unto his son): O John! Hold fast the Scripture. And we gave him wisdom even as a youth,
[19:13] And compassion from Our presence, and purity; and he was devout,
[19:14] And dutiful toward his parents. And he was not arrogant, rebellious.
[19:15] Peace on him the day he was born, and the day he dies and the day he shall be raised alive!
[19:16] And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had withdrawn from her people to a place in the East,
[19:17] And had chosen seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our Spirit and it assumed for her the likeness of a perfect man.
[19:18] She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the Beneficent One from thee, if thou art God-fearing.
[19:19] He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless (pure) son.
[19:20] She said: "How shall I have a son, seeing that no man has touched me, and I am not unchaste?"
[19:21] He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me. And (it will be) that We may make of him a revelation for mankind and a Mercy from Us, and it is a thing ordained.
[19:22] And she conceived him, and she withdrew with him to a far place.
[19:23] And the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of the palm-tree. She cried (in her anguish): "Ah! would that I had died before this! would that I had been a thing forgotten and out of sight!"
[19:24] But (a voice) cried to her from beneath the (palm-tree): "Grieve not! for thy Lord hath provided a rivulet (of freshwater) beneath thee
[19:25] And shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee.
[19:26] So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal."
[19:27] At length she brought the (babe) to her people, carrying him (in her arms). They said: "O Mary! truly an amazing thing hast thou brought!
[19:28] O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a woman unchaste."
[19:29] Then she pointed to the babe. They said: How can we talk to one who is in the cradle, a young boy?
[19:30] He spake: Lo! I am a servant of God. He hath given me the Scripture and hath appointed me a Prophet,
[19:31] And hath made me blessed wheresoever I may be, and hath enjoined upon me prayer and charity so long as I remain alive,
[19:32] And (hath made me) kind to my mother, and not overbearing or miserable;
[19:33] Peace on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!
[19:34] Such was Jesus, son of Mary: (this is) a statement of the truth concerning which they doubt.
[19:35] It befitteth not (the Majesty of) God that He should beget a son. Glory be to Him! When He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.
[19:36] And lo! God is my Lord and your Lord. So serve Him. That is the right path.
Interesting Trivia: Mary is the only woman to be mentioned in the Qur'an by name. Everyone else is mentioned by relation or title (i.e. Queen of Sheba, Pharoah's wife, etc).
Anyway, this is from the chapter titled 'Mary' (Chapter 19 of the Qur'an)
(Btw, the chapter begins with the description of John the Baptist's birth. You can skip to verse 16 for Mary and Jesus)
[19:2](This is) a recital of the Mercy of thy Lord to His servant Zachariah.
[19:3] When he cried unto his Lord a cry in secret,
[19:4] Praying: "O my Lord! infirm indeed are my bones, and the hair of my head doth glisten with grey: but never am I unblest, O my Lord, in my prayer to Thee!
[19:5] Lo! I fear my kinsfolk after me, since my wife is barren. Oh, give me from Thy presence a successor
[19:6] Who shall inherit of me and inherit (also) of the house of Jacob. And make him, my Lord, acceptable (unto Thee).
[19:7] (His prayer was answered): O Zachariah! Lo! We bring thee tidings of a son whose name is John; we have given the same name to none before (him).
[19:8] He said: My Lord! How can I have a son when my wife is barren and I have reached infirm old age?
[19:9] He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me, even as I created thee before, when thou wast naught.
[19:10] He said: "My Lord! give me a Sign." "Thy Sign," was the answer, "is that thou, with no bodily defect, shalt not speak unto mankind three nights."
[19:11] Then he came forth unto his people from the sanctuary, and signified to them: Glorify your Lord at break of day and fall of night.
[19:12] (And it was said unto his son): O John! Hold fast the Scripture. And we gave him wisdom even as a youth,
[19:13] And compassion from Our presence, and purity; and he was devout,
[19:14] And dutiful toward his parents. And he was not arrogant, rebellious.
[19:15] Peace on him the day he was born, and the day he dies and the day he shall be raised alive!
[19:16] And make mention of Mary in the Scripture, when she had withdrawn from her people to a place in the East,
[19:17] And had chosen seclusion from them. Then We sent unto her Our Spirit and it assumed for her the likeness of a perfect man.
[19:18] She said: Lo! I seek refuge in the Beneficent One from thee, if thou art God-fearing.
[19:19] He said: I am only a messenger of thy Lord, that I may bestow on thee a faultless (pure) son.
[19:20] She said: "How shall I have a son, seeing that no man has touched me, and I am not unchaste?"
[19:21] He said: So (it will be). Thy Lord saith: It is easy for Me. And (it will be) that We may make of him a revelation for mankind and a Mercy from Us, and it is a thing ordained.
[19:22] And she conceived him, and she withdrew with him to a far place.
[19:23] And the pangs of childbirth drove her unto the trunk of the palm-tree. She cried (in her anguish): "Ah! would that I had died before this! would that I had been a thing forgotten and out of sight!"
[19:24] But (a voice) cried to her from beneath the (palm-tree): "Grieve not! for thy Lord hath provided a rivulet (of freshwater) beneath thee
[19:25] And shake the trunk of the palm-tree toward thee, thou wilt cause ripe dates to fall upon thee.
[19:26] So eat and drink and be consoled. And if thou meetest any mortal, say: Lo! I have vowed a fast unto the Beneficent, and may not speak this day to any mortal."
[19:27] At length she brought the (babe) to her people, carrying him (in her arms). They said: "O Mary! truly an amazing thing hast thou brought!
[19:28] O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a woman unchaste."
[19:29] Then she pointed to the babe. They said: How can we talk to one who is in the cradle, a young boy?
[19:30] He spake: Lo! I am a servant of God. He hath given me the Scripture and hath appointed me a Prophet,
[19:31] And hath made me blessed wheresoever I may be, and hath enjoined upon me prayer and charity so long as I remain alive,
[19:32] And (hath made me) kind to my mother, and not overbearing or miserable;
[19:33] Peace on me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!
[19:34] Such was Jesus, son of Mary: (this is) a statement of the truth concerning which they doubt.
[19:35] It befitteth not (the Majesty of) God that He should beget a son. Glory be to Him! When He decreeth a thing, He saith unto it only: Be! and it is.
[19:36] And lo! God is my Lord and your Lord. So serve Him. That is the right path.
Interesting Trivia: Mary is the only woman to be mentioned in the Qur'an by name. Everyone else is mentioned by relation or title (i.e. Queen of Sheba, Pharoah's wife, etc).