Why Ramadan is important for non-Muslims too
During Ramadan last year, there was a fear that Muslims were more prone to having unauthorised gatherings and thereby spreading coronavirus. Such fears received ammunition, given minority communities such as South Asians were more harshly affected by coronavirus deaths.
That view has been dispelled in just released research by the peer-reviewed Journal of Global Health. The study found there was no evidence to suggest that British Muslims who observed the holy month last year were more likely to die from coronavirus infection.
"Our findings suggest that the practices associated with Ramadan did not have detrimental effects on COVID-19 deaths," the report said.
"There has been much commentary suggesting that the behaviours and cultural practices of minority communities explain their increased exposure to the pandemic," it added, referencing some social critics who suggested Ramadan celebrations may cause a "spike" in infections.
The authors of the report added: "These claims are not evidence based. Rather, they are unhelpful distractions from inequalities in the social determinants of health, particularly inequalities in living and working conditions, that have been key drivers of health inequalities for all socially disadvantaged groups prior to as well as during the COVID-19 pandemic."
The comments were highlighted by a spokesman for the Muslim Council of Britain, Omar Begg. There are five million Muslims living in Britain, including half a million Bangladeshis.
The results are significant as millions of Muslims around the world celebrate Ramadan with some restrictions. There are pictures of socially distanced prayer around the Kaaba in Mecca to much smaller gatherings for the Tarawih prayer in the great mosques of the world from Turkey to Oman.
The pandemic has been tough for religious communities. In the period of early 2020, several of the biggest super spreader events involved major religious gatherings.
An infamous gathering of Tablighi Jamaat Islamic preachers in Malaysia last February led to the virus spreading widely. Each of the preachers, several of whom were from Bangladesh, then returned home only to become super spreaders in their congregations.
In South Korea it was a handful of individuals in a Pentecostal Christian church who travelled to a nearby town to attend another church, spreading the virus to hundreds in the process.
And perhaps most tragically in the country of Iran, hundreds of Chinese clerics were allowed to visit the holy city of Qom in February 2020. The event was heavily criticised as the reason coronavirus spread widely making Iran one of the epicentres of the world.
Such events cast suspicions upon religious communities more generally.
This is relevant for Bangladeshi expatriates as they tend to be among the most religiously observant of the migrant communities living in the West.
Studies by the Policy Exchange in Britain found latter generations of Muslims, mainly from Pakistan and Bangladesh, were often more religious than their parents. This was at odds with almost every other ethnic group who became more secular in latter generations.
The Global Health study is important in allowing Muslims to partake in their religious celebrations more freely within the health guidelines.
President Biden graciously gave his well wishes this month to American Muslims, recognising their great contributions.
In my home of Australia, one of the luckiest in the world with regard to few coronavirus infections, there remains a caution about gathering to pray.
In the heart of the Islamic community in Sydney, the suburb of Lakemba, there is a section titled "Banglatown" where vendors sell haleem and hilsa fish. The area normally brims with Lebanese stalls of shish kebabs and is famed for camel burgers during Ramadan.
But in spite of the restrictions being largely lifted, people are solemn especially as they watch the second and third waves of infections in countries like India and Brazil.
One of my most cherished memories of visiting Bangladesh was an exchange with the icddr,b in Mohakhali, Dhaka. It was during the time of Ramadan. It was an amazing experience being part of such a colossal, shared ritual. It was much easier in a Muslim country where the entire nation's timetable and movements were in unison with the requirements for Ramadan. I took pride in hosting iftar parties for my friends and family. Eid prayer in my father's village on a large playing field with rice paddies adjacent was a special experience.
As among the most religious in western, multicultural communities, expatriate Bangladeshis have a special place in illustrating the importance of the sacred, of tradition and the sanctity of pious communities. While we may still not be able to gather as freely in congregations, we are at least able to gather among immediate family and some friends. The rituals of Ramadan have never been more important -- both for Muslims and non-Muslims alike.
The pandemic has underlined our shared humanity and the importance of solidarity in societies where the individual was previously held aloft as central.
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