A mass Id-ul-Fitr prayer held in the courtyard of a Christian church at Manjeri in the district on Wednesday scripted a new chapter in the harmonious communal legacy of Kerala. The Id Gah held in the sprawling compound of CSI Nicholas Memorial Church was described on social media as the real Kerala story.
Addressing the 2,000-odd Muslim men, women and children who gathered at the Id Gah, church vicar Fr. Joy Masilamani underscored the importance of union of minds and hearts, rather than dividing them on the basis of faith. “Love of human beings is ultimate in spirituality. We should shun hatred. Such a harmonious unity is the need of the hour,” Fr. Masilamani said.
It was the first time that this 140-year-old church under the CSI Malabar Diocese opened its gates for the Muslims to conduct an Id Gah in its courtyard. Fr. Masilamani said that they did not have to think twice when his Muslim brothers approached them with the Id Gah request.
The Id Gah organisers had to approach the church as the Government UP School ground at Chullakkad, Manjeri, where the Id prayers used to be held, was not available. The school was being used to store election equipment.
Abdul Ali O., who coordinated the Id Gah for the Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen, said that the mass prayers held in the church compound were a reassertion of the legacy of communal harmony that Manjeri possessed.
“The Hidayathul Muslimeen Sabha, a Muslim organisation established in 1897 in Manjeri, had men like Chacko Master and Varghese Master in its first general body. It was Chacko Master who suggested the first president of the organisation. That was the kind of religious unity that we had in Malabar. And that legacy still continues,” said Mr. Ali.
KNM leader Sahaduddin Swalahi led the prayers and offered the sermon. Fr. Masilamani was felicitated on the occasion. The vicar had worked with the organisers to erect a gate welcoming the believers and to make the arrangements for the Id Gah.
“Elated was the feeling we had when we offered the Id prayers this time. The social relevance of this Id gathering in the church compound was immense. It sends a big message of interfaith harmony at a time when deliberate efforts are made to divide the people. As good human beings, we should look for reasons to unite rather than divide,” said Jouhar M., principal of Peace Public School, Kottakkal, who prayed in the front row.
