I took the kids (younger two) to Jummah (Friday) prayers today at one of our local mosques. The khutbah (sermon) was about making the most of the month of Sha’baan and preparing for the holy month of Ramadan. Sure comes up on you fast, doesn’t it? We are a month away from Ramadan (predicted to start on July 20, depending on the siting of the new moon) and aside from the hilarious spiritual discussion trolling the social networks about how a Muslim should handle the problem of opening night of the new Batman movie coinciding with the first night of Ramadan, I received some good, practical advice in today’s sermon on getting ready for the holy month.
For Muslim readers of this post, you can skip ahead of this standard Ramadan explainer – Ramadan is the ninth month of the Muslim calendar, the month where fasting from sun-up to sundown is prescribed for able-bodied Muslims (children are not required to fast). It involves abstaining from food and drink and sexual activity between sunrise and sunset, curtailing bad behaviors and habits, focusing on ibadat (worship) and strengthening one’s connection with God.
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