Column:
Ramadan takes a backseat to Lent, Passover on campus
Published Sept. 4, 2009
It's that time of year again. No, I'm not talking about the beginning of school -- it's time for Ramadan. For those of you who don't know, Ramadan is the ninth month in the Islamic calendar. But it's a lot more than that. It's a time of worship, purification, community, charity and, most prominently, fasting. During this month Muslims abstain from food, drink, smoking and sexual relations from dawn until sunset every day. Correspondingly, Muslims are encouraged to increase prayer, recitation of the Qur'an, charity and other good deeds at all times throughout the month. Most importantly, Muslims view Ramadan as a time of increased remembrance of God (Allah) and His favors unto His creation.
To many readers Ramadan might seem irrelevant. "That's something people way over there do, you know in, like, the Middle East." Actually there are Muslims practicing Ramadan all over the globe, in total comprising about one-fifth of the world's population, according to CIA figures. That means Muslims are living, practicing and fasting in the Middle East, but also in all parts of Asia, throughout Europe, all regions of Africa and the Americas too.
But let's put this in more immediately relevant terms. Take Columbia, for instance. Today, Friday, Sept. 4, several hundred local Muslims (both students and permanent residents) began fasting at 5:10 a.m. and will fast until 7:38 this evening. Around campus you might have noticed some hungry, hungry health care students. The more observant among you might have noticed a small dip in dining hall attendance, and the really sharp ones looked at the above-mentioned fasting times and thought, "wait a second, the dining halls aren't open at those hours!"
That is a very good observation. There are no dining halls open past 7:30 p.m., making it very difficult — and costly — for students living on campus to observe Ramadan. Students living on campus — all freshmen for instance — are required to have a meal plan. During the entire month of Ramadan, the dining halls cannot practically be used. And the alternatives are scarce.
For instance, Baja Grill is open until 11 p.m., but Muslims could only purchase Baja's fish tacos due to dietary restrictions. The university has begun this year to offer "meal replacements," such as breakfast packages that can be obtained in exchange for meal points, but this is less than substantial, especially in comparison to some of the things Campus Dining Services has done for other faiths.
For instance, just this past spring semester, CDS helped Jewish students observe Passover by transferring the fees of students involved in the Jewish Student Organization to the Hillel House for meals that would better fit their dietary specifics. And more prominently, CDS helps Catholic students by increasing the servings of fish in the campus dining halls during Lent each year.
These are great things MU is doing to help students practice their faiths. It is upsetting CDS would put so much emphasis on making it easier for Jewish and Catholic students to follow dietary standards that were already possible in the dining halls, while it took until this year for CDS to consider Ramadan. The Muslim Student Organization has been trying to work with CDS for years, with this year seeing the first concessions.
This is especially troubling in light of the sizable number of Muslim students on campus.
For those reading who would like to support these students or simply learn more about Ramadan and Islam, I would encourage you participate in the upcoming fast-a-thon Sept. 10. This is an opportunity to experience fasting for one day and then enjoy a free dinner with Muslim students and other fast-a-thoners. For more information, please check MizzouMSO.org.