Even the devils eat iftar!

2023-04-20 15:38:00, Opinione Lutfi Dervishi

Journalist Lutfi Dervishi

Why do you go to church when you don't believe in God?

"God, you don't vote, but the cardinals do", - answered the well-known Italian politician Andreoti.

This answer probably applies to the question: What do politicians and government officials look for in the iftars of the Muslim faithful?

Even the holy month of Ramadan, one of the five pillars of the Islamic faith, did not escape the (ugly) political spectacle. This year, the show was more difficult because it coincided with the election campaign.

During this holy month, not a crumb of bread or a drop of water passes into the mouth of the fasting person from sunrise to sunset. It is an individual decision. No one is watching over you. It is not easy to give up food and drink for a whole month, but those who believe easily do this act of piety and sacrifice to get closer to God. They do it to celebrate and remember the revelation of the Quran as a gift to humanity.

Food/drink deprivation is a reminder to today's consumer society that we are consuming more than we should, it is a reminder to those who have no idea what it means to be hungry/thirsty, it is an opportunity to express gratitude for what you have, it is a month that more than the body, the believer takes care of the "food" of the soul. Fasting is broken in the evening with iftar. Iftar is a festive event when shared with friends and family. The question is what brings people who believe in God together at a table with those who only know power/money for God?

What is the meaning of an iftar when the politician/ministry writes on "Facebook": "This time at the iftar laid out in respect of the believers of ZAZ 3, 4, 5"? At least this is an honest statement, but the height of hypocrisy is when you hear beautiful speeches from those who only test their hunger when it comes to power?! And in these cases remember the proverb: language is to hide thoughts!

Why don't politicians take the opportunity to go to the mosque/teke/church? The answer is given by the story of the youth of an intellectual "par excellence":

"My father asked me one day, when I was quite young: Do you know why people go to church? I answered: to perform religious services.

- No, my father told me, they go to see me and see me!"

This hypocrisy was not the only reason that 7 years ago the Catholic Church closed the door to politicians, rulers and ambassadors for Christmas. "Christmas is certainly everyone's holiday, but especially the poor and those who are on the fringes of our society."

It is time for the Muslim community, as the largest religious community in Albania, to set an example by closing the door to politicians/authorities in the case of religious holidays. Let religion and politics be like water and oil, stay together, but without mixing with each other! Let Caesar take what is Caesar's, and God the things that are his...

If the leaders of the religious communities become the bridge for the politician to reach the poor voter, then they become the trigger of a toxic marriage. It's time for divorce/distance, because otherwise the product of this "love" will be a cocktail of hypocrisy and power struggle.