In his December 20, 2024, Friday sermon at Masjid As-Sunnah in Orlando, Florida, Imam Abu Usamah At-Thahabi warned his congregants against celebrating Christmas, calling modern Christianity a "pagan religion." He stated that modern Christians, including the relatives of those who have 'reverted' to Islam, are "pagans," claiming: "They think they are believers, but they are not." At-Thahabi further questioned the relevance of Christmas symbols like Santa Claus, Christmas trees, elves, reindeer, mistletoe, and the North Pole to the birth of Jesus, the son of Mary. He also cautioned congregants against allowing their children to watch Christmas-themed movies, such as Sonic and Mufasa.
Abu Usama At-Thahabi is a U.S.-born imam who used to serve as the imam of the Green Lane Masjid in Birmingham, England. He has recently returned to the United States.
Abu Usamah At-Thahabi: "The religion of Christianity, as it is today, is a pagan religion. It is a pagan religion. P-A-G-A-N.
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"The Christians today, the ones you know, those of us who are reverts [to Islam], our relatives – Christians are pagans.
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"It is not nice word, to be called a pagan. They think they are believers, but they are not believers. Pagans.
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"I don't like to say it, but for the sake of argument. We are going to celebrate the day that the son of Allah was born – for the sake of argument. No problem. What does Santa Claus have to do with that? What does the Christmas tree have to do with that? What do the little elves have to do with that? What do reindeers have to do with that? What does the mistletoe have to do with that? What does the North Pole have to do with the birth of Jesus, son of Mary?
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"Don't let your children watch movies when the theme has anything to do with Christmas. Your little kids. 'Sonic', 'Mufasa', these movies that come out at Christmastime with the Christmas themes."