“Mohsen Alviri”: Jews and Christians Have Great Interest in the Mourning Ceremonies of Imam Hussein
Hujjat al-Islam wa al-Muslimin Mohsen Alviri, on the eve of Ashura, spoke about the interest of Jews and Christians in the mourning ceremonies of Imam Hussein.
Hujjat al-Islam wa al-Muslimin Mohsen Alviri, director of the History Department at Baghercollege University and editor-in-chief of the academic-research journal History of Islam, provided explanations to a reporter regarding the interfaith function of Ashura, which are read below.
In response to the question of whether “Ashura has an interfaith function,” he said: “Ashura and Ashura culture, from several aspects, share teachings with other Abrahamic religions or cultures similar to them. In addition to the similarity of Islam’s main teachings with other Abrahamic religions, six topics about Ashura can be considered from an interfaith perspective, and based on them, convergence among followers of Abrahamic religions can be strengthened.”
Mohsen Alviri, while introducing Hussein ibn Ali as the heir to Moses (Kalim Allah) and Jesus (Ruh Allah), added: “In sections of some visitation prayers, particularly the Ziyarat al-Warith (Visitation of the Heir), Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) is introduced as the heir to all prophets, two of whom are Prophet Moses and Prophet Jesus, meaning the prophets of Jews and Christians. In another place, that honored one is also introduced as the heir to the Torah, Gospel, and Psalms. When Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) is introduced as the heir to the prophets of these two great celestial religions and the heir to their heavenly books, the role of that imam as a model among followers of other religions expands, and very great potential emerges for the convergence of followers of these religions with followers of the school of the Ahl al-Bayt.”
The presentation of these statements by Mohsen Alviri and the introduction of Hussein ibn Ali as the heir to Moses and Jesus comes at a time when many Christians and Jews in Iran have been severely harassed and persecuted, and even face heavy prison sentences and financial penalties.
Regarding the influence of certain aspects of Shiite mourning traditions from Christian mourning practices, he continued his remarks, saying: “From a historical perspective, when we accept that traditions such as mourning leading to bodily wounding or the shedding of blood from the body came from Christian mourning traditions to the Islamic world, we can, while warning about the mixing of Islamic culture with undesirable traditions, use this topic as a proposal and backing for intercultural relations in the future and finding a way for mutual influence on Christians.”
Mohsen Alviri viewed analyses of the Ashura ceremonies as similar to the sufferings of Jesus Christ and his crucifixion, and added: “Some of the prevalent perspectives and analyses among us regarding Ashura and the martyrdom of Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) have similarities with some theological perspectives of certain Christians regarding the crucifixion of Jesus Christ (peace be upon him). Aside from our belief in the non-martyrdom of Jesus (peace be upon him) and aside from whether or not such perspectives are correct in Shiite circles, discussion of concepts such as sacred suffering, sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins, and the unity of the blood of God’s servant with the blood of God, can create the foundation for interfaith dialogues.”
His remarks about the shedding of blood in mourning ceremonies and its entry from Christianity into the Islamic world come at a time when the blood of Jesus Christ was shed for the forgiveness of human sins, not for the implementation of mourning ceremony traditions, and there is a striking difference between the shedding of Jesus Christ’s blood for the forgiveness of sins and the shedding of blood for the purpose of implementing mourning ceremony traditions on the day of Ashura. One of the striking differences in the conduct of these ceremonies is that Christians do not wound themselves and do not shed their blood for the crucifixion of Jesus Christ because, as Mohsen Alviri made a brief reference to in his remarks, Christians believe that Jesus Christ shed his blood for the forgiveness of humanity’s sins as a ransom so that whoever believes in him will be forgiven and have eternal life; but in the tradition of conducting Ashura mourning ceremonies, Muslims wound themselves and shed their blood to accompany the killing of Hussein ibn Ali in order to experience the suffering that he endured, not the forgiveness of their sins.
He continued regarding the reflection of Ashura in Christian literature: “Another field of interfaith interaction is the devotion and affection of followers of other religions, particularly Christians, to Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) in the form of their writings and poems. The collection that Mr. Zaeri compiled in the book ‘Father, Son, Holy Spirit’ is a good example in this regard. The continuation of such studies and research in the initial phase will lead to the convergence of elites and then the convergence of the masses. In areas where followers of other religions coexist peacefully with Shiites, there is, almost without exception, great interest and indeed a strong affection for attending the mourning ceremonies of Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) and assisting in their conduct (such as serving mourners and participating in expenses) or conducting ceremonies similar to those of Shiites (such as organizing chest-beating processions or visiting the pure shrine of the Master of Martyrs). This is even evident among followers of non-celestial religions such as Hindus in Shiite-populated cities in India (such as Lucknow). This matter also has an interfaith function and well demonstrates how Imam Hussein (peace be upon him) is a common divine capital for the gathering of all the faithful, and recording the numerous memories and experiences related to this matter can help promote the compassion of followers of celestial religions centered on Imam Hussein (peace be upon him).”
Considering that in recent years many people in Iran have left Islam and converted to Christianity, the Islamic Republic of Iran government has imposed severe strictures against Christians and in many cases has resorted to arrests, detention, torture, execution, long-term imprisonment, confiscation of their property, and so forth.
On many occasions, we have also witnessed the harassment and persecution of Jews, such as attacks on the tombs of Mordecai and Esther and their incineration, as well as employment restrictions and even in some cases restrictions on education. However, for conducting ceremonies such as presidential elections, parliamentary elections, conducting Ashura ceremonies and other Islamic traditions, the Islamic Republic government has extended a hand of friendship toward Jews, Christians, and Zoroastrians and seeks their assistance so that it can present itself in the eyes of the world as a government that has been a friend to all religions and has no problems with them. But is the display of the Islamic Republic government credible in such circumstances?
