Will it be a Halal Easter?

Credit: Silversurfers

The season of Lent has not begun but supermarkets have long been gearing up for their Easter bonanza. True observance of this major Christian festival has long since been forgotten as dwindling congregations testify.

Hot-cross buns have been on the shelves for weeks while other items associated with Easter such as Cadbury creme eggs are a constant presence in many stores. The few children who still attend Sunday School may be looking forward to the prospect of receiving an extra special treat, an Easter egg, the symbol of new life.

It is indeed a new life for Cadbury creme eggs. The wrapper may look the same but that is as far as it goes. The recipe has been changed and you now get five for the price of six. Story here. But that is not all. The wrapper conceals the complete and utter contradiction between Islam and Christianity.

The long list of Cadbury halal products (here) includes a range of  "Seasonal (Easter and Christmas)" products. Easter and Christmas are the major Christian festivals which are no-go areas for devout Muslims. A Muslim may not exchange a Christmas greeting because it would acknowledge that "God was born on 25 December, the most evil of shirk" (idolatry). Not only is the Resurrection denied in Islam but so is the death of Jesus on the Cross.

We are no longer surprised by the actions of money-grabbing multi-national companies and their broken promises as they take their pieces of silver, regardless of the sensitivities of non-Muslims but I hope people will also surprise them by boycotting products containing any ingredients obtained from ritual slaughter. Halal slaughter must be performed by a Muslim after invoking the name of Allah in a similar way to Islamists slaughtering non-Muslims in the name of Allah if they don't convert or pay the jizya, accepting subjection as the price of being spared.

The non-labeling of halal products is a deception too far, adding to the impression that only Islam is regarded as sacred. The recent report that a grandfather's body may be exhumed in a multi-faith cemetery after relatives of a Muslim buried next to him complained that the Roman Catholic was an unbeliever serves to emphasize the point. Current reports suggest that the request has been rejected but this episode is an uncomfortable reminder of the plan to dig up 350,000 bodies in the historic London cemetery of Tower Hamlets to provide a mainly Muslim burial site. The Council's environment spokesman said: "To preserve the respect and dignity for everyone, I think most of the graves would have to be cleared out and we'd start afresh. Officially it would be known as a "multi-faith" cemetery but it is likely that it would principally answer calls for a Muslim graveyard in the largely-Asian East London borough."

Tower Hamlets council displayed their moral bankruptcy in 2011 when they were prepared to allow banquets to be staged in the Merchant Navy Memorial gardens which are dedicated to the thousands of mariners who died during the two world wars and the Falklands. Alcohol was to be sold from 11 am until midnight, yet another Islamic contradiction if ever there was one. The Mayor, Lutfur Rahman subsequently used his 'executive powers' to stop the event taking place after the furore the plan created.

It is difficult to escape the conclusion that Islam receives deference way beyond the number of Muslims as a percentage of the population and that specific areas have become Islamised. It has been claimed in the High Court that supporters backing Tower Hamlets mayor Lutfur Rahman told people to vote for him because his party were "Muslim people", and that activists for Mr Rahman's party, Tower Hamlets First, handed out curry to voters from the backs of cars outside polling stations. Expert evidence has been presented to the Court suggesting that one in four postal ballots cast in the re-election of Mayor Lutfur Rahman in one ward in Tower Hamlets were completed by the same person.

To these 'isolated' incidents we should add the 'Trojan Horse' campaign to impose 'faith-based' ideology in Birmingham schools and the revolting child abuse by 'Asian heritage' men in Rotherham, Rochdale, Oxford and elsewhere. It was claimed in 2013 that "Nowadays jails are run mostly by Muslims". The supporting figures showed that the rate of increase of Muslim inmates in British prisons is "eight times faster than that of the overall prison population, and the numbers show a clear over representation of Muslim convicts: Muslims, who make up roughly 5% of the British population as a whole, now make up 13% of the British prison population (compared to just 6% in 1997)". The Report goes on:

"Prisoners told the researchers that they had felt overwhelming pressure to convert. In some instances, they said, Muslim inmates had left Islamic literature in their cells and ordered them to 'read this'. In other instances, inmates were promised that if they converted to Islam, they would be safe from physical assault." Non-Muslims and prison officers inside Whitemoor Prison in Cambridgeshire where '39% of the prisoners are Muslims' described Islam as an 'organized gang' and a 'protection racket', which "glorified terrorist behavior and exploited the fear related to it."

The latest report shows that the Muslim population in England and Wales has nearly doubled in 10 years. "In 2011, 2.71 million Muslims lived in England and Wales, compared with 1.55 million in 2001. There were also 77,000 Muslims in Scotland and 3,800 in Northern Ireland". Responding to the report, the atheist deputy prime minister, Nick Clegg, said: "I believe that every person, whatever their background and circumstances, should have an equal chance to thrive". Like many other political and well meaning religious leaders he is deluded. Islam means 'to submit' or 'give in' or 'surrender'. Our democracy is being used against us to that end. Evidence abounds on the placards used in Islamist demonstrations and is clearly voiced here.

A couple of days ago I read an interesting article by Ruth Gledhill titled the Future of religion in Britain is Islam and black majority churches. According to figures published by the Office for National Statistics 80 per cent of Muslims actively practised their religion, the highest proportion of those with a religion, compared with just 32 per cent of Christians who said they "actively practised" their religion. According to Professor David Voas who specialises in population studies at Essex University, statistics show that Islam and newer forms of Christianity are overhauling the Church of England as white Britons lose their taste for worship. Is this the key?

Islam has been allowed to expand unhindered in Britain while Christianity is being obliterated in ancient Christian lands such as Syria and Iraq to name but two. Criticism or even comment is met with accusations of racism and Islamophobia but we are failing in our duty if we keep silent. Christians were warned, "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves". Proselytising is seen largely as a one way activity converting non-Muslims to Islam be fair means of foul. This must change. There is only one Way. It is not Christians who are the 'unbelievers'. The Muslim world is being reached here. We need to do more.

A halal Easter is an utter contradiction. No sacrifice is required after Christ's death on the Cross. If Muslims understood that we would all be spared the slaughter going on around us today in the name of Islam.

Looking forward to Easter, remember the Lamb - or the turkey. If it is halal, reject it. It is easy to be fooled by the wrapper. What you see on the outside may hide sinister ingredients on the inside. Be aware, keep the faith and above all, help others to see the Light.