Aceh dominates Idul Adha sermons

Aceh dominates Idul Adha sermons

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Clerics called on Muslims throughout the country observing the
Islamic Day of Sacrifice on Friday to extend their sympathy to
victims affected by the killer tsunamis that devastated Aceh and
North Sumatra.

In their Idul Adha sermons, the preachers asked Muslim
worshipers to join prayers for those who perished in the Dec. 26
calamity and to pray for the wellbeing of survivors living in
desperate conditions.

"Let us pray to God that life for the tsunami survivors
swiftly be restored to normal and the victims have patience
dealing with the disaster," cleric Zainal Arifin said in his
sermon delivered before thousands of Muslims in Jember, East
Java.

Scholar Nazaruddin Umar of Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic State
University (UIN) told thousands of worshipers at the Istiqlal
Grand Mosque, Central Jakarta, that perseverance and the human
spirit must prevail in the face of such utter destruction.

"We must to find the good in every disaster that befalls
mankind," he said.

Nazaruddin said the tsunamis that devastated parts of Aceh and
North Sumatra and killed more than 166,000 people were a wake-up
call to others in the country to make good on their past errors
and embark on righteous conduct.

Vice President Jusuf Kalla was among those who joined the Idul
Adha prayers at Istiqlal. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
celebrated the Islamic holiday in Banda Aceh, the Aceh capital
city hardest hit by the tidal waves.

This year Indonesian Muslims observed the Day of Sacrifice,
which marks the end of the annual haj pilgrimage to Mecca, on
different dates.

Supporters of the Islamic-oriented Justice Prosperous Party
(PKS) celebrated the holiday on Thursday based on the fact that
haj pilgrims had gathered in Arafah, Mecca, to observe the
culmination of the ritual (wukuf) the day earlier. Muslims
usually observe Idul Adha one day after wukuf.

In Yogyakarta, Indonesian Council of Ulemas (MUI) secretary
general Din Syamsuddin said that in the wake of the tsunami,
Muslims should renounce corruption and other vices widespread in
the country.

As for the Acehnese living in poor conditions after the
catastrophe, he asked them to be patient and keep hope.

In Pekanbaru, Riau, a somber mood prevailed when thousands of
Muslims took to the street on the eve of Idul Adha to join a
solemn march in sympathy for the victims.

Unlike the celebrations in the previous years, when
firecrackers were lit and drums played, Muslims there silently
chanted the name of God.

Riau Governor Rusli Zainal, who saw off the march, asked
Muslims to act in positive ways for the tsunami victims.

The large amount of donations for the disaster victims made by
Muslims has indirectly affected the slumping sales of sacrificial
animals to be slaughtered after the Idul Adha prayer service.

Traders in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, said that for this
year's Islamic feast, they could only sell a small number of
cattle and goats because many people were now short of money.

"During the current Idul Adha, I have only sold 100 goats and
15 cows, compared to 250 and 20 last year," a trader in Tanah
Abang was quoted by Antara as saying.