Air Force Release: Ramadan Begins in Iraq
The Islamic holy month of Ramadan will begin on August 1st and continue until about the end of the month this year.
A press release from the wing chapel at Joint Base Balad, Iraq, explains the details and significance of the celebration:
The angel Gabriel appeared to Muhammad in 622 B.C., and told him he had been chosen to receive the word of God. In the days following that appearance, Muhammad spoke the verses that later became the Quran.
According to the Quran, God requires fasting, prayer and charity to the poor during the month of Ramadan in order to grow in piety or holiness.
Other than the obvious typo (Muhammad lived around 600 A.D., not B.C.), it remains an admirable attempt by the Chaplaincy to educate military members not only on the celebration of a holy month by some of their fellow servicemembers, but also on the vast majority of the population by whom they are surrounded in Iraq.