Is there any word that produces more emotions or provokes more response than the word “hijab”? Some of the strong words about Islamophobia are centered around the hijab. The head covering isn’t merely a cultural fashion or political statement. Wearing the hijab has a way of separating women into two groups: the one who wears it and the one who doesn't. It is like a curtain that separates. It has deep religious meaning to it. Many Muslim women feel they can be kept more protected from lustful looks or touch from men by wearing it, makes them feel pious, believe it will ensure Allah’s blessing in this life – insha’Allah, or perhaps guarantees them a better chance of paradise in the next life; especially if hot weather or opposition to wearing it brings added suffering. I have many Muslim female friends and have picked up some of their feelings about the hijab. Without wearing the hijab they can feel vulnerable, unprotected and worthy of possible judgment from both man and Allah. They believe that Allah has decreed women should wear it and they desire to please him; especially if it can help avert punishment or bad luck. They can feel that it makes them good Muslim women in their community. The cloth produces an Islamic identity. Many Muslim women in western democratic countries say they do not feel oppressed or forced to wear it. Most will state that they feel free and choose to wear it. However most do not feel free to remove it for good and know they could experience shunning or suffering from family or community members. It is hard for non Muslim women to understand or appreciate the hijab. It is important for us who do not wear the hijab to look beyond the hijab and see real people who in many ways are just like us. We are all first human and have much in common. There should be no room for showing disrespect to hijabi women.
Recently I listened to a former Muslim woman give her testimony. She was pressured by other Muslim women to wear the hijab. She complied but continued to feel that Allah was angry with her. The hijab didn't bring peace. She still constantly worried about her children. Women criticized her for not wearing it strictly enough. The hijab would determine fortune or misfortune it seemed. Eventually she decided to go without it because it had not brought her the peace she was searching for. Immediately she fell into even greater fear that something might happen to her children or she might not get a job because Allah would punish her for not wearing the hijab. Praise the Lord her story continues of how she found protection and blessing in Jesus Christ, the Savior – not the hijab - and today she is following Him. She has discovered that God looks beyond the hijab and sees the heart. He is her protector and Savior, not the hijab. Her salvation and eternal destiny rest solely on the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ and not the hijab. Today she has found real peace and knows that God is love.
Before Karima arrived in Canada she wore a head scarf which was enforced as law in her homeland. There was no choice. It was the law of the land. She never ventured going outside without it from the day she was married. A strong belief lodged that she was pleasing Allah by wearing it and if she went without it bad luck might happen and she would no longer be a Muslim which would produce severe judgment from Allah. On the very day of arrival in Canada her husband ordered her to take it off which left her greatly shaken. Muslim women began to ask her if she had become a Christian. But at that point she didn’t know anything about Christianity. Today she has come to know about and trust in the blood of Jesus Christ to save her and make her righteous. She knows wearing a hijab - or not wearing a hijab - is not what saves her soul. Her true identity doesn't come from the hijab, a piece of cloth, but in a relationship with Jesus Christ as her Savior. She was surprised to discover that God loved her before she was even born, even before wearing the hijab. His love did not increase for her by wearing the hijab.
When I was growing up in Somalia I wore a scarf. And when I lived in Pakistan I wore either a duputta or a chadar when going outside. In church I wore a head covering. It was the cultural thing to do. But it did not make me a good or pious person. A head covering does not have that power. The underlying reason I have picked up from my Muslim female friends is a belief that when they wear a hijab it will better protect them from the lustful looks and inappropriate touches from men. Jesus Christ is able to change both men's and women’s hearts.
Dear heavenly Father, Thank you for the precious blood of Jesus which saves me. Amen.
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