What is Eid Al-Adha?

Wyndham’s large Muslim population will be celebrating Eid al-Adha this year which began in the evening of Friday, 8th of July and ends in the evening of Tuesday, 12th of July for the first time since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, these gatherings can be held without restrictions.

Among the two main Islamic holidays, Eid al-Adha is the second largest (the other being Eid al-Fitr). This celebration honours Ibrahim’s obedience to God for agreeing to sacrifice his son Ismail (Ishmael).

Because Ibrahim was willing to sacrifice his son in the name of God, God provided him with a ram that he should kill in the place of his son.

As a way of commemorating this intervention, animals are slaughtered as a ritual. In addition to consuming some of their meat, the rest of the meat is donated to poor and needy individuals. It usually involves giving sweets and gifts to extended family members, as well as welcoming them to the house.

There are two types of religious slaughter carried out in Australia: halal slaughter (under Islam) and kosher slaughter (under Judaism) but must be carried out by professionals in the industry under the Meat Industry Act 1993.

The day is also sometimes called the Greater Eid.

Although the story of Abraham and Ishmael also appears in the Bible, Christians believe that the sacrifice of animals for the atonement of sins was finished once and for all by Jesus on the cross and there is no need for any other sacrifice.