No surprises. The month of Ramadan, a month of fasting, prayer and sharing for Muslims, began this Saturday in France, as the Grand Mosque of Paris confirmed in a press release on Friday. Its rector Chems-eddine Hafiz confirmed this date after a meeting between his religious commission and six other federations of mosques intended to set the date for the start of this month, even if the latter had been announced several years ago. weeks by the French Council for Muslim Worship (CFCM).
All invite to pray “for peace in the world and harmony between the components of the national community”. During Ramadan, one of the pillars of Islam, believers are asked to abstain from drinking, eating, smoking and having sexual relations, from dawn – as soon as one can “distinguish a white thread from a black thread” says the Koran – until sunset. This Saturday, April 2, the fast can be broken at 8:26 p.m.
After two editions marked by restrictions linked to the pandemic – closure of places of worship in 2020, curfew at 7 p.m. in 2021 – Ramadan 2022 is marked by the return of “Tarawih”, night prayers specific to Ramadan, possible at the mosque.
Wearing a mask recommended
However, Mohammed Moussaoui, former president of the CFCM, indicates, in a separate press release, that “wearing a mask remains strongly recommended in places that do not benefit from sufficient ventilation towards the outside”, in particular “during prayers of Tarawih, given their duration and the high number of participants”.
Ramadan will end with Eid al-Fitr, the “feast of breaking the fast”. Muslims are invited to pay alms for the poor, the zakât el-Fitr. It was “evaluated this year at seven euros per person”, according to the CFCM.
France has between five and six million practicing and non-practicing Muslims, according to several studies on the subject (Pew Research Center, Institut Montaigne, Insee, Ined), which makes Islam the second religion of the country and of French Muslim community the first in Europe.
Fasting is prescribed for pubescent Muslims, but exemptions are provided for travellers, the sick, the elderly, pregnant women or women who have just given birth. Compensation is possible for people prevented or exempted (fasting carried out later, donations to the needy, etc.).