Tunisia, North Africa -Tues. Jul 20, 2021

We were privileged to be invited into an Islamic family home to document and learn about their holiday Eid al-Adha. 

Eid al-Adha, in Arabic, means the “festival of the sacrifice”.

Eid al-Adha is a holiday celebrated within Islam. It aims to honor the willingness of Abraham to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God’s command. 

Islam believe that God called Abraham to sacrifice Ishmael. 

Christianity and Judaism believe God called Abraham to sacrifice Issac.

Abraham and his wife Sarah was promised by God a child but struggled to believe God since they were of old age. So they took it upon themselves to produce a child with Abraham’s concubine, Hagar, Ishmael’s mother. Ishmael is Abraham’s 1st son. 

Sarah conceived Isaac later on. Isaac was the miracle child, born to Abraham and Sarah in their old age to fulfill God’s promise to Abraham to make his descendants a great nation. Later, to test Abraham’s obedience since Isaac was the promise, God commanded Abraham to sacrifice his son. Just when Abraham was about to obey, God provided a lamb to sacrifice instead.

Isaac became Abraham’s sole heir, though God promised that Ishmael would still raise up a great nation of his own which according to Muslim tradition, Ishmael is traditional ancestor of the Arab people.