Is it right for me to use this Arabic salutation?

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matjam

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I am in Saudi Arabia and Muslims greet by saying aslam alekkum and the other person says wa alekkum Salam. This is Arabic. My dilemma is being a catholic when someone greets me aslam alekkum they expect to hear wa alekkum Salam and to avoid an awkward situation I respond saying that. Is it right for me to say that?
 
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If I’m not mistaken, those two phrases mean “peace be upon you” and “and peace be upon you” respectively. Why would it be wrong to say either?
 
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And it’s not a specifically Muslim greeting anyway. Jews, if I’m not mistaken say Shalom Aleichem as a common greeting, with the exact same meaning from the same proto-Semitic linguistic root.
 
UpUpAndAway said:
If I’m not mistaken, those two phrases mean “peace be upon you” and “and peace be upon you” respectively. Why would it be wrong to say either?
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Peace be upon you.
And upon you, peace.

These are appropriate greetings for any Arab, be he Muslim or Christian.
 
Ditto. This salutation is in no way religious, except perhaps in the way that wishing peace upon another person is an act of love, benevolence, and respect. Those are values that all religions I’ve ever heard of have in common.
 
I lived in the Middle East. Absolutely no problem. it’s how people greet each other.
The same is true with the other common expression.
“Enshallah” means “God willing.”
Since we have no idea what tomorrow holds, we make plans according to God’s will.
I will do such and such “Enshallah”
 
matjam said:
I am in Saudi Arabia and Muslims greet by saying aslam alekkum and the other person says wa alekkum Salam. This is Arabic. My dilemma is being a catholic when someone greets me aslam alekkum they expect to hear wa alekkum Salam and to avoid an awkward situation I respond saying that. Is it right for me to say that?
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Hold up, you’re a Catholic in Saudi? Then your government or corporation should have briefed you on this before you went to that country since they don’t allow tourists, and only Muslim visitors for the hajj (pilgrimage to Mecca) during Ramadan.

Absolutely nothing wrong with that greeting. It’ll be a problem at some point if you refuse to use it though I’d expect.
Enjoy the weather.
 
DebCWil said:
I lived in the Middle East. Absolutely no problem. it’s how people greet each other.
The same is true with the other common expression.
“Enshallah” means “God willing.”
Since we have no idea what tomorrow holds, we make plans according to God’s will.
I will do such and such “Enshallah”
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Many people in the southern United States, where evangelical Christianity is very influential and widespread, routinely say “God willing” (in English, of course).
 
matjam said:
Muslims greet by saying aslam alekkum and the other person says wa alekkum Salam.
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I can’t speak for Saudi Arabia, but in Egypt the full response is, “wa alaikum assalaam, wa rakhmatullah, wa barakaatuhu – and peace [be] upon you, and the mercy of Allah, and his blessings.”

I had a couple temporary jobs in the U.S. Embassy in Cairo back in the late '90s. My hotel was about a half mile from the nearest metro station, and on the way there were a couple outdoor cafes. As I would be walking along (wearing khakis, a polo shirt, dark sunglasses, an Indiana Jones hat, and with my hair in a pony tail), if there were men sitting outside, I would give the Arabic greeting, and they would automatically give the full response, all the while with a look on their faces, like, “What am I doing, saying this to someone who is obviously not one of us?!”

D
 
HomeschoolDad said:
Many people in the southern United States, where evangelical Christianity is very influential and widespread, routinely say “God willing” (in English, of course).
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In my years as a Catholic it was said in Latin: ‘Deo Volente’…often abbreviated to a simple ‘DV’.
 
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DebCWil said:
“Enshallah” means “God willing.”
Since we have no idea what tomorrow holds, we make plans according to God’s will.
I will do such and such “Enshallah”
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Exactly.

It’s origin is found in sūrah ‘Al-Kahf’: ‘Do not say of anything, “I will do that tomorrow,” without adding, “God willing,” and whenever you forget, remember your Lord and say, “May my Lord guide me closer to what is right.”’ (Verses 23-24).

The words ‘God willing’ render the Arabic ‘In šāʾ Allāh.’
 
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We are not forbidden in some way to speak Arabic. Invoking God’s blessing in Arabic is not a sin.

Remember what the Catechism teaches us about the Muslim people.
 
Thanks for quoting the specific verse, which was part of my scriptural reading last week. .
Since I have returned to the United States, and do live in the Bible Belt, I do routinely say “God Willing.” The traditional phrase is “God willing and the Creek don’t rise.” I learned recently, that while many of us think of the creek in terms of natural disasters, and floods, the original phrase actually refers to colonial times and Creek uprisings.
It still works when the concern is heavy rains and flooding, and the need to shore up against flooding. We do not have any idea what tommorrow brings.
I remember a story out of WWII when a Jewish man answered a Nazi saying he had no idea what the day would bring. Turned out to be true when the Nazi, a member of the Gestapo arrested him.
Although we may make plans, as the Scriptures says, it is the Lord who directs our feet. We do not even know what tomorrow will bring.

I also use the phrase “Have a Blessed Day” which is common here. When we trust in God, there is never any reason to fear.
 
DebCWil said:
Thanks for quoting the specific verse, which was part of my scriptural reading last week. .
Since I have returned to the United States, and do live in the Bible Belt, I do routinely say “God Willing.”
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Glad to be of help.

Forgive me for asking, but are you from South Wales, by any chance. Your use of the word ‘do’, as in ‘I do live’, and ‘I do routinely’ is typical of the Valley dialect. But I’m being nosey; coming from the Rhondda……as I do do! 😊

As you say, we make plans; but the Exalted is the One who makes things happen; according to His Will. And yes, when we trust in Him there is never a reason to fear.

Have a Blessed Day.
 
James 4:15
“Instead you ought to say if the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.”

My family says “Lord willin’ & the crik (creek) dont rise.”

Here of course creek refers to water not an Indian tribe.
 
Greeting somebody in Arabic is no different to greeting them in any other language. Arabic is not a forbidden language. Remember that there are many Christians for whom Arabic is their first language.
 
I’m not from South Wales. It’s interesting that when I lived in California, there were people who asked if I was related to a student from Australia.
Because of how often I’ve moved throughout my life, people have difficulty placing my accent.
I am definitely an American, although it took me an hour to convince one person that I was not British when I was living in the Middle East.
I was asked a few months ago, when I moved from Connecticut, a state I never lived in.
I was born in Texas, where my mother is from.
 
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