Like every year, the Christmas spirit has taken over Senegal. The country lives to the rhythm of festivities, it even feels like a Christian country even though Muslims represent more than 95% of the population. But the Senegalese feel good in this communion that many find fascinating.
Julie Atia, is a Gabonese national in Senegal. She is amazed because for her, “In Senegal, there is something special, it is that during the Christmas holidays, we feel it. Everyone is involved; the city is decorated, everyone is celebrating, whether Christians or Muslims. »
And this is a very Senegalese particularity. Here, communion in the celebration of religious holidays has almost no equal. During this Christmas period, it is difficult to guess that we are in a country with more than 95% Muslims as it lives to the rhythm of the holiday. In “Senegal, there is something special, it is that during the Christmas holidays, we feel it, everyone is involved, everyone is in the party, whether they are Christians, whether they are Muslims, and it is something that fascinates me every time and every year. So, I experience it well, I experience Christmas well in Senegal. », Says Julie Atia who has lived in Senegal for 22 years.
This communion during religious holidays is one of the symbols of the solidity of religious mixing in Senegal. Inviting a friend or neighbor of another religion is almost sacred. Didier Forbis lives in Sicap Baobabs, a neighborhood with a high Christian concentration. Sitting in front of his house, this father has already planned everything for the elevator return. “Before, in the old days, it was only Catholic families who celebrated. But 25 years ago, 30 years ago, it became more open. I'm Catholic, but you see a Muslim who invites me to his house for Christmas. And me, if I take another Muslim friend, I bring him to my house. It's normal, eh, because during tabaski, they invite us or they make a hearty meal, they serve us at home or they invite us, they give us something to eat. We celebrate Tabaski holidays together, as we celebrate Christmas together, and the end of year celebration together,” he says.
And this harmony makes Senegal a country almost apart. An exception that Brother Julien Mati Manga, vicar in a parish in Dakar, considers a blessing. For him, “it’s something profound, which even comes from the origins, I mean, from God. Because it is God who wanted us to be brothers and sisters, being of different religions. So, it is fundamental so that being different religions, having the same ancestor Adam and Eve, we come together to celebrate together. It's not just Christmas, you see, tabaski, it's like that too. You feel throughout the city that everyone is celebrating. This is a reality in Senegal, and it is a grace that God has given us. And we must continue to maintain, and even share this with others who do not know, this Muslim-Christian fraternity which binds us and which strengthens us. »
Whether they are Muslims or Christians, the Senegalese enjoy this Muslim-Christian fraternity with great pride. A harmony that they hope will resist the rise of religious extremism.
