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Trevor

trevinstrood

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Nov 9, 2008
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as a Christian in England, I have recently started wondering about a forthcoming event.

In our organisation it is traditional to have a party and sing Christmas carols

This year 2 Sikh's joined us and I know that tey are devoute

i am concerned , so as not to offend them

Would they come to the party or not, they are part of our group and most welcome

most other people in the group are non committal

should we not have the carols, or would that offfend them??

i would welcome comments from the wider sikh community before I talk to them
 

spnadmin

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Jun 17, 2004
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trevinstrood ji

My first reaction -- Is the party being held in the office during business hours? If that is the case, then it would be very difficult even awkward for anyone to back out of it, a Sikh or anyone else, who had religious scruples about celebrating a Christian holiday.

So the venue makes a difference.

But having said that --- Most Sikhs that I know like to enjoy the holidays of their associates as long as there are only minimal religious overtones. Most recent example is Halloween -- which is a pagan holiday (but we all know it is really about wearing a scary costume and collecting as much candy as possible to eat ;)) Many Sikhs will even join in non-denominational prayers at meetings and college graduations as long as they only involve a few minutes of reflection on the gifts of the Almighty.

I would plan to invite/include your Sikh associates and leave it to them to decline to participate. Make it clear to them that they are free to back out if they are uncomfortable. And free to sing or not sing carols. Let it be their choice.

(From my own life -- we have orthodox Jews at work who attend Christmas parties after hours, and Sikhs who have reflected on the prayers of Muslim imams at university events. Everything depends on whether someone feels forced to do something or cannot make a choice. Definitely invite them and let them choose.)
 

Randip Singh

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May 25, 2005
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as a Christian in England, I have recently started wondering about a forthcoming event.

In our organisation it is traditional to have a party and sing Christmas carols

This year 2 Sikh's joined us and I know that tey are devoute

i am concerned , so as not to offend them

Would they come to the party or not, they are part of our group and most welcome

most other people in the group are non committal

should we not have the carols, or would that offfend them??

i would welcome comments from the wider sikh community before I talk to them

Generally Sikhs are liberal with regard to such matters.

Me for example, I love Christmas! :)
 

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