Can I Eat Easter Eggs?

Question:

Assalamu ‘alaykum.

I question eating and buying foods such as chocolate, Easter eggs, bunnies, or gingerbread. Is it allowed to eat foods that have their origin in other religious origins? So, for example, could we eat chocolate Easter eggs when it isn’t Easter?

Answer:

Wa ‘alaykum assalam wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh.

Yes, eating chocolate easter eggs and gingerbread men is permissible. We have been forbidden from imitating non-Muslims in religious matters. (‘Itr, I’lam al Anam) Easter eggs in our times have lost their religious significance, to a large degree, and in most places

Many people eat them without thinking about what the Christians believe about Easter. Therefore, it is not a religious matter for most, and so, they can be consumed.

However, if a religious ritual has been practiced on certain foods, such as the bread in the Eucharist, or prasad in a Hindu temple, consuming it will not be permissible. This would be part of avoiding imitating the disbelievers in religious practice.

May Allah grant you the best of both worlds.
[Shaykh]Abdul-Rahim

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat began his studies in Arabic Grammar and Morphology in 2005. After graduating with a degree in English and History, he moved to Damascus in 2007, where, for 18 months, he studied with many erudite scholars. In late 2008 he moved to Amman, Jordan, where he continued his studies for the next six years in Sacred Law (fiqh), legal theory (Usul al-fiqh), theology, hadith methodology, hadith commentary, and Logic. He was also given licenses of mastery in the science of Quranic recital. He was able to study an extensive curriculum of Quranic sciences, tafsir, Arabic grammar, and Arabic eloquence.