Laylat al-Qadr

Muslims gathered at the Lakemba Mosque in prayer. Photo: Fr Patrick McInerney.

On 6 April 2025, I joined thousands of Muslims gathered at the Lakemba Mosque in prayer. I found an empty chair among the elders. As I sat down, one of them said, “It is good to see you. Thank you for being with us. I see you every year.”

Why that night? It was the 27^th night of Ramadan. What is special about that night?

Muslims believe that God revealed the Holy Qur’an to the Prophet Muhammad on Lailat al-Qadr (The Night of Destiny) during the month of Ramadan 610 CE. While the precise date is unknown, according to hadith (reported sayings of the Prophet Muhammad), it is one of the odd days of the last 10 days of Ramadan. Sunni Muslim custom observes it on the 27^th night of Ramadan, while Shi’a tend to observe it on the 19^th, 21^st, or 23^rd. On that night, in homes and mosques around the world, millions of Muslims do extra devotions in the hope that this night is Lailat al-Qadr.

Sura al-Qadr (Chapter 97) of the Holy Qur’an is named after Lailat al-Qadr and reads:

بِسمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحمٰنِ الرَّحيمِ
إِنّا أَنزَلناهُ في لَيلَةِ القَدرِ
وَما أَدراكَ ما لَيلَةُ القَدرِ
لَيلَةُ القَدرِ خَيرٌ مِن أَلفِ شَهرٍ
تَنَزَّلُ المَلائِكَةُ وَالرّوحُ فيها بِإِذنِ رَبِّهِم مِن كُلِّ أَمرٍ
سَلامٌ هِيَ حَتّىٰ مَطلَعِ الفَجرِ

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate
Behold, We sent it down on the Night of Power;
And what shall teach thee what is the Night of Power?
The Night of Power is better than a thousand months;
in it the angels and the Spirit descend, by the leave of their Lord, upon every command.
Peace it is, till the rising of dawn.

Worship, Devotion, and Prayer

As the text indicates, Lailat al-Qadr is a very auspicious night, “better than a thousand months” (= 83 years) i.e. a lifetime packed into one night! It is a night of blessings, of intercession, of peace, when God stoops down to hear and answer prayers. To avail of this blessed opportunity, many Muslims spend a portion of the night or even the whole night in prayer.

• At times, the worshippers performed salat, the formal ritual prayer of Islam, with cycles of  standing, bowing, and prostration.
• At other times, the Imams recited juz’ (sections) of the Holy Quran. Some of the congregation followed the Quranic text in books, others on mobile devices, reciting the words in muted tones, the murmur of recited text creating a sense of unity.
• There were also intercessory prayers, for Muslims, for Muslim-majority countries, for people facing conflict, for those suffering injustices, for widows and orphans, for the poor and needy. 

I prayed as a Catholic Christian, reciting the Our Father, the Hail Mary, the Glory Be, completing the rosary. While my Christian prayers attest to the Holy Trinity and the divinity of Jesus Christ, concepts anathema to Islam, there was deep communion in the spirit as Christian and Muslim simultaneously worship the one God, each in their own way.

Lakemba Mosque. Photo: Fr Patrick McInerney.

Theological Comparisons

In Muslim belief, Lailat al-Qadr celebrates the descent of the Holy Qur’an from heaven. Theologically speaking, the Christian parallel is the Annunciation, the descent of the Word of God into the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

•  In Islam, the Word of God becomes “inlibrate” i.e. becomes a book, the Holy Qur’an.
• In Christianity, the Word of God becomes “incarnate” i.e. assumes human flesh, Jesus Christ.
• In Muslim belief, the Prophet Muhammad is the bearer of the Word of God, the Holy Qur’an.
• In Christian belief, the Blessed Virgin Mary is the bearer of the Word, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity.
• Both traditions acknowledge the role of the Holy Spirit and of the Angel Gabriel in the revelation of the Word.

I reflected how appropriate it was that on this night when Muslims celebrate the advent into the world of the Holy Qur’an, I, a Christian, was praying the Hail Mary, which incorporates the greeting of the Angel Gabriel to Mary at the Annunciation of the advent into the world of God’s word-become-flesh in Jesus Christ.  

Pope Francis exhorted us to pray for one another. Let us do so on this auspicious night and in the days of Eid. Let us pray that, like the Prophet Muhammad and the Blessed Virgin Mary, all Muslims and all Christians will be open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our hearts, our minds, our lives, and especially in our relations with and attitudes towards each other. Amen!

Conclusion

I left the mosque just before midnight to go home, knowing that many present would continue in prayer until dawn.  As I took my leave, my friend said, smiling warmly, “See you next year!”  To which I replied, “In sha’ Allah!” (God willing).

Rev Dr Patrick McInerney, Director, Columban Centre for Christian-Muslim Relations.

Related links

• Read more from the current Columban Interfaith eBulletin