Christians will be aware of the Islamic month of Ramadan, but what is its ‘Night of Power’ all about? Ramadan began on the evening of Tuesday 17th Feb 2026 and will finish on Thursday 19th March. Laylat al-Qadr is expected on Monday 16th March 2026.
The word ‘Ramadan’ is derived from a root meaning ‘heat’. The original month of Ramadan was during the hottest part of the Arab year.
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Moveable feast begins at sunset
These days, as the Arab calendar is 10 days shorter than the Gregorian, Ramadan has become literally a moveable feast. In 2019 its dates were 5th May to 4th June. Next year it will be begin on 8th February 2027 and end on 9th March. The ‘Month of Heat’ will actually take place over Christmas in 2032.
We are also aware that Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset during Ramadan and have a bit of a blowout after sundown. As it happens, Muslims probably eat more during Ramadan than at any other time. A lot of sheep-meat is consumed, especially during Eid al-Fitr, the last day of Ramadan.
Eid al-Fitr begins in the evening of Thursday 19th March (it marks the end of Ramadan) and finishes in the evening of Friday 20th March 2026. Muslim days follow the Middle-Eastern pattern of beginning at sunset the previous day (to us). So although Ramadan began in 2026 on 17th February, that was in the evening and was Wednesday 18th to them, in a manner of speaking. They will refer to each day by its Islamic date.
’Religion of works’ is deeply spiritual
We dismiss Islam as a ‘religion of works’ because of its insistence on ‘doing things’ rather than repentance and renewal. Muslims ‘do’ fasting. They ‘do’ alms and attend the mosque. They ‘do’ their ‘hajj’ or pilgrimage. We think that because it is a ‘religion of works’ there is no spiritual content or spiritual power to it. Nothing could be further from the truth. Each Muslim regards himself as first and foremost a spiritual being. A spirit world of jinn (spirits: angels or demons – hence the word ‘genie’), charms, divination, holy days, spiritual proclamations, blessings and curses are an everyday reality for Muslims.
For example, every time a Muslim speaks the shahada or cries it from a mosque five times a day, he proclaims and decrees that his god is the only one and that a certain 7th-century Arab trader was and is his only messenger.
You see how, even though I know the power of Jesus Christ to deliver from and nullify such a claim, I will not even give it air-time. How the angels of heaven must weep each time they hear that proclamation, in whatever language. How they must long to hear Christians audibly proclaim, ‘Jesus Christ is King of kings, to the glory of God the Father.’
Watch our nanosermon on the Power of Proclamation:
The prophet Isaiah declared and decreed:
Isa 40:5 … the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken.
Don’t offend the jinn!
Every Muslim believes a jinn sits on his right shoulder recording his good deeds, with another on the left, recording his bad deeds. That will be ‘good’ and ‘bad’ according to Islam, not Christianity. They are the ‘Noble Recorders’ and are referred to in the quran at Surah 50:17 and Surah 82:10-12. Whether a person is sent to Jannah (paradise) or Jahannam (hell/purgatory) is not, however, dependent on whether good deeds outweigh bad deeds. Everything depends on the mercy, so to speak, of Allah. Al-lah means, not ‘god’, but ‘the god’ and is pronounced with the emphasis on the second syllable.
Watch our video: Is Allah Almighty God:
Some Muslims believe two more jinn, the ‘followers’, attend him before and behind as guardian angels.
Muslims take the jinn very seriously. A Pakistan village installed a generator, to give light at night. Its operator suffered a stroke. He did recover, but the village elders decided they had offended the jinn because it was to the latter the night belonged. So they never ran the generator at night again. Once more, before you dismiss all that as just ‘superstition’ remember one man’s superstition is another’s spiritual reality. These things are real for Muslims. And which Christian does not acknowledge a spiritual realm?
Ramadan’s night of power
So we come to Ramadan’s night of power. The 27th day of Ramadan is Laylat al-Qadr (sometimes rendered Laylatul Qadr). It is also known as Shab-e-Qadr, and means Night of Decree or Night of Measures. Muslims regard it as the best, most powerful day of the whole year. They believe the first verses of the quran were revealed to Muhammed on this day in 610AD. For them, prayer made on this day is worth a lifetime of prayers at other times.
Muslim Aid say: ‘Ramadan, in its entirety, is a special time in Islam, but the last 10 nights hold greater significance as they include Laylatul Qadr, the Night of Power. … Allah (SWT) has made this a night of immense blessing and virtue.’
Although the 27th day of Ramadan is universally regarded in Islam as ‘the day,’ their founder was vague as to when it was. Many Muslims treat the whole last 10 days of the month of Ramadan as especially holy. We are already in those last ten days at this time of posting. Some will be up all night during them praying and reading the Koran. And they will definitely be doing that on Laylat al-Qadr.
Night of Decrees
Because Laylat al-Qadr is a night of decrees, we need to be aware of its ability to inspire Muslims to bless their own prosperity and that of the Islamic world in general, at the expense of the world of unbelievers. Indeed, to them, the latter is a ‘house of war,’ ‘Dar al Harb’. Muslims always decree favour on Dar al Islam at the expense of Dar al Harb.
It will be no surprise to find Muslims up all night actively cursing Jews and Christians on Laylat al-Qadr using particular koranic verses. They are also known to pay Imams to curse their enemies with a particular verse, or to write them out and conceal them on the enemy’s property at any time.
Therefore Laylat al-Qadr is an essential night for us to remember God’s promises to his people and to proclaim and decree those from the Bible. Job was told, so long as he kept the ways of the Lord:
Job 22:28 Thou shalt also decree a thing, and it shall be established unto thee: and the light shall shine upon thy ways.
Every night from now until next Monday will be a good time to pray out loud:
Psalm 29:11 The LORD will give strength unto his people; the LORD will bless his people with peace.
We can of course pray such prayers and remind God of his holy word at any time. Nevertheless, this coming Monday night, 16th March, will coincide with Laylat al-Qadr. We pray against the evils of Halloween. We can do the same here. Just be aware.
IS attacks
Because Laylat al-Qadr is such a powerful day in the Islamic calendar, Muslim terrorists have traditionally regarded it as a good time to launch attacks.
According to an article on news.com.au, ‘Security agencies are expected to be on high alert for the last 10 days of Ramadan, particularly on the Night of Power … Muslims traditionally spend the night in prayer and devotion which is said to equate to 1000 months of proper worship. But the significance of the event has also made it a target for terror attacks.’
Security forces are aware of the threat during the whole of Ramadan, but Laylat al-Qadr is particularly dangerous. In 2017 Fox News reported: ‘Law enforcement officials around the world are on high alert this week as ISIS calls for a surge of civilian attacks during Islam’s “Night of Power,” the holiest day on the Islamic calendar.’
In its time Islamic State launched numerous Ramadan attacks, and we should be wrong to think their partial demise has brought such threats to an end. It may be their sleepers are now embedded across the world including in the United Kingdom. News.com.au also say: ‘Other Islamist groups including al-Qaeda and al-Shabaab have also used the holy month to inflict death and destruction on its enemies.’
May the Lord keep the city
So another focus for our prayer must be for our security forces to be given revelation of possible attacks and jihadist cells, for the bad guys to make mistakes and to pray for favour for those keeping us all safe. Pray for repentance for your nation, confessing your national sins, because we read:
Psalm 127:1 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the LORD keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.
Watch our video on how national security needs God’s blessing:
Even now, we can pray as Jeremiah told the captives in Babylon:
Jer 29:7 And seek the peace of the city whither I have caused you to be carried away captives, and pray unto the LORD for it: for in the peace thereof shall ye have peace.
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Hi stephen.
I am extremely appalled at your article which mentions things which have no relation to “The Night of Power.”
I am completely baffled where you have found half of this information from. Feom having bits of Quran on ones head to cursing Jews and Christian’s.
You my friend have little to zero knowledge on what Muslins do in Ramadhan nor what the “Night of power is” infact, to the contrary Muslims all over the world pray for peace, security and make prayers for the betterment of the world and our Hereafter.
What you mentioned is completely absurd, idiotic and whatever respect I had for you has now been lost.
You are only fuelling hatred and misinformation to Chrisitians.
If there was any reason to hate Christains and curse them I would have been doing this. As far as I am concerned my Christain neighbours are people I pray for and help.
There is no justification for your irresponsible rant on what you have concocted out of your disllusional fantasies.
Whatever ISISI terrorists do has little to nothing related to the religion of Islam. More so it’s a twisted version of the Quran like one would twist The bible for example:
“And they entered into a covenant to seek the Lord, the God of their fathers, with all their heart and with all their soul, but that whoever would not seek the Lord, the God of Israel, should be put to death, whether young or old, man or woman.”
2 Chronicles 15:12-13
Blatant terrorism in the Bible!
I can go on and misquoted material from the bible which is really irrelevant because you and I both know this is out of context exactly the way you play the Quran.
I would urge you he with a small brain to accept a challenge and a debate if you are truthful and we can deal with the issue of Islam being a terrorist religion or not.
I guarantee we will be able to satisfy your followers Islam is a peaceful loving religion and not the barbaric twisted version you try to make it out as, with lots of fabricated stuff you have concocted.
You also need to stop spreading lies and hate for what has come to be apparent is you are a liar.
I remember giving you the utmost respect and treated you to breakfast when you visited Birmingham in support of Muslins against Parkfield primary.
We are Muslims not terrorists or haters of The Abrahimc faith.
I look forward to your reply.
But then again it is likely to be deleted and not made public in fear that you will expose your lies.
Abu-Eesa Asif
Birmingham
Abueesa@live.com
Hi Abu-Eesa, It’s good to hear from you and of course I am happy to debate any time. We do admire the way Muslim parents have been taking a stand against the LGBT-promoting secularists in schools in the UK. At that point, my enemy’s enemy is my friend in what I see, rightly or wrongly, as a three-cornered spiritual battle in the UK between Christianity, Secularism and Islam.
But equally, we are conscious that in nearly every Muslim country, unless I am very much mistaken, Christians are persecuted. Be it Pakistan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Christians either have blasphemy laws used against them when a quarrel breaks out, or their communities have been driven out by jihadists.
And don’t let’s even start to talk about the reaction of Muslim families when one of their number converts to Christianity.
I freely acknowledge I am an outsider looking in at Islam. I am quite sure not all Muslims are cursing their Christian neighbours. And people are different, certainly. I’m sure you have many misconceptions about Christianity. But I have quoted sources, and stand by the story.
By the way, the verse from 2Chron 15 is to do with king Asa’s reforms. The people had been wallowing in paganism, sacrificing their own children, practising ritual prostitution and sodomy. In that context of national repentance, rebellion against God was seen as treason and therefore punishable by death. Amnesty International would not approve, but we must acknowledge these were people for whom their spirituality was everything.
The world is a complicated place, but history has shown us which religion is true and which is demonic. Our nation fell at the time we started separating the church from the state. Looking back the other way to the time of the 11th and 12th centuries, our nation went through rapid expansion where we entered into the age of great monasteries, which were the proto-universities as well as serving many other functions. The Islamic states never really got anywhere, as with most other areas of the world. Progress sprung from Europe, which was Christian and followed the Christian way. Going back 100 years or more and America was pretty true to the Christian faith, and during the 20th century it saw a massive rise, but it also ran off the tracks and engaged in much war, and now it is losing power.
By the way, I do think it is interesting to draw attention to ‘religion of works’.
“But by faith we understand not a dead but a living faith, which as naturally leads the believer to do good works for God as a good tree necessarily bears good fruit.” John Wordsworth (former Bishop of Salisbury)
I think this is exactly right. When you are guided you can’t go wrong. You can smell trouble a mile off and enjoy the opportunities that come your way to make other people’s lives better. There ceases to be any conflict.