A U.S. Postage Stamp Commemorating Two Muslim Holidays-Truth!

A Muslim Christmas Stamp-Fiction!

A U.S. Postage Stamp Commemorating Two Muslim Holidays-Truth!

Summary of the eRumor:
The email lists a number of terrorist events believed to have been carried out by Moslems then says the U.S. Postal Service is issuing a postage stamp commemorating Muslim holidays.

The Truth:
Each of the terrorist events has either been connected to or believed to be connected to Muslim terrorists, but the most common question we get is whether the postage stamp story is true.

According to the U.S. Postal Service, a 34-cent stamp was issued in September of 2001 and October of 2002 commemorating two important Islamic celebrations or eids. They are Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha. On those days, Muslims greet one another with "Eid mubarak," which translates literally as "blessed festival." The phrase is written in Islamic calligraphy on the stamp.

A later version of the eRumor circulated saying it was a "Muslim Christmas Stamp." That is a fabrication someone added along the way. Although Muslims regard Jesus as a prophet, they reject Christian belief that Jesus is the Son of God and God incarnate and do not celebrate Christmas. The Islamic celebrations the postage stamp commemorates are roughly in November and January and are celebrations that many Muslims focus on during the Christian holidays.

According to the United States Post Office website the stamp has had several issues in various denominations spanning from 34 cents in 2001 to 41 cents in 2007. The latest release was announced September 23, 2008 with a 42 cent denomination.

updated 11/14/08

A real example of the eRumor as it has appeared on the Internet:

REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the World Trade Center in 1993,
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the Marine Barracks in Lebanon,
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the military Barracks in Saudi Arabia,
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the American Embassies in Africa,
REMEMBER the MUSLIM bombing of the USS COLE.
REMEMBER the MUSLIM attack on the World Trade Center on 9/11/01.
REMEMBER all the AMERICAN lives that were lost in those vicious MUSLIM
attacks. Now the United States Postal Service REMEMBERS and HONORS the EID MUSLIM holiday season with a commemorative first class holiday postage stamp.
I strongly urge you to REMEMBER to adamantly and vocally BOYCOTT this
stamp when purchasing your holiday stamps at the post office. To use this stamp
would be a slap in the face to all those AMERICANS who died at the hands
of those whom this stamp honors. I also strongly urge you to pass this along to every Patriotic AMERICAN you know, whether by email.