Ramadan begins today. It is a holy month of fasting for Muslims. But you may have also noticed that Ramadan seems to be a time of increased attacks on infidels. Every year the death toll runs into the hundreds. I fear this year the statistics will also be grim.

At first this seems like a contradiction. Ramadan occurs during the ninth lunar month in the Islamic calendar. It is time when Muslims fast from their first prayer of the day (at dawn) to their fourth prayer (after sunset). They also refrain from other activities and focus their minds on fervent prayer. Ramadan is a holy month, so why all the violence?

One of my regular guests on radio is Dr. Jim Denison. He explains that Muslims believe they will receive greater rewards during this month on the Islamic calendar. Muhammad himself actually preached a sermon on Ramadan in which he said, “Whoever performs an obligatory deed in [this month] shall receive the reward of performing seventy obligations at any other time.”

One Taliban spokesman therefore proclaimed, “Our fight is Jihad and an obligatory worship. And every obligatory act of worship has 70 times more reward in Ramadan.” I guess it’s not surprising that jihadists use this month to maximize their rewards.

Each attack is different. A gunman stormed a casino in Manila. Attackers killed more than two-dozen Coptic Christians traveling on a bus in Egypt. A bombing in Baghdad killed a dozen and injured nearly 100. A suicide vehicle in Kabul destroyed parts of the German embassy and killed many. And attackers in London drove over pedestrians and then stabbed others after leaving the vehicle.

Ramadan begins today. Let us pray that it will end without the usual violence that has been part of it in the past.