Recently in the clinic, a patient enthusiastically greeted me, “Merry Christmas, Doc!” This wouldn’t have been unusual because it is December, except that she was wearing a hijab. Sensing my confusion, she explained that many of her Christian friends greet her, “Eid Mubarak!” at the end of Ramadan, and so she greets people “Merry Christmas,” during the Christmas season as a sign of respect. In addition, Jesus Christ is a revered prophet in Islam, and so it isn’t unexpected that Muslims show regard for Jesus.

This got me thinking about how respect for diversity is so important in this world. With so many wars fought on ethnic differences, such as the recent Israel versus Hamas war, it is a good time to take a step back and focus on our shared humanity rather than our usually arbitrary differences. During my medical training in the US, I worked with people from different ethnicities, religious backgrounds, and genders. I believe this welcoming attitude, historically, was one of the things that made the US into such a successful and vibrant society.

One month stands out from my infectious diseases fellowship training, when my co-fellow was a female doctor from Saudi Arabia, and my attending (supervising doctor) was a German-American Jewish man. Add me in as a Filipino Catholic, and the combination of ethnicities and religions during that month would have been enough to start a shooting skirmish in some parts of the world. In some countries, the Saudi Arabian female doctor would not have even been allowed to talk to us without a male relative present, much less see patients without her face covered. And yet that month was one of the best of my entire training. We worked efficiently together, shared our knowledge and experiences, and we learned a lot from one another.

Partly because of these experiences, my wife and I like taking our children to places that are different from our own from a cultural and religious standpoint. This teaches our kids about how there are many ways that people live, and that our way of doing things is not necessarily superior or better than theirs. Two places we’ve brought them to that fit those descriptions very well are Morocco and Egypt. They came away with a strong appreciation for those two ancient cultures and how the citizens in those countries have learned to live side-by-side with different ethnicities and religions.

For instance, Morocco, which is predominantly Islamic, has one of the largest Jewish populations outside Israel. Historically, the king of Morocco has protected the Jews in his country as part of his mandate. When the Jews were expelled from Spain by the Christian king after the Alhambra Decree in 1492, Morocco accepted them as refugees, and many settled in the city of Chefchaouen. During World War II, when Morocco was a neutral country, the king was asked by Hitler about whether he could go after the Jews in his territory. The Moroccan king, at great risk to himself, pointedly told Hitler that there were no Jews in Morocco, only Moroccan citizens.

Egypt has had its problems with ethnic and religious strife, but there is a lot of diversity and tolerance as well. The Holy Family themselves sought refuge from King Herod in Egypt. A part of Cairo known as Coptic Cairo still has a shrine where the Holy Family is believed to have stayed for Jesus’ early years, along with many other Christian churches.

One thing my kids learn by visiting these countries is that when the leaders sometimes go to war with other countries, the people themselves often don’t agree with those policies. Most people in this part of the world have grown weary of constant conflict through the centuries, and they only want to be given a chance to take care of their families and to live in peace.

Aside from religion and ethnicity, I have encountered a lot of views on gender diversity in my career as an infectious disease physician. The understanding of genders is continuing to evolve, and language addressing these changes is also evolving. Biological sex has become more nuanced as we discover new variations in phenotypic biological expression beyond categories taught when I was in medical school 25 years ago. New terminology, as it arises, can be easily misunderstood and inadvertently cause confusion and conflict. Education and constructive dialogue can go a long way in addressing concerns from different groups who usually mean well.

For example, in the early 1980s, one word used to describe AIDS was GRID, which stood for gay-related immunodeficiency disease. It wasn’t even very accurate, because it is only in some countries that HIV is found predominantly in gay men. There are more heterosexual people living with HIV in Africa, and more than half of the 39 million people living with HIV worldwide are women. This misrepresentation has stigmatized men who have sex with men, and also delayed the recognition, proper diagnosis, and treatment of women with HIV.

I believe the spirit of Christmas is in acceptance of people the way they are, whether in gender, ethnicity, and yes, even religion. There are numerous examples of how Jesus taught people that they have more in common than they think. The parable of the Good Samaritan is an excellent example of how kindness is a universal virtue, and we are urged to help our fellow man regardless of his or her circumstances. Jesus himself encountered the Samaritan woman at the well and asked her for water, and revealed himself to her as the Messiah, sent by God for everyone. The celebration of Christmas is an affirmation that the language of love and salvation belongs to the entire world. We are all brothers and sisters in the eyes of God, and we are obliged to take care of one another. Merry Christmas!