My Husband, Fakhir is a part-time Khateeb in our local Mosque. On this page Inshallah I will try to put his Friday Khutbas and if you want to share your Khutbah plz feel free to email me and Inshallah I will try to post your Khutbah too. There is no copyright for the information posted on this page and hence can be used by anyone for DAWAH and other Islamic purposes.
Praise be to Allah who distinguished Friday over the other days of the week. Peace and blessings be upon Allah's Messenger who stated:
"The best day in which the sun has risen is the day of Jum'ah: in that day Allah created Adam, and in that day He attained him to Paradise, and in that day He took him out of it, and the Hour (of the Day of Judgement) will not be established but on a Jum'ah day." [Narrated by Muslim, Abu Dawood, An-Nasa'ey and At-Tirmithy]
Media can be defined simply as all means of communication that disseminates information and messages from a conveyer source to a recipient with the aim of effectively convincing the recipient. Islam, the religion of Allah the Most Exalted, is in its own self a message from the Almighty Creator to all created human races. Based on this fact, it is essential that this message be conveyed by every possible mean accessible to people. Hence, the call to Islam is a process of conveying its message from a propagandist to all people by every possible mean. Allah Ta'ala says:
"O Messenger (Muhammad - pbuh)! Proclaim (the Message) which has been sent down to you from your Lord. And if you do not, then you have not conveyed His Message. Allah will protect you from mankind. Verily, Allah guides not the people who disbelieve" [s 5: v67].
The Muslims have inherited the message from the Prophet (s.a.w.) and are the carriers and propagators of his Holy mission. This means that every Muslim, male or female, is a dai'yah (herald or propagandist of the Islamic message).
The media spectrum distributes according to their target audiences. The spectrum ranges from limited scope requirements in limited sectors to a world wide masses of target population. The mass media is dominated by international news agencies, television stations, radio broadcasting services, the press and more recently computer networks and web sights. However, the mosque minbar (pulpit) serves as a mean of conveying messages, and Muslims should not underestimate the effectiveness of this act of worship that began fourteen centuries ago. The mosque's minbar is distinguished over all other means of media in that the attendant of the Friday Prayer possesses a background knowledge that makes him willingly believe the guidance he receives from the mosque's pulpit.
A source of Islamic media neglected by Muslims.
We do not have a precise statistic of the number of mosques around the world that carry out Friday prayer. Nevertheless, we can estimate those mosques to be in the tens of thousands. We can also estimate the average number of attendants to be around a thousand per mosque. Hence, we have an approximate range of tens of millions of attendants to Friday prayers. We can be just about sure that this figure can not be matched by other means of media regardless of the importance of the event. The features of the Friday Khutbah are not limited to the number of its attendants but it possesses many other qualities not noticed elsewhere. Since observing other media sources is optional, no authority can force an individual to read a newspaper or watch a televised program and even if it did, how would this authority monitor the compliance of this individual to its orders. While on the contrary, Muslims attend Friday Prayer by a Divine command and no Muslim who believes in Allah (swt) can oppose this obligation:
"O you who believe (Muslims)! When the call is proclaimed for the prayer on the day of Friday (Jumu'ah prayer), come to the remembrance of Allah [Jumu'ah religious talk (Khutbah) and prayer (Salat)] and leave off business (and every other thing), that is better for you if you did but know!" [s62:v9].
Another distinctive feature of the Friday Khutbah, is that it assembles all ages of the community; males, females and children, just as it assembles all classes of the society; whether they are educated people, tradesmen, or laymen; whether they are rich, middle class, or poor; whether they are government employed or ordinary citizens. We can be certain that no form of mass media can target such a gathering on a weekly basis.
Unfortunately, the Friday Khutbah as a source of Islamic media, secondary to its obligatory act of worship, is being neglected by Muslims; it does not receive the deserved considerations nor it is being optimally utilised. The Friday Khutbah is being viewed as a routine habit that must be performed and its effectiveness on the tens of millions is at a minimum; otherwise if the effect of Friday Khutbah on the souls of Muslims is substantial, we would not have perceived the situation of Muslims today.
It is most unfortunate that Muslims overlook this direct source of media which distinguishes them over other communities and nations, while at the same time, the Jews have been able to creep to the churches' ministries -that have hundreds of millions of followers- and modify the Christian doctrine and the Christians thought and mentality to agree with their mythical Talmud and Torah's horrific teachings.
It is essential that we activate the Friday Khutbah to the most effective mean of media that serves Islam and the Muslims since it may be the only feasible mean today by which we can break through the suppression, misinformation and the blackout that television, radio, press and other media sources use against Muslims everywhere in the world.
To be cont...
The translation of the above Ayahs is as follows
“105. We have sent down to thee the Book in truth, that thou mightiest judge between men, as guided by Allah. so be not (used) as an advocate by those who betray their trust; 106. But seek the forgiveness of Allah. for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful. 107. Contend not on behalf of such as betray their own souls; for Allah loveth not one given to perfidy and crime: 108. They may hide (Their crimes) from men, but they cannot hide (Them) from Allah, seeing that He is in their midst when they plot by night, in words that He cannot approve: And Allah Doth compass round all that they do. 109. Ah! These are the sort of men on whose behalf ye may contend in this world; but who will contend with Allah on their behalf on the Day of Judgment, or who will carry their affairs through? 110. If any one does evil or wrongs his own soul but afterwards seeks Allah.s forgiveness, he will find Allah Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful. 111. And if any one earns sin. he earns it against His own soul: for Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom. 112. But if any one earns a fault or a sin and throws it on to one that is innocent, He carries (on himself) (Both) a falsehood and a flagrant sin. 113. But for the Grace of Allah to thee and his Mercy, a party of them would certainly have plotted to lead thee astray. But (in fact) they will only Lead their own souls astray, and to thee they can do no harm in the least. For Allah hath sent down to thee the Book and wisdom and taught thee what thou Knewest not (before): And great is the Grace of Allah unto thee.”
Brs./Srs.
The verses which I have recited are from Surah Nisa (vv 105-113). Let me give you a little background regarding the revelation of these verses. In these verses, an important incident has been discussed that took place in Medina in the Muslim tribe of Bani Zafar. A man named Ta’maah (or Bashir bin Ubariq) stole the armor of another Ansari Muslim and hid it in the house or garden of a Jew. The Ansari Muslim brought the matter to Prophet (SAW) and said that he suspects Ta’amah of this crime. Prophet (SAW) started an investigation, Ta’amah denied the charge and put the blame on the Jew, saying that he is the thief. The Jew said he has nothing to do with this and he is innocent. There was no concrete evidence in this case and it was Ta’maah’s word against the Jew. The whole tribe of Bani Zafar started defending Ta’amah telling Prophet (SAW) how could you trust the word of an unbeliever against the one who believes in Allah and his Prophet. At this critical juncture Allah(SWT) revealed these verses of Surah Nisa telling the Prophet that Ta’amah is a liar and the Jew is innocent, thus helping him to arrive at the right verdict.
For
the Prophet (SAW) too, this was a very crucial matter because if he had given
the verdict against the Jew at that time, when a bitter conflict was raging
between Islam and kufr, the enemies of Islam would have got a strong moral
weapon against him and against Islam saying “There is no justice among the
Muslims; they practice prejudices and partisanship in spite of the fact that
they preach against them as has been shown by the decision against the Jew”.
With
the revelation of these verses Allah (SWT) established the fact through His
Prophet that Islam is a religion of Justice, and Justice is not compromised on
the basis of religion, race and color. Islam establishes Peace through Justice
and it wages War against tyranny, oppression and unjust practices in the
society. It safeguards the rights and property of Muslims and Non-Muslims alike
without any discrimination. The whole of Muslim history proves that when Muslims
were in power, they ruled with Justice giving respect and protecting the rights
of Non-Muslims.
In
another incident, a Muslim woman from a noble family of Quraish whose name was
Fatimah committed theft and Prophet (SAW) ordered her hand to be cut. Some
companions made recommendation to the Prophet through another companion whom
Prophet (SAW) loved very much that she be pardoned. On hearing this Prophet’s
(SAW) face turned red with anger and he delivered a sermon and said, “That the
nations before you were destroyed because when the respected and influential
among them used to commit crimes, they were pardoned but when the poor among
them committed those crimes, they were punished. By Allah, had Fatimah bint
Muhammad (his own daughter) committed this crime, he would have punished her”.
This
is how Justice is defined and this is what Islam preaches and practices.
PART 2
Brs./Srs.
Islam
is about Peace but there cannot be any Peace without Justice. This brings me to
the latest developments in Al Quds. Before I go on to say what is happening
there today, I take you back to another story of 1996 long before this recent
intifada started. This story appeared in some sections of the press in January
2001 when the case verdict came in. The story was about the killing of a 10 year
old Palestinean boy by the security chief of
a Jewish settlement who chased some stone throwers into a Palestenian village,
got hold of one kid named Hilmi Shousha, kicked him and he fell on his back,
while lying on his back the guard put his foot on the boy’s neck and hit him
on the head with a pistol butt. The blow was so severe that the boy died. The
case went from district to supreme and then back to district court who finally
issued a verdict. The sentence was six months of community service and a $17000
fine but not a penny was given to the victim’s family. Six months of community
service is the price that an Israeli has to pay for killing an Arab whereas the
sentence for manslaughter is 20 years imprisonment according to Israeli law.
One must ask, “Would a Palestinian have received a sentence of community service if he had attacked a Jewish child and caused his death, even through negligence”. Certainly not.
Dear
Muslims:
Today
dear Muslims, the aggressors are protected and the victims are labeled as
terrorists. In such circumstances, how can we talk of Peace when there is no
Justice. Not a day pass by when a Palestenian family does not lose its land or
orchard. The Muslims there are being killed and deprived of their livelihood in
a systematic way and more than one billion Muslims are watching this genocide in
a shameless manner. Woe to all the Muslim leaders of the world who are letting
this genocide continue. Dear Muslims it is a duty upon all of us especially
those who are in positions of power to stand by and fight for the rights of
oppressed because Allah commands us in Surah Nisa
“Why
should you, then, not fight in the way of Allah for the sake of those helpless
men, women and children who, being weak, have been oppressed, and are crying out
– Our Lord, deliver us from this habitation whose inhabitants are unjust
oppressors, and raise a protector for us by Thy grace and a helper from
Thyself”.
I
ask Allah(SWT) to protect the life, property and honor of all the Muslims
especially those who are being tortured and oppressed by Unbelievers. I ask
Allah(SWT) to give victory to the Mujahideen all over the world.
Surah Al-Isra
23. Thy Lord hath
decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether
one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of
contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor. 24. And, out of
kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: "My Lord! bestow on
them thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood."
Dear Brothers and Sisters
We are now again close to election year and of the many other things, “FAMILY VALUE” will be an issue on both the Republican and the Democratic campaigns as it was in the previous elections. Though both of them show their concerns about the declining family values and the broken family structures yet none of them come up with concrete plans to save the family unit. And how can u expect the family the structure can be saved when on one side you are prepared to legalize Gay marriages and on the other side, the number of children born to unwed mothers is continuously on the increase.
Dear Brothers and Sisters
The stability of a family is dependent upon mutual love and respect and not by claiming dependency on the tax return. It is something much more than the law that below 18, you are part of the family and above that magic number you are independent and out of the family.
In Islam the family ties depend upon mutual love, mercy and kindness which Allah has put into the heart s of the members of the family and this love , mercy and kindness grows with age, as the individual grows older, he become more matured and sensible. Maturity and sensibility requires that one should respect and honor older people especially parents and this is what the verse talks about that if one or both of them attains old age say not to the even “UFF” and “UFF” has been translated here as a word of contempt though in reality it is not even contempt but it is a word to show disapproval or disliking to something, the ayah continues to say “ Nor repel them” i.e. server them, be close to them as much as possible…… so they don’t deserve to be thrown in the nursing homes but they deserve to be served and fed like they fed and served their children when they were young.
The ayah then goes on to say “ and address then with words of honor” i.e. they are not to be addressed as old man or Old woman but they should be respected and given the due honor they deserve, we should be kind, polite and humble to then and should make dua for them that O-Allah. Bestow Your mercy upon them because they cherished us in our childhood.
Dear Brothers and Sisters
This ayah in fact tells us about both the responsibility of the parents towards their children as well as the responsibility of the children towards the parents but to put more weight and responsibility on children as in most cases children are the one who do not fulfil their obligation.
The repect of parents is enjoined upon the believers in numerous other ayahs and ahadith.
In surah Al- Ankabut Allah(SWT) says
“We have enjoined upon man, kindness to parents.”
In surah Nisa Allah(SWT) says
“Be careful of your duty towards Allah in whom
you claim rights of one another, towards the wombs that bore you.”
In the similar way in Surah Luqman Allah (SWT) says
“And we have enjoined upon man (to be good) to his parents: his
mother beareth him in weakness upon weakness, and his weaning is in two year,
show gratitude to Me(i.e. Allah) and to your parents. To Me (i.e. Allah) is your
final destination.”
Good treatment of parents has been so much emphasized that the Prophet (SAW) has put it even one degree higher than Jihad fi Sabil Illah.
Once Abdur Rehman Abdullah Bin Masud(RAA) asked the Holy Prophet (SAW) which action is most favorite with Allah the Almighty. Prophet (SAW) answered Performing the salat on time. The Sahabi asked there after, Prophet (SAW) said, “Good treatment of parents”, the Sahabi asked then what next? And Prophet(SAW) replied Al Jihad Fi Sabil Illah (i.e. Fighting or Struggling in the way of Allah).
In one hadith narrated by Abu Hurarirah (RAA) the Holy Prophet (SAW) said May his nose be rubbed in dust( he repeated this three times) meaning may he be humiliated who found his parents, one or both approaching old age, but did not enter paradise, (by serving them).
Prophet(SAW) advised us to be kind to our parents no matter what their religion is.
In a Hadith narrated by Asma Bint Abu Bakr Siddiq, the sister of Ayesha (RAA), She says” My mother came to Medina from Mecca to see me, while she was still an unbeliever. She had come to demand something from me. I enquired from Holy Prophet (SAW):” My mother has come to se me and she is expecting something from me. May I oblige her? Prophet (SAW) said “Yes! Be kind to your mother”.
In Islam the respect and honor which the parents enjoy is so valuable and important that let alone ones own parents Prophet strictly prohibited abusing or cursing of somebody elses parents also.
In a Hadith related by Abdullah Ibn ‘Amr Ibn Al’Aas (RAA). Prophet (SAW) said: ‘ abusing one’s parents is a major sin. People said “ O messenger of Allah (SWT)! Could a person abuse his own parents?’ Prophet (SAW) replied: ’Yes , if he abuses another person’s father, the latter would in retaliation abuse his father; if he abuses another person’s mother, the latter would in turn abuse his mother.' What Prophet (SAW) meant is that abusing or cursing other’s parents is just like cursing one’s own parents.
Dear brother and sisters
Islam has elevated the status of parents so much that it has put disobedience of parents in the category of major sins. We all must know that obedience to parents has been enjoined upon the believer until the point that they force or compel their children to so something un lawful (HARAM).
Abdullah Ibn ‘Amr ibn Al ‘Aas (RAA) related that the Prophet (SAW) said: Among the major sins (ALKABIRA) are: association of anybody with Allah (SHIRK), disobedience of parents, killing a person and taking a false oath.
Dear Muslims
If we are among the fortunate ones whose parent or parents are still alive, then we should not hesitate for a moment to serve then and to take good care of then. Indeed he is a loser whose parents are alive and he is not able to serve them or who finds that his parents are not happy with him.
Those among us who are less fortunate and so not find their parents living should follow the advice of the Prophet (SAW). When a man come to Prophet (SAW) and asked ‘ O messenger of Allah! Is there anything, by means of which, I can do now do something by way of benevolence towards my parents after their death? The Holy Prophet (SAW) answered: ‘ Yes, by
· Praying for them and soliciting (Allah’s) mercy and forgiveness for them,
· Fulfilling their promises and undertakings
· Doing kindness to those who may be related to you through them
· And respecting their friends.
Prophet (SAW) declared in another hadith narrated by Ibn Umer that the noblest deed is that a person should be benevolent towards his father’s friends. And Sahaba were the ones who actually put each word uttered by the Prophet (SAW) into practice.
Once Ibn Umer was riding a donkey with a turban on his head in the company of few other companions. An Arab villager passed by him and he asked are not so and so? The man said yes I am. Abdullah Ibn Umer gave him the donkey and the turban and asked him to ride the donkey and wrap the turban around his head. Some of the companion asked him in astonishment as to why he did that. Abdullah Ibn Umer (RAA) replies” I have heard Holy Prophet (SAW) says : ‘ It is a supreme virtue that a person should be benevolent towards the members of the families of the friend of his father after the latter’s death and this man’s father was a friends of my father Umer Ibn Khattab.
Part2:
Dear Muslims :
As you noticed that in this ayah Allah(SWT) has further broadened the circle of kindness from parents to relatives, orphan , needy, neighbors, travelers, wayfarers and slaves. In other words all Muslims are one family, one immediate family , the other distant family and still another is distant-distant family and the whole family deserves to be treated with kindness. Kindness is one such thing that can keep the ties of kinship together and prevent the family from breaking part.
In a hadith narrated by Anas (RAA): The Holt Prophet (SAW) said ‘ A person who wants that there may be abundance in his provision, and that his aged be lengthened, then he should favor to his blood relations’
Ayesha (RAA) related that Holy Prophet (SAW) said ‘ the womb i.e. the blood relation, is suspended from the throne of Allah and announces: ‘ Allah will hold by him who hold by me; and Allah will cut asunder from him who cuts asunder from me.’
Aby Ayub khalid Ibn Zaid Al-ansari related that a men requested ; ‘Messenger of Allah! Tell me the actions which will get me admitted to Paradise and keep me away from hell.’ He (SAW) answered :’ Worship Allah and do not associate with Him; establish prayer, pay the zakat and join the ties of kinship.
And Prophet (SAW) in another hadith warned us that ‘Any person who disregards the blood ties of kinship will not enter Paradise.’
Dear Muslims This is what Islam teaches us.
Do good to your parent and your children will be good to you.
Treat your relatives with kindness and in return you will receive kindness from them.
Be nice to your neighbors and the neighbors will be nice to you.
Respect friends of your family and you will receive respect from them.
And above all of them is the mercy “the REHMA” of Allah(SWT). This is how Islam develops, strengthens and broadens its family system.
Today those who talk about “family values” they themselves do not know the meaning of the word family and the word value. And they have to learn from Islam what “Family values” means Muslims.
I ask Allah(SWT) to show us the right path and put in our hearts love, mercy and kindness for out parents, our near and distant relatives and for each other. Ameen
By the time
"Verily,
man is in loss
Except
those who believe and do righteous deeds, and exhort one another to the truth,
and exhort one another to patience."
Brothers.
& Sisters.
The verses that I have recited are surah Asr and most of us know this surah by heart and often recite it in our prayers. There is no match for this surah in terms of comprehensive and brevity of the message it contains and that is why Imam Shafai (Rahimullah) has rightly said that if people only ponder over the meaning of this surah, it is enough for their guidance. How important this surah was to the companions can be understood from a tradition reported in Tabarani that whenever any two of them met they would not part company until they have recited surah Asr to each other as a reminder.
Brothers.
& Sisters.
Islam
too has taught us to value time but the way we look at time is different than
how other societies look at it. To a capitalist “Time is Money”, he wants to
spend every second of it to make more and more money. A socialist or a communist
most likely sees “Time as Labor”, he tells you to go on producing more and
more like a robot and not to worry about your needs and the needs of the family
as they will be taken care of by the government. Accordingly, time that is not
converted to useful labor is a time lost. Islam presents a totally different
perspective when it tells us “ Time is your Life Span”, whoever spends this
time in believing Allah, doing good deeds, exhorting one another to the Truth
and exhorting each other to Patience is successful and all others are losers.
Brothers.
& Sisters.
Whenever,
Allah (SWT) swears by anything in the Quran, it is not because of its glory or
magnificence. Nothing can match the Glory and Magnificence of Allah because He
is the creator and everything else is nothing but His creation. So, in this
surah when He swears by time, it means that this time is witness to the Truth
that Man (meaning the whole Mankind) is in sheer loss except those who possess
the four qualities which are described in the surah.
Loss
in the Arabic language is ‘Khusr’ or ‘Khusran’ and lexically its antonym
is ‘nafa’ i.e. profit. You will find the use of Nafa or Khsara very common
in trade transactions. However, Allah (SWT) has made in the Quran the word
‘Khusr’ a special term of its own and uses it as an antonym of ‘Falah’
i.e. True Success. The concept of Falah is not merely synonymous with worldly
prosperity but comprehends man’s true success from the world till the
Hereafter, so its concept of Khusr also is not merely synonymous with the
worldly failure or distress but comprehends man’s real failure and
disappointment from the world till the Hereafter. That is why you will
repeatedly find the phrases
Oolaika
humul Muflehoon
and
Oolaika
humul Khasiroon (Those are the people who are losers)
So
Quran has made it very simple and clear for us that there are only two ways, one
way is the path of muflehoon and the other is the path of khasiroon and all
those who are devoid of the four qualities are engaged in a bargain that is
leading them to ’Khusran’.
1.The
first of these qualities is ‘Iman’ or Faith. Although this word at some
places in the Quran has been used in the meaning of verbal affirmation but the
Faith which is mentioned here is the True Faith and has been explained at
several other places in the Quran:
Only those are Believers who have believed in Allah and His Messenger, and have never since doubted, but have striven with their belongings and their persons in the Cause of Allah: Such are the sincere ones. Al-Hujrat: 15.
“Those
who said : Allah is our Lord, and then stood steadfast by it” Ha Mim Sajdah:
30
“True
believers are those who hearts tremble with awe, whenever Allah is mentioned to
them” Al-Anfal: 2
“Those
who have believed adore Allah most ardently” Al-Baqarah: 165.
“Nay
(O Prophet), by your Lord, they can never become believers until they accept you
as judge for the decision of the disputes between them, and then surrender to
your decision with entire submission without the least resentment in their
hearts” An-Nisa: 65
And
the next verse is even more explicit as regards the verbal affirmation of Faith
and True Faith; it says that what is actually desirable is True Faith and not
mere verbal affirmation of Faith:
“O
you who profess to have believed, believe sincerely in Allah and His
Messenger” An-Nisa: 136
What
one has to believe in, in order to have true faith has also been explained in
the Quran most explicitly. It implies that one has to believe in Allah, not
merely His Being but in the sense that He alone is God, and nothing else shares
His powers and his attributes. He alone is worthy that man should worship, serve
and obey Him; He alone can make or mar destinies; man should invoke Him alone
and have Trust in Him alone. He alone can enjoin things and forbid things; man
is under obligation to obey Him and to refrain from what He forbids; He sees
everything and hears everything; not to speak of any action by man, even his
motives and intentions are not hidden from Him. Secondly, one has to believe in
Prophet Muhammad as a Messenger, guide and leader appointed by Allah: whatever
he has taught, is from Allah, is based upon the truth and has to be acknowledged
and accepted. Thirdly, one has to believe in the angels, all other Apostles who
were sent by God at different times to different communities to guide humanity
to the right path and in all the
Devine books those Apostles brought with them. Fourthly, one has to believe in
the Hereafter, in the sense that man’s present life is not his first and last
life, but after death he will be resurrected, to render an account to God of the
deeds done in this life, and will be rewarded or punished accordingly.
Brs.
& Srs.
This
is how our Faith provides a firm basis for morality and character, upon which
can be built an edifice of a pure life. Without such Faith, man’s life however
beautiful and pleasing it may look from outside, is like a ship without an
anchor, which is at the mercy of the waves wherever they may take it.
2.
After Faith the second quality required to save Mankind from ‘Khusr’ is ‘
Salihat or good deeds. It includes all virtuous and good deeds but Quran also
tells us that no act can be a good act unless it is based on Faith and is
performed in obedience to the guidance given by Allah and His Messanger. That is
why in the Quran exhortation to perform good deeds is always preceded by Faith.
Nowhere in the Quran has a deed without faith been called a good deed , nor any
reward been promised for a deed performed without Faith. Also the Quran makes it
clear that a Faith which does not result in performing good deeds is
meaningless. So true faith usher good and righteous deeds. A Faith that does not
result in good deeds is like a seed that does not grow into a tree and is lost
in the soil.
3
& 4. Many of us can claim that we are believers and we are involved in good
acts but the surah then mentions two more qualities which the believers must
possess in order to be saved from loss or Khusran and these are that they must
exhort one another to Truth and Patience. What this means is that the believing
and righteous people should not live as individuals but should create a
believing and righteous society that
should enjoin good (maruf) and forbid evil (munkar).In the path of enjoining
good and forbidding evil this society of righteous believing men and women would
very likely struggle and face difficulties and hardships just like the
Prophet(SAW) faced difficulties and hardships. And in such trying circumstances
the righteous society is duty bound to exhort each other to the Truth and to be
Patient.
Truth
(or Haq) is the opposite of falsehood (or Batil) and generally it is used in two
meanings: (1) A correct and right thing which is accordance with justice and
truth, whether it relates to belief or to the everyday mundane affairs and (2)
the right which is obligatory on man to render, whether it is the right of God,
the right of another man or the right of one’s own self. Thus to exhort one
another to truth means that the society of the believers should not be so
insensitive that falsehood may thrive and things against justice and truth are
done in it and the people merely watch everything indifferently. On the contrary
it should be a living, sensitive society so that whenever and wherever falsehood
appears, the upholders of Truth should rise up against it, and no member of the
society should rest content with only himself adhering to the Truth. This is the
spirit that can ensure security of society against moral degeneration and decay.
If a society becomes devoid of this spirit, it cannot remain secure from Loss.
When degeneration starts in a society, wrong doers are not the only ones who get
affected but the ones who are sticking to the Truth but are not trying to stop
the wrong get affected too. Allah (SWT) says in surah Maida:
Those
who adopted the way of disbelief among the children of Israel were cursed by the
tongue of David and of Jesus, son of Mary, because they had turned rebellious
and become transgressors: they would not forbid one another to do the wrong
deeds they committed. (vv. 78-79)
And
in surah Anfal, Allah (SWT) reminds us
And
guard against that mischief which will not bring punishment in particular to the
mischief makers alone from among you. (v. 25)
II
A
scholar explained the meaning of surah Asr by this example. A student is writing
an exam in the examination hall which he has to finish in the allotted time but
instead of solving the question paper he is listening to music or playing cards
and the clock on the wall of the room is ticking away. What will you call such a
person except a loser who instead of writing the exam is busy doing something
else. So is the clock of our life ticking away and we will all be losers if we
spend this time in disbelief, wrongful and shameful deeds, not enjoining good
and forbidding evil, not exhorting each other to Truth and Patience.
Brs.
& Srs.
Let
me take you back to the quote of Imam Shafai (rahimullah) from where I started
this khutba. “If people ponder over the meaning of this surah alone that is
enough for their guidance”. Let me ask you, a surah that may be 90% of us know
by heart, do we really understand the meaning and comprehend the message in this
surah?
Brs.
& Srs.
We
are (at least I am) in a situation where I am afraid to ask even my own Muslim
brothers to come to the masjid for regular prayers, let alone calling non
Muslims to Islam
The
weather is good, Alhamdolillah all of us has transport, yet we prefer to sit in
front of the TV and watch all that garbage rather than coming to the masjid.
Not
a day passes by when our brothers and sisters in Palestine, Kashmir and
elsewhere do not lose their lives, property or their honor, not a day passes by
when a Muslim child dies in Iraq or Afghanistan because of sanctions. We just
sit here watch these injustices and are not moved by such these events. Even in
the US, the slow down in economy has resulted in job losses to how many of our
brothers and sisters but instead of caring for them we are engaged in achieving
our own goals and pursuits. Such a condition is referred in the Quran as
hardening of the hearts.
Remember
dear Muslims that a Muslim cannot enter paradise who sleeps at night with his
stomach full and whose neighbor go to bed hungry.
Dear
Muslims: We have a long way to go and need to understand and realize what Islam
is all about. I ask Allah (SWT) to
help us understand the Quran and make us among the soldiers and defenders of His
Deen.