First Khutbah – Main Points

الله الذي خلق السموت والأرض وأنزل من السماء ماء فأخرج به من الثمرت رزقا لكم – وسخرلكم الفلك لتجرى في البحر بأمره – و سخرلكم الأنهر
وسخر لكم الشمس والقمر دائبين – وسخرلكم الليل والنهار
وءاتكم من كل ما سألتموه – وإن تعدوا نعمت الله لاتحصوها – إن الإنسن لظلوم كفار

“God is the one Who created the heavens and the earth and sent down rain from the sky, bringing forth from it fruits as a provision. And He has made subservient to you the ships so that you may sail on the open sea by His command. He has also made subservient to you the rivers.
He has also made the sun and moon subservient to you, holding steady on two courses. And He has made subservient to you the night as well as the day.

He has given to you everything you have asked for – if you were to count the blessings that God has bestowed, you could never do so. Truly man is wrongdoing, ungrateful.” [Q: 14:32-34]

Let’s open today’s discussion on gratitude by looking at the Majesty of God.

Thankfulness leads to perpetuation of favors already received and also fosters the hope of obtaining what is desired:

وإذ تأذن ربكم لئن شكرتم لأزيدنكم

“And when your Lord proclaimed: ‘if you are give thanks, I will increase you in it!” [Q: 14:7]

وما بكم من نعمة فمن الله

“What ever good you have if from God.” [Q: 16:53] (continue reading here…)

First Khutbah – Main Points

What do we want from Islam? We seldom ask this question. What does Allah want us to get from Islam? And in the negotiation of these two questions, how do we go about making this a reality?

Piety, to a large extent, has been replaced by such plastic words as “tradition”. This word has garnered so much attention in recent years that Muslims are beginning to identify themselves as “traditional Muslims”. But my question is: what is “traditional Islam”? Often what is deemed to be traditional is expressed in modes of dress, pious affectation, perhaps even cuisine. Allah has a different definition of piety:

ليس البر أن تولوا وجوهكم قبل المشرق والمغرب

ولكن البر من ءامن بالله واليوم الآخر والملائكة والكتاب والنبئين…

“Piety is not the turning of your face to the East or the West. No, piety is the one who is secure in his belief of God and the Last Day, the Angles, the Book and the Prophets…”

[Q: 2:177]

الذين ءامنوا ولم يلبسوا إيمانهم بظلم اولئك لهم الأمن وهم مهتدون

“Those who profess faith and do not wear their faith on their sleeve, security is their reward. They are the rightly guided.”

[Q: 6:82]

The downside to all of this is that we often create psychological spaces were people do not feel safe to grow as Muslims. This plays on people’s religious sensibilities and in fact, when they do not stand up to this comparison, they may be afflicted with doubt and uncertainty. (continue reading here…)

First Khutbah - Main Points

Ramadan is a time of joy, happiness, reflection and purification for Muslims all around the world. But if we as Muslims are to truly benefit from this sacred time then we must extrapolate an Islam that is didactic, that is instruction in a complete and harmonious way, not simply a list of harām and halāl.

So I pose the question, what is it we should be reflecting on? The term itself suggests one is peering at or into something. For us, we must peer into our own souls, examining every deed, every strain of thought, every emotion. If we are to diagnose what maligns our souls, we must look at them in the mirror.

Yet, above and beyond the mundane prose lies a spiritual reality and awareness that demands more than just religiosity. Allah says in His Book:

شهر رمضان الذي أنزل قيه القرئان هدى للناس و نينات من الهدى  و الفرقان فمن شهد منكم الشهر فليصمه و من كان مريضا أو سفر فعدة من أيام اخر يريد الله بكم اليسر و لا يريد بكم العسر و لتكملوا العدة و لتكبروا الله على ما هداكم و لعلكم تشكرون

“The month of Ramadan is that in which the Qur’ān was sent down, a guidance for mankind as well as a explanation on that guidance and a criterion on which to judge. Let the one who has borne witness to this fast. For the one that is sick or traveling, then count your days therein, as Allah desires to make it easy for you, not difficult. Therefore complete your days when able and proclaim Allah’s Greatness for the guidance He has bestowed upon you all so that you may properly show gratitude.” [Q: 2:185]

Many of us today suffer from a false sense of piety, that piety is either some exceedingly difficult task or lifestyle, or a mode of dress, or something else conjured up from our own sense of piety. This is at the crux of a major spiritual crisis going on in the Muslim world today. Yet, Allah and His Messenger [s] have given us clear signs and examples of what constitutes piety. The Prophet [s] said:

الكيس من دان نفسه و عمل لما بعد الموت
و الأحمق من اتبع هواه و تمنى على الله تعالى الأماني

“The astute man passes judgment on himself and works for what comes after death –
The imbecile is the one who follows his passions yet expects God, the Exalted, to realize his wishes.” (continue reading here…)

First Khutbah – Main Points

اقترب للناس حسابهم و هم في غفلة معرضون

“The Reckoning is ever drawing closer to Mankind, yet they are woefully heedless of it, turning away.” [Q: 21: 1]

The Hour is upon us all.  At least that is the way we Muslims should always be perceiving the Hour. None of us knows when it will arrive, be it the Final Hour or our own demise. The previous āyah, from suwrah al-Anbiyā’ demonstrates the sense of urgency that man should have but often doesn’t. This is mainly due to ghaflah, or heedlessness. Interesting to note as well: This āyah does not distinguish between Muslim/non-Muslim. In other words, both Muslim and non-Muslim alike can fall victim to heedlessness - we must be vigilant in watching against it.

In the English language we have a saying: “Strike while the iron is hot.” This aphorism can serve as a great reminder to us all in this day and age. We should not be wasting any time in vain pursuits but rather in perfecting our Islam, our character. For as the hadith says:

أثقل ما يوضع في الميزان يوم القيامة تقوى الله, و حسن الخلق

“The heaviest thing to be weighed on the Scale on the Day of Judgment will be taqwā of God and goodness of character.”

In relation to the above, which clearly articulates the importance of taqwā and good character, we must bring these two aspects of Muslim life and morality into being. And as for striking when opportunity knocks, this is in accordance with the Sunnah of our beloved Prophet [s], where he says this about opportunity/charity:

لأن يتصدق المرء في حياته بدرهام خير له من أن يتصدق بمائة عند موته

“It is better for a man to give a single dirhām in charity during his lifetime than to donate a hundred at his demise.”

No time to waste – strike while the iron is before the Fire is hot!

So now that we’ve heard about taqwā we have to ask, what is it? Let’s examine a couple of aspects: (continue reading here…)

Verily all praise belongs to God [known as Allāh in the Arabic language] - thus do we praise God, seek God’s Divine aid, seek forgiveness and repent our sins to and from God, and in God do we place our trust. We seek protection in God from the evil whisperings of our own souls as well as from blameworthy actions and deeds.

For the one God has chosen to guide, there is no misguider for him. And as for one whom God has misguided, there is no guidance. And we bear testimony that there is no god but God, Allah, One is He, with no partner, Lord of lords, Causer of all causes, the Fashioner of the Seven Heavens, Creator of all that is. We also bear witness that Muhammad, the Unlettered Prophet, is His slave and messenger, Seal of the Prophets and most noble of the Messengers. May God send peace and blessings upon him, his family, his wives, his companions, his helpers, and his progeny. Surely God and His Angels send blessings upon the Prophet therefore O’ you who believe!, send prayers and blessings upon him abundantly.

Let it be said that responsibility is one the primary charges leveled at the human being. Not a responsibility to provide for his or herself, but rather the responsibility each and everyone of us has towards the Creator, so long as each one of us is a sane and capable human being. Let us take to heart the supremely wise words of the Almighty in the Qur’ān, as a guide and a warning for us to help sculpt our thoughts and actions:

إن ربهم بهم يومئذ لخبير

“Surely, on that day, their Lord shall be well-acquainted with them.” [Q: 100:11]

More importantly, reflexes should be seen as a self-defense system and it is from here, the idea of self-defense, is where we will look at and examine taqwā. (continue reading here…)