All praise is due to Allâh, Lord of all the worlds. May peace and blessings of Allâh be upon the Messenger, his household and companions.
Dear brethren! The judicious and understanding nation is the one that knows how to derive lessons from its afflictions and trials. Events that affected our Ummah lately should not be allowed to pass into oblivion without deriving lessons from them. One of the greatest lessons of these events is that the Muslims are in dire need of a sincere return to Allâh. They must bear it in minds with all conviction that rotation of power among nations is natural and that the victory of this Ummah depends absolutely on the Muslims help for the cause of their religion and their strict adherence to the Book of Allâh and the Sunnah of His Messenger.
Another matter that needs mentioning is that the big challenges that the Ummah is facing should create a developing awareness among the Muslims and be a guide light for their thinkers. Muslim leaders and intellectuals should make a good use of these events to amend our points of weakness from which the enemies attack us. Energies of the youth should be employed in serious programmes that can help the cause of Islâm, defend its foundation, protect its interests and safeguard its security and valuables. This is because, the mask has fallen off the face of falsehood and the realities of fake slogans of the hypocrites and defeatists have been exposed.
Now is the time for the Ummah to review its stands and re-examine its programmes and methodologies in a way that will be suitable to the modern age. It should not forget that its faith of Islâmic Monotheism and its principles are the major pillar in which the remedies of its crises rest.
Fellow Muslims! The war has nearly come to an end. Has the Ummah now realized what is being planned for it? When you Muslims hold fast unto the rope of Allâh, which is the Qurân, you will never be disunited and if you are united in this trial of yours, you will never go astray by the Will of Allâh.
Brethren in faith! Though the war in Iraq has ended, your Iraqi brethren are still suffering from the consequences of that cruel war. This makes it compelling on the Muslims to rise to the support of their brethren, to cure for them their wounds and to give relief to the needy among them.
O you generous and noble people! Hurry up onto the field of mutual compassion. Console your brethren with your gifts and know that your kindness to them will alleviate their sufferings. Many verses of the Qurân and many hadîths encourage you to assist your brethren who are in need. Allâh says,
| And whatever you spend in good, it is for yourselves, when you spend not except seeking Allâhs Countenance. And whatever you spend in good, it will be repaid to you in full, and you shall not be wronged. (Al-Baqarah 2:272) |
The part of your money, which you spend in righteousness and relief, is what is kept for you against the Day of Resurrection. The Messenger of Allâh said,
| A Muslim is the brother of another Muslim. He should nor wrong him nor surrender him (to the enemy) or leave him in the lurch. Whoever fulfils the needs of his brother, Allâh will fulfil his own need. Whoever relieves a Muslim of a distress of this world Allâh will relieve of a distress of the Hereafter. Whoever covers the nakedness of a Muslim Allâh will cover his own nakedness on the Day of Resurrection. Allâh will help the servant as long as he helps his brother. |
The Messenger of Allâh also described the unity and solidarity of the Muslims saying,
| You see the believers as regards their being merciful among themselves and showing love among themselves and being kind, resembling one body, so that, if any part of the body is not well then the whole body shares the sleeplessness (insomnia) and fever with it. (Al-Bukhârî and Muslim) |
In the Musnad, Uthmân narrated that:
| By Allâh! We have accompanied the Messenger of Allâh in his journeys and while he was at home. He used to share everything with us, either little or much. |
Allâh says about the Prophet,
| And We have sent you (O Muhammad (peace be upon him)) not but as a mercy for all the worlds. (Al-Anbiyâ 21:107) |
Brethren in faith! There are brethren of yours in different parts of the world especially in Palestine and Iraq who have been afflicted with hardship and persecution. Show brotherly compassion to them, for there are among them bereaved women, the widow, the orphans, the sick who could not get drugs and the hungry refugees.
Also remember, dear brethren, that you are enjoying security and blissful. Do not forget your less fortunate brethren. Allâh says,
| And whatsoever you spend of anything (in Allâhs Cause), He will replace it. And He is the Best of providers. (Saba 34:39) |
Abû Masûd Al-Ansârî narrated that a man came to the Messenger of Allâh with a stamped camel and said:
| I dedicate this for the cause of Allâh. |
The Messenger of Allâh said,
| You will have as a reward for this on the Day of Judgment, seven hundred camels, all of them stamped. (Muslim) |
It is our obligation towards our brethren, especially those who are in Palestine and Iraq, to remind them of the importance of exerting efforts to reform themselves, unite their ranks, shun their differences, take care of their security, deny their enemies any opportunity to have their way among them and to adhere to the Book of Allâh and the Sunnah of His Messenger. The combination of all these will realize for them the good and security to which they aspire and will give them the strength they so much need to face the foreign occupations.
It is a great disappointment that Muslims should hear the agonies of these brethren and yet they do nothing more than shrugging their shoulders and going to sleep as if nothing concerns them.
Brethren in Islâm! The real brotherly tie that shows in the word of Allâh,
| The believers are nothing else than brothers. (Al-Hujurât 49:10) |
And His saying,
| The believers, men and women, are supporters of one another. (At-Tawbah 9:71) |
It is this brotherhood that prompts the Muslim to look for the hardships that his brethren are suffering from. He will then not rest until they get relief, and until injustices and distress, which they suffer from, are removed.
Fellow Muslims! Avenues of good deeds are wide. The relief and charity works are noble works that lead to success in this world and the Hereafter. Allâh says,
| And do good that you may be successful. (Al-Hajj 22:77) |
They also elevate a Muslim to the rank of perfection in purifying the soul from greediness and instilling a sense of generosity. They are also signs of perfect faith and having good opinion about Allâh.
Brethren in Islâm! Being kind and showing compassion to the poor, the distressed, the refugees, the bereaved and the orphan are among the greatest righteous deeds that a compassionate mind could think of. These kinds of good deeds rescue man from the shackles of selfishness and avarice.
Dear Muslims! It is known to all that the only deeds that adorn, glorify and revive human life are those charitable deeds that are free from worldly interests and from hypocrisy and showing-off. Yes, they are those deeds by which the only required reward is the pleasure of Allâh.
May Allâh bless the land, which enjoys security, implements the law of Allâh and generously gives to others on the basis of its unique principle that is derived from the pure religion of Islâm.
Brethren in Islâm! The charity and relief work that is based on the fear of Allâh, seeking His pleasure and on the light from Allâh is a blessed deed. Muslim are the relief and charity people in the real meaning of the word. Do not you see that they never expect any worldly reward or thanks or any fame? They only want to win the pleasure of Allâh and the everlasting bliss. They are looking for the reward that Allâh mentioned in His Book when He says,
| Truly, Allâh is with those who fear Him (keep their duty unto Him), and those who are good-doers. (An-Nahl 16:128) |
What is then greater than Allâhs support for His servant and His awarding him of victory? It is by this righteous deed that a Muslim can properly be a living practical example for Islâm.
O you relief workers and generous brethren! The venomous lies that the enemies of Islâm are spreading about the good deeds that you are doing. They will never succeed Inshâllâh. All these lies and false propagandas are just a manifestation of the natural war that is between truth and falsehood.
Dear brethren! Our attention must be called to the fact that the importance of charity work during times of crises like this provides us with an experiment, which the Ummah can adopt in future crises. Charity work and its organizations must meet the required standard. This underlines the importance of drawing a long-term plan in which the aspects of Islâmic doctrine and thought will be given due consideration.
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