Shia Strength: [MahdiUniteMuslims] KHUTBAH : LEADERSHIP

THE STREET MIMBAR

JUM'AH KHUTBAH (14 January 2010)

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It is in such a manner that We make plain Our signs so that the course of the

Criminals may become clear.

Bismillah Ar-Rahmaan Ar-Raheem.

Alhumdulillah. Peace and blessings on Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wa sallam), his Noble Companions and Family.

Ayyuha Al Mu'minun…

Audio on http://www.islamiccenterdc.com/khutbassermons.htm (06-11-1999)

LEADERSHIP

Allah's words (which is) the life line of our existence and the direction of our life say to us

… and those who have Allah and the Apostle and the committed Muslims as their superiors and allies shall most definitely be victorious. (Surah Al Maa'idah verse 56)

This relationship that permeates from Allah to His emissary and then to the covenant bearing Muslims is a relationship of care that has been for some time absent from our normal lives. It is very important, especially in the "dog-eat-dog world" around us, to notice how a relationship with Allah along the lines of this wilayah develops as opposed to the materialistic relationship that is abundant today between those who rule and their subjects which is coming apart, regardless of what the surface image appears to be. Who do we look to, (and we don't say this in a vacuum), because we have critical life threatening decisions that come back to affect us by those who have no relationship to Allah, even though we try to have our relationship to Allah. The leaders of the Muslims i.e. the example/highest caliber was presented to us in the figure of no one else but Rasulillah and in those who lead the Muslims while they were conscious of Allah and His Prophet. They were conscious of Allah and the Prophet in everything they did. They were given the positions to lead the Muslims and they did so consciously and faithfully. What type of leaders do we speak about? We will once again give couple of examples of those who succeeded Rasulillah.

A leader who had just knocked down the two super powers of the day 1,400 odd years ago tells another person let's take guard over this city for the night and they assume that position. They walk within the neighborhoods of the city and they find there is someone crying and they go to try to enquire what's wrong? They find there's a mother who is trying to wean away her infant from being breastfed. Then, the ruler/leader of the Muslims with the Islamic political order rising to what is today called a superpower position in this status enquires and asks the mother of the child who doesn't know him why are you trying to wean your infant from your breast? She answers because the ruler, (not knowing that he is the ruler), has allocated the budgets for infants only to those who are no longer breastfed. This moved this ruler. Imagine someone today who is in the power position of leading the number one nation on earth being moved by a mother and her breastfed infant to enact legislation that would provide for all infants even if they are being breastfed. This is an intimate/close relationship in which the distance between you and I and those who are ruling has collapsed. There is no psychological, military or physical distance. This Head of State had no guards around in which this mother would have suspected who is this important person. He wasn't distinguished in the way he was dressed; he was dressed just like everyone else. There was no aura around him that would set him out from the regular, normal or average human being. There was no distance in this wilayah relationship between those who rule and those who are ruled.

On another occasion, the ruler- who assumed responsibilities from Allah's Prophet in that capacity with the consent of the Muslims- goes out, once again, at night to look into the affairs of the citizens/subjects of state and he finds out that there are some children who are crying. He has a person with him and he says to him let us tend to the affairs of these children who should be sleeping. It's getting late at night, what are children crying for? Then, he enquires from the mother who is boiling a pot of water why are you boiling this pot of water? She says I am faking or pretending to be preparing a meal for the children so that they may go to sleep. How does a person who has power respond to this? It's not going to court and changing some laws, which anyone who has power can do. Anyone who has power can turn to the judiciary, write a few laws and take care of the issue. But is this the final remedy? No! The remedy is the attachment that the ruler who has power has to the subject that he rules. This Muslim ruler went to what we would call nowadays the bakery and he put some flour/grain and other food together and his companion was with him, and he tells his companion help me put this load on my back. This person wanted to help out, obviously he knows who the ruler or who succeeded the Prophet in his responsibility and he wanted to help out. But he said no. I am more responsible than you are, and that responsibility means that I have to carry this load to that person's home. Which he did. And he didn't just dump the food there and leave. He also helped prepare the meal. He stoked the fire of that pot, and then when the meal was cooked he helped to cool down that meal. It is this relationship that counts and that bring the laws that affect our lives. Where do we have this relationship between subjects and rulers today? We had the so-called superpower in this world that went into Kosova and for 75 odd days, it bombs different selected areas and then, in the same way that it went in it got out and decided to stop that war. Was anyone consulted about this? Was anyone asked what should/should not be done? No! In the affairs of we the Muslims, does anyone consult us? Where is the shura that Allah speaks to us about? Shura is an institution. It's a way of doing things, but if there is not a psychology for it, shura becomes meaningless. If there is not this wilayah relationship between those who rule and those who are ruled such as these couple of examples demonstrate. Where is it in the world today? Which means the world needs what Allah has to offer and Allah doesn't need some frigid rules and laws to drop on men and say "here, just govern by these rules and laws" without the commitment, care, affection, relationship and love that is required for such a task. Societies don't become civilized societies just because of some laws. (Take a) look at the laws- there's laws all around the country/place, but what types of laws do we speak about when there is no consciousness of Allah in people's hearts (and) when Allah doesn't figure into their minds? These laws are meaningless. (Do) you want compare two sets of laws i.e. one set that works and another that fails…

You (can) take the issue of racial discrimination. There are elaborate laws in the book in this country/Western civilization against racial discrimination, but is society free of racial discrimination? When Allah says to us and to mankind

… verily the most honored of you in Allah's eyes are those who are most conscious of Him and His power… (Surah Al Hujurat verse 13)

When Rasulullah stood at Hajjat ul Wada' in his farewell presentation he said all of you are the descendants of Adam and Adam is made from dirt- soil and clay. There is no privilege of an Arab over a non-Arab nor for a non-Arab over an Arab; there is no privilege of a white over a black nor for a black over a white except if it be for a conscious guard against the wrath and anger of Allah and doing the implementation of doing what is right, virtuous and correct in one of the narrations of this hadith- this was not only a law on the book; this became a character and an attitude. When one of the companions of the Prophet told another one of the companions of the Prophet you son of a black woman, the Prophet of Allah didn't punish this person by some laws on the book, he brought his conscience to the fore. He said to him you made fun, degraded or insulted him because of his black mother? You are a person who contains elements of jahiliyah/pre-Islamic time (when there was racism, nationalism, ethnism, sectarianism and all these other isms/ills of society and man). When this statement of the Prophet touched this person's conscience, it moved his character to take corrective action and he corrected himself, as we said previously. Where, (in the world around where Islam is absent), do we see this type of equality? This is 20^th century America; next year it will become 21^st century America- where is equality? In a Masjid- all Muslims go to a Masjid, black/white/red/yellow/brown, whatever color there is- no one says you are out of order/place in a Masjid, but there are some Churches in which if you don't fit according to your color/race, you just don't fit/belong there. We've never had any instance like that; never!

During the time of that generation that benefitted from the Prophet's character and conduct, when the Muslims went to Egypt. Al Miqauqas, the ruler there, said ok if you are to negotiate and discuss send a delegation. Then Muslims put a delegation of ten individuals who were led by Ubada ibn As Samit (radi Allahu anhu) and the delegation went to Al Miqauqas and Ubada ibn As Samit was a tall, what is called today black man- dark black for that matter- and these ten Muslims entered into the court of Al Miqauqas, the ruler of Egypt, with this person leading them and he said, (as history would relate to us, which is roughly saying), take this black man out of my sight I don't want to see him and he turned to the other Muslims and tried to have someone of them represent the Muslim delegation and they unanimously/all of them said to him this is the one who speaks for us. He has been appointed to that position because of his quality, wisdom, character, mind, conduct and behavior. You accept this delegation as it is or we will part and leave. So he begrudgingly (accepted). Of course, like anywhere else when there is no Islam there is racism, nationalism and all these social diseases.

In the Hajj, there was an Imam who was the Imam of the Haram. His name was Ata' ibn Abi Rabah who would lecture thousands of Muslims and he was described as being, (in the books of history), the Imam who Muslims would learn from regardless of color, race, language or ethnicity. This person who was leading the Muslims in scholarly conduct was, (roughly), black, he couldn't see in one eye, he had a flat nose, he used to limp and he had very curly hair, (some people would call it), kinky hair. No one was saying "what's this?" No one was looking at a person's color! They were looking at his character, behavior, conduct, quality. That doesn't exist in today's civilization in the America at the end of the 20^th century nor in Europe. It simply doesn't exist. It was not long ago (that) here in Washington DC a person came from Panama who looks African. He just came to Washington DC for a few days or a week or two or whatever the time length- it was a short period of time. (He's) a Catholic and he goes to a Catholic Church; so he enquires "where's a Catholic Church?" And they pointed "Oh there's a Catholic Church there." He goes into the Catholic Church, enters and begins to say his prayers. Then, a Catholic Clergyman comes up to him and passes onto him a written notice that tells him "there is a Black Catholic Church at such and such an address." This wasn't history/a long time ago. We're talking about 20^th century America. Also, here in Washington, the capital of the country, not long ago in one of the animal cemetery in the city, White folks did not want to have their dogs buried where the dogs of Black people were buried because they said "they didn't want their dogs who were living a high class life to be spoiled after burial and to be insulted with the dogs of black folks." This is the racism that runs deep down the psyche of contemporary man in the resultant civilization of mankind. Then, they come with their media mouth-pieces and they want to say that "Muslims in Sudan are enslaving the blacks of Africa." There was a campaign with three Senators, (at least one of them African-American), that returned from Sudan and they said after going to the South of the country that "the SPLA…" which is the band of mercenaries that are fighting against the Islamic order in Sudan "… is the last hope for Western civilization because if Milosovic is a war criminal, they don't know what to call Umar Al Basheer in Al Khartoum;" meaning war criminal is not the right word, they have to look deep down inside their dictionaries and vocabularies to give an accusation/derogatory title to give to those who are ruling in Sudan because they want to tell the public that Muslims are guilty of racism that translate into slavery and a trade with slaves in Southern Sudan. Imagine- now we have become the racists and they are clean.

1,300 and some years ago, a lady in Egypt wrote a letter to the Muslim ruler of Egypt that "her fence is not high enough to protect her poultry from those who are in the street." This lady's name is Fartouna and this letter/request was forwarded to the Muslim ruler in Arabia and corrective action was taken and it turned out that this lady was a black lady. No one was asking what color the lady is; but here they want to know because discrimination runs deep down their behavior; that is why they have laws against discrimination. But the laws are not going to do it. They can put ink on paper, that's not going to change anything. It might cause a dent here-and-there in society but deep down inside nothing has changed and this is the difference between this wilayah that runes from the Muslim ruler to the most humble person in the domain of Islam. There is care that comes before and after the laws. There is a relationship that ties everyone together that becomes before and after the laws. But where do we have this in today's world? Do these people who run the Masjid and their likes care if Muslims are denied all types of rights? How many Muslims in the Ummah are dying because of they have nothing to eat? How many mothers in the Ummah have become widows because bombs are falling on their lands/homes? Who's asking? Who cares? The OIC?! Remember when we had the dilemma in Bosnia; the position of the Islamic State in Iran- there was no OIC working at the time- but the care for the other Muslims brought the Bosnian issue to some kind of agreement. Even though, we don't agree with that agreement, but something was done in which the Muslims were involved. Now, there's the OIC. What did the OIC do as far as the Muslims in Kosova is concerned? Nothing! No one consulted the Muslims when they began/ended that war. More than a million of them were forced out of their homes and homelands; about-a-million-and-a-quarter are refugees within their homes and homelands, did the laws of the OIC do anything? Before and after that they did nothing and we can't expect from them in the future to do anything as long as they have this attitude. You know, in their private counsel they will dismiss this, they will say "these are Europeanized people." That's an excuse. Their attitude is "the relationship of the people who are in the Balkans to Islam is a token relationship, why worry" and (regarding) the people in Africa, where there is a lot of intrigue, warfare a bloody continent it has become, (they will say), "Oh those are Africans. Those are Sufis." You know, in Africa, Sufism has its Tariqas here-and-there. (Their attitude is) "these are Sufis and who cares about them." When something happens in Palestine, (their attitude is), "Oh Palestinians don't behave anyways. They have always been rebellious and trouble makers." There's some type of notion that dwells inside of them that violates the very meanings of this wilayah, so they don't belong in that position. But they are there (and) they are affecting you and I and all the rest of the Muslims and they get away with this. They don't even want us to think about this on Fridays in Jum'ah. They don't want anyone to speak about this. Go into these Masjids- you have the freedom to go on Friday. Pick one Friday every two months and go to a different Masjid around and see how much care there is for the relationship of Muslims from top to bottom and then from bottom to top? They want us to behave as if we were cattle. If we do that, "fine. We are good Muslims?!" In all of the world, why are problems concentrated in the Muslim areas of the world? There's a nuclear war that may breakout any day/week/month/year from now between Pakistan and India- does anyone care? Nobody cares. Less population in the world! Get rid of some several hundred million people in India and Pakistan all the best for the way they think. But what is our excuse in all of this? How do Muslims accept, (in their right mind, from one week to the next), to listen to nonsense? Those who give khutbah in the Haramain are speaking nonsense; their likes in the world are speaking nonsense, proliferated with a few ayaat and ahadith. They don't want us to have a consciousness or involvement.

Brothers and sisters, committed Muslims…

There is a way of looking at the world that we all share. The way that will help us in the years that we have left is our common responsibility of bearing Allah's trust unto humanity i.e. to have unquestionable, unlimited and inhibited confidence in Allah. Whoever doesn't have this quality will one day run out of steam/fuel/energy. We should rest assured that if we devote whatever we do and think to Allah, there will be a result to it. Allah told us so; but let us not be selfish and say "we want the result." When we place our nafs/selves/egos in this formula, we shift the balances against our own convictions and we begin to erode our own future. Let us not do that. Let us place this confidence of ours in Allah. If we know, without any doubt, that Allah's power supersedes theirs and Allah's knowledge is more then their knowledge and Allah's timing is better than their timing, why should anyone for one moment fear that there is something to worry about? When we assimilate into Allah in such a way, we know that His word on any affair is the final word. This is the position that we belong in. This is the position of taqwa i.e. protection or raising our guard, because it is a position that belongs to Allah

This khutbah was presented by Imam Muhammed Asi on the occasion of Jum'ah on 11 June 1999 on the sidewalk of Embassy Road in Washington D.C. The Imam previously led the daily and Jum'ah prayers inside the Masjid. His speeches were revolutionary and thought provoking, and eventually irritated and threatened the Middle-East Ambassadors who control the Masjid. Finally, the Imam, his family, and other Muslims faithful to the course of Islam were forced out, into the streets. This khutbah originates from the sidewalk across the street from the Islamic Center, currently under seige.

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