Bismillah Ar-Rahmaan Ar-Raheem. Alhumdulillah. Peace and blessings on Muhammad (sallalahu alaihi wa sallam), his Noble Companions and Family. Ma'shar Al Mu'mineen, Muslims through a process of lost time/distracting intentions/deliberate decisions… Audio on http://www.islamiccenterdc.com/apps/videos/videos/show/11910038-enjoining-good-and-forbidding-evil-khutbah-imam-muhammad-al-asi-06-30-2000 (06-30-2000) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lp-AAJDC-Cg ENFORCING THE GOOD AND FORBIDDING THE EVIL Muslim as a whole have lost sense of what distinguishes them from others. Allah says, and His words should nourish our souls/raise our consciousness/take us into a better future, and this is an ayah that most Muslims hear but most Muslims don't thoroughly understand. There should be from your rank/number an Ummah… (Surah Aal Imran verse 110) That does what? … that calls proclaims/announces/publicises/main-steams Al Khayr/Allah's abundance command… (Surah Aal Imran verse 110) But we are an Ummah. Allah did not say wa al takunu Ummah wa ta'muru bi al khayr wa tanha an al munkah… He said which means From within an Ummah there should be an Ummah/a mass effort that is undertaken by those who can see the higher purpose of their attachment to Allah and the responsibilities and duties there-of… (Surah Aal Imran verse 110) This is not an easy task to come and with the use of force see to it that Al Ma'ruf is the mode of behaviour in all human activity and Al Munkar is deleted with the use of force/power from all human activities. The word ya'mur has the definition/implication of the use of authority. You need authority to have the Ma'ruf as a standard in life and to see to it that the Munkar is phased out of the vital activities of the man. We know this is a very demanding task because there are Tyrants/Dictators who will not tolerate another force edging them out of the positions which they use to institutionalise the Munkar and to disestablish the Ma'ruf. When we said that Muslims have lost sense of their distinguishing feature it is because they have reduced the meaning of the Ma'ruf and they have shrank the meaning of the Munkar so that it can becomes something on a personal/private level. They say "someone is doing the Ma'ruf if he abstains from alcoholic consumption; he is practising the Ma'ruf if he offers his personal obligations to Allah such as as salah/as siyam, etc." This has become the consuming definition of the Ma'ruf which is false. It was never meant to mean these issues in the book of Allah and in the Sunnah of His Prophet. So what is this amr bi al ma'ruf and nahi an al munkar? (In) what capacity are we supposed to understand these words in? Allah has produced evidence for us and explained to us from the experience of the generations that preceded us so that we are not mistaken about this issue. The Ma'ruf and Munkar that are repeated in the Qur'an and Sunnah are at the level of institutionalised/systemic vice/evil- that is the Munkar; and institutionalised virtue/prosperity- that's the Ma'ruf. But what happened to human beings who are no longer able to penetrate through the layers of tradition/misinformation/engineered disinformation? What happens to individuals who are addressed by this Holy Qur'an who are no longer able to indentify its meanings in the real world around them as has happened to the lot of the Muslim of today? This is not a simple task. Rather it is a demanding task. One of the experiences/examples that Allah presented to us and which we are addressed with it by the Qur'an from different angles is the case of Musa (alayhi as salaatu wa as salaam). A limited human being goes up to what amounts to the ruler of the world. He didn't say inna Phirawn ala fi al Misr/fi Ardihi/fi Qawmihi. A simple limited person like Musa goes up to what in fact/reality is the virtual ruler of the Earth/Ard. What does this ruler say in the words of the Qur'an? This is the epitome of being intoxicated/inundated/concentrated with power. The Pharaoh comes up and says "I am your lord supreme/ultimate sustainer. (Surah Al Naazi'aat verse 24) He has a minuscule Musa. In the eyes of the material/physical world Musa was a miniscule human being/ miniature person. Who is Musa compared to Phiraun? And he says to him … I am the Emissary of the Sustainer of the world… (Surah Al A'raf verse 104) That's a big claim/big talk coming from a small person! Imagine the equivalent of that in our time? The Pharaonic superpower transferred to the twenty-first century… Who stands out to be the Pharaoh of our time? The occupant of the White House or the power structure behind him- the Sages of Zion who are virtually telling the world "I am your Sustainer supreme." Then someone like Musa- an unknown in society /the world comes and makes this statement … therefore release the Children/Bani Isra'eel and let them come with me and don't torture/persecute them... (Surah Ta-Ha verse 47) Who's this person who is speaking in worldly terms? Did Musa have a power/military/hierarchy/high brass that can fortify his position? What did he have? Scrutinize this. Being the Pharaoh, (someone like Bill Clinton today), who has at his disposal every definition/manifestation of power and then you have a ghetto person- something Musa would be equivalent to, even though he was raised in the palace of the Pharaoh but he was a non-person coming from an oppressed segment of society. Israeli society in that day was similar to the African-American community here in the … don't stand in awe of them, stand in awe of Me… (Surah Al Baqarah verse 150) … don't fear them, fear Me if you are committed to Allah… (Surah Aal Imran verse 175) That is why there are some learned Ulema who consider this type of fear an expression of Shirk. If you fear in this context powers beside Allah then you are guilty of Shirk because it is only Allah who is due this fear. But how come we have untold numbers of Muslims who are incapable of surmounting this barrier of fear and relocating where they should be vis a vis Allah? That is why those who are in positions to rule the globe speak about a globalisation today as if it's something new. The Pharaoh globalised! He had the instrument/ means to divide/antagonise/spilt/polarise people but that came because the people negotiated away their right/principle/value/commitment to the power of Allah. One area that Muslims do not appreciate very much (is) one of the most repeated sentence that Muslims say whenever we begin something. We say In the Name of Allah the Mercy giving the Merciful. This Mercy-giving and this Mercy can only be appreciated when we realise that Allah is the force/power in life. Mercy/the giving of mercy is meaningless if it comes from a wimp. It almost violates its meaning. If Allah in the sub-conscience of Muslims is equivalent to a powerless God/Authority then it is meaningless to say In the Name of Allah the Mercy giving the Merciful. Hence there are many Muslims who are repeating meaningless statements because they have not allocated to Allah His due attribute. Why is it when these responsibilities/tasks are presented to the Muslim they find that this is way beyond their ability. You have to realise that it's not your individual/joint ability that is going to carry the day! It is the ability of Allah to whom you are individually/jointly related- it is because of the absence of this acknowledgement- central as it is to the mission of all Allah's Prophets and all of those of who are walking in the footsteps of these Prophets. Allah says of these power structures throughout time- this power structure that we are in is not going to endure/last because its predecessors did not endure/last. … now they have become parables/lessons/matters of discussion and We have shredded them to smithereens... (Surah If Allah has done this with previous power structures that erupted on Earth He is certainly able to do it with the current power structure on Earth and all this talk about globalisation/United Nation/NATO forces/ a strong economy and the other features of this propaganda machine and the details there of- they pale when compared to the task that we have at hand. And those Muslims who cannot find it in themselves to carry on with the task in this context, they portray a deficiency in their relationship with Allah. And those who carry this responsibility- regardless of the propaganda that comes our way- we've heard it before … these are but a few dispersed collectivity of people… (Surah Ash Shu'ara' verse 54) They're nothing. If they think that they are saying these disparaging remarks to us to dilute our determination their words are recorded in Allah's registrar and with our deeds- not with our words but with our deeds/determination/blood/tears/time- we shall overcome. Muslims are not expressing this in a vacuum even though there is a body of Muslims that has been brainwashed in the Masjid itself not to speak about the corresponding brainwashing process taking place outside of it; even though that is the case, (don't lose sight of this fact), there are those who have combined their effort so that they can raise their voice for Islam and what is khayr- for indeed when we do this at this level (and) when we understand these words within this context we shall become successful/prosperous. The Prophet says du'a is the core of conformity to Allah. With these meanings from Allah Himself ask/approach/plead with Allah for He is in your heart /mind if you are certain- He is there. Brothers and sisters - belong to a As Sirat Al Mustaqeem… With the meaning of the Qur'an being discovered, after experiencing of battlefield agony/challenges/ sacrifices as we are located in the battlefield of the world today, observe what errant Muslims are doing. They are busy trying to bend/twist/swerve/sway the ayaat and the hadith to fit their local and invested interest. This year is an election year in the … so that Allah will distinguish that which is foul from that which is healthy… (Surah Aal Imran verse 179) In the presence of Allah we shall overcome. This khutbah was presented by Imam Muhammad Al Asi on the occasion of Jum'ah on 06 June 2000 on the sidewalk of Embassy Row in |
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