FROM THE MIMBAR OF THE TWO HOLY MOSQUES IN MAKKAH AND MADINA

(Friday, January 24, 2003)

Islam is a religion of peace, justice and freedom:

Imam of Makkah’s Grand Mosque.

IN MAKKAH

The Imams and Khateebs of the Two Holy Mosques in Makkah and Madina in their
Friday Sermons urged Muslims to be always mindful of Allah Almighty and
follow the teaching of His Prophet Muhammad (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam)
meticulously so that they are richly rewarded by Allah – in this life and
the Hereafter.

The Imam and Khateeb of the Grand Mosque in Makkah Sheikh Dr. Osama Bin
Abdullah Khayyat in his sermon reminded the congregation that the best thing
a person can do in this life is to inculcate consciousness of Allah. He said
one of the greatest blessings of Allah for mankind is that He sent Prophet
Muhammad (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam) as a messenger with guidance for
mankind to the true faith, and made him a mercy to all creatures, which
includes human beings of all races, languages and colors.

The most prominent mercy of Islam is the care and preservation of human
life,which is not confined to Muslims but also include other people, Sheikh
Khayyat said.

“The best example of this concern for human life is the rule of conduct laid
down by the Prophet (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam) for his followers in
times of war and in times of peace, the Prophet (Sallallaaho alaihi wa
sallam) strongly prohibited persecution of a non- Muslin who lives among
Muslims peacefully. And in times of war, the Prophet (Sallallaaho alaihi wa
sallam) ordered his military commanders to fight only those disbelievers who
take up arms against them and those who exceed limits; rather, he ordered
not to kill a woman, a child, an old and a weak person, and not to destroy
plants and animals, “ Sheikh Khayyat said.

“The Caliphs who succeeded the Prophet’s (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam)
mission also adhered to the same rule of conduct in war.  They told their
fighters to fight those who wage war on Muslims, but never to commit
excesses and kill innocent people or mutilate the men of defeated enemy. The
Muslim armies fought in the cause of Allah – a just cause – and not for
personal glory or for the sake of killing and causing destruction. They
followed Allah’s injunctions as mentioned in the Holy Qur’an; “Fight in the
cause of Allah those who fight you, but do not transgress limits; for Allah
loves not transgressors”. (Qur’an 11:190) Islam is a religion of justice,
peace and freedom. It has never been a religion of terror, violence and
bloodshed”.

Islam is a religion of peace, justice and freedom, Sheikh Khayyat said “it
will always triumph as it triumphed in the past, since Allah has promised to
protect it: “It is He who has sent His Apostle with guidance and the
religion of Truth, to proclaim it over all religion even though the pagans
may detest (it)”. (Our’ an 9:33)

IN MADINA

The Imam and Khateeb of the Prophet’s Mosque Sheikh Ali Al Hudhaifi in his
sermon said, “Worship is not only a duty toward Allah, it is also the
greatest honor that Allah has conferred on man.

“Worship pleases Allah, enlightens the heart of the worshipper, refines the
soul, corrects behavior, obliterates sins, rectifies thoughts, and raises a
person’s rank in Paradise,” Sheikh Al- Hudhaifi said.

“It is Allah’s mercy on us that He sent the best of His creatures, Prophet
Muhammad (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam) to teach us how to worship Allah in
the best manner and how to avoid (the acts, word or deeds), which invites
Allah’s wrath.

Allah says in the Our’ an: “A similar (favor have you already received) in
that we have set among you an Apostle Signs, sanctifying you, and
instructing you in Scripture and wisdom, and in new knowledge”. (Qur’an
2:151)

“Had Allah not sent Apostle with Scriptures people would have gone astray
more than the beast, but as Allah is merciful to man. He prescribed religion
and (the ways to) worships Him. The prescribed worships include salat
(prayers), zakat (alms giving), fasting, pilgrimage and other acts of
devotion. Pilgrimage to Makkah is a type of worship that combines all other
forms of worship: prayer, fasting, giving alms to the poor, etc.

“It is one of the greatest Signs of Allah which confirms that the religion
sent through Prophet (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam) is the only true faith,
No other power on earth can bring so many pilgrims each year from all
corners of the globe and from all races of mankind belonging to such a large
variety of social classes to converge on one place, braving hardships after
they depart from homes and leave their loved once, and spending liberally to
observe a religious rite with such care and devotion,”  he said.

Sheikh Al Hudhaifi urged the pilgrims to perform Hajj with purest of
intention, and with determination to perform it in the same way as Prophet
Muhammad (Sallallaaho alaihi wa sallam) did.

“The Prophet is reported to have said that a perfect pilgrimage is rewarded
with Paradise because after successfully accomplishing the Hajj rites, a
person becomes free from sins just as when he or she was born (innocent).

Sheikh Hudhaifi noted that the pilgrims should know all the rituals that are
required to be performed during Hajj so that they may earn maximum reward by
discharging this duty in the best of manners.

“They should abstain from wrangling or hurting other pilgrims in any way,
and refrain from all acts of obscenity and spend from their lawfully earned
money in charity. If a pilgrim is not conversant with the Hajj rites, he
should consult those people who have knowledge about it.” Sheikh Al Hudhaifi
concluded his sermon with this advice.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^END^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

With the very best of good wishes,
Musa Amadu Pembo
Glasgow,
Scotland
UK.
[log in to unmask]
Da’wah is to convey the message with wisdom and with good words. We should
give the noble and positive message of Islam. We should try to emphasize
more commonalities and explain the difference without getting into
theological arguments and without claiming the superiority of one position
over the other. There is a great interest among the people to know about
Islam and we should do our best to give the right message.
May Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,guide us all to His Sirat Al-Mustaqim (Righteous
Path).May He protect us from the evils of this life and the hereafter.May
Allah,Subhana Wa Ta'Ala,grant us entrance to paradise .
We ask Allaah the Most High, the All-Powerful, to teach us that which will
benefit us, and to benefit us by that which we learn. May Allaah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala grant blessings and peace to our Prophet Muhammad and his family
and
companions..Amen.




_________________________________________________________________
Worried what your kids see online? Protect them better with MSN 8
http://join.msn.com/?page=features/parental&pgmarket=en-gb&XAPID=186&DI=1059

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the Gambia-L Web interface
at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html
To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to:
[log in to unmask]

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~