In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
The Second Sermon for the Month of Allah, Muharram, dated 13/1/1446 AH – 19/7/2024 CE
TOPIC: AL-AQSA MOSQUE AND THE RESPONSIBILITY OF MUSLIMS TOWARDS IT
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds, who has established a strong connection between Muslims in the East and the West and between Al-Aqsa Mosque in Palestine. Allah Almighty says: (سُبْحَانَ الَّذِي أَسْرَى بِعَبْدِهِ لَيْلًا مِنَ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ إِلَى الْمَسْجِدِ الْأَقْصَى الَّذِي بَارَكْنَا حَوْلَهُ لِنُرِيَهُ مِنْ آيَاتِنَا إِنَّهُ هُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْبَصِيرُ) “Exalted is He who took His Servant by night from al-Masjid al-Haram to al-Masjid al-Aqsa, whose surroundings We have blessed, to show him of Our signs. Indeed, He is the Hearing, the Seeing” [Al-Isra: 1]. We praise Him, glorify Him, and thank Him. We seek His help and guidance, ask for His forgiveness, and repent to Him. Whoever Allah guides, none can mislead, and whoever He allows to stray, none can guide. I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah alone, with no partners, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. O Allah, bless and grant peace upon him, his family, his companions, and all who follow them with righteousness until the Day of Judgment.
O servants of Allah, I advise you and myself to have Taqwa (fear and consciousness) of Allah, both in private and in public, as it is the ultimate goal of all acts of worship and obedience and avoidance of all prohibitions. Allah Almighty says: (يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اعْبُدُوا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ َتَّقُونَ) “O mankind, worship your Lord, who created you and those before you, that you may become righteous” [Al-Baqara: 21].
Brothers in faith, this is the second meeting in the month of Allah, Muharram, and the topic of our sermon focuses on: Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Responsibility of Muslims Towards It.
Our Duty Towards Al-Aqsa Mosque:
O noble Muslims, one of the ways to liberate Al-Aqsa Mosque is to free ourselves from servitude to anyone other than Allah and to achieve complete and comprehensive monotheism, maintaining it free from any defect. Additionally, every Muslim must feel the responsibility towards Al-Aqsa and the city of Jerusalem, fulfilling their duty through prayer, financial support, spreading awareness through available media platforms, and avoiding sins.
We must understand that the duty does not fall except with an excuse, and every Muslim must offer what they can to support and liberate Al-Aqsa. Al-Aqsa is in dire need of rescue before it is demolished and replaced by their alleged temple. This liberation is a matter that every Muslim hopes for, not just a wish but something confirmed by action. Here we are identifying specific points for the return of Al-Aqsa, Jerusalem, and Palestine, and necessary measures must be taken to achieve these practical steps towards Al-Aqsa and the sacred land, as follows:
1. Freeing ourselves from servitude to anyone other than Allah Almighty to achieve complete and comprehensive monotheism, preserving the sanctity of monotheism from any defect.
2. Governing ourselves by the Book of Allah Almighty and following the guidance of the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him. We must accept the Sharia of Allah in resolving our disputes. The application of Sharia must start with us first—while demanding it from others—in transactions, judgments, sales, marriage, divorce, and other matters.
3. Striving for unity: (وَاعْتَصِمُوا بِحَبْلِ اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا}، ﴿وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ وَلَا تَنَازَعُوا فَتَفْشَلُوا وَتَذْهَبَ رِيحُكُمْ وَاصْبِرُوا إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ) “And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided” [Al-Imran: 103]; “And obey Allah and His Messenger, and do not dispute and [thus] lose courage and [then] your strength would depart; and be patient. Indeed, Allah is with the patient” [Al-Anfal: 46]. We have had enough division, disputes, and tensions. We should avoid group and nationalistic fanaticism, and instead, be devoted to Islam and the divine methodology, achieving brotherhood in Allah.
4. Establishing clear boundaries between us and others by realizing the concept of loyalty (Al-walaau) and disassociation (Al-baraau). We should present the concept of coexistence in a balanced and moderate manner, without excess or neglect, outlining what is permissible and what is not in dealings with the People of the Book. This includes giving gifts to them and accepting their gifts, visiting their sick, offering condolences, buying, selling, leasing, donating to them when beneficial, returning their greetings, seeking their help, and forming alliances with them for valid Sharia purposes. It also involves eating their food, marrying their chaste women, congratulating them on permissible worldly occasions, and benefiting from their knowledge and technologies. The scope of coexistence with the People of the Book is broad but without compromising on the matters of faith. Some of us err by prohibiting all dealings with the People of the Book, while others make no prohibitions at all. This issue is a distinguishing factor between believers and hypocrites. Allah Almighty only separated believers from their enemies among their own people after Muslims distanced themselves from their enemies. This issue has been significantly addressed in the Quran.
5. Reforming oneself and one’s family: Reforming oneself and one’s family is crucial as the family is the strongest building block of the nation. The Muslim family should transform into a strong nucleus of faith. Islam spread through a few individuals at the beginning of the mission and triumphed through the Muslim family. This is evident from studying the biography of the family of Ammar bin Yasir and the family of Abu Salama and Umm Salama, may Allah be pleased with them.
6. Following the path of those who liberated it before us, such as (Umar ibn al-Khattab, Salahuddin, and Qutuz who liberated Palestine from the Tatars). These individuals revived the cause of defending the sacred sites with their lives, blood, and wealth.
7. Every Muslim should feel responsible towards Al-Aqsa and the city of Jerusalem and fulfill their duty by: (praying, financial support, spreading awareness through available media platforms, and avoiding sins).
8. Parents should fulfill their duty towards Al-Aqsa by raising their children to love and be attached to Al-Aqsa Mosque, informing them of its history and the history of the holy city, keeping the cause alive among the youth, and clarifying the difference between the Dome of the Rock and Al-Aqsa Mosque.
9. Scholars and preachers should adopt this cause and spread it among the people. The issue of Al-Aqsa Mosque should become a cause for the entire nation and should be the primary issue for individuals, peoples, and governments.
10. We must all understand that the issue of Al-Aqsa Mosque is not just a Palestinian issue, but an Islamic one, as it is connected to the faith of Muslims.
11. Work to ensure the continued presence and support of our brothers from Palestine at Al-Aqsa Mosque, and intensify their presence there.
12. Beware of normalization with the Zionist entity; through such normalization, the cause is lost:
Governments and institutions should monitor and follow up on the excavations carried out by Jews around Al-Aqsa Mosque.
13. Arab and Islamic media of all kinds should adopt this cause, and media professionals should understand this issue well. Discussions on this matter should not be spontaneous or improvised, as the media now has a significant impact on either serving or losing the cause.
14. Historians, researchers, and writers should play their role in writing and documenting the history of Al-Aqsa Mosque.
The Second Sermon:
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, who said in His Holy Book: (وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ إِلَّا تَفْعَلُوهُ تَكُنْ فِتْنَةٌ فِي الْأَرْضِ وَفَسَادٌ كَبِيرٌ (73) وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَهَاجَرُوا وَجَاهَدُوا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ آوَوْا وَنَصَرُوا أُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ حَقًّا لَهُمْ مَغْفِرَةٌ وَرِزْقٌ كَرِيمٌ) “And those who disbelieve are allies of one another. If you do not do so, there will be fitnah on earth and great corruption. But those who have believed and emigrated and fought in the cause of Allah and those who gave shelter and aided – it is they who are the believers, truly. For them is forgiveness and noble provision” [Al-Anfal: 73-74]. Peace and blessings be upon our master and protector Muhammad, his family, his companions, and those who follow them with good conduct until the Day of Judgment.
As for what follows,
O noble servants of Allah, we must respond to the corrupt Jewish claims regarding Al-Aqsa Mosque.
Claims of the Jews regarding Al-Aqsa Mosque:
O honorable Muslims, archaeologists from Jews, Europeans, and Americans who have excavated and worked on tunnels under the Noble Sanctuary (Haram al-Sharif) have proven that there is not a single trace of Solomon’s Temple beneath the Noble Sanctuary or Al-Aqsa Mosque.
History does not confirm the existence of this temple; rather, it considers it one of the myths and legends foundational to the Jewish faith.
The Jews claim that Al-Aqsa Mosque was built on the ruins of Solomon’s Temple. When we understand the truth about the temple, which contemporary Jews have woven into a grand myth and now use as a pretext to implement their malicious plans to demolish Al-Aqsa Mosque, we realize at first glance that the temple does not have a real existence. It is a Jewish legend fabricated by Jewish rabbis and priests, attributing it to the Prophet Solomon – peace be upon him. It is historically established, as mentioned in the prophetic tradition, that Solomon – peace be upon him – did not build a temple as claimed in the Torah, but rather built a mosque for Allah Almighty, which is Al-Aqsa Mosque. The story of the temple as narrated in the Jewish sacred books is a fictional tale, and the temple itself has no real existence in history.
This is indicated by the hadith narrated by Bukhari, Muslim, and Imam Ahmad that Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) said: I asked: O Messenger of Allah, which mosque was built on earth first? He said: “Al-Masjid al-Haram.” I asked: Then which one? He said: “Al-Masjid al-Aqsa.” I asked: How long was there between them? He said: “Forty years.” According to the explanation of the hadith in Fath al-Bari by Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani and the interpretation by Ibn Kathir, the first to establish the Mosque of Bait al-Maqdis, which is Al-Masjid al-Aqsa, was Adam (peace be upon him), to be a qibla for some of his descendants. Some scholars mentioned that the first to build Al-Masjid al-Aqsa was Ibrahim (peace be upon him), and that Dawood (peace be upon him) wanted to renew that building, but he did not complete it, so his son Sulaiman (peace be upon him) completed it and built it magnificently.
Finally, today marks the 287th day since October 7, 2023, and the Israeli occupation army continues its massacres in the Gaza Strip, targeting civilians, women, and children, resulting in dozens of martyrs and injured. Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, despite all these massacres, Allah Almighty still aids our brothers, the Al-Qassam Brigades, and other Islamic resistance movements in the Gaza Strip on the battlefields. Here, the obligation of personal jihad on the Muslim Ummah worldwide is affirmed, to save Al-Masjid al-Aqsa and the sanctities of the Ummah in the land that Allah has blessed for all worlds, as described in the Holy Quran.
Supplication:
O Allah, nullify the plots of the enemies of Islam, and nullify their schemes that they plan. O Allah, we seek refuge in You from their evil. O Allah, we ask You to unite the hearts of Muslims on the truth. O Allah, grant victory to the Palestinian people, and relieve their siege. O Allah, remove their suffering and uncover their distress. O Allah, heal their sick and the sick among Muslims. O Allah, release the captives of the people of Palestine and the captives of the Muslims. O Allah, grant us security in our homelands, and rectify our leaders and guide them to what You love and are pleased with. O Allah, forgive our dead and the dead among Muslims, O Most Merciful of the merciful, O Lord of the worlds. And may Allah’s peace and blessings be upon our master Muhammad and his family and companions.