IN THE NAME OF ALLAH, THE BENEFICIENT, THE MERCIFUL
BEING THE FOURTH KHUTBAH FOR THE MONTH OF DHUL-HIJJAH, DATED 26TH DHUL-HIJJAH 1444AH (14TH JULY, 2023CE)
TOPIC: THE ISLAMIC BROTHERHOOD AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE LIFE OF A MUSLIM
THE FIRST SERMON
All Praises belong to Allah, Who brought the hearts of the believers together, hearts that even if you spent everything that is on earth, you would not have brought their hearts together, but He, Glorified He is, brought them together. We praise Him, we seek His help and guidance and we give thanks to Him. We ask His forgiveness and turn to Him in repentance. We seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our souls and from our bad deeds. He whom Allah guides cannot be misguided, and he whom He lets go astray, none can guide him. I bear witness that there is no god worthy of worship except Allah alone. He has no partner, no like, no equal, and no peer. He is One, All-Sufficient and Independent. He begets not and He is not begotten, and He has none equal to Him. I bear witness also that our master, beloved, great, leader, and the joy of our eyes, Muhammad, is his servant and messenger, his representative and beloved, whom Allah has sent as a mercy to the worlds, as a guide, a bearer of glad tidings and a warner. O Allah, may Your blessings and peace be upon our leader Muhammad, the caller to goodness and right path, who established the path of success for the Ummah, and explained to it, the paths of salvation, and he explained to it (the Ummah) the meaning of love. May the peace and blessings be upon his family also and on the companions.
Thereafter… Servants of Allah! I enjoin you and myself to fear Allah, the Most High, the Mighty, who says in the Perfect Revelation: (إِنَّمَا ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِخْوَةٌ فَأَصْلِحُواْ بَيْنَ أَخَوَيْكُمْ وَٱتَّقُواْ ٱللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ) “The believers are nothing else than brothers (in Islamic religion). So make reconciliation between your brothers, and fear Allah, that you may receive mercy.” (Al-Hujuraat: 10).
Brothers in Faith! Allah has called the believers brothers because of the bond of religion and Faith between them, and the bond of Faith is the strongest bond that is not comparable to any other bonds, such that the Messenger of Allah (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) explained the way to achieve it when he, said: “Beware of suspicion, for it is the worst of false tales and don’t look for the other’s faults and don’t spy and don’t hate each other, and don’t desert (cut your relations with) one another O Allah’s slaves, be brothers!” (Bukhaari). This is why our sermon today revolves around “The Islamic brotherhood in the life of a Muslim.”
Islamic brotherhood is a relationship of solidarity, affection, and friendship based on faith and fear of Allah, the Most Glorified and Exalted. It leads to loving for the sake of Allah Ta’alaa, in addition to love, sincerity, loyalty, trust and honesty, far away from striving to achieve any worldly purpose or goal.
Servants of Allah! Fear Allah and know – may Allah have mercy on you – that we are in a time when segregation and fragmentation prevailed among the people of the nation, so we lost our glory, nations fought against us, and we became divided and dispersed, perhaps at the level of the family as well as at the level of countries and homelands. The nation will not return to its glory except by returning to the foundations on which the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) built the state of Islaam and which we hold on to tightly with our teeth, and we adhere to our brothers in Allah and for Allah, and we reject division. () “And obey Allah and His Messenger, and do not dispute (with one another) lest you lose courage and your strength depart, and be patient. Surely, Allah is with those who are As-Sabirin (the patient ones, etc.).” (Al-Anfaal 46), giving us guidance that true brotherhood is based on faith and coming together Allah and for Allah, and obedience to His commands and the Sunnah of His Messenger (may Allah’s blessings and peace be upon him) and not for immediate worldly benefit or personal interest or tribal affiliation or other material things. Whatever is for Allah endures and brings people together, and whatever is for any other thing is often cut short and separates people.
Let us review together some texts that indicate the virtue of harmony and brotherhood, so that we may revive what is dead in our hearts and cling to the bonds of brotherhood in Allah, love for His sake and hate for His sake. The Allah Ta’alaa said to His Messenger for bringing together the hearts of His faithful servants, as He says: (فأنّ حَسْبكَ اللهُ هُوَ الّذِي أَيَّدَكَ بِنَصْرِه وَبِالـمُؤمِنِينَ.وَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِهِمْ لَوْ أَنْفَقْتَ مَا فـِي الأَرْضِ جَمِيعا مَا أَلَّفْتَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِهِمْ وَلَكِنَّ اللهَ أَلَّفَ بَيْنَهُمْ) “…then verily, Allah is All-Sufficient for you. He it is Who has supported you with His Help and with the believers. And He has united their (i.e. believers’) hearts. If you had spent all that is in the earth, you could not have united their hearts, but Allah has united them…..” (Al-Anfaal: 62-63). So the author of “Al-Zilal” says, commenting on this verse: “Allah is sufficient for you… He is sufficient for you.” He is the one who supported you with his victory the first time. And He supported you with the believers who believed in what is promised by Allah, and He made of them a united force after their hearts had been divided…” Perhaps this is an indication that one of the most important steps of victory after the success of Allah Ta’alaa is coming together, brotherhood, and linked hearts between the believers. If these things are missing, there will be no victory.
And in his hadith (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): “…A Muslim is the brother of a Muslim: he does not oppress him, nor does he fail him, nor does he lie to him, nor does he hold him in contempt. Taqwa (piety) is right here [and he pointed to his chest three times]. It is evil enough for a man to hold his brother Muslim in contempt…” (Muslim) And he also said: “None of you believes until he loves for his brother what he loves for himself.” That is: he loves that a Muslim has what he likes for himself. And from that – as in Muslim on the authority of Abu Hurairah – that a man visited a brother of his for the sake of Allah, so Allah appointed an angel for him, and he said: “What do you intend? He said: I want to visit my brother so-and-so. He said: Is is for your closeness? He said: No. He said: Is it for a need you have from him? He said: No. He said: Is it for a favour he did for you? He said: No. He said: Then for what? He said: I love him for the sake of Allah. He said, “Then Allah has sent me to tell you that He loves you for your love of Him, and He has made Al-Jannah obligatory for you.”
How to preserve the Islamic brotherhood
Islam is concerned with the rights imposed on Islamic brotherhood and is keen on fraternity, advising, and preserving the relationship of Islamic brotherhood in all its aspects, in addition to extending and returning greetings, visiting the sick, attending funerals, honoring invitations, fulfilling promises, and praying for the one who sneezes; including not boycotting someone for more than three days for personal reasons, being keen to help others in all circumstances, checking their conditions, spending to take care of their need, abstaining from backbiting them or mentioning their faults, being keen to overlook their mistakes, accepting advice from them, enjoining good, forbidding evil, and not cheat, deceiving or betraying him. Rather, you give succour to the anxious, and feed the hungry in agreement with the instruction of the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) “And be servants of Allah as brothers”.
The positive effects of brotherhood on the individual and the society
Islamic brotherhood has many positive effects on the individual and society alike. These include:
1 . Achieving unity and strength for Muslims in accordance with the saying of the Messenger (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him): “A faithful believer to a faithful believer is like the bricks of a wall, enforcing each other.” While (saying that) the Prophet (ﷺ) clasped his hands, by interlacing his fingers.”
The elimination of existing differences on the social level and class differences: There is no advantage for anyone over another except with what one puts forward of effort and work, on the basis of piety, by achieving the unity of its members, their coming together, and their cooperation in righteousness and goodness in order to obtain the pleasure of Allah Ta’alaa.
Being shaded on the Day of Resurrection with the shade of Allah Ta’alaa from the heat of the sun. As Imam Al-Bukhari included in his Saheeh on the authority of the Prophet – upon him be blessings and peace – that he said: “Seven people will be shaded by Allah in His shade, on the Day when there will be no shade but His… and two men who love each other for the sake of Allah, meeting for His sake and separating fro His sake.”
4. Entering Al-Jannah that He has prepared for His servants in the Hereafter: It is proven in the Saheeh on the authority of the Prophet (Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon him) that he said: “You will not enter Al-Jannah until you believe, and you will not believe until you love one another. Shall I not guide you to something that if you do it, you would love each other?” Spread the Tasleem (greeting of peace) among yourselves.”
THE SECOND SERMON
All praises are to Allah, the All-Merciful, the All-Forgiving, the All-Knowing, the Omnipotent. Disposer of all affairs in the heavens and the earth, He gives and takes life, He gives and deny, He elevates and humiliates. He changes the night and day, verily in that are signs for men of understanding. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, who is unique in being self-subsisting, eternal, and greatness. He does and chooses whatever He wants. I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant, the chosen one, and His chosen prophet, may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, and his righteous companions.
Thereafter, fear Allah – dear servants of Allah – and know that the days of the world are leaving, yesterday was an admonition, and a just witness for or against you. It is gone but its lessons remain. Today is a gain, and a friend that came to you and you did not come to it, its stay was long with you, but it shall leave you quickly. And tomorrow you don’t know who its members are, and it will come to you if it finds you.
Dear respected listeners! The year passes and you think that you have lived it, when in actual fact you were in it dead! There is no day except that we are either near or far away; we are near to the Hereafter, and we are far away from this world. We are about to start the mew year; One thousand four hundred and forty-four years (1444 AH) after the honorable Prophet’s migration, as a farewell after it spent twelve months with us including its joys and sorrows, its profits and losses, for good or for bad. Whoever finds good should praise Allah, and whoever finds otherwise should blame none except himself.
Allah Almighty says: (يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللهَ وَلِتَنْظَرْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ لِغَدٍ وَاتَّقُوا اللهَ إنَّ اللهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ. وَ لاَ تَكُونُوا كَالَّذِينَ نَسُوا اللهَ فَأَنْسَاهُمْ أَنْفُسَهُمْ أَولاَئِكَ هُمُ الفَاسِقُونَ) “O believers! Be mindful of Allah and let every soul look to what ˹deeds˺ it has sent forth for tomorrow.1 And fear Allah, ˹for˺ certainly Allah is All-Aware of what you do. And do not be like those who forgot Allah, so He made them forget themselves. It is they who are ˹truly˺ rebellious.” (Al-Hashr: 18-19)
The Commander of the Faithful, Umar Ibn Al-Khattab, said ( May Allah be pleased with him): “Hold yourselves accountable before you are held accountable and evaluate yourselves before you are evaluated, for the Reckoning will be easier upon you tomorrow if you hold yourselves accountable today, and evaluate for the greatest presentation, you will then be presented ˹before Him for judgment˺, and none of your secrets will stay hidden”. Al-Hassan – may Allah have mercy on him – said: “O son of Adam You are only a composite of days, and if a day of yours goes away, then a part of you goes away.”
Here, dear servants of Allah, after a few days, we shall bid farewell a year from our lives that will leave us, and will never return except on the day of judgement with whatever we have prepared in it of our deeds. You think – Dear servant of Allah, think, as you bid farewell to a stage of the opportunity of your life, in which your deeds are recorded, the big and small, good and bad, and that you will find them in your book and you will be held accountable for them in the before of your Lord. The Almighty said: (مَا يَلْفِظُ مِن قَوْلٍ إِلَّا لَدَيْهِ رَقِيبٌ عَتِيدٌ) “not a word does a person utter without having a ˹vigilant˺ observer ready ˹to write it down˺” (Qaf: 18). He, exalted in majesty also says: (وَوُضِعَ الْكِتَابُ فَتَرَى الْمُجْرِمِينَ مُشْفِقِينَ مِمَّا فِيهِ وَيَقُولُونَ يَا وَيْلَتَنَا مَالِ هَذَا الْكِتَابِ لَا يُغَادِرُ صَغِيرَةً وَلَا كَبِيرَةً إِلَّا أَحْصَاهَا وَوَجَدُوا مَا عَمِلُوا حَاضِراً وَلَا يَظْلِمُ رَبُّكَ أَحَداً) “And the record ˹of deeds˺ will be laid ˹open˺, and you will see the wicked in fear of what is ˹written˺ in it. They will cry, “Woe to us! What kind of record is this that does not leave any sin, small or large, unlisted?” They will find whatever they did present ˹before them˺. And your Lord will never wrong anyone.” (Al-Kahf: 49)
O Muslims: The sane believer always takes account of himself: What did I do? And how did I do? And for whom did I do it? Why did I do it? He holds himself accountable every now and then, and he may pass through times and periods that have their own peculiarities, such as this period at the end of the year. So he stays at the end of the year and looks at what actions emanated from him while in the position of ability and strength. If the deed is praiseworthy, he sustains it and follows it deeds of same kinds. But if it is blameworthy, he corrects it if possible and refrain from such in the future, and seek for forgiveness. The success of the future is premised on continuous accountability, and the mastery of actions with a lot of monitoring.
Today is work and no reckoning, but tomorrow is reckoning and no work. So whoever holds himself to account today, the reckoning will be easy for him tomorrow, and the work will be easy for him. And whoever falls short in holding himself to account today, the reckoning will be heavy for him tomorrow, and it will be difficult for him to do acts of obedience in his life. Al-Hassan Al-Basri – may Allah have mercy on him – said: “The people with easier accountability on the Day of Resurrection are those who hold themselves accountable for Allah- the Mighty and Sublime – in this world, and stop at the points of their intentions and deeds. If what they intend is for Allah, they continue it, but if it is against them, they refrain. On the Day of Resurrection, the reckoning will only be difficult on those who risked issues and took them without taking them to account, and would find that Allah had taken account of every atom weight of their actions for them, so they would say: (يَا وَيْلَتَنَا مَالِ هَذَا الْكِتَابِ لَا يُغَادِرُ صَغِيرَةً وَلَا كَبِيرَةً إِلَّا أَحْصَاهَا) ““Woe to us! What kind of record is this that does not leave any sin, small or large, unlisted?” (Al-kahf: 49)\
Du’a:
اللّهمّ أمنّا في أوطاننا وولّ علينا خيارنا وأيّد بالحقّ أولياء أمورنا.اللّهمّ إنّا نسألك من الخير كلّه آجله وعاجله ما علمنا منه وما لم نعلم ونعوذ بك من الشّرّكلّه عاجله وآجله ما علمنا منه وما لم نعلم. اللّهمّ أعزّ الإسلام والمسلمين وأصلح أحوال المسلمين في كلّ مكان. اللّهمّ كن معنا وادفع عنّا الفتن والشّرور وأصلح لنا ولاة أمورنا واستجب دعاءنا إنّك أنت سميع الدّعاء.