Characteristics Of The Ummah

Bilal Philips

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Channel: Bilal Philips

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From the learner of the alameen wa Salatu was Salam ala rasulillah Karim. Allah Allah He was hobby for many standard vicinity elomi Deen

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operates due to a law and the law of Peace and blessings granted last prophet muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and an all those who follow the path of righteousness until the last day.

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The characteristics of this oma

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are many.

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However, in this afternoon's presentation, I will look at four basic characteristics which Allah spoke about in the Quran

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about which he

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specified that this oma

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should have

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or does have or did have

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and

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will look after that

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as to what degree the oma still maintain these characteristics.

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And finally, how would we

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regain these characteristics if they are missing?

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The first characteristic

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which is mentioned into Al Baqarah, verse 143,

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in which a lot of fun Diana says, okay, Danica, john nakumatt,

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Lita, kuno, Shahada, Elena,

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in that way, we have made you a middle, or

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just

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nation in order to be witnesses.

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On mankind

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this concept of

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the middle, we mean, the just

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nation This is something which we find supported throughout the Quran, when Allah commands us to justice,

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when Allah

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commands us to avoid excesses in religion,

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wherein, we are commanded to avoid excesses, whether in the spending of our wealth

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or in any other facet of life.

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So, the Muslim oma

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is distinguished

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by this characteristic of being

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on the middle path,

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a path which neither

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leans to the right or to the left to one extreme or to the other,

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and Bob Muhammad wa sallam, on one occasion, as reported by an ambassador, drew a line in the sand on the desk, and then drew lines to the right and to the left, and then pointed out that this path causes the straight path, the one in the middle, the ones on the left and to the right, with a path which leads to hell.

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He identified that they had a rich path with a devil calling to it.

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So,

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this aspects of moderation

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of being

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of choosing that path, which does not include any of the extremes

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is something which is unique to this oma

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unique in that

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that message remains

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available to those who seek

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to know about it. In Islam, it's not that this message was unique in the sense that Allah only commanded the final prophet Muhammad wa sallam to take this path, and to call people to this path. In fact, all of the prophets of Allah call to this path. However, with the distortion of their messages, what remains, whether it be Judaism, or Christianity, what remains are the extremes.

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The wassup the middle path, which were taught by Prophet Musa alayhis, salam, and Prophet Isa Elisa Lam, these have been lost.

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So it is only with the final oma that this

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moderation this middle path has been maintained and if we look at

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Actually, in terms of the beliefs

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with regards to

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a PSA, for example, which is a key

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concept, in Christianity,

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we find that for Christians is is been elevated to

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divinity is a God

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with the Jews, they have lowered him to the status of being an illegitimate child.

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These are two extremes whereas in Islam, Islam maintain the actual status of Jesus being a noble prophet of Allah

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mourn a virgin birth, but not a God, not partaking in the qualities of divinity in any way, shape or form. So his status is maintained. And for sure, this was the same status which he thought

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he didn't teach other than that, but

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the

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other distorted religions, distortions from Islam, they took to the extremes

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with regard to Prophet Isa,

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we can also find

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with regards to other aspects of belief,

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in the case of

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belief in the angels,

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for Christian,

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they are validated

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Angel Gabriel,

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Gabriel

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to a status of being

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a partner in the Godhead, he is this Holy Ghost,

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Holy Spirit.

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whereas in the case of

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the Jews, they have reduced some of the angels to the status of being devils.

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For them, devils are fallen angels, angels who have disobeyed a lot.

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Whereas from the Islamic perspective, angels do not disobey a law nor are they partaking in divinity in any way, shape, or form.

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The second characteristic

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which is mentioned in the Quran

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is one

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which Allah ascribes to the oma

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due to certain

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practices are certain

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commandments which they fulfill a lie describes the oma

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as being the best

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quantum machine.

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But

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no alarm law describes, it's almost being the best. There are certain conditions for it being classified as the best.

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Tamura will allow for

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that

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we command the good, prohibit the evil, and we believe in Allah, these were conditions which if not fulfilled, then we are not the best.

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When we look in terms of Christianity and Judaism,

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the other major

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traumas which are of a religious nature,

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we find that

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they command the evil

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and prohibit the good

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and low they claim to believe in Allah and they do not really believe in Allah.

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In the case of Christianity,

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when we look at

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this, they're for a vision of marriage

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for priests,

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at least, Catholics amongst them.

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This is prohibiting the good

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and when we look in terms of alcohol, and pork, etc, things which Allah has defined as being

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prohibited,

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containing harm, evil, we find that they have made these things hollow.

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Similarly, amongst the Jews,

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we find that

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they

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in regards to interest,

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though they prohibit interest amongst themselves,

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they make it allowable

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amongst

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non Jews.

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So,

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the evil that is there, they have made permissible evil because if it is evil for themselves, it must be evil for all of mankind evil is not a relative thing.

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When God prohibited Riba, or interest, it was prohibited for all of mankind, not just for a segment of mankind.

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Similarly,

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when we

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look, or I should say when we look at Islam, we find consistently, throughout of all of the various commands and prohibitions, whatever Allah has prohibited are things which are fundamentally harmful to us. And whatever he has commanded are things which are fundamentally beneficial for us. And as such the oma from its inception,

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actively actively prohibited and, and called people to the provision of those things for evil, so much so that a lot of calls the evil things the mouth, the monkey, and the good things, the morrow those things that are well known.

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Though Allah, and department SLM had to define certain things for us in general, the globe is well known to mankind, it is, knowledge of it has been placed in the soul of the human being, fall hahahahahahaha. In the very creation of man, Allah had inspired in each and every soul, a consciousness, of good and of corruption.

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So it is a system of Islam, which

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puts or gives life to this consciousness. The consciousness alone without any system to guide it into action is useless. What Islam provides is a

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system by which this consciousness is innate consciousness which Allah has given us, may be applied in in our life, and for our benefit.

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And we know well that

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Allah, in speaking of

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the Jews, with regards to

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Swan Fatiha, he refers to them as Allah will do the Allah him, those on whom is his hand, his anger, because of the fact that

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they knew the good, they knew what was right, and did not command it.

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So

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when Allah describes the

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Jews in this fashion, is not doing so for us to develop an attitude towards Jews, that the Jews are just evil people, and that's, you know, what we extract from the Quran, know, when Allah describes the Jews in this fashion, he is warning us that we don't fall into the same trap

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that we don't become among those who know the good

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and don't command it.

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The third characteristic

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is that

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we are one, one brotherhood, a lot says and so mbrs 92. In the Heidi mucha, cometan washa

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boo, boo,

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verily, this, this nation is one nation

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and I am your Lord. So worship me.

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We are one nation,

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one nation

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in the sense that low allies divided us with regards to our nationalities, the different parts of the world in which we come.

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The fact was

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Have we single Lord, we have all accepted a lot.

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This is our point of unity and this is what unites us all in spite of the differences, natural differences which exists amongst us.

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A oneness

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and of course, there are many different

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other statements from the Quran in the middle of the night, fairly the believers are.

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The single brotherhood provides us lm instructing us a tour like one building, each part supporting the other and building, each part supporting the other in all of these concepts are fundamental to the oma, there are concepts which Prophet Muhammad wa sallam

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sought to engender amongst the Sahaba which they accepted, lived and sought to convey to those who came after them.

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The

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fourth characteristic

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is that of that one.

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As I said,

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in psoralen, Ron, verse 104, Walter coming from Oman, in their own island hideaway, Marina Del Maru and Honda and wound care, or Willa eco homophone.

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Let there be some amongst you

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a group

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who call to all that is good.

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By commanding

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righteousness and prohibiting evil.

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Such are the successful.

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So this characteristic, one of our

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that

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the message of Islam

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is to be conveyed to those around us is a

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basic characteristic of the oma for Mohammed,

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through from the beginning,

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conveyed the message to those around him,

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to his family,

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to his community, and ultimately, his community conveyed it to the world.

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And dow has with it various

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responsibilities.

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The Dow may be in the form of

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speech, calling people

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that will may take the form

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of armed struggle

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where it becomes necessary.

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But fundamentally,

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the Muslim oma has a responsibility of conveying the message of Islam

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to others.

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So these are the four basic characteristics that I wanted to look at this afternoon. One

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of being

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on the middle path

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between the extremes to

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of being the best, by commanding the good and forbidding the evil.

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Three of being

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a unified body

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and four, of command of conveying the message of Islam to the nation's

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To what degree

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does the oma today match up to these characteristics?

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Are we that middle nation?

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Are we maintaining that moderation

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in fact,

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when we look

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at the image of Muslims in the world today,

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it is quite opposite

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to that.

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We are identified as extremist

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extremists, either with regard to religion, which may be true or false,

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or extremists with regards to the use of violence

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to promote our ideals

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or what some claim to be our ideals

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And all we have to look at is the incidences which occurred within the past year

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in New York,

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the bombings, which have been attributed to Muslims,

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to realize that

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this is the way by which the image of Islam is distorted, in the minds of the masses of the people here and elsewhere, it's distorted by extremes.

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Either extremes in this sense of seeking to destroy America,

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were Muslims identified as those whose sole purpose or sole goal here is to destroy this country?

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Or

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that we are

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racist.

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And farahan represents the tool by which that other extreme is promoted. farrakhan who promotes the teachings of Elijah Muhammad,

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which claim that God is a black man,

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all colored people are gods and all white peoples are devils.

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This kind of belief, this kind of distortion and extreme concept, these are what are promoted as

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the Islamic

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beliefs. This is why usually when any of us informed the average American that we are Muslim, they assume automatically that we are followers of farrakhan.

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Now,

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how do we resolve this? How do we change this?

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One,

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we have to utilize the media to convey the correct image of Islam.

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The media

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is exploited by the enemies of Islam to distort that image.

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There's a lot that we can do, even though the media truly is not in our hands. But it is not so closed, that positive Islamic information cannot be channeled through that media to rich people,

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whether it be the television or the radio, or newspapers, magazines, etc.

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It is our responsibility to try to

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correct as much as we can have that these distortions which exist with regard to Muslims being extremists

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with regard to the religion,

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where extremism of fundamentalism

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is an accusation, a false accusation for those who seek to stick to the principles of religion, then we have to promote that this sticking to the fundamentals is not something which is extreme, it is something which is desirable.

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It is something which will provide for society, a stable model base,

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we can show that the situation in America, where models are deteriorating, with every decade,

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major changes are taking place in the moral

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fabric of the society.

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That

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it's because of the fact that the fundamental principles are not being fundamental principles, which of morality, which were part of Christianity are not being upheld, people are not sticking to those fundamentals. whereas in the case of Islam, it is not an option that people may stick to or not stick to a name be modified as time goes on. But it is a part and parcel of Islam which cannot be separated. There is no way they will never come a time. From the Muslim perspective that we would ever accept homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle.

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Never.

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There is no way no time when we would ever accept

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free sex

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as an option, people having relationships without marriage as being an option in society.

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These things we have to stand up for

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Unfortunately, our voice isn't heard in society.

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But if we stood up for it, you can be certain that there are many people in America

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who would respect Islam for this, because they see what is happening to the society. And they see that Christianity has, has no role in in correcting and saving the models of the society,

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they would highly respect those who stand firm, because of course, in this society, if you stand up and challenge, homosexuality, this is like a political death sentence.

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If you have a job,

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in any kind of government, circles, etc, you will be finished. So

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it is for Muslims to stand firm that their principles be known in the society,

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that they are those who command the good, and they oppose the evil, and they're good and evil is not changing with time, the evil is the evil, and the good is the good.

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And of course,

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we have to promote along with that,

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that the essence, what causes us to command this good and prohibited evil is our belief in a law, a belief in God,

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that we are opposed to the secularist trend of this society,

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where religion is totally divorced from society, and it becomes a personal,

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individual choice.

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And it is this process of secularization, which has led to the moral decay of the society.

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Islamic the Islamic program wherein the moral values of religion

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remain

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as a part of the fabric of the whole society, that this is an ideal,

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which should be striven for.

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We have to show that there is a distinction between

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the religious state in Islam and the religious faith in Christianity, because people coming out of the effect of

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religious control of Christianity

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have taken a negative approach to any religious control.

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Because Christianity was destroyed, its

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control was one which became oppressive.

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There was good in it, but much of it was oppressive.

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Because it contradicted science, and it sought to crush mine, to keep mine trapped within a particular framework. Whereas from the Islamic perspective, there is no contradiction between real science and Islam.

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Islam doesn't seek to crush the human mind, it seeks to free it.

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This is why science prospered within the realm of the Islamic

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states.

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So we have to promote this alternative.

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The alternative to degeneration, that of moral stability,

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and the alternative to

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secular education that have

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morally guided divinely guided education.

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Of course,

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when we speak here, we have to also look back at the home Muslim countries.

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And to be honest,

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what we find is a state of affairs where secularism has taken root in Muslim countries.

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And they are as much and as far away from the morally guided

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Islamic state as America

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or perhaps maybe even morality, some degree may be better here in some areas and it is in our own home countries.

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So

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that quality of being the best

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has been

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Last,

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the Muslim Ummah, today is the worst,

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they're the most backward for

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etc, etc, etc.

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All of the evils

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of corrupt society, an Islamic Society, whether it be prostitution, drugs, etc, etc. These things can be found in Muslim land.

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And as such diseases like aids,

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which technically speaking should never spread in a Muslim land

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wherein Muslims are

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not engaged in extramarital affairs for the most part, yet, in Muslim countries, in Muslim communities, such diseases are spreading.

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Showing that our commanding of the group within our home countries and prohibiting the evil has fallen into a state of

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negligence. Muslims are not commanding the good, not prohibiting the evil. And furthermore, when we even look at the foundation of it all,

00:31:19--> 00:31:23

we ask the question, Who are they believing in? Are they believing in a law?

00:31:24--> 00:31:40

Instead, when we go in the Muslim world, though people say they're believing in a law, their version of belief in Allah is not too much different from the version of the Christians. Either they've elevated Prophet Mohammed wa sallam to a status, where they are praying to Him.

00:31:41--> 00:31:50

They've given him divine attributes, or they've elevated other human beings, who are called saints, who become intermediaries between them and God.

00:31:51--> 00:31:53

Grave there in Masjid.

00:31:55--> 00:31:58

People are praying to other than Allah.

00:32:00--> 00:32:03

So naturally, with

00:32:05--> 00:32:06

that foundation missing,

00:32:08--> 00:32:12

the calling to the good before his vision of evil is

00:32:14--> 00:32:15

not being implemented.

00:32:18--> 00:32:22

And that can only be resolved by bringing people back to the belief in Allah.

00:32:23--> 00:32:28

To become the best of mankind, we have to go back to the belief in Allah.

00:32:29--> 00:32:45

Because belief in Allah means believing in Allah as he should be believed in, not merely knowing Allah, knowing who Allah is, but believing in Him as He should be believed in. So those who

00:32:46--> 00:32:55

pray to intermediaries or pray to others besides the law, law, they may say they believe in Allah we do not consider this to be belief in Allah.

00:32:57--> 00:33:01

This is why when the Quraysh offered a deal, two problems

00:33:02--> 00:33:03

that he worshiped

00:33:05--> 00:33:12

that they would worship a law along with him for one year, as long as he would worship their gods along with them for one year.

00:33:14--> 00:33:19

A lot had him tell them Well, yeah, even casiotone la Mata Mata boo.

00:33:21--> 00:33:22

This reverse.

00:33:24--> 00:33:27

I do not worship what you worship.

00:33:31--> 00:33:32

Because

00:33:35--> 00:33:39

Muslims can only worship one God,

00:33:41--> 00:33:42

then there is no way

00:33:43--> 00:33:53

that they could be involved in the worship of any other God along with that God. If they're involved, in other words, or other gods, then they're no longer worshiping that one, that one God.

00:33:56--> 00:34:01

This wire from lm also was instructed to one to say, well, and tomorrow we'll

00:34:02--> 00:34:03

be doing an output

00:34:04--> 00:34:07

that you all, are not worshiping what I worship,

00:34:08--> 00:34:18

even though you may join in your worship, join with me in the worship of Allah. As long as you are worshiping your God, you are not worshiping what I worship.

00:34:21--> 00:34:25

So, when Allah describes the rest of nations,

00:34:26--> 00:34:32

as having the quality of believing in Allah, Allah, Allah, this is

00:34:33--> 00:34:37

believing in a law it should be believed in.

00:34:38--> 00:34:40

This has to be returned to the oma.

00:34:42--> 00:34:46

And from that basis, then the good can properly be commanded.

00:34:48--> 00:34:50

And evil can properly be prohibited.

00:34:53--> 00:34:54

The third quality,

00:34:56--> 00:34:57

the oneness of the oma

00:34:59--> 00:34:59

we see from

00:35:00--> 00:35:04

The legacy of colonialism, the oma has been torn into pieces.

00:35:06--> 00:35:16

And prior to that, we saw various nationalisms arising, whether it was Arab nationalism, or whether it was Turkish nationals

00:35:18--> 00:35:22

arising at various points to weaken the oma

00:35:24--> 00:35:27

nationalism, which has no place in Islam

00:35:29--> 00:35:30

has become

00:35:31--> 00:35:34

the status quo for Muslim countries.

00:35:36--> 00:35:38

Everybody has a national flag,

00:35:40--> 00:35:41

a national day,

00:35:42--> 00:35:43

and the national anthem.

00:35:45--> 00:35:50

And everybody feels strong about that national flag.

00:35:52--> 00:35:54

In the eyes of most Muslims today,

00:35:55--> 00:35:57

if I were to burn,

00:35:58--> 00:35:59

the Algerian flag,

00:36:01--> 00:36:05

Algerians who are involved in the Algerian struggle,

00:36:06--> 00:36:11

or Atlantis, were involved in Atlantis struggle, or, you know,

00:36:12--> 00:36:19

Pakistanis or whoever, if I take any of their flags, and I burn the flag, even the most religious people will feel hurt.

00:36:21--> 00:36:22

But I'm burning the flag.

00:36:23--> 00:36:27

Really, I mean, this is something that's a symptom, there's a sickness there.

00:36:29--> 00:36:37

Because this flag has taken on a meaning they have been raised with such It was such a love for it, it has taken on a meaning that it's, you know,

00:36:38--> 00:36:51

that there is this quality now as affected their perception, in spite of the fact that they're, you know, committed themselves to Islam and trying to you know, but this love is still there is strong love.

00:36:55--> 00:36:58

And until Muslims are able to remove that from their heart,

00:37:01--> 00:37:02

remove

00:37:03--> 00:37:08

those feelings of nationalism from their heart, then the oma cannot come together.

00:37:10--> 00:37:13

It's not to be attacked, from its root.

00:37:17--> 00:37:18

It has no place.

00:37:21--> 00:37:23

Our nationality is Islam.

00:37:26--> 00:37:32

Though we may be born in different countries, we may speak different languages, we may look

00:37:34--> 00:37:39

or have different characteristics in terms of physical characteristics. However,

00:37:40--> 00:37:46

these are characteristics which are handed down to us from one Father, and one mother.

00:37:48--> 00:37:48

That's the bottom line.

00:37:51--> 00:37:52

Our language

00:37:54--> 00:38:01

needs to be again Arabic, the common language should be the language of Muslims, Arabic.

00:38:04--> 00:38:05

When Arabic

00:38:06--> 00:38:19

stopped being spread amongst Muslims, as the national languages, you found now a basis for the other nationalisms to arise.

00:38:22--> 00:38:31

This is why the colonial powers were very, very, you know, deliberate, in their stopping that spread,

00:38:32--> 00:38:43

causing the people peoples who used to the language Arabic languages, the people of North Africa, for example, and into Lebanon, and these are the places

00:38:44--> 00:38:48

Sudan is also the original languages were not Arabic.

00:38:49--> 00:38:50

They are their own languages.

00:38:51--> 00:39:30

However, when Islam spread to these areas, and the Islamic superstructure was set up over the country, the people in the course of dealing with the rulers and those in administration to communicate with them, they would adopt some Arabic words in their own language as a means of communication because they'll be using these common words they became eventually a part of the language. And they're all languages they started to write in Arabic script. And eventually as more and more words were absorbed into the language, the languages evolved into Arabic.

00:39:33--> 00:39:37

You can see even till today certain languages that are different stages of that process.

00:39:40--> 00:39:44

However, when the colonial powers stepped in,

00:39:46--> 00:39:47

you'll find them

00:39:48--> 00:39:54

making those countries write their languages in Latin script.

00:39:55--> 00:39:59

This is part of the process to to ensure that the Arabic

00:40:00--> 00:40:06

Writing in Arabic, which was a means of helping the language is turned over into Arabic languages stopped.

00:40:08--> 00:40:10

You know languages like Malaysia,

00:40:13--> 00:40:14

Malaysia and Indonesia

00:40:15--> 00:40:35

was written in Arabic even still to today, some older generation people still know how to write. But the majority of people when they're writing the Malay language in Indonesia and Malaysia today and Indonesia is the largest in terms of numbers of Muslims in this country. In the Muslim world.

00:40:36--> 00:40:38

They're right in Latin script.

00:40:41--> 00:40:49

Similarly, with hausa in West Africa, and Swahili in East Africa, these are all languages which are written in

00:40:50--> 00:40:56

Arabic script, Turkish in Turkey used to be written in Arabic script. Now these are all written in

00:40:58--> 00:40:58

Latin.

00:41:00--> 00:41:01

So

00:41:02--> 00:41:12

Arabic needs to be revived the importance of learning of Arabic in Muslim countries in various Muslim areas, they deserve to be revived.

00:41:14--> 00:41:59

That'd be a second or first language wherever possible, in any case, Muslims to again regain that their common language, when we have it fill in terms of salon, but there is no not in terms of communication of fine masses of people in Indonesia, and in Philippines and all these other countries in Pakistan, who may know how to read the Quran in terms of the Arabic script, because it's tradition that every parent teaches their child, you know, to read the Quran, or they bringing somebody into their home to teach them to read the Quran. However, it is only parroting the letters of the Quran. So the message of the Quran is not being conveyed.

00:42:00--> 00:42:14

They only go as far as being able to say the words of the Quran. But the meaning is lost because Arabic doesn't have a role in the society in terms of communication, it is not a second language even.

00:42:18--> 00:42:46

So there is great harm. Not only does the loss of Arabic, as a second or first language among Muslims, have the effect of breaking up the oma giving a fertile ground to feelings of nationalism and tribalism. But further, it serves to break people away from the the fundamental source of Islam the Quran.

00:42:50--> 00:42:50

So

00:42:52--> 00:42:57

it's very vital for Muslims in planning a strategy for the future.

00:42:59--> 00:43:00

That Arabic

00:43:01--> 00:43:01

be

00:43:03--> 00:43:10

a major part of that strategy of redeveloping Muslim society, bringing Muslim back to Islam,

00:43:12--> 00:43:23

as well as a concerted effort to oppose feelings of nationalism are symbols of nationalism, wherever they may appear.

00:43:27--> 00:43:30

The fourth principle, that of our

00:43:34--> 00:43:38

here in America, or I should say, before going to the fourth principle,

00:43:40--> 00:43:42

we should look at also the effects

00:43:43--> 00:43:47

of nationalism on the oma here in America

00:43:49--> 00:43:49

that

00:43:53--> 00:44:00

we have two communities, the indigenous community and the Arab community

00:44:04--> 00:44:09

when in fact, it is only one and it should only be one, but we have to.

00:44:10--> 00:44:21

So we have these questions raised, how should Arabs communicate with the indigenous people? How should the indigenous people communicate to the Arabs This is something which should not be.

00:44:24--> 00:44:28

Now there are problems from both sides

00:44:29--> 00:44:31

that need to be resolved.

00:44:33--> 00:44:51

And we have to approach this issue of this division of the separation between the two communities which is which goes beyond language. It's not just because these people are Arabic speaking and these people are English speaking. This is where that division lies. No.

00:44:52--> 00:44:55

It goes beyond that. It goes

00:44:56--> 00:44:58

into actual

00:44:59--> 00:44:59

culture.

00:45:00--> 00:45:12

Sure, the cultural approach is that there is if there are two different cultures here, when in fact, we, as Muslims share, have a common culture. I mean, we may have other

00:45:14--> 00:45:15

individual

00:45:16--> 00:45:47

customs, from our, the areas that were raised, etc. But there is a common culture of common Islamic culture that we share, which should bring us together. And these differences are minor, they don't play a major role. But unfortunately, today, there isn't that common Islamic culture is there. And what we find instead are the, the customs, they've taken the place, the customs of the Americans and the customs of the Arabs in or

00:45:48--> 00:45:51

caused them to be as if two different groups are together.

00:45:53--> 00:45:59

And the establishment of Islam here in America will not take place.

00:46:01--> 00:46:03

In individual communities,

00:46:08--> 00:46:14

we will not be able to establish Islam here as ethnic communities.

00:46:16--> 00:46:25

Islam has to be established, in accordance with that one oneness of brotherhood,

00:46:27--> 00:46:43

that brothers regardless of their background, because their commitment is to the establishment of Islam to pleasing Allah, then they will make whatever sacrifices are necessary to come together and to try to do this together.

00:46:46--> 00:46:47

But right now,

00:46:48--> 00:46:50

our situation is that

00:46:53--> 00:46:57

our Arab brothers, generally speaking, they

00:46:58--> 00:46:59

like to live in the suburbs.

00:47:00--> 00:47:50

And they build their matches in the suburbs, far away from the masses of the Muslims who tend to be in the inner cities. Okay. Now, of course, the inner cities are areas of high crime. And at the same time, it's very unfair for the our Muslim brothers in inner cities to expect the other brothers, our brothers to put their children in a circumstance where there'll be exposed to, you know, high crime or drugs, etc. So, what we need here is some kind of meeting point, a middle point, which is not inner city, which is not far out in the boondocks, suburbs. Right, some middle point here, where we can have a Masjid acceptable or where communities can be built.

00:47:51--> 00:47:53

But we both have to recognize that these

00:47:55--> 00:47:56

desires that we have,

00:47:57--> 00:48:09

or the circumstances under which we live these, we have to take into account and be prepared to make what sacrifices are necessary to bring together that

00:48:10--> 00:48:59

unified community. Because no, truly the homes that are in the far out suburbs, maybe palatial, very beautiful and having all these facilities and the home, you know, which are closest to the inner city tend to be, you know, much more humble. And that's also we have to consider is really, it more important for us to have a palatial home. And all of our neighbors are all non believers are is it better to have a modest home, and all of our neighbors are believers. That's what we have to consider. When we consider certain Muslim figures who have been killed here. In America, people like smile for roofing, and others. When you go to look to see where they were living, they were living

00:48:59--> 00:49:06

in the middle of Jewish neighborhoods far away from the center of the city. So they were starved to death. They're screaming at the top of their lungs and nobody would come to their aid.

00:49:09--> 00:49:11

So it is not surprising.

00:49:13--> 00:49:28

Similarly, if we have schools and Masjid that are not in a Muslim community, then whenever anything happens in the Muslim world, anything which is displeasing to Americans is happening the Muslim world, then the masjid and the schools become target.

00:49:30--> 00:49:33

They're broken into spray painted and all.

00:49:36--> 00:49:46

So, Muslims have to find here have to find that meeting ground. That middle point, Muslims from both

00:49:47--> 00:50:00

so called communities have to who are committed or feel that there is a requirement here of establishing Islam. They have to plan some kind of strategy

00:50:00--> 00:50:13

Which is practical, and which may be acceptable to those Muslims who really want to do something here to establish a truly Islamic community, as an example,

00:50:14--> 00:50:21

to the rest of Muslims here in the country, as well as outside the country, as well as to the non Muslims here.

00:50:22--> 00:50:25

So, the issues of nationalism,

00:50:26--> 00:50:30

the split up of the oma, we suffer from here.

00:50:32--> 00:50:39

And we can't we will continue to suffer from these problems until we tackle them head on.

00:50:40--> 00:50:44

Until we recognize them for what they are. And we tackle them

00:50:46--> 00:50:46

relentlessly.

00:50:48--> 00:50:50

The fourth principle of thou,

00:50:52--> 00:50:55

thou, calling to Allah,

00:50:56--> 00:50:57

which was

00:50:59--> 00:51:02

manifest throughout the life of problems as Allah,

00:51:05--> 00:51:12

which was manifest in the lives of the prophets in general, the Sahaba the companions of the profit,

00:51:15--> 00:51:17

something which today

00:51:18--> 00:51:25

we find lacking in the Muslim world, Muslim communities where Muslims are

00:51:27--> 00:51:29

various minorities, for example, in India,

00:51:30--> 00:51:44

you have a Muslim minority, that's someplace around 120 million. I mean, if you can call it a minority, but it's a minority, because the total population there is someplace around 800 million. So it is a minority, but it's 120 million,

00:51:45--> 00:51:47

but that 100 and 20 million

00:51:48--> 00:51:50

has no effect

00:51:51--> 00:51:57

on that society, virtually no effect in terms of propagation Have

00:51:58--> 00:52:04

you traveled throughout the country there? You know, my kids get

00:52:06--> 00:52:09

many places I mean, I traveled personally to

00:52:10--> 00:52:18

New Delhi and Hyderabad and Calcutta etc. And these places are you going to message you hardly find people inside

00:52:19--> 00:52:20

and

00:52:22--> 00:52:27

the Hindus that they live among are the Sikhs or whatever, Muslims

00:52:28--> 00:52:31

are not involved in any way in terms of propagation.

00:52:32--> 00:53:13

Virtually, in fact, what you find is Muslims who have their beliefs mixed up with these people's beliefs, they will share I mean, you have tombs of Muslims, so called Muslim saints, that Hindus will come to for Baraka, you know, Hindus and Muslims who come to they both share you know, trying to get Baraka from these graves is so mixed up, I mean, very, very little dialogue going on. I can't say absolutely none because I'm sure there are some in some states whether the sowmya in Kerala and Kerala and others there are you know, stronger Tao going on, but in general from what I observed, it is virtually non existent.

00:53:15--> 00:53:18

Virtually non existent and this is

00:53:19--> 00:53:40

throughout the Muslim world, wherever there are Muslim minorities or wherever there are non Muslim non minorities in countries there is no process of dialogue going on. And this is also reflected here by those people who you know, who are Mahajan are immigrants who have come here, you know, who are here to study etc.

00:53:42--> 00:53:45

Dawa amongst them, for the most part is very weak.

00:53:47--> 00:53:55

They will live their lives, come here study for so many years and go back without ever saying Islam to anybody around them.

00:54:00--> 00:54:02

And this is one of the reasons why

00:54:04--> 00:54:13

the, the devil's agents of the devil, were able to promote and to to, to spread false Islam here.

00:54:15--> 00:54:37

Because there was a vacuum. Those who came, of course, fundamentally, they didn't come for the sake of Allah. So I guess we cannot really expect that they're going to come with Tao, but inshallah they fear the law, you know, whereas in sphere of a law, where is this, but then the country that they came from, they were not raised with

00:54:38--> 00:54:40

a consciousness of a mission,

00:54:41--> 00:54:45

that each and every Muslim has a duty

00:54:46--> 00:54:59

to not only practice Islam, but to convey it to others. They were not raised with that consciousness. So naturally, they came here. Islam is their personal, private religion. In fact, we even find in many places where

00:55:00--> 00:55:08

Muslims from the local population come into Islam. The Muslims, they look at them, you know, what does this person want? Now, you know,

00:55:09--> 00:55:13

they look at them very distraught

00:55:14--> 00:55:17

that they are coming into Islam because they want something

00:55:18--> 00:55:33

they're not looked at as being real Muslims in find it sometimes expressed in different societies You know? And it is a big big mistake. A big mistake. Right now, the major effort of Dawa is being

00:55:34--> 00:55:46

shouldered by the indigenous Muslims. However, the population of immigrant Muslims is equal to if not more than the indigenous Muslims.

00:55:48--> 00:55:53

And their responsibility here in America is just as great.

00:55:55--> 00:56:03

There's a tendency to say, How can it is the responsibility really of the Americans is the American Congress is their responsibility to spread Islam?

00:56:04--> 00:56:16

Maybe we can try to help them you know, if we have a chance we have some spare time whenever we try to help them. But it's their responsibility. No, it is the responsibility of everyone who is here.

00:56:17--> 00:56:27

Because fundamentally, meaning here has no justification, unless one is involved in our

00:56:29--> 00:56:31

Muslim scholars traditionally,

00:56:32--> 00:56:43

based on statements of problems as well as with regard to one who dies amongst the disbelievers that he is, he absorbed himself from them.

00:56:46--> 00:57:15

Kids you are being compulsory for Muslims. It is, it was inconceivable that a Muslim would make his drop from a Muslim land from a community of Muslims and go to live amongst the Kufa unless he is going to trade and come back No, this is this is something that is always going to spread Islam, but to just go and live and be amongst them marry a Muslim and be like reminiscence. No, it was inconceivable in the past. However today it's the

00:57:16--> 00:57:16

norm

00:57:19--> 00:57:30

when in fact those who refuse to convey the message who come here and do not convey that message are cursed by a lot a lot of criticism and

00:57:32--> 00:57:38

in the lady next to Mona and then I'm in Albania. Buddha invited me by now holiness

00:57:40--> 00:57:47

embody my by now the nurses in kitabi una de la la jolla nanomolar

00:57:48--> 00:57:51

Valley those who hide

00:57:53--> 00:57:59

what we have revealed from the scriptures and guidance after we have made it clear to them in the book

00:58:00--> 00:58:05

such a person by law and curse by all who curse the curse by Allah

00:58:07--> 00:58:08

manual in

00:58:11--> 00:58:18

this means not just that you are deliberately somebody a American comes to you and asks you what is Islam you say I don't want to tell you

00:58:19--> 00:58:22

I mean that people think well this is keep in mind this is your hiding No,

00:58:23--> 00:58:35

for you to just live go to work and come back home you sit on the bus, you you know you you live in this society here and you do not tell people about Islam, this is hiding the knowledge

00:58:36--> 00:58:40

This is living a life of Hitman Hitman in

00:58:41--> 00:58:42

your living it

00:58:45--> 00:59:02

and in fact, many of us coming here have adopted the characteristics of the people here. So that people cannot distinguish between ourselves so a person would say at least, you know, I am calling people to Islam by my character.

00:59:04--> 00:59:10

You know, maybe I my language is not so good. But I am a good example. You know, when I'm in my workplace,

00:59:11--> 00:59:14

people see a difference between me and the other.

00:59:16--> 00:59:18

When the people indulge in

00:59:19--> 00:59:21

vile talk, etc, etc.

00:59:22--> 00:59:23

I don't indulge in it.

00:59:25--> 00:59:30

When they pass around, you know, moods or whatever, whatever I don't take part.

00:59:36--> 00:59:42

When the boss is not present on the job. I don't slack off like everybody else.

00:59:45--> 00:59:48

So there is nothing which distinguishes me from them.

00:59:51--> 00:59:59

In fact, maybe I've become more dishonest. You find Muslims prepared to cheat and to steal

01:00:00--> 01:00:13

To do all these kind of things to get ahead in the society, because getting ahead being successful and gaining money is the goal. So they by any means necessary, they'll do it. So they become known. I know when I traveled to Central America,

01:00:15--> 01:00:17

the Muslims, they nicknamed them the burning Turks.

01:00:19--> 01:00:25

Because they are known that whenever their businesses were running down, they would set them on fire and collect insurance is what they were known for.

01:00:28--> 01:00:29

Known for dishonesty.

01:00:31--> 01:00:44

For the opposite, was that when Islam when Muslims first left, you know, the dissenters of Islam and went to the other parts of the world, they were known for their honesty.

01:00:45--> 01:00:53

This is what caused Islam to spread. Where else would you find a businessman who's selling you a product and telling you what is wrong with it?

01:00:56--> 01:00:57

This is something unheard of

01:01:00--> 01:01:03

this caused people to wonder, you know, what leads these people to do this.

01:01:05--> 01:01:10

not cheating with the scales, you know, but giving the full right to those who are buying.

01:01:14--> 01:01:20

But today, Muslims turn people away from Islam,

01:01:21--> 01:01:22

by their own

01:01:23--> 01:01:24

Islamic character,

01:01:25--> 01:01:31

and are not involved in general, in Java to the people around them, they don't feel it is their responsibility even.

01:01:33--> 01:01:33

So,

01:01:35--> 01:01:36

because of that,

01:01:37--> 01:01:38

they

01:01:39--> 01:01:43

do not have the characteristic of being the best of nation.

01:01:45--> 01:01:55

They are not fulfilling their responsibility. So they are the curses among nations, they are suffering, the nations have gathered upon them, like dogs with a platter

01:01:56--> 01:01:57

tearing them apart.

01:01:58--> 01:02:05

Because all of the characteristics, which Allah has specified as being

01:02:06--> 01:02:13

remain characteristic characteristics of Muslims, they do not possess. So how then can we expect a lot of help?

01:02:15--> 01:02:22

We say in terms of the lion, Sancho, as Allah said, however, who amongst us is helping the religion of Allah?

01:02:23--> 01:02:31

Who is trying to really practice that religion in the Muslim world? It is so few having such a

01:02:32--> 01:02:41

weak effect, that we should not really be surprised that a lot of health doesn't come. Instead, what we find is that the mass of Muslims

01:02:43--> 01:02:50

they have become like the Jews, and the Christians believing that Paradise is their birthright.

01:02:51--> 01:02:54

Paradise is their birthright.

01:02:55--> 01:03:04

As far from always, SLM, said, cool material hallucinogen. All of my nation will enter Paradise, and that's when they start.

01:03:05--> 01:03:08

Every Muslim is going to paradise.

01:03:09--> 01:03:37

So as long as you're Muslim, you're going to paradise if you're a non Muslim, you're not going to die. And this is what Muslims now are passing on have passed on for generations now inherited, that Paradise is the birthright of the Muslims. However, the Ramones I'll send them said that he put a condition he said in lamb and other except for he who refuses, of course, when he said that the companions as a woman

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who would refuse or miserable I would refuse to go to Paradise. Island said, Man apart, I need an agenda. whoever obeys me, enters paradise woman upon me for the ABA and whoever disobeys me has refused. That is the bottom line. So Paradise is not a birthright. It is the birthright it is the rights of those who obey the messenger of Allah

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sallallahu Sallam who lived in accordance to the Sunnah, the Quran and the Sunnah as understood by the early generations of righteous Muslims, it is their right this is what Allah is promised for them alone. So, Muslims unfortunately, have been deluded, do not understand that Paradise is something which has to be earned. Islam is something which has to be chosen. It is not something which is inherited and Paradise is not something which is the birthright.

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inshallah, I hope that Muslims from this conference, all of us would seek to revive these characteristics in the oma

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to work

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concert

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Certainly to this towards this goal to revive these characteristics, to call people to these characteristics to

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not only understand them on the theoretical level, but to apply them within our own lives.

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And if we don't do it,

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then we have no right to paradise.

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We need to know this. We need to remind our brothers and sisters of this, that Paradise is not our birthright.

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It is only for those who have followed the way that Allah has granted us to his final prophet Muhammad Allah