Kamal El-Mekki – We Are A Moderate Nation
AI: Summary ©
The speaker discusses the strict nature of Islam, including the use of animal foods and Halal or Christian law. They stress the importance of avoiding touching things during menses and learning to be aware of the rules and laws. The speaker also emphasizes the use of animal foods and Halal or Christian law, as well as the importance of learning to be aware of laws and regulations. They stress the need for anyone to understand their religion in order to live in a flexible and logical way.
AI: Summary ©
Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim al hamdu Lillahi Rabbil alameen wa Salatu was Salam ala rasulillah. Meanwhile, early, he was so happy about.
Let me start by telling a joke about that.
So basically, there was this guy, and he was he wanted to, he was graduating, and he was going to check his grade. Now overseas, you the university typically will put your grades out on this board and everyone looks for their name. And then they see the results. So the guy tells his friends, he says, I can't go to the school. But when you go check my grades for me, all right, and then come to my house and tell me my grades, but I'm going to be sitting with my father. So if I failed, one grade, tell me Muhammad says Salaam Alaikum. And if I fail to grade say, Mohammed den, says Salam Alaikum. So the guy is sitting with his father and waiting and then his friend goes, checks his
grade, comes back and he tells him, Ahmed Mohammed says Salaam Alaikum.
reason I chose that joke is has the word oma in it. And our next talk is about how this is an oma, that is a moderate oma. And there are many people who think that Islam is a very strict religion. Right? Many people think that, that Islam is very strict that you're following, and men pay attention. So a lot of people think this, especially the young people in the audience, pay attention. Because you think Islam is so strict. There's so many things that I can't do. And that's how you're taught Islam. By the way, you were taught that it's just a list of do's and don'ts. And that's why and if the adults and parents in the audience could pay attention. That's why when your
children ask about Islam, they're only questions are halal and haram, because that's what they think Islam is a list of things that are valid and eliciting things that are haraam. Pay attention. Young men pay attention.
Pay attention to what I'm saying.
So a lot of young people think Islam is a list of things that are halal, and Haram. That's why when young people ask questions, it's only hello and Hello. It's the weirdest and strangest things is just holler. around until now, of years of dealing with youth, I have yet to experience a young person come up to me and ask how do we do this? Where do you put your hand in record? How do you do this movement or that movement insula? It's always halal and haram questions because that's what we teach them Islam is. But it's actually not that and there's always a wisdom and a logic to why something is halal or haram. But because that's how we present it to them. In their minds. They
think Islam is just a list of do's and don'ts. And that's why a lot of young people believe and a lot of people in the audience might believe that Islam is just generally a very strict religion. A couple of things one, the more you learn about Islam, the more you will you will realize that it's actually not that strict that there's a lot of leeway in many many issues. For example, many people if they get a small paper cut, they think that they have to go and redo the will do. Many people are like that they get a small paper cut that okay to make my will do all over again. But that's actually not the case you study and you find it it's a lot more flexible than that. A lot of people
think that if you touch a dog, it nullifies your will do or if someone's pet dog touches you on your way to the masjid it nullifies your will do No it doesn't. If a dog licks your hand or something like that, all you have to do is wash your hand and you go straight to the machine, you continue with your Salah.
Likewise touching a man or a woman like for example, you have Waldo, and you go to the grocery store and the cashier lady, she's giving you the change back. It's just touches your palm a little bit. Oh, she ruined my world. Oh, no, doesn't ruin your world. Oh, and the only touch from the opposite gender that would ruin your widow is one that is associated or comes along with desire. And I'm sure when she gave you the change in your hand and her finger just touched you lightly. You weren't overtaken with desire or anything like that. So it's not it's not as people think it is. How about
raw meat halal or haram?
haram Ah, once you think raw meats are the only people who know how to answer this question for
Really are Lebanese people because they have Cuba, which is raw meat with spices and everything salad. Crocodile halal Haram.
Now that was a trick. That's how I'm actually I just put that on purpose. Mermaids another haram
uh huh ha, thank you. Yeah, they don't exist. You're right. But if you want any,
some scholars in the past said, Yeah, murgia halaal to eat and so on. That would be weird, wouldn't it? You have a human torso and you're eating arms and ears. But okay, the they don't exist. All right. So anyways, the more you learn about Islam, the more you discover that it's flexible, and it's not as strict as you think it is.
Now, Islam is strict when it comes to issues of belief issues of al Qaeda, and you will find it more relaxed when it comes to issues affect and of dealings and acts of worship. So in issues of belief, Islam is very strict, our belief regarding Allah subhanaw taala, you cannot have any doubt about it. And you cannot have two opinions about Allah azza wa jal, with issues of belief. It's very strict. Are you with me? with issues of belief? It's strict?
So is there only one God? There is no
no ifs, ands or buts about that. It's strict. And can you have doubts about that issue? You cannot have any doubt in that issue? But can you have doubt whether when I come up from record, do I put my hands on my chest with my hands go down to my sides. That's, that's more flexible. So you find in different opinions, there's flexibility, but in issues of belief, Islam is a very strict religion. But most people also think that there's more harm in Islam than Heller. This is an exercise I always like to do, is they're more halal, or haram. So if we were to take for example, the different kinds of materials are there more halon materials and raw materials? What are the raw materials?
materials gelatin, what do you wear something made of gelatin?
golden silk for me of all right, what else?
What materials are hot? Mmm
hmm. Yes. Shout it out.
Polish is wrong.
Okay. All right. What else? So you can think of anything because there's so much but generally it would be things that are made of big skin or dog's skin. You wouldn't wear something like that. Or even the the skin of a wolf or Fox, that type of animal. But see, all the rest is held on. There is so much Helen, like drinks, what kind of drinks or how long? alcoholic drinks? How long? What else?
What else? Shout it out.
See you can't you have to be creative now. Blood. Right? Blood, right? No, nobody drinks urine. What's the matter with you? It's not a drink.
You have that in your fridge at home?
Let me grab a cold one.
So, but these are things people typically drink blood or things that have alcohol. Well, all the rest is hella how many kinds of drinks are there? How many kinds of fruit juices are there vegetable juice, all kinds of other drinks. Hello. You see? plate so you when you look at it, you actually find there's a lot more heroin than there is heroin. But even the things that were prohibited from there's a wisdom and there is a logic behind why Allah subhanaw taala forbade us from these things. But I want to give you some examples because Allah subhanaw taala tells us in the Quran, work that you can now come mutton wasa is a Kunal Shahada. And another way akuna Rasulullah Alaykum shahida
this verse is saying and thus we have made you this Omar Mohammed. So the Lord is a lump, a community that is just or just community, a moderate community in the middle, right in the middle between what if you compare Islamic law to Jewish and Christian law, you will really understand how we're a middle oma or we've been we're just in the in the middle, we're balanced. We're just okay. And this is one thing that I want the only thing that I want you to walk away from this lecture with that we really have a very fair and balanced Sharia. So I'm going to give you examples of Jewish dietary law, and I want you to see how strict it is. Okay, everybody with me?
All right. For example, in Jewish dietary law, there are certain parts of permissible halal animals that cannot be eaten. Does this exist in Islam? And is there any part of the sheep that you can eat, you can eat all of it, any part you can eat it
Can anyone think of a part you can't eat from a sheep?
What?
I can't hear you. So, but in certain in dietary laws and Jewish dietary laws, even halal animals, some parts of it cannot be eaten. Also, you have the meat of other birds or mammals cannot be eaten with dairy cannot be mixed with anything that's cheese or yogurt or milk. But we can do that. We can mix it the way we want. You can pour milk over your steak and eat it right. But for them very strict, and according to some views, and I'm only going over the more or less universal Jewish dietary laws. According to some views. Fish cannot be eaten with meat either. Okay, then the utensils the cooking pots, if they have come into contact with meat, it cannot be used for dairy.
Yeah, honey. If your pot has come into contact with meat, you can boil milk in it, believe it or not, that's very strict. And for Muslims, you watch the part you put whatever you want to put in it, everyone paying attention.
But also utensils that came into contact with non kosher food cannot be used for kosher food. And great products made by non Jews cannot be eaten by Jews. Any great product made by a non Jew cannot be consumed for us. Is that the case? It doesn't matter who makes a great product as long as it's not wine. Of course.
If it's a Hindu or whoever it is, we can eat it and consume it. So you see how it's flexible for us. Also for the Jews, shellfish, lobsters, oysters, shrimps, clams, the good stuff. What about it? crabs? All of it forbidden? All the forbidden. But for us, it's holiday. They have a very strict dietary laws. Also reptiles you can eat reptiles, can we?
What kind of reptiles Can we
just set it? reptiles? Yeah, lizards you can anyone have lizard in here before anyone try lizard? Nobody. They say tastes like fish. Yeah. So lizards, you know, imagine you're a Jew, you couldn't have a good Lizard Man. You guys can have that blessing you have the honor. Also they can eat insects, we can eat insects hamdulillah
what kind of insects are eaten by by Muslims? Typically?
locusts. Lucas. You know what those are very, very, very big grasshoppers. So you see them in their dietary law, everything is very strict for us. Very, very relaxed. Okay. Even in when it comes to the menses, for the woman, very strict laws in a Jewish law very, very strict that in for a woman during her menses, if even if she touches something else, that thing becomes unclean. And it can be it can contaminate other things. But for us, it's very simple. It's very relaxed. I sort of the Aloha would report that during her menses, she would drink from a container, the process of him would turn it to where she drank from, and he would drink from that part, you know, and the other
day that he would show her that how the impurity is not in her hand, and she can touch things. You can sit with a woman in the same bed, but in Jewish law, you cannot do that very, very strict.
So you see that Islam, the laws in Islam are more relaxed than they are in Judaism, for example. I also want to share one thing with you. This is just for fun, that in Jewish law, there's a prayer that the men say every morning, it's amazing. They say, Praise Are you or Lord or God, King of the universe, who did not make me a non Jew. So they're saying hamdulillah for being a Jew, just like we said, hamdulillah for being Muslims. Then they say, who did not make me a slave. And who did not making me a woman?
Yeah, they say that die every morning, huh? What do you think of That's very nice. Yeah. Shallow, a sunny boy. Shallow, a sunny, avid, shallow, a sunny, Isha. That's the woman part.
I love that. Fantastic. Anyways, this is when it comes to Jewish law that I just wanted you to look at these examples and see how strict Jewish dietary law is. Now. Look at the Christians now. So now we went at one extreme and it's so difficult then look at the Christian law. What's Christian law?
You might ask, ask, what law?
What law? Everything's allowed. And everybody's just gonna jump rope into paradise. It's so easy. You accept Jesus as your savior died for your sins, you accept him in your life. And that's it. You're guaranteed paradise. You know, they have that belief. Anyone know that? One time I was sitting talking to a Christian person. He said so in Islam, you guys don't know if you're going to paradise. I was surprised by that question. I said Who knows if they're going to paradise, he said
Like for you, it's not how it works.
So
for them, dietary laws, what dietary laws even though in Leviticus in the Bible has all the do's and don'ts of what you can and can eat, in Newport in parts of the New Testament, they said, Look, it doesn't make you unclean, and so on and so forth. So now they eat pork, they eat all kinds of things. They have no no kind of dietary law whatsoever. And everything else is very relaxed. So we're not like that. And we're not like that allows you again, now, I hope you would appreciate it more made us a moderate Omar in the middle. Our laws are not that strict. And in other nations, even if an impurity falls on your clothing, you can't watch the clothing have to cut that part off. But
for us, it's so much easier and so much more relaxed. I hope you're starting to appreciate how wonderful Islamic Sharia is.
Shallow, a sunny, Isha.
And
so now I want you to focus about a few things in Islamic law.
First of all, you find it very balanced, everything is so balanced, Islam doesn't ask of you to put yourself in a cave, or to shun everything from the dunya. And to not even gather wealth, and to not work hard for it. Just everything is balanced. There's a balance between this life and the next life in Islam. It doesn't tell you to ignore this world and only prepare for the next and it doesn't tell you just focus on this one. And not there's always a balance. You know, other other religions, you'll find people staying in monasteries or staying staying in some kind of temple at the top of a hill and this is their entire life. But we're able to live a normal life under Islamic Sharia. There
is a balance between reason and revelation and the law. So you'll always explained to us you throw that thing one more time. I'm gonna throw you in there you stop throwing that around. So matter with you.
Somebody tell that kid to stop that. Everybody pay attention.
didn't fly all the way from Calgary so you guys can mess around. Pay attention.
Welcome.
Everybody with me.
Fantastic, Tony. So important stuff here. Now you go to school tomorrow, they start attacking Islam, you don't know, I wish I paid attention. Pay attention now.
All right. So we're saying there's a balance between revelation and reason. There's a balance between the individual and the community, there is a balance between the religion and the world. And so Islam always chooses the middle positions in the majority of things, even like even issues of belief that we said are strict, you find that you know, again, with the Christians is so relaxed, you believe you take Jesus as your Savior, you basically skip rope into paradise, you know, for the Muslims, you know, one is still okay, you're going into paradise or not. This is something you strive for your whole life, you balanced between love, hope and fear, you worship a lot of love,
hope and fear, not other people who just have hope. Some people just have fear. But again, we always have a balance, I want you to appreciate the fact that everything is balanced in Islam, acts of worship, again, very balanced in Islam, you have different opinions, you have leeway, different opinions, make it more relaxed for people.
versus if you look at as we as we did with the Jewish law. Also, the the laws of Sharia, they're all logical, and they're all within reason. And they're all within your capability and within your capacity.
Type. Let's look at some examples. Pay attention.
Don't make me say that again.
If you want to fool around, go outside, leave now.
All right.
So
we are saying in Islamic law, for example, it's so fair and so balanced. There's no obligation beyond your capacity. Can you think of anything in Islam that Allah azza wa jal made obligatory upon you. And it's beyond human ability to do.
It wouldn't make sense. And Allah azza wa jal created us he knows what we can and can't do. He wouldn't ask us of something that we cannot do. True or false? Can you think of anything that allows you to ask us that we can't do maybe there are things we can never perfect, but we can always make a step towards improving them, or having some of this aspect, right. So a lot of to get in his law in Islam doesn't ask us of things that are beyond our capacity. Likewise, Allah as we get out of his fairness, he makes all the good things permissible and all the bad things forbidden. Everything that's harmful for you find it to be forbidden, all the things that are good for you, you find it to
be permissible, and this is then one of also the definitions of the halaal thing. Salah thing is that that which agrees with your nature as well and different
Within things, you will see the bad aspect in it. Likewise,
the conditions of extreme necessity and excuses made for you because it's a logical Sharia. You know, for example, if someone is torturing you to say something that's Kufa, can you say it as a Muslim? Yes, yes. Now other nations before us their law was that you had to die with it. So if someone is trying is torturing, you are saying we're going to cut you in half. Unless you disbelieve in Allah, in their Sharia, you have to just be cut in half. You couldn't say it to get yourself free. But in our Syria, you can it, it has the leeway, and it has any conditions for extreme necessity. Just like you know, you're starving in a desert, you're about to die of starvation,
right. And then you find in the middle of a desert, I roast pig, and some wine, you can eat just a little bit of that pig in order to survive.
Right? You can cry because it's fair. And it's adjust chutiya. So you don't find it that it's overburdening people or making things difficult for people. Also, you find
that the values in Islam there are universal. And it's not specific to a culture, not specific to a race and not specific to a country. You find anything like that. Is there any ruling in Islam that's just for Somalis, for example?
No, any ruling for any specific people in Islam, any specific race or culture? No, it's universal, very nice and very easy. For example, you don't find also religious classes, and Islam, that there are rulings for this class of people and rulings for that class of people like you find in many other religions. Again, very universal, no double standards. And it also recognizes you know, the natural things that you want to enjoy in life. And it teaches you also how to enjoy things, but not to go not to be excessive in it. So it's very logical, and very realistic Sharia I really hope that you can appreciate that it's not like the other other nations, the Sharia is so strict, or others
that basically don't even have a Sharia. And I know you're probably thinking, well, what's so bad about what the situation the Christians have, that they don't even have laws concerning many things. For example, we can follow an obesity law and I said lamb and how he made the lesson, right and how he made will do and how he did the Salah. We have ways of how to attain for sure and Salah, but talk to other people of other religions and tell them give them steps to get kosher and Salah you know for sure focus and being feeling humbled and impoverished in front of Allah, talk to other religions tell them how do I get kosher and Salah? Did they have the *? No. If you ever listened to and I
don't recommend it. But if you ever listened to the evangelicals and people speaking on Sunday morning television, they always talk about what we need to do. We need to do this. You need to allow the Lord this into your life. You need this, you need that. But they never show you how. You know why? Because they don't got the house. They don't got it.
They don't have the house. They could just talk about what we need to do. But we have that. So you can ask the followers of all the other prophets. How did eSATA Salaam make Watson? They can't tell you? How did a stylist salon improve is crucial and solid. They can't tell you. And so what happens when you don't have the law, you have to make up your own. And that's why in Christian history, there are people who started to make up their own laws, you know, St. Augustine and others. They started to invent their own laws because they didn't have it. We have our law that comes from Allah subhanaw taala. And because it comes from Allah azza wa jal, it's not oppressive to any group or any
peoples.
So
and it's very practical as well. Yeah. And Islamic law, it takes into account people's needs, human needs, it takes into account emotions, desires, what people wish for all of that very, very nice, very flexible, very logical, not overburdening anyone. And even if there was something that were to overburden you, and you were in an extreme situation, Allah subhanaw taala then is not required from you more than what you can bear. Even then that's another rule that we have that Allah azza wa jal only asked from you what you can bear and what you can do. So the truth is that when we don't know our religion, we think it's very strict. We think it's very rigid, and we cannot see how it's
moderate. But Allah azza wa jal made it moderate, placed it in between the Jewish religion and the Christian religion, not that strict and not without any boundaries, and made it a middle religion that takes into account many things, human needs, desires, all kinds of things, balancing this life with the next life balancing their religion with this life. Fantastic. But like I said,
You don't know it, you will think that it's very strict, you will think that it's a very difficult religion. And if it's presented to you as do's and don'ts, you will always think this is a strict religion, we can't do this, we can't do that we can't do this, we can't do that. But then when you look into why you can't do it, you will see that it comes under the umbrella of another good for you and for the community. Let's take one example, for example, dating, you all know you can't date right? So and people just think they can't date and they don't know the reason. And parents again in the room, always explain the reason to your children. Your children are smart. And they understand
things. Don't give them the nonsensical explanation with Boogie men and all kinds of things to them the actual reason they'll understand that, and the religion will make sense to them. I know some young men who would come to me after years of not dating, and they'll say, why are we not allowed to date? Or they won't go to the prom? And then they'll ask, Well, why can't we go to the prom? But so that means they just did it, because they were told no, but no one explained the wisdom to them. And when you explain the wisdom to someone, it makes it easier for them to accept that and easier for them to follow. Not just that I'm just forbidden from something. And I don't know the reason but I'm
just that's what I'm told I can't do it, so I can't do it. And then you're going to be constantly met by people in school and approached by people in school will ask you why can't you do this? Why don't you do that? And you have to have answers to that. But obviously, if we don't teach our children the answers, then they won't know. And if you teach them the answers, you really help them even in the future from obeying Allah subhanaw taala better because they know why they're doing something. They know why they're abstaining from the Haram.
And we are living in this society where people just glorify the Haram and they give it nice names, you know, and so the youth will be bombarded with that constantly. But if they know why it'll make sense to them, by so know your religion, I'm telling you, the more you learn about Islam, the more you'll see, it's flexible, the more you understand why Allah subhanaw taala will tell us this and will tell us that
one of the interesting thing is just to add that, by the way, is that there is actually pay attention please, there is not a single narration when the Prophet salaallah
alayhi wa sallam ever told the companions or forbade them from something and they asked, Is this like haram? haram or just mcru? Never, never, ever, ever? You know why? Because they were people ready to obey their Prophet sallallahu Sallam president said don't do something, they stayed away from it. But today, people they want to know where it falls so they can just ride the border. You know, most people that come to you they ask you a question like this is such and such. haram So no, it's not haram but it's macro. What's micro is disliked or hated by Allah azza wa jal Oh, so it's not haram Yes, it's not haram but it's more cruel. Okay, okay, but it's not haram
why that's all they want to look at. Is it haram or not? You know, if you told me tomorrow okay, that means I can fool around with it for a good while. The scholars warn of they say if you keep falling into the macro, it will eventually lead you into falling into the Haram if something is disliked Allah azza wa jal why would you want to do it? That's it then. And that's why the companions never asked, Is this haram or macro? is haram Haram. haram like, you know, stay away from it. But this is what we do today. know something is haram, something's happening in the hub.
Okay, and Allah prefers that I do it. Okay, great, so I can ignore it. That's not how it is people. You know, it's interesting, the prophet Sall Allahu alayhi wa sallam, he said, A Deen user, whether the religion is ease and not hardship. But Subhan Allah so many times when we look we find a hardship, who is making it difficult than if the profit of this religion said the religion is ease who's making it difficult? Somebody is making it difficult. So for sure, right? But the religion is ease. So it's supposed to be easy, and yet we find difficulty. And that difficulty again leads to not understanding the religion or religious strictness of things that Allah subhanaw taala did not
impose upon us. But we impose upon ourselves these things, you know, such as muda, habe, all kinds of things, we make it obligatory, you have to pick this you have to do that. And a lot of we just didn't say do that. So the religion is ease, and it's not difficulty. If you're finding the religion to be difficult, that means something's wrong. Either you're understanding or something you're being taught, or your teacher or something like that. The prophet SAW, Selim said their religion is ease. It's not that it's not difficult, it's not difficult. So that means you have to find that it's easy at some point. Now, the other thing the problem said yes, 01 or 2001 or two and a few, he said
make things easy, and don't make things difficult. And whether your parents or your children, you stay within the boundaries of the student, as we spoke about in the last lecture, don't make things difficult for people and most things. Most people I, like I said, they think being religious is making things difficult. So they frown, they come to you, brother, this is haram. And they think this is a good religious brother, the guy who frowns to you and he comes in yells to you that this is haram. What you're doing, this is a good guy, you know, but that's not the way of the prophets that allowed you Salah.
And by the way, just when you tell someone something's wrong like that to their face, all they do is defend it.
Have finesse, diplomacy style when it comes to giving people Dawa and telling people this is haram or prohibiting people from something. But So with that, I'm going to end here, I think if I make this lecture any longer, and there'll be other sleeping or there'll be a brawl in the front row.
So I know it's been a long day. But hopefully, you can now focus on looking at this at our oma as felon, actually a moderate oma that was placed in the middle of London give us an overburdening very difficult cheriya nor did he not give us any laws and then allow us to make our own laws and oppress each other in the process. Study your religion you will find that it's easier to find out the purposes or the wisdoms behind why Allah subhanaw taala will forbid us from doing something, have the arguments in your head be ready to explain it to non Muslims be ready to defend your religion is located on salam wa barakaatuh Muhammad, by the way main was Salam aleikum wa rahmatullah wa
barakato.