Suhaib Webb – Cash or Crop An Overview of The Differences of Zakt alFitr Expenditures

Suhaib Webb
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The speakers discuss the ongoing debate over giving food stubs or ketchup to children, including the importance of support and care for well-being and the sharia (the rule of support). They stress the need to grow up and not attack personalities, and emphasize the importance of learning A debtsilaf before engaging in a legal religion. The speakers also mention the sharia and the importance of PS as a base level of support and care.

AI: Summary ©

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			Welcome now to kind of like our second
		
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			discussion around zakatul fitr, alhamdulillah. And then our
		
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			last one will be about zakat in general.
		
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			A few questions that I received about zakah
		
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			and then specifically
		
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			sending zakah overseas, especially with what's going on
		
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			in, the Congo, in Sudan, and in Gaza.
		
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			So as we approach EAT, wrapping up this
		
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			blessed month of Ramadan, what we talk about
		
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			now is this kind of debate
		
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			about
		
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			giving zakatul fitter whether with food stubs or
		
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			ketchup.
		
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			And so let's look at
		
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			these varied opinions
		
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			and the scholars who held them and see
		
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			how they're all. All of these opinions are
		
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			actually rooted in one thing, and that's the
		
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			love of the prophet and the love of
		
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			the sunnah.
		
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			We have a very important science that is
		
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			lost called
		
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			which is where you're trained how to differ
		
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			with people.
		
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			It's something that has not been taught at
		
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			El Eshar in the in the university
		
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			for for almost 3 or 4 decades.
		
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			Still, you can learn it in the Masjid.
		
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			You can learn it with some of the
		
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			scholars
		
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			but it's very important. Adeb al Bethholmanadara,
		
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			the etiquette of research and and debate what
		
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			we call
		
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			At Swiss, we touch on it, especially when
		
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			we get into our comparative fit course and
		
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			you'll see some of that today. So So
		
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			let's look at some of the variant perspectives
		
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			on the issue
		
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			that have been held by the UHMA over
		
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			the centuries. So the first opinion is the
		
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			opinion of Imam Malik, Al Shafi'i and Imam
		
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			Ibnuqoodam Al Hanbari,
		
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			and that they have leaned toward the practice
		
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			of giving in kind,
		
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			giving
		
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			food.
		
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			As was done by the prophet
		
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			and many of his companions.
		
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			They remind us that zakat al fitr is
		
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			about fulfilling an immediate need at that time
		
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			was hunger
		
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			and ensuring everyone has food for the Eid
		
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			celebrations.
		
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			Their stance is grounded in the direct example
		
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			set by the Prophet
		
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			of the hadith specifically which we quoted last
		
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			time of 'Abdu'l ibn Umar
		
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			The second opinion
		
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			is one held by the scholars of the
		
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			Hadafi school
		
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			and acted on by luminaries like Umar ibn
		
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			Abdul Khattab, Radi Allahu Anhu, and other Sahaba
		
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			and early scholars in Salaf like Umar ibn
		
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			Abdul Aziz.
		
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			And
		
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			this brings some flexibility
		
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			to the the the practice.
		
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			And they recognize the potential for monetary charity
		
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			to fill this fulfill the same goal
		
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			as food and in fact, even more so.
		
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			So when we think about PS in Usul
		
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			Ufilk analogy, we have what's called PS which
		
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			means
		
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			if we're gonna compare one thing to another
		
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			to find an analogy in law, like for
		
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			example, alcohol and marijuana.
		
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			K?
		
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			Marijuana's not mentioned. It's not texted. Alcohol is
		
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			texted,
		
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			but there's a shared trait, and that's
		
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			being intoxicated. Right?
		
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			What if the shared trait actually is stronger
		
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			in what you're comparing
		
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			Right? What you're using,
		
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			you're you're you're this is the you're comparing
		
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			this to that. So, the Quranic text, the
		
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			trait is actually less than it is on
		
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			which you're comparing it to.
		
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			So for example, for the they'll
		
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			say to your parents, well then hitting is
		
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			gonna hurt them more than saying that.
		
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			So if we take
		
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			depending on the situation that we're in, because
		
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			I wanna give you some of the Usuli
		
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			arguments for
		
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			disposition in hindsight.
		
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			Then
		
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			the
		
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			right, the reason for zakalto fitter
		
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			to satisfy
		
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			the the underserved,
		
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			to limit social stratification, economic stratification.
		
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			In some situations,
		
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			money
		
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			that Allah that cause may be more present
		
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			in money than it is in food.
		
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			Maybe now in Gaza it's in food.
		
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			But maybe some more is money so wherever
		
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			the Ilah is strongest
		
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			is going to guide
		
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			the understanding of the Mufti
		
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			and the scholar
		
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			and at a practical level
		
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			you. So when we hear like,
		
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			they did this, we don't say that's a
		
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			bidah because there's usul,
		
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			right? Bidah, innovation means there's no usul, there's
		
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			no foundation. Here, we see a foundation.
		
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			You understand?
		
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			So people like
		
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			the Hanafi School in particular, which is amazing,
		
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			brilliant,
		
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			and people like Umar ibn Abdul Aziz, Umar
		
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			Nakhotab
		
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			and some of the Sahaba.
		
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			They they saw this flexibility because of this
		
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			illah.
		
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			We say the ruling moves with its illah.
		
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			They recognize the potential for monetary charity to
		
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			fulfill the same goal, ensuring the well-being
		
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			of
		
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			the underserved Muslims on Eid. Their argument rests
		
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			on the principle that the essence
		
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			of Zakat al Fitr lies in its spirit
		
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			of support and care
		
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			which can be fulfilled through monetary means as
		
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			well. And here's another important axiom.
		
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			Al Maqasid
		
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			Tukaddam
		
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			Alawasa
		
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			Ilija.
		
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			Objectives come before their means. This is not
		
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			always applicable by the way.
		
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			It's not always applicable. But it can be
		
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			argued here. Just like people who argue for
		
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			calculations
		
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			in determining the Moon,
		
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			like doctor Youssef Al Qaradawi and others, fit
		
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			councils,
		
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			they argue with this axiom as well. Al
		
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			Ma'a'asid,
		
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			the goal
		
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			takes precedence over the means, the kaf.
		
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			So the goal, the argument
		
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			by legal jurist is some of them. That
		
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			the goal is not the food, not what
		
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			you give. The goal is to take care
		
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			of of the underserved. So since that's the
		
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			goal,
		
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			then the means are as important
		
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			as the goal.
		
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			Others argue, but the narration of
		
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			indicates like this is an obligation.
		
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			The argument is, if it was understood to
		
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			be such a definitive obligation,
		
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			then why would someone like say, or
		
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			others
		
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			have changed that.
		
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			So there's room on both sides here. Right?
		
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			The third opinion,
		
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			and this is the opinion that I follow
		
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			personally,
		
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			even though I'm Maliki,
		
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			without I'm I'm not fanatically
		
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			in line with my meth head, but I
		
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			I definitely respect and appreciate and it stick
		
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			to it as much as I can, except
		
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			when I'm answering questions, but in my own
		
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			life.
		
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			And the third opinion is considered by by
		
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			scholars like Imam Ebitaimia,
		
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			as well as others. Right? Just given I
		
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			don't wanna give a lot of names here.
		
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			Who suggests that giving money could be permissible
		
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			if it serves a greater need? And here's
		
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			kind of the argument I mentioned earlier. Right?
		
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			It's very similar to the second. The second
		
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			we're looking at hindsight. What was the philosophy
		
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			of the decision?
		
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			Imam, Evotaimi and others are saying though, like,
		
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			if you see it clearly in front of
		
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			you,
		
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			it serves a greater need or brings about
		
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			more benefit. Because the idea is that the
		
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			sharia,
		
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			this axiom, right,
		
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			is about,
		
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			to prevent harm and bring benefit.
		
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			Right? Every time you look at you, you
		
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			will lead in a amaro, oh, you who
		
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			believe you see
		
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			either a command to bring a benefit or
		
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			command to prevent harm. That's the edifice of
		
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			sharia. Jalba musarih wadal al mafesikh.
		
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			So this opinion,
		
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			championed by people like Imam Ibn Taymiyahu waheemuhullah.
		
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			And let's not get into the comments box
		
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			and start attacking personalities, man. We gotta grow
		
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			up, man. Right? We don't we don't we
		
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			need to look at people's opinions of what
		
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			they have to say. Not not not
		
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			this kind of superficial stuff, man.
		
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			Who suggests that giving money could be permissible
		
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			if it serves a greater need or brings
		
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			about the maslah,
		
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			the benefit.
		
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			This view is practically is very practical,
		
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			acknowledging that the circumstances and needs of communities
		
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			can vary greatly. And that's why it's adopted
		
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			by Dala Iftan in Egypt. Now why was
		
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			that, and other places? It suggests that the
		
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			form of our charity, whether food or money,
		
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			should ultimately serve the
		
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			the goal.
		
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			And that's to care for one another
		
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			in the best way possible. So these are
		
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			these three opinions that we talked about. Number
		
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			1 has to be with food stuffs. They
		
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			got strong evidences for that. They're gonna stick
		
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			with the blah here up the nuss.
		
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			Hey, nothing wrong with that. Number 2,
		
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			that it, you know, can be with food,
		
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			because it brings about a greater benefit.
		
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			Then you have this 3rd opinion that's very
		
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			similar to the second opinion, except it's saying,
		
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			like, if you're you're sure that the benefit
		
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			is more in this.
		
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			Right? You're sure that the people, this is
		
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			what they need.
		
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			Right? It's very close to the the third
		
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			opinion with the second opinion. This is a
		
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			little bit different.
		
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			In sharing these views, you know, my hope
		
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			is that
		
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			whatever way you feel more comfortable with, whichever
		
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			scholar you you feel comfortable with,
		
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			But then don't turn this into, we don't
		
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			need to be
		
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			sanctioning each other or rebuking each other online.
		
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			We can argue about this. It's perfectly acceptable.
		
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			We don't need to be using words like
		
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			or
		
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			fast or you're, you know, telling people that
		
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			their act wasn't acceptable.
		
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			It's too much, man. And and one of
		
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			the challenges that in many ways, America in
		
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			in in Europe in particular,
		
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			Western Europe,
		
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			is really one of the worst places where
		
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			you could have a legal religion negotiating things
		
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			because of the lack of edeb
		
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			that is found because of the cult of
		
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			individuality.
		
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			And so that's why I like to encourage
		
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			people, learn Adeb al Batool Manatana, learn Elmushilaf
		
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			before you start engaging and fighting and wanting
		
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			to show this and that and whatnot.
		
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			That's, these all three opinions have really, really
		
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			strong evidence, have really, really strong support, and
		
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			whichever one of them you follow, Alhamdulillahi, but
		
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			I don't mean the second and third is
		
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			really no difference between them. But what it
		
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			does do is our differences actually are a
		
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			reminder of the maturity
		
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			and the beauty of Islam legally, historically. We
		
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			ask