Yasir Qadhi – The Limits of Political Engagement

			hamdulillah Isla De Niro
		

			Al Hamdulillah Al Hamdulillah Al Hamdulillah Camden County Daniella Bullock
		

			Masada
		

			Kareem
		

			said I'm Allah Kumara Allahu
		

			Allah Alhamdulillah wa Salatu was Salam ala rasulillah, who Allah Allah, he was a woman was about
		

			100 years ago 1918. In this very land, there was a very, very great debate raging in the entire
country. It was over a social issue. And Congressman, and every single government official was
discussing this primary issue that preoccupied the country for these few years. It was the issue of
whether the government should ban alcoholic drinks or not. On the one side, were many clergyman
religious people who are saying that this is immoral, it must be gotten rid of. There were also many
women who were prominent in trying to get alcohol prohibited, because they felt the primary cause of
domestic abuse was alcohol. Economists were at the forefront as well, saying that alcohol, if you
		

			eliminated it would be a boost to the American economy, not only would money be saved, crime would
go down, health would be better productivity would increase. On the other hand, you had those who
argued that the government should not get involved in the private lives of its citizens. They argued
that banning alcohol wouldn't solve these problems, and that people would learn to drink in other
ways. As we all know, a few months after this debate reached its Pinnacle in 1919. We're about to
celebrate the 100th year, the 18th amendment was passed in this land, which banned the sale and
manufacture and transportation of any alcoholic drink. The ban was in effect for 13 years, it was
		

			only overturned in 1933. Because the people simply could not live up to that ban, and they found
ingenious ways around it. Now, overall, this period of the prohibition, most historians view it as a
dismal failure. Why? Because the people did not obey the ban, because people began producing alcohol
in their backyards. The mafia rose to prominence Al Capone, bootlegging became rampant and hence,
when they bootleg alcohol, the liver problems of those who drank that actually increased. However,
on the flip side, because alcohol was made illegal, its price shot up and therefore fewer people
drank it. It is a historical fact that for quite a few years, during the prohibition, public
		

			drunkenness was on the decline, driving accidents went down, liver related problems in the broader
public went down. Other evils were eliminated. question, why am I talking to a Muslim audience about
the prohibition of 100 years ago? I know you're all scratching your heads?
		

			I'm asking you, if we being the critical mass that we are now we're alive 100 years ago, what should
we have done as Muslims? That's the question. If we had been alive 100 years ago, 1918. And we had
this critical mass of millions of Muslims in America, what should we have done? Which side of the
debate should we have weighed in on? I mean, after all, as Muslims, we believe that alcohol is not
just a sin, our Prophet sallallahu wasallam called it the mother of all evils on mukava. If and
every single evil that is mentioned by those who wanted to prohibited we believe in it as well. In
fact, the 18th amendment, it states that it is prohibited to buy to sell to transport to import to
		

			export alcohol. The 18th amendment might have been worded as a hadith from slideable hottie in which
the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said, Allah curses on alcohol and the one who drinks it and
the one who transports it and the one who sells it and the one who takes it here, the one who takes
it there, the 18th amendment overlaps I had eaten saya Bahati. I would venture in 1918. Most Muslims
would actually have supported the ban on alcohol. Even if a decade later, 13 years later, it was
overturned and the question that I
		

			I'm asking you now, it's not about alcohol. It is about the political causes that we're jumping on
to now, and the political causes that we're supporting of our era. The questions are not about
alcohol. The questions are about modern societal ills, and to what level we should jump on board and
how much and how we should support them. And the response is not easy to say, because some of the
social ills are 100% ills within the Islamic tradition as well, such as racism, such as police
brutality, of course, we're going to support the movements that want to curtail these things.
However, other movements are not so simplistic gender roles, same * issues, transgenderism, here
		

			is where we need to be a little bit more critical, and not just jump on the bandwagon simply because
it is politically correct to do so simply because that is the norm in many of the circles that we
hang around. We must never forget, oh Muslims, that our purpose in life is not to win the popularity
contests of any land. Our purpose in life is not to win the democratic vote of a country our purpose
in life is to win a loss pleasure and sometimes the loss pleasure is only gained by displeasing
amounts of people. Never forget all Muslims. Our ultimate goal, as Allah says in the Quran, guntram
hydromet in Oakridge Atlanta, Jacqueline says, You are the best oma that has been created for
		

			mankind. Why? Because you command what is good, you forbid what is evil, and you believe in a law.
The only reason we are the best oma is because of these three characteristics. The minute that we
stopped commanding what is good, the minute that we acquiesce in our quiet to evil, the minute that
we don't care whether people believe in God or not, it doesn't become our priority, we will stop
being the best oma, we are currently celebrating the 50th year of economic shallots, about a COLA
and Alhamdulillah I am proud to say that my own father as well has been involved with the movement
since before its inception. And I have been attending ignor conventions since the early 90s and
		

			Hamdulillah, for almost 30 years. Let me say on a personal note, brothers and sisters, a previous
generation of Muslims when I came to age in the 90s, and in the 80s, a previous generation of
Muslims, they were very socially inactive. They only concentrated on the mosque on rituals on
theology. However, the events of 911 the rise of Islamophobia, the coming of Trump, this new age and
era, and also a new generation, my generation has made us realize that hamdulillah Islam is not just
rituals, Islam is not just theology. If we want to survive, we're gonna have to jump on board and
get involved with the social ills of our society, we're gonna have to take on the problems that are
		

			around us, we're gonna have to, according to the modern vernacular, be woke.
		

			Fair enough.
		

			But my concern and fear and listen to me carefully, is that just like in the 80s, the pendulum was
on one side, socially isolation is not caring about social activities. I fear that the pendulum has
now swung to the exact opposite side. And we are seeing an unprecedented, extreme reinterpretation
of the essentials of Islamic theology and law. We now have Muslims who have very little Islam, and
very much to do with the social causes. Their version of Islam is closer to secular humanism than it
is to the Quran and Sunnah. If a generation ago, some Muslims were hesitant to become socially
active, and they only concentrated on theologies and rituals. In our generation, we have a new breed
		

			who only emphasize their version of social justice, and very little, if any emphasis on theology and
rituals, Muslims, we have a package deal. We don't get to pick and choose from our package, we have
a perfect faith and a tradition. And we have to accept that as it is. And what it means to be a
Muslim is to believe in Allah and believe in the prophets and prepare for judgment day. And yes, be
involved in the social ills of society. But without Islam, without theology. Without true
spirituality, we will never solve the social ills of any society. And that is why every single
prophet without exception, even as he preached against the social ills, also preached belief in God.
		

			You cannot divorce the two they are linked together for two reasons that are mentioned in today's
talk. Number one, we need God we need a divine law to tell us what is right
		

			Wrong. If we don't have that, then how will we know what is right and wrong? Will it be by majority
vote, we are seeing what is happening now with the social mores of the society. And number two,
without belief in God, societal ills will never be eliminated. Let me give you a simple example of
both of these, wanting one simple point in case we look now at the rise of the hashtag we to
movement emerging from Hollywood, it has taken the social media by storm. And at some level, yes,
all of us Muslims should embrace this movement, for no one should allow a woman to be harassed or
intimidated or molested. We're all in agreement there. However, the solution isn't just in
		

			criticizing those who perpetuate these crimes. as Muslims, we have to be brave enough to go beyond
this. The the entertainment industry, from within which the me to movement emerged, cannot just sit
back and ignore its own role in helping to create this mess. It is this very industry that has been
one of the most powerful causes of cheapening the honor of women of breaking down to Judeo Christian
Islamic values of decency of modesty, of propagating debauchery. It is the same industry that is
guilty of objectifying the bodies of men and women of mainstreaming *, of pushing the
boundaries of filth and *, and therefore, that over sexualized industry is a part of the
		

			problem. It can never be the solution.
		

			That is why all Muslims, we need to have a holistic response. We can't just jump onto any bandwagon.
Even if it sounds right. The solution to female harassment is not going to come from the very people
that are creating the climate that helps that type of harassment. It has to come from an alternative
paradigm, a paradigm that respects women, honors women, values, women respects chastity and decency
and modesty. And that paradigm is the paradigm of Islam.
		

			And I also said, of the reasons that we need to link social activism with theology is because social
activism by itself will never solve the problems that even we might agree with. The 18th amendment
was a miserable failure, a mockery in some respects, society blatantly disregarded it, and
eventually Congress had to repeal it in the 21st amendment. contrast the 18th amendment with the
revelation of pseudo telma ada in the fifth year of the hedgerow brothers and sisters, the books of
Sierra the books of Hadith mentioned the amazing contrast between 1919 America and between fifth
year ager of Medina when Allah revealed in the Quran, yeah, you holla Dena Manu enamel, hombre well,
		

			Mason will Ensembl Islamic religious woman an AMA shaytani, fujitani boo, hammer, alcohol and
gambling and other things are abominations of shape on their filthy so avoid them if you want to
succeed. One idea came down. One word was revealed federal attorney boo avoid alcohol. The books of
serum mentioned there were Sahaba that had alcohol in their mouths. There were Sahaba that had
raised the cup to drink. When they heard the verse from the masjid. They threw that alcohol outside
the window. The Streets of Medina were flowing with alcohol because no one dared come close to it.
There was no government that enforced it. There was no police going around. There was no amendment.
		

			It was one idea. And that's all that was required brothers and sisters.
		

			And this is what some of our woke activists don't understand. Muslims, you're never going to fully
solve societal problems until you link those problems with spiritual problems as well. In our
religion, Eamon and ammo always are paired together faith and good deeds, they stem from the same
person. It is your faith and your good deeds hand in hand. Once a man is established, good deeds
follow. I show the wife of the Prophet says I'm our mother. She said, Allah revealed the very first
verses about him and about his names and attributes and about heaven and * and about theology.
Then, when he man had been made firm in their hearts, Allah said don't drink and they didn't drink.
		

			Allah said don't go do it. Don't do Zina. They didn't do Xena. Isha says, If Allah had first
revealed don't drink, the Sahaba would have said no will law he will never going to give up
drinking. This is the mouth of Ayesha. These are the words of Ayesha about the Allahu tada and her
brothers and sisters. There must be belief in a higher being there must
		

			belief in God for actual actions to emanate from that heart. If there's no belief in God, then
you're going to get the debacle of the 18th. amendment, morality will be subject to the whims of
society, morality will be up for a majority vote. And what is how long today will be allowed
tomorrow? What is held today will be held on tomorrow, as we are seeing brothers and sisters, that
how quickly things are changing what was considered immoral one generation ago, it is now immoral to
consider it immoral. This is how society has changed. And we have to be very clear here, brothers
and sisters, our pleasure is not found in the majority of people, it is found in the creator of the
		

			people.
		

			Allah tells us in the Koran, whether we have a hula hula fossa that is, what will the woman fee and
if truth were subject to their desires, then all who are in the heavens and earth would be
destroyed. Truth is not subject to majority vote, truth is not subject to what is politically
correct. And that is why we need a higher source to tell us what is wrong, what is hella, and we
need to believe in that source to then find implementation of how Tom and Hannah so Muslims, yes,
it's important to be woke. Yes, it's important to be involved in the social causes that are
highlighted for us to be involved with, and some of them are, and some of them aren't. And some are
		

			gray areas. We have to be careful. Let the Shetty I decide, yes, police brutality. Were at the
forefront racism were at the forefront. But issues of same * and gender transgender, we have to be
a little bit more careful. Our theology, our ethics are not the ethics of the other people around
us. And our job is to preach the truth, even if people don't like it true. We don't force anybody.
It's a free society. You have the right to do as you please. But do I have the right to preach as I
pleased as well? That's the question we have to ask a true liberal democracy. You want us you want
us to give you the freedom to be who you are. Fair enough. Will you give me the freedom to be who I
		

			am? Will you give me the freedom and all of us the freedom to be God fearing, chaste, dignified,
decent, respectful human beings? Or will that also become criminal? Because I don't agree with your
version of morality? And that's why brothers and sisters, we must always preach the truth as an
entire message, not just pick and choose what is politically convenient to do so Muslims, no matter
how woke you are, if you don't wake up for fudger you're not woke.
		

			So simple as that.
		

			No matter how woke you are, if you don't have belief in Allah and love for the nebia Kareem
sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, then you're not islamically woke you are spiritually broke brothers and
sisters and that is no joke.
		

			Allah azza wa jal tells us in the Quran. Yeah, you Hola, Dina. armano audu Hello facil Mika. Oh, you
who believe enter into Islam, in its entirety wholeheartedly, and Allah criticizes those who pick
and choose from the book.
		

			My concern as I see the evolution of American Islam, and I'm still relatively young inshallah to
Allah in my 40s. My concern as I see this evolution from the 80s 90s 2000s, and now we're in the
2010s. What we're seeing is a type of Islam that has very little to do with Islam, and very much to
do with some of the social ills of our times. My point to you is very simple. Some of these ills
Yes, they are Islamic ills. We need to oppose them, but they need to be wed with Islamic theology as
well with a man in a law as well follow the footsteps of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam when
you criticize other evils do so from within the paradigm of Islam as a Muslim who's proud of what it
		

			means to be Muslim. And that means belief in the law and love of the messenger and awaiting Judgment
Day. Brothers and sisters, may Allah subhanho wa Taala allow a man to enter our hearts and make it
firm May Allah subhana wa Taala bless each and every one of us to be a walking role model that other
people can see a glimpse of our Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam May Allah give us the courage to
preach the truth. Even if people don't like it. May Allah subhana wa tada never caused us to
sacrifice the truth because of a temporary popularity. Our goal brothers and sisters is the pleasure
of Allah not the pleasure of evil, not the pleasure of the people. I conclude by reminding you of
		

			something we heard since we were children. I only wish we applied it in our lives as omit of no
kabab said we are a people whom Allah has blessed and given is because of the religion of Islam. If
we ever tried to
		

			find in any other source we shall be humiliated all Muslims believe in Allah Aziz and He will give
you your desert desert como la la on Santa Monica Monica solaia Baraka
		

			Aloha.