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Weekly Comment |
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Iraq
As part of the
US/UK/Allied Forces
strategy for an early
exit/withdrawal from
Iraq, they are
considering deploying
some more troops into
Iraq – recent reports
indicate that these
forces could number 25
000.
At the same time, Iraqi
Vice president Tareq al-Hashemi
addresses New York's
Council on Foreign
Relations and says that
he ‘had just convinced’
British Prime Minister
Blair to set a
time-table for
withdrawal, but “it's
quite unfortunate, that
your president, Bush,
(made) some sort of
brainwashing of Mr
Blair.". In the same
speech, Al-Hashemi says
that any withdrawal
should be conditional to
the training of Iraqi
troops by US forces.
Taking
Charge of Your Destiny
The situation in
Palestine is more than
tragic.
Thousands of innocent
lives have been lost,
countless people
rendered homeless and
infra-structure has been
destroyed or rendered
useless
through the oppressive
actions of the Israeli
government.
For Palestinians to be
killed by Israelis is
something one has come
to expect. Israelis have
engaged in the organized
annihilation and
genocide of the
Muslims of Palestine -
sometimes reported in
the media, but mostly
intentionally ignored.
The Palestinians,
however, remain proud in
the face of their
losses, for they may
have lost lives and
property but their
dignity,
honour, respect and
commitment to their
religion remains intact.
When those who have lost
almost everything
through the actions of
their oppressors begin
to suffer losses as a
result of differences
amongst
themselves and by the
hands of their brothers,
then they lose their
honour, dignity and
their will to stand tall
as protectors of their
own rights.
It is important to note
that there are secret
agendas, hidden hands, a
third force or outside
parties with personal
interests. These forces
are there,
they will always be
there and they will
always work at
contra-purposes to
the Muslims in a hostile
and an antagonistic
manner.
Mahmood Abbas
declaration of an early
election did not simply
emerge out
of nowhere. It is one of
a number of approaches
being suggested as ways
of outmanoeuvring Hamas.
His declaration was “was
divisive,
counterproductive and
conforms to U.S.-Israeli
plans to remove the
Islamic Resistance
Movement, Hamas, from
power or pressure it
into accepting what its
rival Fatah had
accepted: A peace
process on their
dictated terms and
conditions” (Nicolas
Nasser – Al-Jazeerah).
The efforts of the
enemies can never be
considered a just reason
– by definition enemies
will not want you to
succeed. They will try
to divert you from your
purpose in whatever way
possible. The challenge
lies in not falling prey
to their ploys. For the
Palestinian people to
allow themselves to be
manipulated and dictated
to is sad. It is
important to stand up
and take
charge of conditions on
terms defined by
themselves.
“Muslims in the European
Union: Discrimination
and Islamophobia”
The European
Monitoring Centre on
Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC)
released a report on
“Muslims in the European
Union: Discrimination
and
Islamophobia”.
According to the EUMC
report:
there has been a marked
increase in verbal and
physical attacks, as
well as stereotyping of
Muslims in European
media in recent years.
Causes of the rise of
Islamophobia in public,
as well as official
political discourses in
Europe, are 9/11, the
Madrid and London
bombings, the murder of
Theo van Gogh, as well
as the November 2005
riots in France.
This has led to a
growing perception that:
“Muslims are making
politically exceptional,
culturally unreasonable
or theologically alien
demands upon European
states.”
Although it may be
understandable that
European governments
will become more
security conscious after
“terrorist” attacks, it
does not justify
political actions geared
to target Islam, it’s
practices and symbols of
the Islamic religion.
It is furthermore
disconcerting to note
that European
legislators may be
engaging in a process of
defining Islam as
foreign, and largely
alien to
European values.
In the report it is
noted that: “The notion
that the presence of
Islam in Europe, in the
form of Muslim citizens
and migrants, is a
challenge for
Europe and European
norms and values, has
taken a strong hold in
European political
discourse and has also
created a climate of
fear.”
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Summarized Jumu’ah Bayaan
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The
Journey of Love: Hajj
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v This day, I have
perfected your religion
for you, completed my
favour upon you and have
chosen for you Islam as
your religion.” (Maâidah:
6)
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• Imam Ghazzali
Rahmatullahi ‘alayhi has
explained that the above
verse was revealed in
the context of hajj when
Islam reached its
complete and total
perfection. According to
˜Umar Radhi-Allâhu
‘anhu, it was revealed
on a
Friday afternoon after `Asr
when Nabi Sallallâhu
'alayhi wasallam was on
the plains of `Arafat
seated on his camel.
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• If one ponders over
the fact that Islam was
completed and perfected
at the occasion of Hajj,
he would definitely
fulfil this obligation
with great enthusiasm.
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• Going for hajj is not
by one’s own accord, it
is only by the will of
Allah. This being the
case, it is important
for the haji to take
full advantage of this
opportunity by doing
justice to the occasion
and thereby becoming
eligible
for the highest reward
of all.
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• Imam Bukhari and Imam
Muslim narrate a hadeeth
of the Messenger of
Allah Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam who said:
Whosoever performs Hajj
for the sake of Allah
and he refrained from
immodest actions and
sins, he returns to his
home just as the day his
mother gave birth to
him.
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• Hajj should be done
solely for the pleasure
of Allah Ta'âla. There
should be no other
motive whether it be
wealth, fame or any
other reason. Many
people do Hajj with
ulterior motives and
thereby undergo much
hardships
and spending so much of
wealth, all in vain.
Nabi Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam
said: “Close to Qiyaamat
the wealthy from my
Ummat will perform Hajj
as holidays, the middle
class will perform Hajj
for name and fame and
the lower class will do
Hajj for purposes of
begging”. (Kanzul Ummal)
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• There should be no
immodesty in hajj. The
word, “rafatha”
mentioned in
the above hadith is
general and it includes
all types of futile and
useless acts.
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• There should be no
sinning. Nabi Sallallâhu
'alayhi wasallam
mentioned in a hadith
that the goodness of
Hajj lies in kind words
and feeding people. It
is, therefore, essential
that a person treats his
companions with extreme
kindness and be humble
in all ones approaches
as a good part of Hajj
is
spent with ones
companions. Good
character is not only
saving oneself from
causing harm to others
but also to be tolerant.
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• The reward of a Haji
who fulfills these
requirements is indeed
tremendous. Abu Hurairah
Rahmatullahi ‘alayhi
states that our Nabi
Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam said: “The Haji
and one who performs
Umrah are the
Ambassadors
of Alllah. If they
beseech Him, He would
respond to them, and if
they seek
His forgiveness He would
forgive them.(Ibn Majah)
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• As the guest of Allah,
a Haji has the
distinguished status of
being the ambassador of
Allah. He enjoys the
special mercy and
forgiveness of Allah for
responding to His
invitation. Ibn Umar
Radhi-Allâhu ‘anhu
states that our Nabi
Radhi-Allâhu ‘anhu said:
“When you meet the Haji,
greet him, shake his
hands and instruct him
to seek forgiveness for
you before he enters his
home, for undoubtedly he
is forgiven. (Ahmed)
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• Hajj affords one the
best training grounds
for the revival of one’s
faith and purity of
character. It is the
most sublime
manifestation of the
universal brotherhood of
the Muslim Ummah. It is
a journey of intensified
devotion
and discipline. The Haji
therefore needs to keep
his spirit alive by
emulating the following
directives of our Nabi
Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam for the rest of
his life.
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C O N
T E N T S |
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Summarised
Jumuah Bayaan |
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Question and
Answer |
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Update |
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Message from the Ameer |
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I N F
O R M A T I O N |
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Min. Mahr |
R 103.21 |
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Mahr Faatimi |
R 5,160.65 |
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Zakaat Nisaab |
R 2,064.26 |
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Words of Wisdom |
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Hadith of the Week |
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People
Under the Shade |
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Abu Huraira Radhi-Allâhu
‘anhu reported that the
Prophet Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam said, "Allah will
give shade, to seven, on the
Day when there will be
no shade but His. These
seven persons are:
1. a just ruler,
2. youth who has been
brought up in the worship of
Allah (i.e. worships Allah
sincerely from childhood),
3. a man whose heart is
attached to the mosques,
4. two persons who love each
other only for Allah's sake
and they meet and part in
Allah's cause only,
5. a man who refuses the
call
of a charming woman of noble
birth for illicit
intercourse with her and
says: I am afraid of Allah,
6. a man who gives
charitable gifts so secretly
that his left hand does not
know what his right hand has
given (i.e. nobody knows if
or how much
he has given in charity),
7. and a person who
remembers Allah in seclusion
and his eyes are then
flooded with tears."
(Sahih Al-Bukhari
Vol. 1 : No. 629) |
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Quotation for the Week |
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Gratitude |
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“Gratitude towards a
benefactor is a necessary
obligation. To fulfil it,
your should at least render
to him
the good that he has done to
you, and more. Afterwards,
you should show interest in
his affairs, protect him as
much as possible, keep
faithfully to promises you
have made to him.”
Ibn Hazm in his Kitab
Akhlaq wa al-Siyar fi
Mudawaat al-Nufoos |
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Point of Reflection |
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Measure of
Success |
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Success is to be measured
not
so much by the position that
one has reached in life as
by
the obstacles which he has
overcome while trying to
succeed. |
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Q and A |
Question:
Can a woman
divorce her husband if he is
in prison and he does not
want to divorce her?
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Answer:
A woman cannot
divorce a man in terms of
the laws of Islam.
This does, however, not mean
that the woman does not have
any recourse in the case
where the husband refuses to
divorce her, and the woman
has a valid reason (from an
Islamic viewpoint) for the
dissolution
of the marriage.
If the husband is in prison
and
the rights of the wife (as
granted to her by the
Shari'ah) are not being
fulfilled by the Husband
then the wife has the right
to apply for the annulment
of her marriage, depending
on the period of the
sentence.
And Allah
Ta'aala knows best.
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U
P D A T E |
Qurbani
Please note
that the deadline
for applications for
Qurbanis/
Udhiyyah to be performed by
the Jamiat on behalf of is
the 12Noon on the 28th
December 2006.
Costs for Qurbanis are as
follows:
India: R165.00
Malawi: R200.00
Local–South Africa:
R700.00
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Jamiat Office
Please be informed that the
Jamiat Office will be closed
as follows:
From: Thu 28 Dec 2006
to Mon 8 Jan 2007.
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SANHA
SANHA (South African
National Halal Authority)
has published a two part
Travel advisory which can be
obtained by requesting it
from the following e-mail
address:
consumer@sanha.org.za |
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Message from the Ameer of
the Jamiatul Ulama |
Congregational Prayers
In the holiday period, it is
noticed that many people
neglect to perform their
salaah with congregation.
The fact that both, the
Qur'an and Sunnah, have laid
great stress on the
congregational prayer and
described its unique
excellence, shows that the
fard prayer is meant to be
offered collectively, and no
one in the Islamic community
should even think of
observing it individually
unless one has to do so on
the account of a genuine
reason.
Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’âla.
says in The Qur'an: "… and
bend down in ruku with those
who bend down in ruku."
[Al-Baqarah 2:43].
Commentators are generally
of the view that this verse
proves that prayer has to be
offered collectively. The
importance of the
congregational prayer in
Islam is so great that
Muslims have been enjoined
to observe it under all
circumstances, even in the
battlefield.
The Holy Prophet Sallallâhu
'alayhi wasallam, also has
greatly stressed the
offering of prayer in
congregation and described
its unique merit and
excellence. For instance, he
said:
~ "Nothing is harder on the
hypocrites than the Isha and
Fajr prayer; had they known
of the great rewards that
Allah would bestow for those
prayers they would never had
missed them even if they had
to come to the masjid
on their knees." Then he
said, "I wish I should tell
a Mua'dhin to pronounce the
iqamah and appoint someone
as Imam in my place, and I
should myself go and set
fire to the houses of those
who do not come out even
after hearing the adhaan. (Bukhari,
Muslim).
~ "Offering the prayer in
congregation carries 27
times greater reward than
offering it alone
individually."
(Bukhari, Muslim)
~ According to Sayyidina
Anas Radhi-Allâhu ‘anhu the
Holy Prophet Sallallâhu
'alayhi wasallam said: "The
person
who offers his prayers
continuously for 40 days
without missing the first
takbeer, is granted a
two-fold immunity
by Allah: immunity from
Hell-fire and immunity from
hypocrisy. (Tirmidhi)
~ According to Sayyidina
Abdullah bin Masoud
Radhi-Allâhu ‘anhu the Holy
Prophet Sallallâhu 'alayhi
wasallam said:
"O Muslims! Allah has
prescribed paths of right
guidance for you among which
is the offering of the daily
prayers
in congregation in the
masjid, which is the
offering of the daily
prayers in congregation in
the masjid; if you start
saying your prayers
individually at home, as
so-and-so does, you will be
forsaking the Sunnah of your
Prophet, and
if you forsake the Sunnah of
your Prophet, you will
certainly be going astray."
(Muslim)
~ Sayyidina Usman
Radhi-Allâhu ‘anhu has
reported that he heard the
Holy Prophet Sallallâhu
'alayhi wasallam say: "The
person who observes the Isha
prayer in congregation, will
have the reward and
blessings of staying up half
the night in prayer, and the
one who observes the Fajr
prayer in congregation will
have the reward and
blessings
of staying up the whole
night in prayer." (Tirmidhi)
The above ahaadith stress
the importance of offering
salaah in congregation.
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