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Weekly Comment |
Very Tolerant?
Recently,
a Bishop from Oxford, England
spoke in support of a proposal
of the Muslim community in an
area of the town to call the
adhaan over a loudspeaker.
Bishop John Pritchard finds
himself in the situation where
his life has now been threatened
– not by Muslims who are often
perceived and portrayed as
intolerant, fundamentalist and
extremist. Those that have
threatened his life are from his
very own community – Christians,
and the type of threats that
have made include threats of
beheading.
The process of proposing the
adhaan to be called over the
loudspeaker, at relatively low
volume in an area where over
7000 Muslims reside, was not
made arbitrarily. The Muslims
have made a suggestion or
proposal which is being followed
up by an extensive process of
public consultation, where the
community at large will be asked
for their view via a
questionnaire to be circulated
to every home. Muslim leaders of
the area point out that an
application has not even been
submitted as yet, since the
procedure to obtain feedback
from the community is still in
process.
The threats on the life of the
bishop is being made by
Christians whereas the bishop
has not even made derogatory
remarks about Christianity or
the Prophet Isa (Jesus) ‘alayhis
salam, nor has he come close to
engaging in anything close to
blasphemy or a sacrilegious act.
One wonders where the screaming
headlines that accompanied the
response of the Muslim community
to the cartoon issue or the
blasphemy of Salman Rushdie was.
Only Muslims can be intolerant
and fundamentalist, isn’t it?
Continuing Genocide in
Palestine
The
Jamiatul Ulama have supported
the memorandum MJC has issued
this morning. The memorandum
entitled End the Ethnic
Cleansing of the People of Gaza
has been submitted to the
Department of Foreign Affairs.
Hereunder follows the
introduction to the memo:
After the population of
Palestine made a democratic
choice to elect Hamas as their
leadership 2 years ago, an
election recognised and
acknowledged by the South
African government, the Israeli
Occupation Forces continues its
brutal and unrelenting
punishment of the people of Gaza
which is an attack on democracy
and a violation of international
law. The current and crippling
siege, sanctions, and virtual
imprisonment of 1, 5 million
people surviving off
international aid have now been
subjected to further military
attacks by the regions most
powerful war machinery.
Despite calls for humanitarian
aid, Israeli Occupation forces
has subjected the people of Gaza
to brutal military raids which
have left 125 civilians dead, a
third of them children, in the
past two weeks alone. This we
condemn in the strongest terms.
The entire memo could be read by
clicking here or following
the link below.
http://www.jamiat.co.za/special/mjc_memo_to_dfa_on_gaza.htm |
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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 188.62 |
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Mahr Faatimi |
R 9,431.13 |
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Zakaat Nisaab |
R 3,772.45 |
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Words of Wisdom |
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Hadith of the Week |
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Good Character |
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'Aisha Radi-Allahu anha said
that Muhammad Sallallahu ‘alayhi
wa sallam said: “By his good
character a believer will
attain the degree of one who
prays during the night and
fasts during the day.”
(Abu Dawud)
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Quotation for the Week |
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Vicious Jealousy |
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The religious harm of
jealousy is the destruction
of righteous deeds, its
worldly harm is perpetual
grief.
(Maulana Hakeem
Akhtar Sahib) |
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Point of Reflection |
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Value
of Hope! |
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The pillar of the world is
hope.
(African Proverb) |
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Q and A |
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Question: Can a
person give Zakaah to
his/her brother, sister,
relative or friend who is
not working and has a debt
to be paid? |
Answer:
It is
permissible to give Zakaah
to these persons, if they
are eligible for Zakât. If
they do not possess
Zakaatable wealth and cannot
make ends meet or owe more
than what they possess,
which needs to be
repaid immediately, then
Zakaah can be given to them.
Zakaah cannot be given to
ascendants, descendants and
the spouse.
And Allâh Ta’âla Knows Best.
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U P D A T E |
NRLF Meeting on Crime
Last week we
reported on a meeting that
focused on crime and more
specifically on how a
partnership between religious
leaders and the government can
be cemented in the fight against
crime.
The meeting was attended by
representatives of various
religious communities, the
Presidency, South African Police
Services and various other
governmental departments.
It was decided that a concrete
plan be structured whereby
religious leaders can become
more involved with the local
police authorities at police
stations and at grassroots level
in the effort to combat and
prevent crime.
A working group of five persons
was appointed and strict
deadlines were set for devising
a proper structure, manner and
fields where and how this
partnership will operate.
Alhamdulillah, the committee met
on Monday and worked on a draft
plan to propose a structure for
the above. The plan includes
involvement of religious leaders
on national, provincial and
local level. It is meant to be
implemented in various steps
beginning with the national and
provincial representations and
then filtering down into pilot
projects and 169 priority police
stations and finally culminating
in the active participation of
religious leaders in police
stations nationwide.
On Tuesday, the Exco of the NRLF
met and decided that the
proposal would be circulated for
further examination, discussion
and feedback.
“Cook for Peace”
The Jamiatul
Ulama has received many queries
regarding an initiative called
‘Cook for Peace’. The Jamiatul
Ulama is neither a part of the
initiative nor a participant in
the programme.
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Summarised Jumu’ah
Bayaan:
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Control Your
Anger |
Allâh (azza wa jalla)
says: "Those who spend
(freely), whether in
prosperity, or in
adversity; who restrain
anger, and pardon (all)
men;- for Allah loves
those who do good."
(3:134)
The Prophet (sallallahu
'alayhi wa sallam)said:
"Don’t get angry.” [la
taghdhab]. "
Anger is something both
the Shariah and the
sound intellect regard
as generally
blameworthy. This is why
the Beloved of Allâh
Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam told the one
who sought his counsel,
“Don’t get angry,”
repeatedly. The scholars
recommend many measures
to deal with anger,
including:
1. Turn to Allâh,
and seeking refuge in
Allâh, from Shaytân.
When a man got
angry in front of the
Rasulullâh Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam, he told his
Sahabah: “I know some
words that would make
his anger leave, if he
said them. They are,
A`udhu billahi min al-shaykhtan
(‘I seek refuge in Allâh
from Satan’). (Bukharî)
Imâm Mawardi said in
Adab al-Dunya wa al-Din
that one should remember
Allâh when angry, for
this leads to fear of
Allâh, which directs him
to obey Him and restrain
one’s anger by adopting
proper manners. Allâh,
Most High, says: “And
remember Allâh when you
are heedless.” (Al-Kâhf,
ayâh 24)
2. Turn to Allâh
in supplication, in
order to control one’s
anger.
One should turn to Allâh
with one’s heart and
tongue, asking Him to
rid one of anger, and
all other lowly traits.
If one does this using
the exact Arabic words
of the supplications of
Rasulullâh Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam, it is even
more beloved to Allâh. `A’isha
(Allâh be pleased with
her) reports that, “Rasulullâh
Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam entered while
she was angry. So he
rubbed the tip of my
nose and said, ‘My
little `A’isha. Say, ‘O
Allâh, forgive my sin,
remove the anger in my
heart, and protect me
from Satan.’ (Allâhumma
’ Ghfir li dhanbi, wa
adhhib ghaydha qalbi, wa
aajirni min ash-shaytan)”
[Ibn al-Sunni, as
mentioned in Barkawi’s
Tariqa al-Muhammadiyya]
3. Silence:
Do not say anything when
angry, lest it
contravene the shariah
or goes against ones
personal or social
interests. Rasulullâh
Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam said, “If you
get angry, stay silent.”
[Ahmad]
4. Change your
Physical Posture:
Rasulullâh Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam is reported to
have said, “If you get
angry while standing,
sit down... If you get
angry while sitting, lie
down.” (Tirmidhi) The
wisdom in this is that
the possibility of many
things that one does in
anger is greatly
reduced.
5. Perform
Ceremonial Ablution [wudhu]:
Rasulullâh Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam informed us
that anger is from
Satan, and he was
created from fire, and
fire is extinguished by
water, so extinguish
your anger with wudhu. [Abû
Dawûd] Through this, a
person’s anger will cool
down and will feel as if
the water is pouring
directly on his anger.
6. Remember the
Great Reward Mentioned
by Allâh for those who
Control their Anger:
“And vie with one
another for forgiveness
from your Lord, and for
a Paradise as wide as
the heavens and the
earth, prepared for
those who fear Allâh
[al-muttaqîn] ; those
who spend (of that which
Allâh has given them) in
ease and in adversity,
those who control their
wrath and anger, and are
forgiving toward
mankind; and Allâh loves
the good. And those who,
when they do an evil
deed or wrong
themselves, remember
Allâh and implore
forgiveness for their
sins. And who forgives
sins but Allâh?...” (Âl-Imrân,
ayât 133-135)
7. Remember that
True Strength is not
Physical, but Spiritual
and Moral:
Rasulullâh Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam said, “The
strong one is not one
who can out-wrestle
others. Rather, the
strong one is the one
who exercises restraint
when angry.” (Bukhari).
Imam Barkawi mentioned
in his Tariqa al-Muhammadiyya
that the way to remove
the tendency to anger
is, “By removing its
cause, which is avidness
for rank, arrogance, and
conceit. One who has
these traits is easily
angered by that which
normally does not anger
others.”
8. Remember the
example of Rasulullâh
Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam:
Remember the clemency
and forbearance of
Rasulullâh Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam who did not get
angry unless the anger
was for the sake of
Allâh. The examples of
this from his life are
numerous. The scholars
say that every Muslim
should strive to read
about the life and
example of Rasulullâh
Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam.
9. Remember the
Harms of Anger:
Be aware of the harms of
anger, which include
acting in a way
unbefitting of a
believer. Would we act
like this if we were
aware that Allâh sees
all our actions? Would
we act like this in the
presence of Rasulullâh
Sallallâhu ‘alayhi
wasallam? Imam Ibn Hajar
al-Haytami (Allâh have
mercy on him) counted
getting wrongly angry as
one of the first major
sins in his Zawajir.
10. Remember
that Anger is Generally
Animalistic:
Be aware that one
resembles animals, more
than noble humans, when
in a state of anger.
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Message from the Ameer of
the Jamiatul Ulama |
Six Rights of a
Muslim upon a Muslim
In an environment where
people are continuously
abusing the rights of one
another, and it is found
that Muslims are not even
fulfilling the basic rights
of their fellow Muslim
brothers, I wish to
reproduce a short piece,
from a previous Amir’s
Message, on the six rights
of a Muslim upon another
Muslim.
In a world filled with
selfishness and the unending
pursuit of wealth and all
commodities to fulfill our
desires, it becomes
important to remind
ourselves of the rights
every Muslim has upon
another. Whether we know
that particular Muslim or
not, the fact that s/he is a
Muslim, they automatically
have certain rights upon us.
Allah's Messenger (peace be
upon him) said: "No one of
you shall become a true
believer until he desires
for his brother what he
desires for himself." (Bukhari)
Surely the best way for us
to please our brother/sister
is to place him/her high in
our estimation and do for
him/her what we would like
for ourselves.
The Prophet gave us
comprehensive direction on
how to sustain brotherhood.
He (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa
sallam) said: "There are six
rights of a Muslim upon a
Muslim". These are:
1) "When you meet him, greet
him?" With a warm smile, a
friendly face and As-Salaam
Alaykum we should try to
greet every Muslim. We must
avoid picking and choosing
whom we confer this basic
right upon. All Muslims
regardless of their social
status and position in
society should be afforded
this "gateway" into our
personal space. The Salaam
is the best of icebreakers
as it immediately brings
down the barriers that we
unconsciously erect around
ourselves to shield us from
"alien invasion".
2) "When he invites you,
respond to him;?" When a
Muslim brother invites you
to a function, you are
obliged to go. Accepting an
invitation is about sharing
in the joys of a brother as
well as joining with other
Muslims in a social
gathering.
3) "When he seeks counsel,
give him good advice;?" When
a brother comes to you with
a problem, seeking advice,
give him true advice. Be
sincere in your advice. Give
such advice that would keep
his best interest at heart.
4) "When he sneezes and
praises Allah, say to him:
`May Allah have mercy on you
(Yarhamuk-Allah)'?" . When a
Muslim sneezes or even when
he trips and he remembers to
praise Allah, we must
respond to him with a prayer
for Allah to have mercy on
him.
5) "When he is sick, visit
him?”. When you go and visit
a sick brother, remember to
pray for him and do not
inconvenience him by staying
too long.
6) "When he dies, follow his
funeral?" Attending the last
rites of a brother is of
utmost importance. Speaking
well of him and seeking
forgiveness for him will
ease his condition in the
grave. In turn, when you
die, others will also feel
for you and make du’a
sincerely for your
forgiveness.
If we can fulfill these
basic rights of Muslims, it
is hoped that much of the
envy, malice and hatred in
the society will vanish –
insha Allah.
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