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Weekly Comment |
Million-Man March Turn-Out:
Apathy at its Best?
Even though the passion may have
been higher than the expected
turnout, much is left to
question about general South
African attitudes of the ‘crime’
pandemic. Organisers anticipated
many more in droves, but a
meagre 7000-odd joined shoulders
in yesterday’s Million-Man
March, pioneered by Desmond Dube
in Pretoria.
With crime spiralling and daring
high profile cases becoming a
trend, where do we go from here?
Are we beginning to
‘come-to-terms’ with crime as
part of our lives? Let’s all
shake-off the sense of
indifference and paralysis and
stand up against crime.
Worrisome is the condition of a
sick person, but graver is the
plight of a critical patient who
is ignorant of his illness. To
echo Dube: “Government should
listen to the moaning and cry of
the nation: enough is enough.”
We should have become an
abnormal society when we peruse
through a newspaper or listen to
bulletin with a total disregard
for the crime snippets. Have we
become a society that has become
accustomed to hijackings, murder
and armed robbery?
The scourge is on our doorstep,
let’s put shoulder to the wheel
and collectively drive it out!
Our success, however, depends on
our connection with the Creator.
Let’s also to turn to the
Almighty for guidance.
Who is Responsible for Africa’s
Problems?
Raila Odinga, the Kenyan PM came
to town. He was attending the
Africa leg of the World Economic
Forum. He confidently tackled an
aspect which is often avoided by
our leaders. In a way, he went
for the proverbial jugular:
Africa should own up to her
woes.
He alluded to the often-cited
fact that starting from the same
levels of development with some
of South-Eastern Asia countries,
about 50 years ago, much of
Africa has stagnated while the
Asian states have
industrialised. He suggests that
our leaders have failed us. By
extension, we can also say that
we have failed ourselves as we
have to ‘own up’ our leaders.
While this could be the case, it
must not be forgotten that there
are myriad factors that have
made Africa what she is.
Prominent among these are
inappropriate aid policies that
are ill-conceived in towers
far-detached from realities on
the ground. Imagine the
following forms of aid for
Africa: trucks sent to regions
of Ethiopia with impassable
roads; dairy cattle introduced
in arid zones; and, tractors
given to areas in Zimbabwe
without technical backup and
spare parts.
Regardless, Africa should be
forward-looking and tap into her
well-endowed resources to their
full. Why have we sold ourselves
short? Lasting socio-economic
progress will come when the
continent moves beyond raw
material production towards
value-added final products. As
for today, African resources
create more jobs overseas that
they do on the continent!
With the Left so Right, who
Needs the Left?
‘It is about time … It is about
change…’ Obama’s official
campaign website reads. The
change touts he would bring, is
for an America that will work
with other nations to find
solutions for the
conflict-ridden world, in
particular the Middle East. As
rosy as it may sound, it will
remain to be seen if this change
is not one that will actually
dim the light which was thought
to be at the end of the tunnel.
The initial euphoria at the
prospect of a young dynamic
leader taking over the White
House has been tapered (at least
among Palestinians and their
supporters), with Barack Obama’s
pronouncement that ‘Jerusalem
will remain the capital of
Israel - and it must remain
undivided,’ as Obama told a
cheering audience at an AIPAC-
(American-Israeli Public Affairs
Committee) hosted event soon
after claiming the Democratic
nomination.
Obama’s rhetoric, is not
original. It has always been the
mantra of Zionists which runs
contrary to internationally
recognised position that East
Jerusalem in Occupied Land (UNSC
Resolution 242). If at all he
dreams of protecting Israel, he
must have started on the wrong
foot, though.
As Uri Avnery observes: “Obama's
declarations at the AIPAC
conference are very, very bad
for peace. And what is bad for
peace is bad for Israel, bad for
the world and bad for the
Palestinian people.” |
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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 159.04 |
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Mahr Faatimi |
R 7,952.22 |
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Zakaat Nisaab |
R 3,180.89 |
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Words of Wisdom |
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Hadith of the Week |
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As My Servant Thinks... |
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Hadith Qudsi: I am as My
servant thinks I am (expects
Me to be). I am with him
when he makes mention of Me.
If he makes mention of Me to
himself, I make mention of
him to Myself; and if he
makes mention of Me in an
assembly,
I make mention of him in an
assemble better than it. And
if he draws near to Me an
arm's length, I draw near to
him a fathom's length. And
if he comes to Me walking, I
go to him at speed.
(al-Buhkari, Muslim, at-Tirmidhi
and Ibn-Majah).
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Quotation for the Week |
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Joys of Sincerity |
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When you do things from your
soul, you feel a river
moving in you, a joy.
(Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi)
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Point of Reflection |
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Sizeable Damage |
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The fly is small, but it is
big enough to make one sick.
(Turkish Proverb)
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Q and A |
Question:
Is it permissible to sell
dog food that contains
meat (which is most probably
haraam)?
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Answer:
The sale of dog
food, that contains Najas
(impure) and Haraam
ingredients, is not
permissible according to our
Ulama. If the goods cannot
be returned to the supplier,
then they can be sold but
the
proceeds there from should
be distributed among the
poor.
And Allâh Ta’âla Knows Best.
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U P D A T E |
UJ
Beyers Naudé Memorial Lecture
The University of Johannesburg
invites you to the first UJ
Beyers Naudé memorial Lecture.
SPEAKER: Prof Charles Villa-Vicencio
(Previous Director at the
Institute for Justice and
Reconciliation);
DATE: Wednesday 18 June 2008;
TIME: 18:30 for 19:00;
VENUE: University of
Johannesburg, School for
Hospitality and Tourism, Bunting
Road, Auckland Park (Close to
SABC)
RSVP: Ingrid Waldeck e-mail:
ingridw@uj.ac.za; Tel: 011 559
6933; By Friday, 13 June 2008.
Muslims who are interested
should contact Ingrid so that
arrangements for Halaal food can
be made. Light dinner will be
served after the lecture.
Youth Programme in Lenasia
Nurul Islam Masjid will host a
youth programme on Sunday 15
June 2008 from 10:00am until
Dhuhr. The programme will be
addressed by Moulana Ebrahim I
Bham, Moulana Sulaiman Moola and
a special guest, Brother Junaid
Jamshed from Pakistan. All
youths in Lenasia and
surrounding areas are encouraged
to attend.
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Summarised Jumu’ah
Bayaan:
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Message for
Youth |
(The young men said to
one another:) "And when
you withdraw from them,
and that which they
worship, except Allah,
then seek refuge in the
cave; your Lord will
open a way for you from
His mercy and will make
easy for you your
affair.'' (Surah Kahf
verse 16)
The feet of man
will not move on the Day
of Resurrection until he
is asked of five things
his life- how he spent
it; his youth - how he
used it; his wealth –
where he acquired it and
how he spent it; and his
knowledge - what he did
with it.” (Tirmidhi)
Islamic history
is rife with Muslim
legends who have tuned
the tidal wave in favour
of the Muslims. If the
youth of today are to
adequately respond to
these challenges and are
willing to protect their
Islamic values, they
must first free
themselves from a
godless mindset that
feeds only the body and
not the soul.
Youth have to
believe in themselves
that they can act as
agents of positive
change and improvement
in society. They have to
view themselves as part
of the solution and not
part of the problem.
They have the potential
of building networks
across cultural barriers
and championing the
course of social
responsibility and
justice.
Youth are the
biggest and most crucial
asset of human
development!
The role of youth
in the early period of
Islam is well known.
During the historic
migration of Nabi
Sallallahu 'alayhi
wasallam from Makkah to
Madina, a journey
fraught with danger and
hardship it was the
youth that played a
significant role in
ensuring save passage
for Nabi Sallallahu 'alayhi
wasallam.
Four young people
who stood up to this
task were:
• Ali ibn Abi
Talib Radhi-Allahu 'anhu,
who facilitated the
Prophet’s Sallallahu 'alayhiwasallam
escape from
assassination by
sleeping in his bed
• Amir ibn
Fuhayrah Radhi-Allahu 'anhu,
who drove his sheep to
graze over and wipe out
any footprints leading
to the cave where the
Prophet and Abu Bakr
were hiding
• Abdullah ibn
Abi Bakr Radhi-Allahu 'anhu,
who would keep his
father and the Prophet
Sallallahu 'alayhi
wasallam informed of the
Makkans’ plans, and
• Asma' bint Abi
Bakr Radhi-Allahu 'anha,
who took food and water
to the escapees
These young
individuals believed in
themselves and stood up
to defend Islam and the
Prophet Their
contribution to the rise
of Islam is etched in
the annals of history.
The sacrifice each one
of them made reveals the
love and loyalty they
had for the Prophet They
also serve as role
models for all Muslims
youth to emulate.
In Surah Kahf
Allah makes mention of
young men, that were
more accepting of the
truth and more guided
than the elders who had
become stubbornly set in
their ways and clung to
the religion of
falsehood.
For the same
reason, most of those
who responded to Allah
and His Messenger were
young people. As for the
elders of Quraysh, most
of them kept to their
religion and only a few
of them became Muslims.
Allah tells us
that the people of the
cave were young men.
Allah says regarding
these young men. We
narrate unto you their
story with truth: Truly,
they were young men who
believed in their Lord
(Allah), and We
increased them in
guidance.) Verse 13
These we a group
of young men that
refuted worship of any
deity besides Allah.
They were strong in
faith and Allah helped
them against the evil
doers by the most simple
of all defense. Allah
made them sleep in their
cave for three hundred
years, adding nine.
Regardless of our
difficult the situation
might seem for a person
Allah has explained to
us through the incident
of these young men, the
power of Allah that
protects those who are
firm in their faith.
The Prophet said:
“There are seven whom
Allaah will shade in His
Shade on the Day when
there is no shade except
His Shade: a just ruler;
a youth who grew up in
the worship of Allaah,
the Mighty and Majestic;
a man whose heart is
attached to the mosques;
two men who love each
other for Allaah's sake,
meeting for that and
parting upon that; a man
who is seduced by a
woman of beauty and
position, but be says:
'I fear Allaah', a man
who gives in charity and
hides it, such that his
left hand does not know
what his right hand
gives in charity; and a
man who remembered
Allaah in private and so
his eyes shed tears.” (Bukhari)
The stage of
being a youth has a
dimension of time. It’s
a limited and transient
period in anyone’s life.
Youth, therefore should
dedicate their time in
the worship of the
Almighty by:
• Acquiring
skills and knowledge
that should be used to
serve the Almighty.
Remember that,
acquisition of Deen
knowledge is mandatory
on every Muslim (male
and female).
• Serving their
parents with respect and
dignity.
• Volunteer their
energies, efforts and
time while they last in
serving others.
• Avoid
time-wasting
engagements. These are
aplenty these days on
cell-phones, Internet,
and uncountable gaming
consoles that are
flooding the market.
May the Almighty
Protect and Guide our
youth. Ameen.
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Message from the Ameer of
the Jamiatul Ulama |
Honesty
(This is a re-run on one of
Messages of the Amir of the
Jamiatul Ulama)
Allah Subhanahu wa ta’aala
has granted a most beautiful
and complete deen. It is a
deen that encompasses
aspects of ibaadah
(worship), mu’aasharah
(social interactions),
Mu`aamalaat (monetary
dealings), akhlaaq
(character), etc. If a
person strives to bring the
injunctions of Allah and
teachings of our dear
Prophet, Muhammad Sallallahu
‘alayhi wa sallam into
his/her life regarding these
different facets, then he
will be practising upon all
of deen. If a person focuses
his attention on these
diverse fields, he will find
that his life will be more
full and wholesome and will
automatically become a
source of inspiration to
others – a means of da’wah.
If, on the other hand, some
of these aspects are
neglected or omitted from
the realm of the practical
life of a Muslim, then we
will find that he will not
be practising upon the whole
of deen, his life will seem
empty and, Allah forbid, he
could become a means of
turning others away from
this beautiful deen.
An aspect that has somehow
slowly ebbed out of the life
of the Believers is a
feature that our beloved
Prophet Sallallahu ‘alayhi
wa sallam was well known
for. It was also a
characteristic that the
Believers were recognized
by. This was the aspect of
truthfulness and honesty.
Allah exhorts us to hold
firm to it and our Prophet
Sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam
has also laid great emphasis
upon it.
In over 100 places in the
Qur’an, Allah has mentioned
the aspect of honesty. Some
of the references are as
follows. Allah Subhanahu wa
ta’aala says:
• "So Allah may reward the
truthful for their
truthfulness " [33:24].
• "O You who believe, Have
taqwa of Allah and be of
those who are truthful "
[9:119].
• "O You who believe, guard
your duty to Allah, and
speak words straight to the
point. " [33:70] .
• "Believers are... those
who are truthful ." [49:15].
• Successful indeed are the
believers; those who offer
their prayers with all
solemnity and full
submissiveness. And those
who turn away from al-laghw
(false, impure, evil
falsehood, vain talk.)
[23:1-3]
• "Oh ye who believe! Eat
not up each other's property
by unfair and dishonest
means." (4:29)
• "Allah doth command you to
render back your trust, to
those to whom they are
due."(4:58)
The Prophet Sallallahu ‘alayhi
wa sallam said:
• "Being truthful is
obligatory, for truly
truthfulness lead to
righteousness, and
righteousness leads to
paradise."
• Remember, there is no
faith in him who is not
trustworthy; there is no
place for him in religion
who cares not for his
pledged word or promise."
• " The signs of a hypocrite
are three: when he speaks,
he is false, when he
promises, he fails; and when
he is trusted, he plays
false."
• "He who cheats is not of
us. Deceitfulness and fraud
are things that lead one to
Hell."
Honesty must be present in
every vein of the Muslim. It
must be evident in every
sphere of his life and must
become prominent in his
belief, word ands action.
May Allah guide us to bring
honesty and truthfulness
into our lives.
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