EPIC Masjid, Imam Nadeem Bashir, Importance of Family

The Importance and Etiquettes of Jumu'ah

Respect your brothers and sisters. First of all, as you all know, we are very well aware of the weather conditions. And before Salatul Jumu'ah, some people had called me, texted me — do we have Salatul Jumu'ah? And I said, yes, why? Because, as they say in English, the show must go on.

No matter what the circumstances, and whatever happens, the show must go on — in the same way, Salatul Jumu'ah will take place. And actually, it makes me quite happy to see that despite the weather conditions, we have brothers here today, Alhamdulillah, we have sisters, and we have even the elderly.

This is something that has been on my to-do list for some time — to talk about the importance of the day of Jumu'ah, what are we supposed to do on the day of Jumu'ah. Generally, we come across this day every week. And because in this country, we do not give Fridays off — if you go to some other Muslim countries, the day of Friday is a designated day where it is completely off. Why? Because the day of Jumu'ah is a very special day.

Just like every religion has its most special day — for Christians, it is Sunday; for Jews, it is Saturday — in the same way, for the Muslims, the most blessed day in the entire week is the day of Jumu'ah.

The Status of Jumu'ah in the Qur'an and Sunnah

The day of Jumu'ah — Allah has designated an entire surah by the name of Surah Jumu'ah to show its importance and what is its status when it comes to our deen. Not only that, the Prophet ﷺ has also talked about this — that this is the day when Adam ﷺ was created, this is the day when he was entered into Jannah, and this is the day also when he was dismissed from Jannah. So this day holds a great significance in our religion.

Not only that, but the Prophet ﷺ has said many things about this day of Jumu'ah. First of all, he says that on this day of Jumu'ah, we are supposed to dedicate ourselves to the worship of Allah. Also, what we learn from the Prophet ﷺ is that on this day, there is one sa'ah. The Prophet ﷺ used the word sa'ah — some people explain and translate it as one hour, some people explain it as a brief moment — and on the day of Friday, Allah accepts any du'as of any person.

Allah says in the Qur'an:

Allah says that when you hear the call of Jumu'ah, fas'aw — you rush towards the dhikr and the remembrance of Allah. Dhālikum khayrun lakum — this is good for you. Allah is telling us. We want to know what is good for us, and Allah is telling us that this is beneficial for you. And then once Salat is over, fantashirū fil-ard — you spread throughout the entire earth — wabtaghū min fadlillāh — and you seek out from the mercy and blessings of Allah — la'allakum tuflihūn — so that you will be successful. So that's why it is so important that we take this day very, very seriously.

The Prophet ﷺ, in another hadith, says that the best day on which the sun rises is the day of Jumu'ah throughout the entire week. The Prophet ﷺ talks about those who come early for Jumu'ah. He says that on the day of Jumu'ah, the angels come and stand at the door of the masjid. And the very first person that comes in gets the reward as if he has sacrificed, for the sake of Allah, a camel. The next person who walks in gets the reward as if he has sacrificed a cow. The third person who walks in gets the reward as if he has sacrificed a chicken. And on and on, until the imam starts the khutbah — every person who walks in gets the reward as if he has given one egg for the sake of Allah. But when the imam stands up for the khutbah, the angels shut their books and they sit down and they also participate and listen to the khutbah.

Etiquette #1: Purification and Appearance

So, most of us grew up understanding the significance and the importance of the day of Jumu'ah. But at the same time, there are some other things that we can keep in mind. The very first thing we learn from the Prophet ﷺ is that he would tell the Sahaba that when you come for Jumu'ah, you make sure you take a shower — you take a bath — and not only that, but you wear something that is good, and put on and apply some atar and some perfume.

What we see from the Prophet ﷺ is that during his time, the Sahaba never had ACs or heaters. Whenever they would work hard in the sun and come to the masjid, the smell of the sweat would affect other people around them — and so the Prophet ﷺ said that you must take a shower. The most important thing is that if we have a job where we sweat quite a bit and there is perspiration, then when we come for the day of Jumu'ah, we should try to take a shower so that it will not affect anyone else.

This is not only for Salatul Jumu'ah — this is for all the general salawat. Whenever we come, a lot of times we have eaten something, or we have been somewhere where a foul smell has gotten into our clothes and it can affect someone else. This is the house of Allah. Allah says in the Qur'an:

That when you come to a masjid, wear something that is good. Wear something that you would like to wear outside. Wear something that has a good smell. If there are clothes that you are wearing which have a foul smell, then try to refrain from that.

Etiquette #2: Reading Surah Al-Kahf

At the same time, what are we supposed to do on the day of Jumu'ah? Read Surah Al-Kahf. Now a lot of times there is a perception that we read Surah Al-Kahf because it will protect you from the fitna of Dajjal. That is what the general assumption is. Although that is there in its place — anyone who reads Surah Al-Kahf will, insha'Allah, be protected from the fitna of Dajjal.

But many people have asked — I probably would not see Dajjal. Why do I have to read Surah Al-Kahf? Well, the Prophet ﷺ says that anyone who reads Surah Al-Kahf — on the Day of Judgment, this will serve as a source of nur, light, and blessings for a person between the two Jumu'ahs. So that's why we read Surah Al-Kahf — because it will serve as nur for us, insha'Allah, throughout the entire week.

The day of Jumu'ah is there so that it can be a spiritual recharge. Just like we take our car to the mechanic shop and we get an oil change — we take out all the dirty oil, put in new oil, keep our engine clean, and after that our car will function better — in the same exact way, this day of Jumu'ah is there so that we can gain some spiritual benefit. This spiritual benefit — by reading Qur'an, by reading Surah Al-Kahf, by doing the dhikr of Allah, sending salatu wassalam upon our Prophet ﷺ — will, insha'Allah, be a spiritual recharge.

Now, this is my own personal opinion — when I come for Salatul Jumu'ah, I see a lot of people who have their phones out reading Surah Al-Kahf. Let me make this very clear: it is absolutely allowed to read Qur'an from your phone. I'm not saying it is not allowed. However, when we are in the Masjid, it is advisable that we try to pick up the Mus'haf from the shelf, hold the Mus'haf, and read from the Mus'haf. Because slowly and gradually, if we continue to read Qur'an only from our phones, these Masahif on our shelves will slowly and gradually get abandoned. But if you feel you still want to read from your phone, that's absolutely allowed — there's nothing wrong with it. But in my personal opinion, it's better that you pick up the Mus'haf and try to connect with it.

Etiquette #3: Coming Early

The next thing is — try to come early. Living in America, we all know very well that when it comes to our work, we have to clock in, we have to clock out. We are so particular about getting to work on time. For many people who go to school — despite the weather conditions — they had to go to work. But then the question is: why can we not come for Salatul Jumu'ah also on time? Why can we not come early enough so that before the imam starts the khutbah, we are here, reading Surah Al-Kahf, doing tilawat of the Qur'an, and then after that the khatib starts the khutbah and we can attend the entire khutbah?

There are many people who come late, and they only get the last five minutes of the khutbah, wondering to themselves what the topic was. If we come early and we build this habit, insha'Allah, we will gain from the khutbah. And not only that — we hear from the Prophet ﷺ that anyone who takes a shower, applies perfume, comes to the masjid, does not distract himself with anything else, listens to the khutbah, and prays Salatul Jumu'ah with the jama'ah — then insha'Allah, Allah will forgive all his minor sins from one Jumu'ah to the other, and three extra days also. Who amongst us does not want that? We all want Allah to forgive our sins. Well, Allah is giving us the opportunity.

Etiquette #4: Listening Attentively to the Khutbah

The next thing is that while we are listening to the khutbah, it is important that we listen attentively. And this is not only with one particular khatib — it is with anyone. If we go to any masjid, anywhere, on the day of Jumu'ah, we should be absolutely attentive, try to listen to the khutbah, and make the intention that whatever is being said, I'm going to apply it. The most important thing is not to see who the speaker is, but to see what the message is. Not the messenger — the message.

The Prophet ﷺ, one time, went to a grave and saw a woman crying next to the grave — it was her son who had passed away. The Prophet ﷺ told her, isbiri — be patient for the sake of Allah. In return, she replied:

You are not in the situation that I am in.

The Prophet ﷺ never said anything back to her, and he just proceeded ahead and went home. Later on, when she found out that she had replied in this manner to none other than the Prophet ﷺ, she came to his house to apologize. The Prophet ﷺ said:

"Verily, patience is at the first stroke of calamity." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1283)

That you are to observe patience the very first time you are challenged with a situation — not that we cry, whine, complain, and say inappropriate things, and then later observe patience. The muhadditheen explain and derive a lesson from this hadith — that this woman never focused on the message. She felt as if the person who is the messenger is not in her situation. And they derive from this hadith: always try to focus on the message, not on the messenger.

In any khutbah that we attend, even if we have already applied that message in our life, the most important thing we need to ask ourselves is — have I spread this message to someone else? As the Prophet ﷺ said:

"Convey from me, even if it is one ayah." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3461)

If you know one ayah, you know something small about your deen and your religion, it is incumbent upon you to spread it to the next person.

May Allah give us the ability to act upon what's been said and heard.

Second Part of the Khutbah

Amma ba'd.

Etiquette #5: Not Disturbing Others

On the day of Jumu'ah, one of the other etiquettes is that for anyone who comes late — it is important that we don't cross over people, and if there are two people sitting, we don't try to smash and squeeze ourselves in the middle. It is distracting and it can hurt anyone else. If we want a space in the front, we should try to come early for Jumu'ah.

Etiquette #6: Meeting and Greeting on Jumu'ah

The next etiquette is that the day of Jumu'ah is a day where we should meet each other. The word Jumu'ah in itself comes from the word jama'ah — it means for people to come together. I remember here in Plano, one time I went to a church for a lecture — it was a Unitarian church. And I remember, in the middle of their service, they stopped and paused. Why? So that people in the congregation could meet and greet each other.

When it comes to the day of Jumu'ah, I fully understand that people have to get back to work. But first of all, after Salatul Jumu'ah, try to sit down for a while — read some tasbihat: SubhanAllah, Alhamdulillah, La ilaha illallah, Allahu Akbar, Astaghfirullah — make some du'a for yourself. A lot of times you find people rushing out of the masjid like the masjid is on fire. Try to sit down, try to calm yourself.

We as Muslims talk about unity, we talk about keeping our hearts united. The day of Jumu'ah is the best way to meet and greet each other — to meet people who we have probably not seen throughout the entire week. Once again, I understand people have to go to work, but if you have some time, try to take your time and then proceed wherever you have to go.

Etiquette #7: Bringing Our Children for Jumu'ah

The last thing I will mention regarding the day of Jumu'ah is something that applies very much to our situation. Most of our community members' children are going to public schools. There are very few who go to Islamic schools — the majority of the community sends their kids to public schools. And as you are fully aware, there is no Jumu'ah in public schools.

And so, either the kids are not praying Jumu'ah, or there are some who are. The ones who are, they are giving some kind of khutbah. A youngster came to me and said, "Today I gave the khutbah for Salatul Jumu'ah at my school." He was only 17 or 18 years old. I was shocked — I said Mashallah, that's great. May Allah make you an effective khatib in the future. I said, "But by the way, what topic did you give your khutbah on?" And he said, "Marriage." And I was thinking to myself, I said, "Are you planning to get married soon? Do you know about marriage?" He said, "No. I just went to Google, put in topics of khutbah, and the very first thing that came up was marriage." And I said, "What was the age group in your gathering?" And he said, "We were 16, 17, 18 years old."

The thing is — we should try. There are some school districts that may be a little strict about it, but as far as I know, Plano ISD has no restrictions. I feel that it is important for parents — and you can come to me for a letter; I will gladly give you a letter for an exemption from school for the time of Jumu'ah — but we should try to bring our kids to the masjid on the day of Jumu'ah for Salatul Jumu'ah.

Why? Because slowly and gradually, if we teach our kids that you can pray at school — or, if you don't pray, that's fine, your academics are more important than Jumu'ah — then what we are teaching our children is that Salatul Jumu'ah, which is the most important salat throughout the entire week, has absolutely no value. And guess what — slowly and gradually, when they grow up, they will grow up with those same values. That Salatul Jumu'ah is not important. Later on, when they get a degree, when they get a job, they will not even take off from work to come for Salatul Jumu'ah. And guess what — we see this happening right now. There are many professionals amongst the Muslim community who feel it is fine to just pray Salatul Dhuhr in their cubicle or at home. Absolutely not.

We should try to instill within our children from now the importance of Jumu'ah. When Jumu'ah comes, talk about its importance. The Prophet ﷺ has emphasized sending salatu wassalam and durud upon him on this particular day. Throughout the entire day, we should try to send as much salatu wassalam and durud as we can — there are so many different ways we can do that. Why? Because the Prophet ﷺ says that anyone who sends blessings upon him, he receives that, and insha'Allah he will intercede for that person on the Day of Judgment.

So these are a few etiquettes to keep in mind. Create an atmosphere inside your home. Many people have asked — can I read Surah Al-Kahf from Thursday Maghrib onward? Yes, because Islamically the day of Jumu'ah has already started, and that is absolutely fine. But create an environment within our households — what is the day of Jumu'ah? What do we need to do on the day of Jumu'ah? How much we're supposed to pray? Teach your kids, show your kids that Jumu'ah is so important that I will come to your school and pick you up, bring them for Jumu'ah, let them hear the khutbah, and then take them back to school.

This is something that we have to do within our communities. Many parents have told me that most parents don't bring their children for Salatul Jumu'ah. So this is something that has to turn around. This is something that we have to improve upon. And slowly and gradually, insha'Allah, if we take care of this day and do what we need to do, then we will gain some spiritual benefit — this spiritual recharge will, insha'Allah, help us throughout the entire week until the next Jumu'ah.

May Allah give us the ability to act upon what's been said and heard. May Allah give us the ability to benefit from the day of Jumu'ah the way the Prophet ﷺ and the Sahaba did. Ameen.