20160805 - Second Khutba

Opening — The Khutbah of Need

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ وَنَعُوذُ بِاللهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ

Amma ba'd: Verily, the truest speech is the Book of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad ﷺ. And the worst of affairs are the newly invented matters in religion. And every newly invented matter in religion is a heresy, and every heresy leads us astray. And everything that leads us astray leads to the Hellfire.

Verily, all praise is due to Allah. We praise Him, seek His help, and ask for His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evil in ourselves and from our sinful deeds. Whosoever Allah guides, no one can mislead. And whosoever Allah allows to stray, no one can guide. And I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah — He is One, having no partners. And I bear witness that Muhammad ﷺ is His servant and Messenger.

The Most Challenging Time for Muslims in America

I would like to begin by saying that many of us have identified this time that we're living in as one of the most challenging times for Muslims here in America — perhaps outside of the time when Muslims were imported as slaves here. Outside of this time, in these last few decades, we can easily say that this is the most challenging time.

At a time of mass Islamophobia, in which either you find people being suspicious or fearful, or people actually hating. Many people have told me that they've directly been told, or indirectly, "go back home," or something to this type of statement. Many sisters have asked: is it okay to remove the hijab because they feel threatened? And many brothers have said that when they go to the masjid and enter the salah, their mind wanders a little bit because of fear.

And no doubt it is logical fear. Just a few weeks ago, I gave a khutbah in a masjid that had four bullet holes. And many of the masjids even here in our city have been vandalized. And not only that — a time of hostility. And a time in which some say, unfortunately, "I feel voiceless."

So you have this frustration, you have this challenge, and many people ask: what do we do? And on top of that, people say, "I feel voiceless." Because if I, for example, voice some opinion about some things that are going on that I don't like — let's say foreign affairs or foreign policies, just something in politics — then I fear that I'm going to be categorized with the extreme, with the fanaticals, with those people who are misguided. They're going to say, "Oh, this rhetoric sounds very similar to those guys." Or, "You're so unpatriotic."

And no doubt this is a conundrum — a position that many are in. And so some of the response has been to just assimilate even more: "Everything's okay, all this is fine, let me just hold hands and be more like you" — not showing value and diversity, which America appreciates, but out of fear of conflict and hostility, just assimilating and keeping quiet.

Honestly, the scope of this question of what to do in this time is too great for a single khutbah. However, I think that we should look at one incident of the Prophet's ﷺ life. Many people have asked this question. Imams are talking about how to properly respond. And I think if we look at the most challenging time in the Prophet's ﷺ life — a time so similar to our own, with Islamophobia and conflict and fear — it will give us great insight on how to reflect on our time.

The Most Difficult Day: The Story of Ta'if

This is something beautiful that the Prophet ﷺ shared with us. When asked by Aisha, radiyallahu anha, "What was the most difficult moment in your life?" — she thought obviously it would be Uhud, in which there was so much difficulty. But the Prophet ﷺ mentioned it was Ta'if.

It was early in Islam. It was during a time of persecution, a time in which the Prophet ﷺ had just recently lost Khadijah, radiyallahu anha, his beloved wife, and lost Abu Talib, his beloved uncle — who died upon kufr, not accepting the message, though he had been a great protector. So he went to Ta'if because they were influential. And they humiliated him, or attempted to humiliate him. They got the children and the servants to throw stones, and the Prophet ﷺ actually bled. He was ridiculed by the chiefs there as well. He was actually fearful for his life. He had to run. And he was publicly embarrassed.

And the Prophet ﷺ was a human being. He said, "I was dazed for a period of time." This was the most difficult time in the Prophet's ﷺ life. And we know that the most challenged person in the world was the Prophet ﷺ, because we are told that those who are tested the most are the Prophets, and then those who have the strongest iman after that. So the Prophet ﷺ was challenged more than anyone else. And that was his most challenging time — something that doesn't even compare to our time. We don't have persecution like that. We are not publicly harassed in that way.

The Response: Mercy Over Spite

But amazing — this is the response, and this is really what I want to concentrate on. An angel came down — we all know the story — and basically said, "I can take care of them for you. That's what they deserve, to treat someone who came to help them, who came concerned about them, who came as a mercy — and yet they caused him to bleed and tried to humiliate him."

And the Prophet ﷺ did not focus on his own right. He did not become spiteful — even though it would have been entirely within his right to do so. He was more concerned about the truth being manifested. He was more concerned about the people. Amazing. This is Islam. During the most difficult time, the response to hostility, the response to persecution, the response to Islamophobia was: caring about the people, being focused on the people, being focused on the truth, and letting mercy be manifested.

Allah says: "We did not send you except to be a mercy to mankind." If we claim to practice Islam, then our very existence, and Islam by extension, should be a mercy to mankind. We should be concerned about the people — not about ourselves, not about our positions, not about how people view us — but focused on the people. This is what Islam says.

This is the story we all know. This was the most challenging time in the Prophet's ﷺ life, and this is how he responded. Very difficult. Very difficult. But that is the mindset we have to have.

Despite the fact that hurtful statements are made — most of those statements are made out of ignorance, because we are part of the problem, meaning we haven't educated the people. And we know that. I've shared incidents in which I've met the most hateful people, people who were very guilty of bigotry and Islamophobia — and just with one sitting, they changed their minds. You may not even get one sitting. It may take more. Maybe they won't change. But this should be our mindset. This is the ideal response. This is the response from the Prophet ﷺ.

And even after the battle of Uhud, which was very, very difficult — when someone basically cursed the enemy, saying they have injured the Prophet, done this, done that — the Prophet ﷺ said: "I have not been sent as one who curses the people. I have been sent as a mercy to the people." These people had physically killed and tortured. They killed Hamza. Imagine how emotionally difficult this was. And yet the Prophet ﷺ still thought this way.

Likewise, it is related that the Prophet ﷺ actually asked Allah to forgive them because they didn't know better — after all of this was done to him. And again, imagine the worst day in your life. I've heard spouses say, "I'm never going to forgive you, never forget what you said," and they bring it up ten years later. "But you remember? Come on, can we forget about this?" — and this is the one you love the most, and they won't forgive. But someone who intended to hurt you — we have to forgive. And overlook.

Repelling Evil with Good: The Quranic Command

We have the option of responding to negativity with negativity, or we can respond with that which is better. Islam has this reputation of being a religion of mercilessness, a religion of being spiteful and angry — but it is just the opposite. The Qur'an begins with Bismillah ir-Rahman ir-Rahim, and Allah tells us to repel evil with good. As we say here too: "Kill them with kindness." It works. It's hard. But Allah says:

Good and evil are not at the same level. Repel evil — not with evil. As they say here: "Two wrongs don't make a right." Repel evil with that which is good. And if you do so — this is the main point of the khutbah — if we are able to reach this level where we're not really thinking about ourselves but thinking about the other person, whether that be our spouse, our family member, our friend, a Muslim, or a non-Muslim — if we repel evil with good:

"Then you will find the person between whom and you there was hostility — as if he is your close, warm friend." This is not extracted or implied — it is explicit. Allah says it very explicitly in the Qur'an. If you kill them with kindness, you have to just try.

But you won't experience this, you won't know this, you won't have this — unless you have sabr (patience). Only those who are patient will see this. And no one will experience this except someone with a great fortune. But let us try this — and not just with Islamophobia, but also with our internal conflicts inside the masjid, with one another. This is what Islam is about. And this, again, is not the statement of a scholar — this is the explicit Word of Allah.

The Message of Ramadan: Forgiveness and Taqwa

Likewise, this is the message of Ramadan. Ramadan wasn't too far off — believe it or not, time flies. One of the themes of Ramadan is to seek Allah's forgiveness, to overlook. And the du'a that we said on the most blessed night of the year was:

"O Allah, You love to pardon, You love to overlook — so forgive us." And Allah tells us — and this is interesting because it is actually talking about something different, about marriage and divorce — but Allah says that to overlook, to forego your right, is closer to taqwa (piety). So this pardoning, overlooking, and forgoing your right for a greater good is closer to piety.

Likewise, Allah tells us about assuming this mindset:

"And rush — be quick in the race — for forgiveness from your Lord, and a garden as wide as are the heavens and the earth, prepared for the Muttaqeen."

Interestingly, this is what Ramadan is about. We practiced for thirty days for لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ — the whole purpose, as Imam Nadim was talking about in the first khutbah regarding intentions — was for us to gain piety. Again, the message of Ramadan. So Allah tells us to seek forgiveness from your Lord, so that perhaps you may be of the people of Taqwa. And then Allah describes — in a limited but beautiful description — who the people of Taqwa are:

"Those who spend in good times and in bad times" — meaning when it is easy and when it is difficult, they spend and care about the people and sacrifice both when it is easy for them and when it is difficult. Sometimes it is even hard to spend when it is easy for you — and no doubt that is the case. But we are supposed to be people who have big hearts all the time, caring about the people, focused on the people. This is what Ramadan is all about: altruism, selflessness, thinking about others — trying to rid yourself of greed.

And those who restrain their anger — وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ. And those who pardon people — وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ — this word afw again. وَإِن تَعْفُوا أَقْرَبُ لِلتَّقْوَىٰ — and we say, اللَّهُمَّ إِنَّكَ عَفُوٌّ. Those who forego their right, those who forgive. And Allah loves those who are on this level of ihsan — those who do good and are excellent. That is what we are always trying to do: to be the best.

Second Part: The Consequence of Responding to Evil with Evil

So now, in the second part of the khutbah, I want to quickly address: if we respond to evil with evil, what can be the consequence?

Many have rightfully complained that this is a difficult and challenging time — a time in which we are faced, either directly or indirectly, with very hurtful words. Some people — I know women who have been run off the road, who have had obscenities shouted at them, and all types of things. A woman just a couple of days ago was wearing a niqab and was basically told, "You need to get out of here." So the point is: how do we respond?

There are also things going on — affecting our countries, things we may not like. In every country, even as Sherman Jackson said in his prayer at the DNC, we're not a perfect nation. And I don't think any politician would say that. So sometimes we want to provide advice as well. But how do we do this? How do we respond to mistakes, to negativity, to hatred and bigotry?

Now, if we say, "I'm just more concerned about my right," or we respond to frustration with frustration — what happens? Consider what happened a few weeks ago here in Dallas, for example, with the Black Lives Matter movement. The vast majority of people here in America, even those to the very far right — have acknowledged this is a problem, that there is an injustice. However, there was one person, frustrated and angry, who said, "I'm going to go to their level" — and he shot and killed several officers, trying to shoot any white person he could find. No doubt his frustration is noted. But Allah says:

So you repel evil by going through interviews, by going through town hall meetings, by doing it properly — even by trying to kill people with kindness, having these reconciliation-type sessions. The proper way is slow, but it is the right way. But what happened when he didn't respond with what is better? The movement — which had already been attacked, with people saying, "These guys are thugs," "Blue lives matter" — it became worse. At the RNC, even at a national level, the response meant that things became much worse for the movement and for everything he wanted to achieve.

Similarly, look at what happened in College Station, with the masjid that had four bullet holes. Those people — only Allah knows their intentions — perhaps sought to intimidate Muslims, to galvanize opposition, or to chase people out. But what happened was that many people came in support of the Muslims. They made a symbolic ring around the masjid, and it went viral. They showed that they were with the Muslims, and they rebuked the attackers. Even before this khutbah began, some priests came — people who had no prior connection with the masjid. It was amazing.

I'm mentioning two things that none of us obviously want to deal with — but just to show you: when you repel evil with evil, what happens? Many times you're not even able to contain it. We know that transgression is an abomination in Islam — it is itself a transgression. So it is better for us to assume, especially in this time, that which is ideal and that which is ihsan — to respond to evil with that which is better.

Conclusion: We Must Genuinely Care for the People

I conclude by saying that we really have to simply care. We have to care about the people. We have to be not selfish. This was the theme of Ramadan. And if we really care about the people, the people will love us. We will be making real differences in people's lives — and not just for our own people, not just for our refugees. We have to care about all people.

We can't blame the people. I've said this many times: non-Muslims who say interesting things — "I see you, and I work with you, but sometimes you're selling things in urban neighborhoods that are not very good, you're doing this..." We can't be selfish people. And if we're suffering the repercussions, we have to look at that and say: to a certain extent, maybe Allah is trying to wake us up. And I know that's very harsh for me to say, and I feel I am part of that — but I think it is rightfully said.

People came to me, and I'm almost in tears because of this. They said: "Man, I really didn't care about Black folks. I came to America knowing exactly your narrative, but I didn't care — because I came here with a purpose. I was told this by several people. But now, since I am suffering transgressions and discrimination — man, I care now. Wow, I didn't really focus on that. I really didn't care, because it wouldn't affect me, it wouldn't affect my family, my people, my mission. But now — man, I'm the bad guy. I'm the boogeyman. I get stopped. Now they're asking me things when I travel. And now I'm complaining — and I say, how hypocritical of myself! I didn't even care about you people. I didn't even care about injustice. Now when I'm treated unjustly, I want the world to care about me."

So many people came to me like that. And that shows you how big of a heart we have. I think when anything happens to us, that is the way we have to look at it — we have to look into ourselves, not into others. And that's a good thing. Allah is waking us up.

And Allah says in the Qur'an that these things happen لَعَلَّكُمْ تَرْجِعُونَ — that you may return back to Allah. And I think all of us have some guilt, and all of us can do more. I think a lot of this is out of ignorance, and we just have to educate the people and do a better job. And we should be optimistic — I'm optimistic — we should focus on the good. May Allah make us of those who are successful in this world and the Hereafter.

Closing Du'as

And the conclusion of our supplication is: Al-hamdu lillahi Rabb il-'alameen.

آمين — Al-Fatiha.