Welcome to MASJID AL-MOMINEEN’s Weblog. Our hope is to host a virtual forum where approved members of the Clarkston and Stone Mountain Muslim community can post articles about any topic of interest related to Islam and MASJID AL-MOMINEEN. Interested authors may send an email to webmaster@masjidalmomineen.com to obtain a special contributor password to this blog. Everyone is encouraged to post comments on published posts. We ask that you let sound reason and respect for the opinion and belief of others guide you in posting your comments and feedback.
AsSalaamu ‘Eleikum wa Rahmatullah! (Peace and Mercy of God be to you!)
Why not start with words?
By: Masood Malikyar
President Obama’s address from Cairo last week is largely considered the most historic one ever given by an American President to the Muslim world. He took a huge political risk against the vociferous criticism of his rivals in the Republican party and the right wing media. He covered a lot of ground and articulated his administration’s policy towards Muslims and Islam – until Cairo the latter was purposefully conflated with the word “terrorism” by his predecessors in the oval office and by the American mainstream media. In a sharp departure from the past’s misguided and apocalyptic policies, he refused to utter the word even once in his entire address.
I as a Muslim living in America am proud to live in a country that is led by such a courageous leader. I laud Mr. Obama for his courage and foresight. I appreciate his articulation of the pressing issues facing Americans and Muslims, and I am ecstatic about how in one speech he shifted the entire discourse from hate and fear mongering towards tolerance, collaboration, and the promise of what is possible if prejudices were set aside.
It is high time for Muslims and Muslim governments to stand tall once again on the right side of history. We need to stand at the helm of knowledge and in the forefront of technological innovations as we stood once before and as President Obama so kindly recalled. On the other hand, President Obama has to follow his words with concrete actions using the same zeal embodied in his historic speech. Words are only words to some if not translated into actions. However, the words Mr. Obama uttered in Cairo were fresh, sincere, and promising. He opened a whole new window of opportunity for all to grab regardless of nationality or creed. Americans, Europeans, Muslims, Christians, Jews, and others all can follow his lead in contributing to a future devoid of hatred and prejudice – first with words and then with tangible and effective actions. Words do matter. Islam has been equated with terrorism for too long. Mr. Obama has taken the lead in disassociating these two words. We all have to start somewhere. Why not start with words?
‘Ashura
By: Masood Malikyar
‘Ashura this year falls on Wednesday, January 7, in North America. It is mustahab to fast and to give of what Allah SWT has given us in charity to those in need.
‘Ashura is also the day in which Yazid’s army mercilessly massacred Hussein ibn Ali RA, the grandson of our beloved Prophet SAW, along with dozens of his family members and companions in cold blood. That was a very dark day in history of Islam. However, his sacrifice, steadfastness, and unwavering stance against injustice and tyranny stands to serve as a model for all humanity and specifically for Muslims for all time to come.
So, let us celebrate ‘Ashura by fasting, by helping those in need, and by making du’as for the martyrs of ‘Ashura.
Muhammad SAW on Charity
By: Masood Malikyar The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "Giving in charity is prescribed for each descendant of Adam every day the sun rises." People then asked him: "From what do we give charity if we do not possess property?" He replied: "The doors of goodness are many – (saying) ‘glory to God,’ ‘praise be to God,’ ‘there is no deity but God,’ enjoining good, forbidding evil, removing harm from the road, listening to the deaf (until you understand them), leading the blind, guiding one to the object of his need, hurrying with the strength of one’s legs to one in sorrow who is asking for help, and supporting the weak with the strength of one’s arms – all of these are (forms of) charity prescribed for you." Fiqh-us-Sunnah, Volume 3, Number 98 In another Hadith, he SAW is quoted to have said that even smiling to someone is a charity. Let us keep this prophetic advice to heart and try to be as charitable as we can be – not just with our assets, but also with our minds and hearts. God is the Most Charitable of all as he freely Gave the descendants of Adam so many capabilities. Let’s give a little of what He Almighty Gave us lest we face Him on the day of judgment and be questioned how and why we hoarded it all without ever giving back even some in return – to so many out there in need.
