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Brotherhood amongst the followers of all Divine religions:
Dear brothers, the brotherhood amongst the followers of all Divine religions starts, first, from believing that all these religions spring out from one source, Allah says:
“He (Allah) has ordained for you the same religion (Islam) which He ordained for Nuh (Noah), and that which We have inspired in you (O Muhammad), and that which We ordained for Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Mosesý) and 'Iesa (Jesus) saying you should establish religion (i.e. to do what it orders you to do practically), and make no divisions in it (religion) (i.e. various sects in religion).”
Second, brotherhood amongst the followers of all divine religions is achieved when we don’t make distinction between a Prophet and another in terms of faith, as those Prophets are the messengers of Allah to all people, and Allah says:
“They say, "We make no distinction between one another of His Messengers" - and they say, "We hear, and we obey. (We seek) Your Forgiveness, our Lord, and to You is the return (of all)."
Based on the previous two Ayahs, followers of all Divine religions should have a good relationship that Allah wills and blesses, and this is the faith-based foundation of this conference.
Quran acquaints us with the following:
1- The Miracle of Messiah PBUH (Jesus)’s birth:
First, let us mention what the Quran said about the Messiah PBUH, as it defined the miracle of Jesus’s birth in an outstanding way. Allah says:
“Then she brought him (the baby) to her people, carrying him. They said: "O Mary! Indeed you have brought a thing Fariya (an unheard mighty thing). O sister (i.e. the like) of Harun (Aaron)* Your father was not a man who used to commit adultery, nor your mother was an unchaste woman. Then she pointed to him. They said: "How can we talk to one who is a child in the cradle? He (Jesus) said: Verily! I am a slave of Allah, He has given me the Scripture and made me a Prophet; And He has made me blessed wheresoever I be, and has enjoined on me Salat (prayer), and Zakat, as long as I live. And dutiful to my mother, and made me not arrogant, unblest. And Salam (peace) be upon me the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I shall be raised alive!”
*Harun who is mentioned in this ayah is not the brother of Moses, but he was another pious man at the time of Mary.
These Ayahs, indicate the miracle of Messiah PBUH’s birth.
2-The amazing definition of Messiah in Quran:
The noble Quran provided us with an outstanding, generous, and friendly definition of the dignitary character of Messiah PBUH:
“(Remember) when the angels said: "O Maryam (Mary)! Verily, Allah gives you the glad tidings of a Word ["Be!" - and he was! i.e. 'Iesa (Jesus) the son of Maryam (Mary)] from Him, his name will be the Messiah 'Iesa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), held in honour in this world and in the Hereafter, and will be one of those who are near to Allah."
Once, I happened to be in Germany, where I visited one of the biggest universities in a town called Monsera, so the deans of collages asked a question: Why do you approve the marriage between a Muslim man and a Christian woman, while the opposite is prohibited? The answer to that was: Because, when a Muslim gets married to a Christian woman, she is a believer in Messiah PBUH and her husband believes that he is a noble Prophet, she also believes in the Bible and her Muslim husband believes that the Bible is a book from Allah, hence, there is no contradiction here. Dear brother:
“(Remember) when the angels said: "O Maryam (Mary)! Verily, Allah gives you the glad tidings of a Word ["Be!" - and he was! i.e. 'Iesa (Jesus) the son of Maryam (Mary)] from Him, his name will be the Messiah 'Iesa (Jesus), the son of Maryam (Mary), held in honour in this world and in the Hereafter, and will be one of those who are near to Allah."
3-The miraculous Prophethood and message of Messiah:
The third thing you should know that as the Quran mentioned the miraculous birth of Messiah PBUH, it also mentioned the his miraculous prophethood and messag:
“(Remember) when Allah will say (on the Day of Resurrection). "O 'Iesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary)!
Remember My Favour to you and to your mother when I supported you with Ruh-ul-Qudus [Jibrael (Gabriel)] so that you spoke to the people in the cradle and in maturity; and when I taught you writing, Al-Hikmah (the power of understanding), the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel); and when you made out of the clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, by My Permission, and you breathed into it, and it became a bird by My Permission, and you healed those born blind, and the lepers by My Permission, and when you brought forth the dead by My Permission”
Each paragraph is supported with an Ayah.
4-The Bible that was descended on the Messiah:
The Quran acquaints us with the Bible that was descended upon our Master Jesus PBUH:
“And in their footsteps, We sent 'Iesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary), confirming the Taurat (Torah) that had come before him, and We gave him the Injeel (Gospel), in which was guidance and light and confirmation of the Taurat (Torah) that had come before it, a guidance and an admonition for Al-Muttaqun (the pious)”
Hence, the Quran acquaints us with the miraculous birth, prophethood, and the Bible descended on our Master Jesus PBUH.
Moreover, it acquaints us with the mother of Jesus PBUH, Marry the pious. Better yet Quran defended her, raised high her fame, and firmly established her virginity:
“And (remember) when the angels said: "O Maryam (Mary)! Verily, Allah has chosen you, purified you (from polytheism and disbelief), and chosen you above the women of the 'Alamin (mankind and jinns) (of her lifetime)."
5- All Divine religions are from one niche:
Don’t you know for sure, that all divine religions are from one niche? The noble Quran objectively described a group of people of the book by being pious and righteous. Allah says:
“Not all of them are alike; a party of the people of the Scripture stand for the right, they reauthor the Ayahs of Allah during the hours of the night, prostrating themselves in prayer. They believe in Allah and the Last Day; they enjoin Al-Ma'ruf (Islamic Monotheism, and following Prophet Muhammad) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and opposing Prophet Muhammad); and they hasten in (all) good works; and they are among the righteous.”
6-We should avoid generalization:
Dear brothers, I hope that each one of us wouldn’t generalize, as generalization reflects blindness.
Once, I was attended a dissertation presentation at university. The French supervisor disapproved generalizing in a student’s dissertation, and he commented: “generalization comes from blindness”, so avoid generalizing:
“Not all of them are alike; a party of the people of the Scripture stand for the right, they reauthor the Ayahs of Allah during the hours of the night, prostrating themselves in prayer. They believe in Allah and the Last Day; they enjoin Al-Ma'ruf (Islamic Monotheism, and following Prophet Muhammad) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and opposing Prophet Muhammad); and they hasten in (all) good works; and they are among the righteous.”
Thus, the Creator of heavens and earth doesn’t generalize:
“Not all of them are alike; a party of the people of the Scripture stand for the right, they reauthor the Ayahs of Allah during the hours of the night, prostrating themselves in prayer. They believe in Allah and the Last Day; they enjoin Al-Ma'ruf (Islamic Monotheism, and following Prophet Muhammad) and forbid Al-Munkar (polytheism, disbelief and opposing Prophet Muhammad); and they hasten in (all) good works; and they are among the righteous.”
Get used to avoid generalization as it comes from blindness.
7-Believing in Jesus PBUH is one of the pillars of faith:
Would you believe that our Prophet who happened to be the best of mankind and Allah’s beloved person, made the believing in Jesus, son of Marry, one of the faith pillars in Islam, and a gate to enter paradise. He (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said:
"He who bears witness that there is no true god except Allah, alone having no partner with Him, that Muhammad is His slave and His Messenger, that `Isa (Jesus) is His slave and Messenger and he (Jesus) is His Word which He communicated to Maryam (Mary) and His spirit which He sent to her, that Jannah is true and Hell is true; Allah will admit him to Jannah (Paradise) accepting whatever deeds he accomplished".
And His saying (may Allah bless him and grant him peace):
“…..The supplication of my father Ibrahim…”
What is that supplication? Allah said:
"Our Lord! Send amongst them a Messenger of their own, who shall reauthor unto them Your Ayahs and instruct them in the Book (this Qur'an) and Al-Hikmah, and sanctify them. Verily! You are the All-Mighty, the All-Wise."
“…..The supplication of my father Ibrahim and the glad tidings brought forth by Jesus”
“And giving glad tidings of a Messenger to come after me, whose name shall be Ahmed”
“The supplication of my father Ibrahim and the glad tidings brought forth by Jesus the son of Mary. My mother saw a light that went out of her lighting the palaces of Sham.”
And his Saying (may Allah bless him and grant him peace):
“I will argue on the day of resurrection whoever betrays the covenanter, does injustice to him, assigned him to something beyond his capacity, or take anything from him against his will”
8- Religious men of both religions should respect each other:
Allah describes the relation between religious men of the two religions as being based on respect and friendliness, Allah said:
“Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and those who are Al-Mushrikun (polythiests), and you will find the nearest in love to the believers (Muslims) those who say: "We are Christians." That is because amongst them are priests and monks, and they are not proud.”
The noble Quran told the companions in advance that they will rejoice the Roman victory over the Persians.
Quran affirmed rejoicing Roman victory:
By the way, there is a splendid gesture in Quran that we might overlook. That is, when Allah says:
“The Romans have been defeated. In the nearer land (Syria, Iraq, Jordan, and Palestine), and they, after their defeat, will be victorious.”
Who are the Romans? They are the Christians:
“The Romans have been defeated. In the nearer land (Syria, Iraq, Jordan, and Palestine), and they, after their defeat, will be victorious. Within three to nine years. The decision of the matter, before and after (these events) is only with Allah”
Now, pay attention:
“And on that Day, the believers (i.e. Muslims) will rejoice (at the victory given by Allah to the Romans against the Persians), With the help of Allah”
Who are the believers? They are the Prophet’s Companions, Allah says:
“And on that Day, the believers (i.e. Muslims) will rejoice (at the victory given by Allah to the Romans against the Persians), With the help of Allah”
Hence, the Noble Quran assured the companions that they will rejoice the Triumph of the Romans (with the belief they have which was Christianity) over the Persians.
Quotes about Prophet Muhamad from other religions:
1- Michael H. Hart:
Dear brothers, one of the most famous historian books is: “The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History”, written by the astrophysicist Michael H. Hart in the year 1978.
This intellectual Catholic researcher, has chosen, after reading a lot about the greatest people in the eastern and western world, thousands of figures, then he narrowed his list to the best one hundred personalities, and Hart put prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) first according to the standards he put; strength of influence, type of influence, area of influence, and period of influence. This book is well-known. Our Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) was on top of the “one hundred” list of the most influential persons in History.
2- Tolstoy:
The Russian philosopher Lev Nikolayevich Tolstoy, was impressed by the personality of Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and he expressed this in his works. He wrote an article titled “Who is Muhamad?”:
“Muhammad is a reformer and a prophet. He was one of the greatest people who served human society profoundly. It suffices him that he led a whole nation to the enlightenment of truth and made it more inclined towards tranquility and peace, prevented it from shedding blood, and widely opened to it the gate to development and civilization. This is a great deed that only a strong man can do and a man like that deserves to be regarded with respect and admiration. His mission made great service to humanity. It established the basis of peace, stability, and prosperity, and paved the way of civilization to generations. Such person deserves all respect and admiration.”
This is quoted from Tolstoy
3-The converted researcher, Kamaludeen:
Another Western researcher who converted to Islam and changed his name to Kamal El Deen, said: “Muhammad was in charge of the greatest message ever known in the world, a message that gave the perfection of existence to mankind, and permeated in the entire entity of humanity. As people witnessed the best attributes if the noble Prophet’s character, they believed in the entire principles preached and represented by Him. They didn’t read those principles in a lifeless book, they rather have seen them carried out by a mobile human (the Prophet), so they felt them with their hearts. Hence, He was the greatest leader and good example for in humanity throughout its long history. He was a Guidant and educator in His behavior before his good words”
4- One of the most notable western intellectuals:
One of the most notable western thinkers wrote a book saying: “The plain truth is that Muhammad conveyed an undeniable message. It is the epitome of all previous messages, better yet, it excels them all. Based on that, his message is considered as an invariable constitution to the entire world, and His sayings are in harmony with mankind’s taste and comprehension in this era”
5- Miller:
The British writer, Miller, said: “The appearance of Muhammad’s message, and the sunrise of Islam, proved that this noble Prophet’s message addresses the entire world, and this sacred religion is adequate to every era and every nationality, and that mankind everywhere, and under any civilization can’t do without this religion, as its principles go along with the human intellect”
6- Corsieh:
The French writer Corsieh said: “Before and after being a prophet, Muhammad was a brave gallant young man with thoughts superior to those common in his community. He managed with his great behaviours to guide the bigoted Arabs who were worshiping idols to worship Allah The One. And under his united democratic ruling, he was able to overcome all kinds of chaos, conflict, and fighting that was widespread all over the Arab’s Peninsula. He profoundly established the basis of good morals, transforming the Arab community into a civilized society”
7- Thomas Carlyle:
Dear brothers, in this sermon, I am quoting from people who are not Muslims, and this is considered to be the best testemony at all.
The British philosopher, Thomas Carlyle, who won the Nobel Prize for his book ‘The Heroes’ wrote a chapter about the Prophet of Islam titled “The hero presented in a prophet”, considering prophet Muhamad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) as one of the seven greatest men in history, saying:
“By Allah, the heart of that man, who came from the desert, with radiant face and great soul, was full of mercy, passion, goodness, and wisdom.”
8- A Christian historian after the Battle of Hitteen:
A Christian historian said after the Battle of Hitteen: “Muslims didn’t hurt a soul, didn’t steal a penny, and didn’t kill neither a covenanter nor a peaceable person"
By the way, when Europeans occupied Bait Al Maqdes (Jerusalem), they slaughtered 70,000 Muslims in two days.
Back to that Historian, he continued: “Anyone of us could leave, taking whatever he wanted. We sold them(Muslims) the luggage we didn’t want to take with us and they paid their full price. We were able to go out and come back safely, and we saw all generosity and manhood from them. They are civilized people, and it is true that: "History has never known a more merciful conqueror than the Arabs.".
9- A letter from a Europian king to the Caliph in Andalus:
In the year of 1028; King George, the King of England, Sweden and Norway, sent a message with his niece and the head of his office to Caliph Hisham III (the Muslims' Ruler in Andalusia) requesting permission to allow a mission of 18 royal princesses to study at the University of Cordoba (Famous Muslims' University in Spain) to study the system of government, ruling, morals, and women education, saying:
"From George II, the King of England, Sweden and Norway to
The Caliph of the Muslim Kingdom of Spain, His Majesty Hisham III:
With due respect, we heard of the great knowledge that inundated your educational institutions and industries in your great country.
We wish for our children to copy your modalities so that it would be a good start of following your footsteps in science enlightenment in our countries that are full by darkness of ignorance. I have sent my niece, Princess Dobant, with a mission of noble English girls to be honored by visiting your kingdom seeking your kind attention to learn under your great patronage and under the protection of your esteemed court and the care those are to be in charge of their education. With the young princess, we sent a small modest gift to your majesty hoping that you kindly accept it.
With respect and true affection,
Your obedient servant, George"
Remember, dear brother, this king ruled four countries.
Quots of Muslims in the respect of Prophet Muhamad:
Muslims were like that, they had that position. The whole world respected them, but nowadays, they are described as “terrorists”. When they applied this religion as it should be, Allah raised high their fame, their position among nations, and He gave them the upper hand over people, but when they neglected Allah’s orders, He neglected them in return, and their countries now are titled by “Backward terrorist countries”, “axis of evil”, and our fortunes are now the subject of their greedy.
The former Secretary of State in the USA, Warren Christopher said once: “I don’t want the world to be of 200 countries but 5000 countries” (aiming to tear this world apart)
Now, I want to quote what Muslims said about Prophet Muhamad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace).
“The Prophet had great modesty and decency. He used to start sh3er with greeting, and listen attentively to the person talking to him whether young or old. He was the last to pull his hand after shaking hands with sh3er. When he paid charity, he used to put it in the hands of the poor by his noble hand. He used to sit wherever available. He was never seen stretching his legs in front of anyone. He never complained about managing his matters, or managing sh3er’ matters. He used to go to the market and hold his stuff by himself. He used to answer the call of any free, slave or poor man. He used to accept apology, clean his cloths, take care of his shoes, serve himself, take care of his camel, broom his house, and eat with servants.
He used to walk in modesty lowering his gaze, he was reflecting most of the time. He tended to be silent, to talk only when needed, and when he talked he was eloquent, he was a gentleman. He treasured gifts no matter how little they were. He never complained about food, never got angry for worldly matters or for himself. When he got angry of something he just averted, and when he was pleased with something he just lowered his gaze. he used to unite people, bring them together, dignify honorable people and give them leadership over their people. He used to ask about people and check his companions’ needs. He used to approve what is right, disapprove what is wrong and correct it. He didn’t neglect any right or overpass it. Everyone sitting with him would think that he was the most beloved to him. He used to fulfill the needs of everyone asking him, or at least anwer them with pleasant words.
He was always delightful, well-mannered, and lenient. He wasn’t rude or harsh. He didn’t say bad words or criticize sh3er. He didn’t care for things he longed to. He didn’t let anyone down. He didn’t dispraise or criticize anyone, or look for people’s defects. He used to say only useful words, laugh at what his companions laughed at, and wonder of things that his companions wonder of.
He was patient with strangers and tolerant with them when they asked him with harshness. He didn’t interrupt anyone talking.
Huge books, and years of sermons won’t be enough to mention all his good manners, but Allah the Almighty summarises that in one Ayah, when He says:
“And verily, you (O Muhammad) are on an exalted standard of character.”
I say these words asking forgiveness of Allah for me and you, so ask for His forgiveness so He would forgive you, as those who are forgiven by Allah are the successful.
* * *
The second Khutbah:
Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds and may He bless and grant peace to Muhammad, the Faithful and the Honest, and may Allah bless his folks and companions.
Citizenship and coexistence:
Dear brothers, in my lecture in the conference about brotherhood between Muslims and Christians, I introduced a very important idea. This idea is the social structure of Medina. When the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grat him peace) immigrated to it coming from Mecca, what was that social structure in it? There were the Aws and Khazraj (the two tribes) who used to be idolaters. They weren’t Christians nor Jews. There were Muslims from Aws and Khazraj, there were Christians, there were Jews, and there were Bedouins. That was the social structure of the Medina. When the Prophet entered the Medina, he established an agreement with Medina’s people, what was mentioned in the first line of this agreement? The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) mentioned that the people of Medina were one nation. This is considered as the first concept of citizenship and coexistence, they were one nation in peace, and at war, Jews were free to practice their religion and Muslims were free to practice their religion. People are need such an agreement to be able to live together, and the contemporary term of that agreement is: “citizenship and coexistence”.
People are different in terms of ideology, but they have to be able to coexist with each other, they can’t deny each other, or else, they would involve in long lasting civil wars that might extend to fifty years or more, like what happened in Spain, as civil war took more than 40 years of fighting:
“Say: "He has power to send torment on you from above or from under your feet”
The torment was thunderbolts at that time, and now it is rockets:
“Or from under your feet”
It was earthquakes at that time, and nowadays it is mines.
Factional conflict is the winning card of the Tyrant’s:
Please listen to the rest of the Ayah:
“or to cover you with confusion in party strife, and make you to taste the violence of one another.”
It is the civil wars, so, we should pay attention to the description that Allah described Pharaoh with, Allah said:
“Verily, Fir'aun (Pharaoh) exalted himself in the land and made its people sects”
The United States of America suffered two hundred years of civil war to reach the coexistence they have now, yet, when they occupied Iraq, they made its people sects, and we start to call this as Muslim, and this as Christian, and this as Assyrian, and this as Shiite, they killed one million people, crippled another million, and cause 5 million Iraqi to be homeless, all through factional conflicts they made.
Dear brothers, I am not an exaggerator, but believe me the factional conflicts is the winning horse that the Tyrants are betting on:
“Verily, Fir'aun (Pharaoh) exalted himself in the land and made its people sects”
It is the only winning card for the tyrants’, and you can bring it down by your deep alertness and comprehension.
We need the concept of citizenship and coexistence:
When the Christians defeated the Persians, Allah described the noble companions in the Quran:
“And on that Day, the believers (i.e. Muslims) will rejoice (at the victory given by Allah to the Romans against the Persians), With the help of Allah”
Don’t accept a word from me if it wasn’t mentioned in the Quran. Hatred, grudge, and the act of denying sh3er is not part of our religion.
The Prophet stood up once to a funeral of a none Muslim man, and when he was asked about his act He said: “Isn’t he Human?”
Humanity is the only concept that is adequate nowadays, and I will repeat what I said in the conference so you will know how much respect and honor the Quran gave to prophet Jesus PBUH, and to his mother Mary the virgin, and the beautiful picture of them presented by Quran.
Societies can’t survive without coexistence, which doesn’t mean having the same ideas and beliefs but it means brotherhood. Thus, brotherhood was the name of that conference that was attended by thirty countries known by adopting Christianity as a religion, twenty four lectures were presented, and this is one of them. Therefore, I ask Allah the Almighty to give us the wide vision to be able to accept sh3er, and by that we will bring down all the enemies’ plans to tear us apart.
As far as I know, our vicious enemy “The Zionists” changed their plans after we were able to resist them by using surface missiles without the need of any air force, so they resort to the factional conflicts’ inauthorment instead of a military act.
We should be aware of the battle we are facing, it is the factional conflicts, and what happened in Iraq is a sample. London declared that they want it to start factional conflicts between the Muslims’ parties, and you can bring that down by your deep awareness.
As I mentioned before, the Prophetic biography told us about the splendid agreement in Medina started with the concept of coexistence and citizenship, and we need that concept nowadays, to be together in peace and at war. We are facing many challenges; the challenges of water supplies, of the western media, and of importing and exporting, we are all free in our practices and connection with Allah, but we should be together in peace and war.
Again, be aware that every factional conflict falls in line with the interests of the enemies of Islam, and that it is the last resort of tyrants starting with Pharaoh till the end of the world, and memorize this Ayah:
“Verily, Fir'aun (Pharaoh) exalted himself in the land and made its people sects”