Majlis Ugama Islam Singapura
Khutbah Jumaat
10 April 2015 / 20 Jamadilakhir 1436
The Importance Of Appreciating The Substance Of Religion
Dear blessed Friday Jemaah,
Let us worship Allah s.w.t. with true devotion. Let us know that
all of our actions in this world will be accounted for. Let us
realise that all of our words will be judged by Allah s.w.t. Let us
thus base ourselves upon faith and taqwa.
It is inevitable that the human life is filled with symbols or icons.
Our names, for example, are the symbols of our individual
identities. World countries have flags as respective symbols of
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their sovereignty. Businesses too, use various symbols to brand
their products.
World religions also possess symbols of their own. For
example, the crescent moon and star symbols are often
associated with Islam. However my dear brothers, there are
also other elements that are more accurate representation of
this religion of Allah. One of which is our Shariah, which
includes our daily prayers; often regarded as one of the most
important symbols in Islam andis a pillar of religion. Even
Rasulullah s.a.w. asserts that it is Solat (prayers) that
distinguishes a believer from non-believers. This is simply
because, one who does not believe in what we believe in, will
surely not perform prayers as we perform it.
However, blessed jemaah, while we view prayers as a religious
symbol to worship Allah, we must be careful, lest it becomes a
symbol that has lost its function and meaning; and what do I
mean by that?
Allow me to elaborate. Prayer in actuality is used to symbolize
our belief in Allah, our gratitude, and our devotion to Him.
Prayer truly represents the true believers’ personality who
submit and bow before their Creator. However, know that there
are some Muslims who pray, yet their personality is not in
accordance with the objectives of the prayer itself. Their prayers
have thus failed to foster noble characters. This, my brothers, is
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what I mean by a 'functionless and meaningless symbol’. They
pray, but they blatantly continue to commit evil acts and
wrongdoings. They pray, but they do not truly care and strive
hard for themselves and their families. They pray, but they do
not practice honesty and trustworthiness in their workplace.
They pray, but their words are always full of slander,
defamation and insults.
My dear brothers, let us ponder upon what Allah says in Surah
Al-'Ankabut verse 45:
Which means: “Recite, [O Muhammad], what has been
revealed to you of the Book and establish prayer. Indeed,
prayer
prohibits
immorality
and
wrongdoing,
and
the
remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which
you do.”
This verse confirms just how prayers, when performed properly,
will be able to leave a positive impression in one’s character.
Beyond the actions and movements that one has to perform in
one’s prayer, and the supplications and glad tidings that are
read throughout one’s prayer, there are hidden wisdoms to be
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attained if one truly comprehends the nature of prayer in itself
and perform it in the intended manner.
My dear brothers, this is similar to another symbol of Islam, and
by that I mean the way Muslims are dressed. Alhamdulillah,
members of our community are increasingly striving to cover up
their awrah. However, in lieu of this sermon’s theme, let us be
reminded to not allow the covering of one’s awrah to be another
case of an Islamic symbol that has lost its function and
meaning.
As in the case of our prayers, let us strive to enhance the
practice of this commandment to cover up our awrah, by also
‘covering up’ ourselves from indulging in immoralities. Let us
ponder upon the next Quranic verse which states that one’s
taqwa is the best piece of clothing there is. Allah says in Surah
al-A’raf verse 26:
Which means: “O children of Adam, We have bestowed upon
you clothing to conceal your private parts and as adornment.
But the garment of taqwa - that is the best. That is of the signs
of Allah, that they would constantly remember.”
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It is without doubt my dear brothers, that to achieve this would
require willingness and determination. However let us pray that
in the future as more strive to cover up their awrah, more of us
too will strive to cover up the flaws in our akhlak together in our
strive to be a pious community. Remember, our hearts too are
in need of ‘clothing’, for it is flawed too.
Blessed Friday jemaah,
Another example is the practice of greeting “Salam”. Know that
our greetings of “Salam” contain prayers for prosperity and
security. It is a symbol that represents Islam, a religion that
leads to peace and security for all peoples of the world.
However my dear brothers, there are some amongst us, who
despite greeting others with “Salam”, their actions do not reflect
goodness and harmony. There are some amongst us, who wet
their tongues by greeting “Salam”, yet do not respect the rights
of their neighbours. Therefore, my brothers, when we organise
events for our families and friends in our houses, do be
courteous and considerate toward our neighbours and respect
their rights.
Jemaah, we are anguished upon witnessing certain groups
misusing the name of Islam; who exploited Quranic verses and
the hadith of the Prophet s.a.w. by distorting their meanings to
commit violence and destruction. And all of this was supposedly
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done in the name of Islam, despite being absolutely contrary to
our religious principles.
Look at the attacks carried out by the Islamic militant group that
claimed the students in Kenya recently. Is this the same Islam
which encourages the greetings of “Salam”? Hence my dear
brothers, rather than simply and merely condemning the violent
attacks, let us together strive to spread the beauty of Islam
through our actions and characters. Let us manifest the
meanings of our “Salam” greetings, making it a true symbol of
the greatness and beauty of our religion Islam.
My dear brothers,
From these examples, it is clear to us the importance of not
narrowing our understanding and performing of the rituals and
symbols of our religion. Let us not become a community that is
rich in religious symbols, yet these symbols bear no meanings
nor functions to our daily lives whatsoever.
May Allah grant us with taufiq and inayah, so that we may carry
out the commanded duties, according to Allah’s intentions.
Amin, Ya Rabbal ‘Alamin.
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