Our nation is a blessing to us all
First sermon
All praise be to Allah, the Creator, the Provider, the most Great. We thank Him for
blessing us with one of the best homelands. In it, He grants us peace and stability. I
bear witness that there is no deity but Him, having no associates.
I also testify that Muhammad is Allah's Servant and Messenger, the Best of His
Creation, the Closest to Him. He sent him as a mercy to the Worlds. May the peace
and blessings of Allah be upon him, his family, his companions, and all those who
will follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
O Servants of Allah, I urge you and myself to be mindful of Allah the Almighty,
obey Him and do that which pleases Him, in light of what He says, "and cooperate
in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression. And fear
Allah." (Al Maeda: 2). He also says, "so give good tidings to My servants who
listen to speech and follow the best of it." (Azzumar: 17-18).
Dear Servants of Allah,
Loving one's homeland is an instinct inherent in man, and is deeply seated in heart.
We grow to love our country and bear always affection and admiration for it. A great
blessing from Allah, it encompasses our memories, letting us always long for it and
enjoy thinking about it. This beautiful feeling we have towards our own country is a
motivation for us to serve it well and be keen to attend to its interests. This calls on us
also to pray to Allah genuinely as did our Allah's Messenger Ibrahim pbuh. He was
quoted in the Quran as saying, "my Lord, make this a secure city and provide its
people with fruits." (Al Baqara: 126). It was a sincere supplication, which reflected
Ibrahim pbuh's absolute feelings of love towards his homeland and people.
Devotion to one's country is widely highlighted by many scholars. They associated it
with one's honesty and stated that it is an obligation. It is often said that in order to
know whether a person is sincere in fulfilling his pledge, find out how much he
yearns for his country, friends and family.
Dear Believers,
We praise Allah that He grants us a nice living in UAE, our beloved country. Its
leadership are wise and in it life is stable. Resources are plentiful too. Its mosques are
beacons of knowledge, its buildings are icons of civilisation and culture, its
infrastructure and facilities are world-class. Boasting honourable people, it has
embraced happiness and seen its glory rising. As we enjoy living under the shadow of
its wings, we are always pining for it. So each time we are away, we look forward to
coming back.
It is our duty therefore to be grateful to the Almighty for such wholesome blessings.
Indeed, showing gratitude is a protection to the existing gifts from Allah and a cause
to bring in more. The Exalted is He says, "and [remember] when your Lord
proclaimed, 'If you are grateful, I will surely increase you [in favor]." (Ibrahim:
7). That is, Allah will give to whoever ask Him, and expand His grace to those who
thank Him. Please be aware that Allah is the Provider who loves his grateful servants.
So let us thank Him for His countless favours on us.
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To thank our Lord further for the blessings He grants us in this country, it is our
obligation to defend it and safeguard its integrity. When the nation summons its sons
and daughters, they shall answer the call of duty with determination. Thus they will
come and stand ready to protect their country's borders strong-handedly and keep its
flag flown high above. In so doing, they will work for preserving their homeland's
achievements and in no way will they unfail in their endeavour. Those are blessed as
evidenced in the following Hadith: "there are two eyes that shall not be touched by
the Fire: an eye that wept from the fear of Allah, and an eye that spent the night
standing on guard in the cause of Allah." Congratulations to individuals who dedicate
themselves to the safety of this nation, where Islam's rituals and principles are held
and people's lives, property and dignity are preserved.
Yes dear Muslims, We have to value the blessing of the nation the way it should be
and likewise care for it. Let us know also that we are obliged to our country for all the
good things it has offered us. Our Prophet Muhammad pbuh said, "Allah will ask
each guardian about those whom He asked him to guard, whether he kept or lost that,
that He will ask each man about his family."
This should be seen in our sincere sense of belonging to our nation and firm and
unwavering loyalty to our judicious leaders. Under their patronage, the religion is
safeguarded and everyone is united. Also thanks to them, stability is ensured and
justice is delivered. By virtue of religion, obeying them is a duty as mentioned in the
holy Quran and comes associated with that of Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, and His
Apostle Muhammad pbuh. The Almighty Allah says in this regard, "O you who
believe, Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger and those charged with authority
among you." (Annisaa: 59).
Furthermore, we are also obliged to our country in many other ways, mostly by
serving it. This is a high honour and a medal on our chest. Servicemen and women
are honoured in this life and shall receive higher status in Paradise.
From this perspective, joining the national service is a duty, a mission of merit and
responsibility. It is a notable assignment, one that consolidates noble values amongst
the youth and highlights such meanings of devotion, allegiance to and sacrifice for
this generous country. It is also an opportunity for them to train on positive
behaviours. For these reasons and others, it is a great honour for our youth to hasten
and sign up for national service. It is an arena of competition, self-reliance, discipline,
strength and activity in line with the Hadith saying, "a believer who is strong (and
healthy) is better and dearer to Allah than the weak believer."
O those who have answered the call please know that this is also an honour for your
parents, your sons and daughters and a success that adds to your achievements. As
well as a source of pride to one's family and country, it is a means to promote values
and principles, preparing the good citizen, who is capable of defending his country
and is aware of its capabilities and acquisitions. Moreover, the national service is a
school to qualify ambitious and confident citizens, who are adherent to their heritage,
faithful to their nation, good in conduct, sympathetic towards their fellow community
members, wise and honest in their actions.
With this in mind, we supplicated to Allah to bless UAE and help us serve it. May
Allah also protect our leaders and rulers.
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May Allah direct us all to the blessings of the Glorious Quran and the Sunna of His
Messenger pbuh and benefit us all in whatever is in them.
I say this and ask Allah the Great, the Most Honoured for forgiveness for me, you
and all the Muslims for every sin, so invoke Him for forgiveness, for He is the Most
Forgiving, Most Merciful.
Second sermon
Praise be to Allah. I bear witness that there is no deity but Him, having no associates.
I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is His Servant and Messenger, may
the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his pure
family, his companions and all those who will follow them in righteousness till the
Day of Judgment.
O Servants of Allah, please obey Allah as it ought to be by observing Him in
private and in public and know that one of His favours in this country is blessing us
with a wise leadership that have allowed our youth the opportunity to join the
national service. This is an initiative with the goal of increasing synergy and sense of
harmony amongst our citizens, promoting teamwork, honing one's personality and
acquiring vast knowledge, remarkable skills and positive behaviour.
Dear Servants of Allah,
Bear in mind that you are asked to offer prayer and greetings upon our most noble
Prophet pbuh for Allah says, "indeed, Allah and His angels sends blessing upon
the Prophet. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him
and ask [Allah to grant him] peace." (Al Ahzab: 56). On the same matter, the
Prophet pbuh said, "for everyone who invokes a blessing on me will receive ten
blessings from Allah."
May the peace and the blessings of Allah be upon our Master Muhammad pbuh, his
family and all his Companions. May Allah be pleased with the Rightly Guided
Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, and all those who will follow them in
righteousness till the Day of Judgment.
O Allah, we implore You at this instant not to let a sin unforgiven, a distress
unrelieved, an illness unhealed or a handicapped without relief, a dead without mercy
or a debt unsettled. Our Lord, give us in this world that which is good and in the
Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire.
O Allah, may we ask You to help us with what gets us closer to Paradise and furthers
us from hell. O Allah we seek Your grace to admit us, our parents, whoever has done
a favour to us and all Muslims to Your Paradise.
May Allah grant success and continued good health to our leader HH Sheikh Khalifa
bin Zayed Al Nahyan. May Allah also ensure success to his Deputy, HH Sheikh
Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum, and provide strength and assistance to his
brothers, Their Highness The Rulers of the Emirates, and his trustworthy Crown
Prince HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.
O Allah, forgive all of the Muslims, men and women, living and dead, and make
blessings follow us and them. May Allah have mercy on Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh
Maktoum and all their brothers, the Late UAE Sheikhs.
O Lord, forgive and show mercy to our parents, relatives and whoever has done a
favour to us.
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O Allah, we pray to You to grant Your forgiveness to who built this mosque and to
his or her parents as well as to anyone who gave to this mosque. O Allah, we also
supplicate to You to forgive whoever built a mosque where Your name is
remembered.
We pray to Allah, the Most Gracious, to preserve the UAE from all temptations, both
apparent and hidden, and continue blessing the UAE and all Muslim countries with
safety and security.
O servants of Allah, remember Allah and He will remember you. Be grateful for His
benevolence He will increase His blessings to you. Allah, the Most High, says, "and
establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the
remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do." (Al
Ankaboot: 45).
Translation
Mostapha El Mouloudi
Note: The English translation of the Quran and Hadith is an interpretation of their
meanings, and does not have the status of their original Arabic texts.
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