Grand Ayatollah H.E. Sayyed M. H. Fadlullah delivered the two Friday prayer sermons at the Imamain Al-Hassanain Mosque, Shawal 4 1424 h,November 28 2003, (Several prominent religious scholars, dignitaries and thousands of believers attended the Jumu'a prayer)
The First Sermon
Talking about Qaroun, the rich man, God explains to us how the feeling of joy could either be positive or negative. He says in His Glorious Book: Surely Qaroun was of the people of Musa, but he rebelled against them, and We had given him of the treasures, so much so that his hoards of wealth would certainly weigh down a company of men possessed of great strength. When his people said to him: Do not exult, surely Allah does not love the exultant . And seek by means of what Allah has given you the future abode, and do not neglect your portion of this world, and do good (to others) as Allah has done good to you, and do not seek to make mischief in the land, surely Allah does not love the mischief-makers. 28:76-77
We also learn more about positive joy from another verse that says: Say: In the grace of Allah and in His mercy-- in that they should rejoice; it is better than that which they gather. 10:58
Thus, Islam wants man to live joy in all aspects: mental joy by clinging to truth, the joy of heart by filling one’s heart with love, and social joy by doing good.
But the most superior kind of joy is the joy that emanates from the feeling that you have earned Allah’s satisfaction.
For this is the joy that will fill your worldly life as well as the other life... Allah’s satisfaction is what makes one close to Allah, the most Exalted, and receive His Grace and Mercy.
This is the true wealth of which no wealth is bigger. The Holy Quran says that Allah’s satisfaction is greater than Paradise “and best of all is Allah's goodly pleasure; that is the grand achievement” .9:72
For the feeling that you have earned Allah’s pleasure makes your feel absolute happiness.
When you feel that you are happy because your adhere to truth and righteousness it is because truth and righteousness guide you throughout your life to the straight path in all your actions…And when you fill your heart with love, this happiness makes you care about those who differ with you and do your best to guide them… The same thing goes with respect to the joy of doing good..
This spiritual happiness is what gives life peace and man tranquility… Yet the most superior kind of joy is the joy of loving God. For He is the secret of the universe and life… This is what Muhammad(p.) said when he was being prosecuted by his people in Mecca: “If you are not angry with me, then I have nothing to worry about.”
And this is what Imam Hussein (a.s) said when his infant was martyred: “What happened to me was made more to bearable, by the fact that Allah is witnessing”.
The Eid is a joy by Allah’s pleasure.
The Eid is the day in which Allah wants man to feel happy by Allah’s pleasure, and the day to make others happy. The Eid and especially that of Fitr starts by the feeling that Allah has forgiven you. This what Imam Ali said: “It is an eid for whom Allah has accepted his fast…” He added: “Everyday in which Allah is not disobeyed is an eid.
In this sense, the eid is no longer restricted to one day each year. It is on everyday that the believer does what he is supposed to do, whether in his worshipping or social duties.
Imam Ali (a.s.) also said in one of his speeches that a angel would say to those who fast in the last day of the month of Ramadan: Allah has forgiven you for your previous sins. And now you have a chance to start over you have to be very careful about it.
The Joy of the Hereafter
Imam Ali (a.s.) says on the subject of what should people should rejoice about: Why are you Happy about the little in this world you are able to acquire, while you do not feel sad about the plentiful rewards of heaven you are deprived of? Man should not pay much attention to what he acquires in this world because it is temporary, while that of the Hereafter is eternal .
Making the saddened and the deprived happy.
Charity and making others, especially the deprived and the back trodden, happy is a religious duty that earns us Allah’s pleasure! The Messenger says: “Whoever makes a believer happy makes me happy too.
And whoever makes me happy will also make Allah happy.
This is the kind of spiritual joy we ought to be seeking ….the joy of embracing truth, good and justice that enrich life... If you are happy because you have money like that of Qaroun, and there are many among us who are like him, who feel that happiness is equivalent to money, you ought to know that money is something that comes and goes. It is something you either consume in this world or you leave behind when you die, and the happiness is what remains.
Going back to the story of Qaroun, we understand from the verse we quoted in the beginning of the sermon that Qaroun was one of those who has a lot of money. But his wealth made him arrogant and tyrannical making other people sad by his aggressions. And when his people told him not to exult for Allah loves most the exultant and urged him to seek by means of what Allah has given him- the mind to acquire money and the money itself- the future abode by being good to others and not seeking to make mischief he declined and was duly punished.
Dear loved ones:
Life is a chance Allah, the most Exalted, has given us to open our hearts on love, our lives on the good and our minds on the truth.
This is the true happiness we should seek: Let us make our children happy... Let us make those in pain or sorrow happy… let us make the prisoners happy by trying to free them. Let us spread happiness among the people. For Allah says: Wealth and children are an adornment of the life of this world; and the ever-abiding, the good works, are better with your Lord in reward and better in expectation.
The Second Sermon
The State of the Nation
In Palestine, the Palestinians are still being killed… their houses are demolished and the closure is turning their economic life into misery while the world is talking about trivial details like removing some “illegitimate” “outposts” without putting any pressure to move forward in solving the real cause of the conflict: occupation. The international community, like the official Arab and Muslim regimes, is incapable of providing any help. Israel is not ready to respect the world represented by the UN security Council. It has recently declared it rejection of the Council’s consensus over the Road Map plan. It wants to leave the whole matter in the hands of the US, for it knows that Washington will not put any pressure on Tel Aviv. It only utters some consuming words about a Palestinian state, which is being “delayed” because the Palestinians are not “fighting terrorism”.
The American Administration has tried to pose as exerting pressure on Israel when it decreased the loan guarantees, but an Israeli minister exposed that this ploy was “agreed upon by the two states” to enable America to continue to hold the strings that would draw the Arab and Muslim states towards the Israel plan, and prevent any international support for the Palestinians.
Israel voices its protest against the Security Council resolutions and the demands of the international community. It considers itself above international law and continues to build the separating fence and additional settlements.
It also preoccupies the new Palestinian government with meaningless and empty meetings, as well as a new pressures, invasions and massacres claiming that it will keep on committing these atrocities whether or not a truce is reached… As for America, it does not exert or rather it cannot exert, any pressure especially that its foreign policy is determined by its internal situation and especially the coming presidential elections.
The Arabs and Muslims as well as the free world have to embark on an imitative to exert pressure against the American and Israeli policies, for this is what justifies their political existence... If some one talking about Israeli and Palestinians meetings here and there, such meetings could renew the dreams of the so-called peace or of a solution, but they are really a mirage.
Iraq rejects occupation
As for Iraq, it is in a security, political, social and economic whirlpool, as a result of the dominance of occupation that might talk about the right of self-determination, but it interferes in every small or big decision the Governing council makes. It vetoes any decree that it finds unsuitable so that all parties will know that the freedom the occupation talks about is restricted to what serves the occupation plans and that democracy means promoting the occupation interests.
We have seen how the Iraqis are falling randomly every day, while the American soldiers are also being killed by the violence that resists the occupation. On the other hand, the Religious Authority and the Iraqi people have emphasized that all decisions and plans cannot be made except be a free popular will. We hope that their voice will remain strong so that the occupation will know that the Iraqi people does not want Iraq to be a base for the occupation or even a passage. The Iraqi people is mature enough to run his own affairs.
Iran Thwarts America’s ploys
As American and other international pressures continue on Iran, the last of which was through exploiting IAEA subjectivity to several international powers especially the Americans, to prevent Iran from developing its peaceful project for developing atomic energy. But Iran’s clever diplomacy was able to avert taking the issue to the Security Council to impose sanctions on Iran in the future.
Could the IAEA take the issue of Israeli atomic weapons that threaten the entire region to the Security Council? All what the director of the Agency dared to do was to issue a modest request to Israel, for it is backed by America and those who follow it.
Thus we find that America and the West are practicing a double standard policy, giving Israel only the freedom of possessing weapons of mass destruction even for offensive purposes and preventing any Islamic or Arab state from owning such weapons even for self-defense. Such an attitudes renders all the American President’s talk about the freedom of nations meaning less.
Other hot Islamic Issues
Furthermore, there are several hot issues whether political, religious, military or economic in the Islamic world including the conflict between Muslims and Hindus in India, the conflict between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, the struggle between the Sunnis and Shiites in Pakistan... and the Afghani problem where the country still suffers from occupation tribal dissension and chaos…
In addition, there are the deadly explosions that target civilians in several Islamic states… Such crimes, which harm the Muslim security are not justified by Islam, which does not permit killing non-Muslims who live peacefully in Muslim lands… This terrorist line of action is a product of a misleading ideology or external and internal powers that exploit the feeling of anger to execute its unlawful criminal acts…
The missing state in Lebanon.
In Lebanon, where the people are looking for a responsible state with active and honest institutions especially the judiciary which ought to confront all kinds of administrative or political deviation as well as crimes of corruption and theft… A judiciary that acts on the principle that there is nobody above the law and no political cover for any criminal regardless of the significance of his crime…
But all what the Lebanese people are able to find are some people who hold certain responsibilities but are not actually responsible in the deep sense of the word… And this is what drives the Lebanese youth to desperation and immigration… with those remaining in the country voicing their protest without anybody hearing them.
The poor in Lebanon are starving ; the farms are thirsty and the universities suffer from the official indifference… The public services are in the hands of those who use it to gain money and personal advantages. Meanwhile, the debt is soaring and the Arab region, which used to find in Lebanon, a refuge, a hospital and an education center is calling on Lebanon to resume its role… but nobody answers.
Throughout all this, the situation is made even more critical by what is going on in the region as well as the Israeli threats, while the politicians sole concern is their internal differences..
In this eid, joy in Lebanon is absent and only sorrow fills the hearts of the Lebanese.
Grand Ayatollah H.E. Sayyed M. H. Fadlullah delivered the two Friday prayer sermons at the Imamain Al-Hassanain Mosque, Shawal 4 1424 h,November 28 2003, (Several prominent religious scholars, dignitaries and thousands of believers attended the Jumu'a prayer)
The First Sermon
Talking about Qaroun, the rich man, God explains to us how the feeling of joy could either be positive or negative. He says in His Glorious Book: Surely Qaroun was of the people of Musa, but he rebelled against them, and We had given him of the treasures, so much so that his hoards of wealth would certainly weigh down a company of men possessed of great strength. When his people said to him: Do not exult, surely Allah does not love the exultant . And seek by means of what Allah has given you the future abode, and do not neglect your portion of this world, and do good (to others) as Allah has done good to you, and do not seek to make mischief in the land, surely Allah does not love the mischief-makers. 28:76-77
We also learn more about positive joy from another verse that says: Say: In the grace of Allah and in His mercy-- in that they should rejoice; it is better than that which they gather. 10:58
Thus, Islam wants man to live joy in all aspects: mental joy by clinging to truth, the joy of heart by filling one’s heart with love, and social joy by doing good.
But the most superior kind of joy is the joy that emanates from the feeling that you have earned Allah’s satisfaction.
For this is the joy that will fill your worldly life as well as the other life... Allah’s satisfaction is what makes one close to Allah, the most Exalted, and receive His Grace and Mercy.
This is the true wealth of which no wealth is bigger. The Holy Quran says that Allah’s satisfaction is greater than Paradise “and best of all is Allah's goodly pleasure; that is the grand achievement” .9:72
For the feeling that you have earned Allah’s pleasure makes your feel absolute happiness.
When you feel that you are happy because your adhere to truth and righteousness it is because truth and righteousness guide you throughout your life to the straight path in all your actions…And when you fill your heart with love, this happiness makes you care about those who differ with you and do your best to guide them… The same thing goes with respect to the joy of doing good..
This spiritual happiness is what gives life peace and man tranquility… Yet the most superior kind of joy is the joy of loving God. For He is the secret of the universe and life… This is what Muhammad(p.) said when he was being prosecuted by his people in Mecca: “If you are not angry with me, then I have nothing to worry about.”
And this is what Imam Hussein (a.s) said when his infant was martyred: “What happened to me was made more to bearable, by the fact that Allah is witnessing”.
The Eid is a joy by Allah’s pleasure.
The Eid is the day in which Allah wants man to feel happy by Allah’s pleasure, and the day to make others happy. The Eid and especially that of Fitr starts by the feeling that Allah has forgiven you. This what Imam Ali said: “It is an eid for whom Allah has accepted his fast…” He added: “Everyday in which Allah is not disobeyed is an eid.
In this sense, the eid is no longer restricted to one day each year. It is on everyday that the believer does what he is supposed to do, whether in his worshipping or social duties.
Imam Ali (a.s.) also said in one of his speeches that a angel would say to those who fast in the last day of the month of Ramadan: Allah has forgiven you for your previous sins. And now you have a chance to start over you have to be very careful about it.
The Joy of the Hereafter
Imam Ali (a.s.) says on the subject of what should people should rejoice about: Why are you Happy about the little in this world you are able to acquire, while you do not feel sad about the plentiful rewards of heaven you are deprived of? Man should not pay much attention to what he acquires in this world because it is temporary, while that of the Hereafter is eternal .
Making the saddened and the deprived happy.
Charity and making others, especially the deprived and the back trodden, happy is a religious duty that earns us Allah’s pleasure! The Messenger says: “Whoever makes a believer happy makes me happy too.
And whoever makes me happy will also make Allah happy.
This is the kind of spiritual joy we ought to be seeking ….the joy of embracing truth, good and justice that enrich life... If you are happy because you have money like that of Qaroun, and there are many among us who are like him, who feel that happiness is equivalent to money, you ought to know that money is something that comes and goes. It is something you either consume in this world or you leave behind when you die, and the happiness is what remains.
Going back to the story of Qaroun, we understand from the verse we quoted in the beginning of the sermon that Qaroun was one of those who has a lot of money. But his wealth made him arrogant and tyrannical making other people sad by his aggressions. And when his people told him not to exult for Allah loves most the exultant and urged him to seek by means of what Allah has given him- the mind to acquire money and the money itself- the future abode by being good to others and not seeking to make mischief he declined and was duly punished.
Dear loved ones:
Life is a chance Allah, the most Exalted, has given us to open our hearts on love, our lives on the good and our minds on the truth.
This is the true happiness we should seek: Let us make our children happy... Let us make those in pain or sorrow happy… let us make the prisoners happy by trying to free them. Let us spread happiness among the people. For Allah says: Wealth and children are an adornment of the life of this world; and the ever-abiding, the good works, are better with your Lord in reward and better in expectation.
The Second Sermon
The State of the Nation
In Palestine, the Palestinians are still being killed… their houses are demolished and the closure is turning their economic life into misery while the world is talking about trivial details like removing some “illegitimate” “outposts” without putting any pressure to move forward in solving the real cause of the conflict: occupation. The international community, like the official Arab and Muslim regimes, is incapable of providing any help. Israel is not ready to respect the world represented by the UN security Council. It has recently declared it rejection of the Council’s consensus over the Road Map plan. It wants to leave the whole matter in the hands of the US, for it knows that Washington will not put any pressure on Tel Aviv. It only utters some consuming words about a Palestinian state, which is being “delayed” because the Palestinians are not “fighting terrorism”.
The American Administration has tried to pose as exerting pressure on Israel when it decreased the loan guarantees, but an Israeli minister exposed that this ploy was “agreed upon by the two states” to enable America to continue to hold the strings that would draw the Arab and Muslim states towards the Israel plan, and prevent any international support for the Palestinians.
Israel voices its protest against the Security Council resolutions and the demands of the international community. It considers itself above international law and continues to build the separating fence and additional settlements.
It also preoccupies the new Palestinian government with meaningless and empty meetings, as well as a new pressures, invasions and massacres claiming that it will keep on committing these atrocities whether or not a truce is reached… As for America, it does not exert or rather it cannot exert, any pressure especially that its foreign policy is determined by its internal situation and especially the coming presidential elections.
The Arabs and Muslims as well as the free world have to embark on an imitative to exert pressure against the American and Israeli policies, for this is what justifies their political existence... If some one talking about Israeli and Palestinians meetings here and there, such meetings could renew the dreams of the so-called peace or of a solution, but they are really a mirage.
Iraq rejects occupation
As for Iraq, it is in a security, political, social and economic whirlpool, as a result of the dominance of occupation that might talk about the right of self-determination, but it interferes in every small or big decision the Governing council makes. It vetoes any decree that it finds unsuitable so that all parties will know that the freedom the occupation talks about is restricted to what serves the occupation plans and that democracy means promoting the occupation interests.
We have seen how the Iraqis are falling randomly every day, while the American soldiers are also being killed by the violence that resists the occupation. On the other hand, the Religious Authority and the Iraqi people have emphasized that all decisions and plans cannot be made except be a free popular will. We hope that their voice will remain strong so that the occupation will know that the Iraqi people does not want Iraq to be a base for the occupation or even a passage. The Iraqi people is mature enough to run his own affairs.
Iran Thwarts America’s ploys
As American and other international pressures continue on Iran, the last of which was through exploiting IAEA subjectivity to several international powers especially the Americans, to prevent Iran from developing its peaceful project for developing atomic energy. But Iran’s clever diplomacy was able to avert taking the issue to the Security Council to impose sanctions on Iran in the future.
Could the IAEA take the issue of Israeli atomic weapons that threaten the entire region to the Security Council? All what the director of the Agency dared to do was to issue a modest request to Israel, for it is backed by America and those who follow it.
Thus we find that America and the West are practicing a double standard policy, giving Israel only the freedom of possessing weapons of mass destruction even for offensive purposes and preventing any Islamic or Arab state from owning such weapons even for self-defense. Such an attitudes renders all the American President’s talk about the freedom of nations meaning less.
Other hot Islamic Issues
Furthermore, there are several hot issues whether political, religious, military or economic in the Islamic world including the conflict between Muslims and Hindus in India, the conflict between India and Pakistan over Kashmir, the struggle between the Sunnis and Shiites in Pakistan... and the Afghani problem where the country still suffers from occupation tribal dissension and chaos…
In addition, there are the deadly explosions that target civilians in several Islamic states… Such crimes, which harm the Muslim security are not justified by Islam, which does not permit killing non-Muslims who live peacefully in Muslim lands… This terrorist line of action is a product of a misleading ideology or external and internal powers that exploit the feeling of anger to execute its unlawful criminal acts…
The missing state in Lebanon.
In Lebanon, where the people are looking for a responsible state with active and honest institutions especially the judiciary which ought to confront all kinds of administrative or political deviation as well as crimes of corruption and theft… A judiciary that acts on the principle that there is nobody above the law and no political cover for any criminal regardless of the significance of his crime…
But all what the Lebanese people are able to find are some people who hold certain responsibilities but are not actually responsible in the deep sense of the word… And this is what drives the Lebanese youth to desperation and immigration… with those remaining in the country voicing their protest without anybody hearing them.
The poor in Lebanon are starving ; the farms are thirsty and the universities suffer from the official indifference… The public services are in the hands of those who use it to gain money and personal advantages. Meanwhile, the debt is soaring and the Arab region, which used to find in Lebanon, a refuge, a hospital and an education center is calling on Lebanon to resume its role… but nobody answers.
Throughout all this, the situation is made even more critical by what is going on in the region as well as the Israeli threats, while the politicians sole concern is their internal differences..
In this eid, joy in Lebanon is absent and only sorrow fills the hearts of the Lebanese.