In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
The Religious Authority, Grand Ayatullah H.E. Sayyed M. H. Fadlullah delivered the two Friday prayer sermons at the Imamain Al-Hassanain Mosque on Jumada al-Awwal 24, 1426 AH / July 01, 2005, AD. Several prominent religious scholars, dignitaries, officials, and thousands of believers attended the Jumu’a prayer. (Edited version of the Sermons)
The First Sermon
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Honesty: A Great Islamic Virtue
Honesty is One of the Pillars of Faith
Allah says in His Holy Book: "O you who have believed, why do you say what you do not do? Great is hatred in the sight of Allah that you say what you do not do." (Surat as-Saff 61:2-3).
In this Holy Ayah, Allah makes it clear to the believers that honesty is one of the basics of belief. You must be truthful in what you say, since what you say expresses what you believe in and act upon. If you go back on your promises, you would be cheating the people and counterfeiting their feelings and ideas.
Then, there is honesty in your stands. For example, when you promise something, you must honor your promise. If you give someone an appointment, promising to meet him at a certain time, and you are either late or do not show at all, then you will be wasting his time. If you promise to give someone something or to help him in doing it and you do not, you will be harming the causes you represent and making him take a negative attitude towards you or towards your cause.
Then there is what is more dangerous: when you are a responsible person in society, whose decisions or planning have a direct impact upon society, whether in a religious, political, or security field. Breaking your promises will destroy people's hopes and lead them to despair and frustration.
The Hypocrites
Such an attitude is noticed in the conduct of many officials, regardless of how high-ranking they might be. This attitude is most hateful to Allah, the Most Exalted. Allah, the Most Exalted, gives us examples of the attitude of the hypocrites who used to come to Muhammad (p.) and pledge their alliance and obedience, but as soon as they left, they would act in a treacherous way: "And they say, 'We hear and we obey.' But when they leave your presence, a group of them spend the night determining to do other than what you say. But Allah records what they plan by night. So turn away from them and rely upon Allah. And sufficient is Allah as Disposer of affairs." (Surat an-Nisa' 4:81).
"When the hypocrites come to you, they say, 'We testify that you are the Messenger of Allah.' And Allah knows that you are His Messenger, and Allah testifies that the hypocrites are liars. They have taken their oaths as a cover, so they averted [people] from the way of Allah. Indeed, it was evil that they were doing." (Surat al-Munafiqun 63:1-2). Surely these people will end up in Hell.
He also gives us some examples of whom we might meet today in political, social, and even religious circles: "And of the people is he whose speech pleases you in worldly life, and he calls Allah to witness as to what is in his heart, yet he is the fiercest of opponents. And when he goes away, he strives throughout the land to cause corruption therein and destroy crops and animals. And Allah does not like corruption." (Surat al-Baqarah 2:204-205).
"And when it is said to him, 'Fear Allah,' pride in the sin takes hold of him. Sufficient for him is Hellfire, and how wretched is the resting place." (Surat al-Baqarah 2:206).
Those who talk about reform and change, and swear that they are faithful, but when they are followed and supported by the people—whether by election or by other means—they become corrupt and cause mischief. Nevertheless, they do not accept any criticism, saying that they are the ones who give advice, and not the other way around. Although these people prove to be deviators, they act in an arrogant way that does not accept any criticism. These people will end up in Hell.
This is what Islam requires from us: to be truthful in our words, promises, and stands, for being honest is opening up to the Truth and the Right, and ultimately to Allah. Allah, the Most Exalted, says: "O you who have believed, fear Allah and be with those who are true." (Surat at-Tawbah 9:119).
The Second Sermon
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
The Organization of the Islamic Conference that convened in Sana'a talked about "enlightened Islamic moderation, promoting moderate Islamic discourse" and "enhancing democracy" in the Islamic states. It also talked about the challenges in Palestine, Iraq, and other places.
We notice in this kind of language a yielding to arrogant American calls to stay aloof from the logic that stands against the Israeli occupation of Palestine, at a time when Sharon is humiliating the Palestinian Authority—whether in the way he conducted his meeting with Abu Mazen, or through the continued assassinations, detentions, and the siege that prevents the Palestinian people from moving freely. This means that all Muslims should face these developments with a firm stand that will make Israel and America feel that its threatening and devastating position will cost them dearly.
On another level, the talk about freedoms and the authority of the people should not remain merely ink on paper. It should be realized in abolishing the state of emergency and the domination of the intelligence agencies, as well as the policies that respond favorably to American plans of hegemony and that exploit the war on terrorism to impose hostile and hegemonic policies.
The Islamic Conference: Liberation from the Palestinian Cause
The problem is that the Organization of the Islamic Conference has liberated itself from considering the Palestinian cause as a universal Islamic cause and turned it into a regional one that concerns the Palestinians only. It is interesting that the Bush Administration is planning to give Israel financial aid of one billion dollars to develop the Negev desert and the Galilee.
On the other hand, the regional states did not offer any aid to develop the regions that were destroyed by the Jews, despite all the oil wealth they possess, which, in fact, is the wealth of the entire nation.
Sinking in the Iraq Quagmire
Iraq is still suffering from the American occupation, which Bush says will remain for a long time, and he refuses to set a date for withdrawal. He also claims that continuing to occupy Iraq protects America, just as he falsely claimed before that Iraq possessed WMDs.
The problem with Bush is that he lies to the entire world and to his own public opinion, which has begun to discover—as a result of the growing casualties—that America has sunk into the Iraqi quagmire. Moreover, the occupation has not been able to provide security to Iraq. The Iraqi people are sinking in blood; they are living in a state of anarchy on the security level, with democracy still not achieved, and the Iraqis are only nominally in power.
Such a status impels us, along with the Arabs, Muslims, and free peoples in the world, to voice a demand for the end of occupation and to let the Iraqis run their own affairs with the help of the United Nations.
In another development, America continues to criticize the Iranian elections in which the Iranian people freely chose its leader. Nevertheless, America is not ready to accept the free will of the people if it runs against its arrogant policies.
Lebanon: The Deterring Force
In Lebanon, every now and then, Israelis commit an additional aggression, proving that Israel is still a threat to Lebanon. On the other hand, I believe that the Resistance has reached a level that would allow it to confront Israel. Those politicians who hold a negative view of the Resistance should be aware that the Resistance knows how to retaliate against aggression while taking into consideration the internal and external political situation. The new parliament should remain loyal to the slogans of reform and change in order to build a country of strong institutions, thereby preventing any foreign interference, so that one tutelage does not replace another and so that decisions are Lebanese—not American nor European.
All decision-makers face the challenge of trying to produce a Lebanon that knows how to hold accountable those corrupters and squanderers who sold their country to the near and far devil.