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 Rabi' al-Awwal 20, 1429 AH/ March 28, 2008 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
The Encyclopedic Knowledge of Imam As-Sadiq (a.s.)
The School of the Imam (a.s.)
Allah says in His Glorious Book:
"Allah only intends to remove from you the impurity [of sin], O people of the [Prophet's] household, and to purify you with [extensive] purification." Surat al-Ahzab (33:33)
One of those People of the House (Ahl el-Beit) is Imam As-Sadiq (a.s.) whose birth anniversary is celebrated on the 17th of Rabi' al-Awwal. He is the Imam who filled his era with culture, science and knowledge, to the extent that the thinkers, researchers and scientists are still reading what he wrote and benefiting from his knowledge, since he did not leave any Islamic science, whether doctrinal, juristic, philosophical, spiritual or moral, that he did not have an opinion on and a ruling in.
He had a very large school that had room for all people, even those who did not believe in Islam. They used to come to him in the Holy Mosque in Makkah to ask him questions, only to go back, feeling a deep sense of failure and frustration.
One of those who were among his students was Imam Abu Hanifa, the Imam of the Hanafi School, who said: "Were it not for the two years" (in which he was a student of Imam As-Sadiq) "he would have been doomed." Malik bin Anas is reported to have said: "I used to visit Imam Sadiq (a.s.) for a time. I would find him praying, fasting, or reciting the Holy Qur'an. No ear has heard, no eye has witnessed, and no mind has imagined better than Imam Sadiq (a.s.) in knowledge, piety, and worship."
Zaid bin Ali bin Al-Hussein, whom the Zaidis believe in his Imamate, says: "In every age there is a man who is one of us, Ahl el-Beit, that Allah considers as a proof that holds the people accountable. The proof of our time is my nephew. Those who disagree with him will not be guided, and those who follow him will not be led astray."
Caliph Abu Jaafar Al-Mansour once said to Abu Hanifa al-Numan: "People have become so infatuated with Imam Jaafar as-Sadiq (a.s.) and placed him far too highly in their esteem. Therefore, I want you to prepare some very difficult questions which you will put to him in my presence and in front of other scholars." Much as he loved Imam Jaafar as-Sadiq (a.s.) and respected his scholarly achievement, Abu Hanifa al-Numan had no choice but to comply with the Caliph's request. Therefore, he prepared 40 such questions and waited for a call from the Caliph, which soon arrived. He went to him to find Imam Jaafar As-Sadiq (a.s.) sitting with him as well as many other people. As he looked at Imam Jaafar As-Sadiq (a.s.), he was in awe of him much more than of the Caliph. Al-Mansour asked Abu Hanifa al-Numan to put his questions to Imam Jaafar and he did, one by one. He answered all questions in detail. Needless to say, these were questions on issues subject to much controversy among scholars. Imam Jaafar As-Sadiq (a.s.) said in his answer to each question, as reported by Abu Hanifa al-Numan: "You, i.e. the scholars of Iraq, say so and so, but the scholars of Madinah say such and such, while our own view is the following..." None of the 40 questions represented any difficulty for him. Commenting, Abu Hanifa said: "Is not the most knowledgeable man the one who knows best the differences in people’s opinion?"
People used to seek his knowledge, in thousands. When his father, Muhammad Al-Baqir (a.s.) was about to die, he told him to take care of his followers and the Imam promised that he would leave them in a state where they do not have to ask anybody about any issue.
His Advice to His Followers
Asked by the Abbasid caliph Abu Jaafar Al-Mansour: "Why are you not afraid of me as the rest of the people are?" The Imam said: "We do not possess any thing from the world so that we may be afraid of you for it (loss of it). You too do not possess anything for the Day of Judgment and the spiritualism, so why must I come to see you?"
Al-Mansour said: "By Allah, he has showed me the difference between those who seek the Hereafter and those who seek this world. And he seeks the Hereafter, not this world."
He was also concerned that the Shiites would be open to all Muslims, saying: "O Shiites of Muhammad, know that he is not from us those who do not restrain their anger and do not befriend those who befriend him…"
He also said to one of his followers, and we are among his followers: "The good is good from everybody and it is better from you, and the evil is evil from everybody and it is worse from you, due to your relation to us."
He used to tell those who used to curse that it is easy to earn the hatred of people: "Just do not talk bad about them."
He also called on his followers to be good in their relations with other Muslims, since this will give a good image of Shiites.
He also called on them to be brothers in Allah, and to be brothers and united in their love of Allah. He also advised them to meet and visit one another and discuss their affairs, adding: "And do not differ, since it preoccupies the heart and leads to hypocrisy."
His Method of Dialogue
On the issue of the sectarian difference between the Shiites and Sunnis, an issue which is still relevant today, and which is represented by certain Shiites who accuse the Sunnis of disbelief because they do not recognize the Imamate, just as some Sunnis consider the Shiites as assuming partners to Allah. This issue is not new since it was present at the times of the Imam who had a very decisive stand towards it, as evident from the dialogue related to us by Hisham who was in charge of the post.
He says: "I was with Muhammad bin Muslim and Abu Al-Khattab, and he asked us: 'What do you say of he who does not believe in the Imamate?' And I said: 'He is an unbeliever.' But Abu Al-Khattab said: 'He is not so until he is given all the proof; if he does not know then he is an unbeliever.' But Muhammad bin Muslim said: 'If he does know, and he does not deny, how could he be an unbeliever? He is not an unbeliever if he does not deny.' We went to Imam Jaafar and he said to us: 'What do you say about your servants, women and families? Do they not bear witness that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah's Messenger, and do they not pray and fast…? What do you say about them?' I said: 'Those who do not know are unbelievers.' He asked us something about those who perform circumambulation and the people of mataf, and I had the same answer… But he said: 'Subhan Allah. This is what the Khawarij say. It is evil for you to believe in something that you have not heard about from us.'" (Thus, Hashim understood that he was adopting the view of Muhammad bin Muslim who said that one would not be an unbeliever if he does not know). He ended by saying: "I thought that he was agreeing with Muhammad bin Muslim."
This proves that the issue of Takfir was present at that time. And this is what the Prophet (p.) warned from when he said: "Do not become after me unbelievers who kill one another…" The Messenger (p.) used to find it enough for the people to profess the two testimonies to be Muslim. That is why it says in the Quran: "The bedouins say, 'We have believed.' Say, 'You have not [yet] believed; but say [instead], 'We have submitted,' for faith has not yet entered your hearts.'" Surat al-Hujurat (49:14). That is, you have become Muslims and part of the Muslim community.
Thus, the issue of the Imamate is one of the principles of the sect and not of the religion. That is why we treat the Sunnis as Muslims. And our Imam used to deal with the caliphs who usurped his right as he dealt with all Muslims. Therefore, Imam As-Sadiq (a.s.) was, as the rest of the Imams, against the mentality of Takfir, that there are those who adopt it until now.
Thus, dear beloved, our commitment to Ahl el-Beit means that we have to adopt all their commands and advice in all fields of life. The Imams wanted us to be committed to the Quran and to adopt the traditions that do not violate it in their exaggeration. He said: "Consider what agrees with Allah's Book and accept it, and whatever contradicts Allah's Book, reject it."
Imam As-Sadiq (a.s.) says: "Fear Allah as if you see Him. If you do not see Him, He sees you. And if you do not believe that He sees you, then you have become a Kafir."
Dear loved ones, our adherence to Ahl el-Beit is a commitment to all the heritage they have left us in all fields of life and religion. This is the meaning of being their followers. Peace be upon our Master Imam Jaafar bin Muhammad As-Sadiq (a.s.) the day he was born, the day he died and the day he will be brought back to life.
The Second Sermon
In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Cheney: Spokesman of American Deceit
The recent visit of the American Vice-President was a renewal of the support of Israel, since in his view, it is facing continuous threats from Iran and Hamas that represent "a threat to the United States and to the International Quartet Committee."
This commitment was accompanied with new assurances of America's commitment to Israel’s security in the face of the region's peoples and the liberation and opposition forces, and a determination to legalize settlements and killing the Palestinians.
On the other hand, Cheney's visit to the West Bank remained within the framework of compliments and empty promises about the independent state and peace. He turned a deaf ear towards all the talk of the PA president about the occupation's crimes and the need to lift the siege that is killing the Palestinians. He used a deceiving language that is full of meaningless words, for the Americans are used to giving the Arabs some empty words, while awarding Israel with supporting political positions, advanced weapons, and even participating in their aggressions. They provide the necessary cover for Israel to prevent the passing of any UN Security Council resolution that condemns Israel. This is evident from what we have seen throughout the history of the struggle, and recently in the July war on Lebanon and the last aggression in Palestine.
It is worth noting that Cheney accuses Syria and Iran of hindering the settlement in Palestine without finding any role of Israel in this, at a time everyone knows that these two states are standing with the Palestinian people in a way that preserves its political freedoms in the face of the Israeli plans that hinder any chance for a solution through its major settlement schemes.
Furthermore, the American Administration has considered the rightful demands of the Palestinian people to be terrorist claims, and made it a precondition for any negotiations to stop demanding the end of occupation, the ongoing aggressions and the continuous Judaization of Jerusalem.
America wants the Palestinian people to stay alone, and not to find anyone to help it in the face of the Israeli attempts to dominate over the whole of Palestine, especially after it had succeeded in preventing most Arab states from standing with it. This will enable the Americans to impose the Israeli conditions without any reservations, including the ongoing building of settlements, that neither the PA nor the Quartet Committee seem to be able to stop.
As we welcome any efforts to unify the internal Palestinian front, the last of which was the Sana’a declaration which will make it stronger and more coherent in the face of the occupation schemes, we believe that the American-Israeli plan wants the internal Palestinian division to remain, and to prevent any Arab positions that might strengthen the internal Palestinian solidarity, especially with the American-Israeli negative positions and their expectations that the Fateh-Hamas agreement will not succeed, which was strengthened by the complications in the interpretations of the agreement.
In the light of this, we ask: Are the Palestinians in need of 60 more years of waiting to attain their rights that are transferred from one American Administration to the other, leaving the Palestinians with nothing except some political leftovers, with the Arab and Muslim worlds afraid that they will be dealt a knockout blow if they try to confront and challenge?
The Muslim World Coma
The Muslim world that received the anniversary of the Prophet's birth is still preoccupied with historical differences and sectarian complications in a complete absentmindedness towards the American occupation of Iraq, the NATO occupation of Afghanistan, the political and violence disturbances in Palestine, and the political and security anarchy in Sudan and Somalia.
The massacres in Iraq have so far killed a million victims, most of them civilians, voluntary and involuntary. Internal and external immigrants have reached about five million people, yet there is not any Muslim strategy of 57 Muslim states to plan to get out of this dark tunnel or to deploy the means of strength and economic potentials, since those in charge of the affairs of the Muslim world do not take from Islam except its name. They have become prisoners of their greed and weaknesses so that they no longer strive for freedom, dignity or have the will to confront ignorance.
In such circumstances, we call the Muslim world to rise to the level of Islam, to be Muslim in its movement in the world, to become a part of the international decision making and not to stay at the margin, and to seek to make a new history of Islamic civilisation based on science, reason and power.
The Arab Summit: The Absence of the Establishment Mentality
The Arab world is getting ready for the Damascus summit, after all states have made their mind about either boycotting or lowering the level of their representatives. This indicates that the Arab movement did not reach the level of the mentality of the establishment. And we notice that most Arab states seek to involve the Summit in the mazes and complications of the Arab differences, and in their intentional commitments regarding their major issues that the international arrogance refuses to deal with in the way that serves the Arab peoples. This made the Arab leaders respond to the American demand for boycotting by not attending on a high level and sending low level officials who are unauthorized to discuss any strategic issue.
The Arab manner of dealing with the summit will ultimately end the institution of the Summit itself, since they are not free to issue the strategic and vital resolutions that serve the Arab reality in its big crises.
We are afraid that the strategic resolution of the summit would be an obituary to Palestine, Lebanon and Iraq, since there is an American death sentence for these tragic issues, and to start looking for a big grave for the political life of the Arab causes, then we all mourn the lost glory and the summit that its owners have buried in the hole of national humiliation.
Lebanon: A Front That Looks Like a Country
Lebanon, which has decided to boycott the summit, will not find any solution for its internal crisis, since it is linked to the regional crisis that the Summit does not have any impact on. This small country will continue to live in the mazes of debates and rows, and will not leave its role as a front where the international and regional intelligence agencies meet with the arrogant policies, as well as the American struggles with several states in the region. The Lebanese will remain stuck to the media outlets to gain more of the culture of sectarian hatred, personal leadership, accusations of treason, the dark future and the non-state. Thus, they will be mindless of their vital issues which will be left for the players and adventures to play with, with the rifts that enable the foreign powers to exploit Lebanon in their schemes widening. The national anthem will be only words and rhymes without any meaning or spirit. Is this the Lebanon we want?