Khutbah: Mother’s Day fatherlessness

Khutbah: Mother’s Day fatherlessness

Sanctifying Marriage – Not The Role of Government – Muslims Can Differ In Opinion

The Washington Post recently quoted only a “sound bite” of my comments on marriage in America, the role of religious interpretation, government and law.  My comments were distilled into a discourage about same-sex marriage, which is a narrow slice of my comments.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/imam-daayiee-abdullah-welcomes-gay-muslims-to-worship-marry/2013/04/17/3ebcab3a-a5db-11e2-b029-8fb7e977ef71_story.html

From my understanding of the Qur’an, marriage in Islam is between members of the opposite sex.  Yet, I believe that people can engage in many types of sexual behaviors and still be Muslim.  The goal is to try to understand God’s message and then to apply it.  The way one has sex is not be their public definition.  As a person of faith, the primary identifier is one’s relationship with the transcendent God/Allah and not one’s appetite for food, drink, sex, race or gender.

In America, religion is a very personal thing.  As such, very few individuals like to be told how to define their relationship with God and wish to define their relationship with God on their own terms without government involvement.  It is for this reason that I believe that faith in America is still very vibrant, while it is falling by the wayside in Europe.

Likewise on the issue of marriage, I do not believe that our government should ever have gotten into the business of “sanctifying” marriage. In other words, the gov’t should not define what “is” and “is not” marriage any more than they should define who “is” and “is not” a Muslim, Christian or Jew. In marriage, the gov’t should only be in the business of enforcing binding contracts between adult aka “civil unions”!

The issue of (religious) marriage as should have been put into the authority of religious communities. If we do that then, everyone would be free to practice whatever they like in their own religion as long as they do not infringe upon the constitutional right of others.

This is perfectly in line with my own faith tradition. The Qur’an says:

“To you be your way and to us be our way….”

Within Muslim history there have been many groups, sects, offshoots and various interpretations of the faith, each group interrupting the scriptures on their own terms in context, content and time and today is no different.

I have a particular reading and understand of Islam that puts sexual behavior in the light of specific verses and prophetic traditions, but he priority in religion is to find out what God wants and then to do that, not to find out what you want and then find the text that you think allows you to do it.

Khutbah: Finding resilience in our faith

From Evernote:https://www.evernote.com/shard/s118/sh/55026239-a2d9-4014-8721-5bb1f9bfd5d6/77643a7fb88e489fb113c1608043c57a

Fusilat 41:34

The good deed and the evil deed cannot be equal. Repel (the evil) with one which is better (i.e. Allah ordered the faithful believers to be patient at the time of anger, and to excuse those who treat them badly), then verily! he, between whom and you there was enmity, (will become) as though he was a close friend.

On Same Sex Marriage – American Muslims Differ

The Washington Post recently quoted only a “sound bite” of my comments on marriage in America, the role of religious interpretation, government and law.  My comments were distilled into a discourage about same-sex marriage, which is a narrow slice of my comments.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/style/imam-daayiee-abdullah-welcomes-gay-muslims-to-worship-marry/2013/04/17/3ebcab3a-a5db-11e2-b029-8fb7e977ef71_story.html

Dar Al-Hijrah Denounces The Heinous Attack on the Boston Marathon

Dar AL-Hijrah Islamic Center Denounces Attack

Press Release: The Heinous Attack on the Boston Marathon

Falls Chuch, Virginia, April 16, 2013, In response to the recent attack at the Boston Marathon,Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center sends our sincere condolences to those who lost loved ones due to the cowardly and heinous acts of violence.

As part of the trarditions of Patriarch Abraham, we, Muslims, believe in only one God and one universal message sent through many messengers. That message is one that condems the acts perpetrated in Boston. We believe in the screptures sent to David, the Torah of Moses, and the Gospel (Injil) of Jesus as holy books.
The Quran teaches that to take the life of even one innocent person is a grave injustice.
“… that if anyone slays a human being-unless it be [in punishment] for murder or for spreading corruption on earth-it shall be as though he had slain all mankind; whereas, if anyone saves a life, it shall be as though he had saved the lives of all mankind…”
” Chapter 5:31
We extend our prayers to the injured and to their families.
It is clear that the violence perpetrated in Boston was an attack against American values and our way of life; regardless of religion, race, national origin or ideology.  This was an attack directed against all of us.
We encourage everyone to participate fully with law enforcement as they work to bring the perpetrators to justice.
On behalf of the Muslim community, we appreciate the leadership of President Obama as he urged the media and the law enforcement authority for not to rush to judgment about the perpetrators or their affiliations.
Washington, DC, similar to Boston, is the home of many outdoor gatherings; and members of the Washington, DC community often participate in the Boston Marathon.
We can all take comfort in the knowledge and reality that the people of Boston and all Americans are resilient; and together we will continue our way of life in the face of uncertainty with dignity, unity, faith and resolve.

Salaam: Join Us as we stand-up to Gun Violence

Salaam: Join Us as we stand-up to Gun Violence in our community Monday, April 29th Rally Realco Guns: 5-6pm

Friday, April 26th – Jumah Prayer PGMA: 1:15 pm

Friday, April 26th Lecture @ Masjid Ibn Taymiyyah:  7:30-8:30pm

 

Monday, April 29th Rally Realco Guns: 5-6pm

Realco Guns Shop -6108 Marlboro Pike

District Heights, MD 20747
http://ow.ly/i/1Q7ME

For more info: imamjohari@gmail.com

or http://www.heedinggodscall.org/content/greater-washington-dc

 

Salaam: The day can stop being angry wit

Salaam: The day can stop being angry with others is the day after you stop being angry with yourself The day can forgive yourself…is the day before you can forgive others
The day you can begin to be truly happy….is always today