Feb 21, 2017
My Short-lived Career as a Preacher
A few years ago I had a brief stint as a Jumuah Khateeb (someone who delivers the sermon at Friday Mass.)
I took it very seriously – I wrote all of my sermons myself – and was well received.
Ideally, the Friday sermon should be very inspiring and an immediate boost to the faith of the congregants meant to encourage and sustain them for the entire week.
I’m a big proponent of drilling the fundamentals, so in one of my sermons I explained the meaning of la ilaha illa Allah (one-half of the Muslim testimony of faith.)
It was quality work but that’s not why I mention it.
I mention it because of the reaction of the congregants.
One of them, an elderly gentleman, said,
“We’ve been saying it our entire lives, but no one actually explained to us what it means, the way you did.”
Keep in mind, this is as fundamental as you can get.
Our children should know it as well as they know their own names.
Religious Literacy, Religious Literacy, Religious Literacy
In a time where celebrity preachers routinely rubbish the study of Islamic creed, is it any wonder religious literacy among the Muslim masses is trash?
Instead, these same preachers will do advanced Quran Studies with an audience, many of whom don’t know the basic fundamentals of their religion.
FYI, this is the opposite of what the Companions of Prophet Muhammad ﷺ would do.
It was narrated that Jundub bin ‘Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him) said:
We were with the Prophet (ﷺ), and we were strong youths, so we learned faith before we learned Qur’an. Then we learned Qur’an and our faith increased thereby.
Becoming the Alpha Muslim Don’t Play That
As woke Muslim men and readers of this website you shouldn’t fall into the same trap.
So, to help improve your understanding of Islamic creed, here is my sermon in full.
I have added sub-headings to make it easier for you to read.
Non-Muslims Should Read this Too
If you are a non-Muslim this is probably the most important post of mine you will ever read.
Few non-Muslims get exposed to such a detailed explanation of the core of our faith.
Fewer still get exposed to a Friday sermon in English.
My hope for this post is that we all, Muslim and non-Muslim, walk away spiritually energized.
May Allah make it so.
http://becomingthealphamuslim.com/who-is-allah
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