Islamic Religious Council of Singapore
Friday Sermon
23 December 2022 / 28 Jamadilawal 1444H
Freedom To Express and Its Responsibilities
Brothers and sisters blessed by Allah,
Let us elevate our taqwa towards Allah (s.w.t.) by observing His commandments and prohibitions. May we be placed among His honoured servants. Amin.
Brothers and sisters,
Allah (s.w.t.) has created and honoured mankind. The honour that Allah (s.w.t.) has bestowed upon us comes in the form of our intellect, which allows us to think before acting or speaking. This gift of intellect that Allah has given us must be utilised in a way that can give meaning to our lives.
Let us reflect upon the decree of Allah (s.w.t.) in Surah al-Isra’ which emphasises the responsibility that we must perform. Allah (s.w.t.) decrees:
Which means: “And do not follow a thing about which you have no knowledge. Surely, the ear, the eye and the heart – each one of them shall be held accountable.” (Al-Isra’:36)
My beloved brothers and sisters,
If we contemplate on the verse, Allah (s.w.t.) prohibits His servants from following something blindly without knowledge. Everything that we hear and utter must be based upon knowledge and not upon our assumptions and desires. We fear that our words which are uttered without knowledge or benefit might become a reason for Allah’s displeasure. Especially if our words are harmful in nature, such as gossiping, spreading false news or insulting other people.
Let us internalize an advice from our Prophet (s.a.w.) towards a Companion named Mu’az ibn Jabal. The Prophet said:
أَلاَ أُخْبِرُكَ بِمِلاَكِ ذَلِكَ كُلِّهِ . قُلْتُ بَلَى . فَأَخَذَ بِلِسَانِهِ فَقَالَ " تَكُفُّ عَلَيْكَ هَذَا " . قُلْتُ يَا نَبِيَّ اللَّهِ وَإِنَّا لَمُؤَاخَذُونَ بِمَا نَتَكَلَّمُ بِهِ قَالَ " ثَكِلَتْكَ أُمُّكَ يَا مُعَاذُ وَهَلْ يَكُبُّ النَّاسَ عَلَى وُجُوهِهِمْ فِي النَّارِ إِلاَّ حَصَائِدُ أَلْسِنَتِهِمْ
Which means: “Should I inform you of something that will strengthen all of that? (Which are good deeds and sound faith) Mu’az replied: ‘Surely, o Messenger of Allah.’ The Prophet (s.a.w.) held his tongue and said: “Restrain this.” I said: “O Messenger of Allah, shall we be punished because of what we utter?” The Prophet (s.a.w.) said: “O Mu’az, will mankind be thrown into the fire except for the product of their tongues?” (Hadith narrated by Imam al-Tirmizi)
Therefore, from this narration, we learn that we must be careful before uttering anything, as our words hold a significant impact.
Brothers and sisters,
In a world without borders today, with the advancement of technology and communications, we are exposed to numerous mediums and platforms that have become places for us to voice our opinions and express our views. We can see that many people have entered these platforms to freely express their feelings, thoughts and views about every matter related to society and the world without any inhibitions.
Islam acknowledges the freedom to express, but it must be carried out in a manner that is just, wise and achieves collective goodness.
In fact, freedom to express in Islam is not equated to expressing according to our whims and desires. It also does not mean that we are unaccountable for the impact and consequences of our words and actions. In Islam, the freedom to express entails avoiding deceit, slander, and other harmful speech.
Let us pause and think before uttering and sharing anything, because we shall be questioned by Allah – will the matter that we convey bring us reward? Or it will only cause harm and invite the displeasure of Allah? May we be placed among those who are given by Allah wisdom in their words and actions. Ameen.
أَقُوْلُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَ أَسْتَغْفِرُ اللهَ العَظِيْمَ لِي وَ لَكُمْ، فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الغَفُوْرُ الرَّحِيْم
Second Sermon
الحَمْدُ للهِ حَمْدًا كَثِيرًا كَمَا أَمَرَ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَن لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ سَيِّدَنَا مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ. اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَأَصْحَابِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ. أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فَيَا عِبَادَ الله، اِتَّقُوا اللهَ تَعَالَى فِيمَا أَمَرَ، وَانتَهُوا عَمَّا نَهَاكُم عَنْهُ وَزَجَرَ.
أَلَا صَلُّوا وَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى النَّبِيِّ الْمُصْطَفَى، فَقَدْ أَمَرَنَا اللهُ بِذَلِكَ حَيْثُ قَال فِي كِتَابِهِ العَزِيزِ: إِنَّ اللهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ يَـا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسلِيمًا. اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَ بَارِكْ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ.
وَارْضَ اللَّهُمَّ عَنِ الخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ المَهْدِيِّينَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ وَعُثْمَانَ وَعَلِيِّ، وَعَن بَقِيَّةِ الصَّحَابَةِ وَالقَرَابَةِ وَالتَّابِعِينَ، وَتَابِعِي التَّابِعِينَ، وَعَنَّا مَعَهُم وَفِيهِم بِرَحْمَتِكَ يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ.
اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِلمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالمُؤْمِنَاتِ، وَالمُسْلِمِينَ وَالمُسْلِمَاتِ، الأَحْيَاءِ مِنهُم وَالأَمْوَاتِ. اللَّهُمَّ ادْفَعْ عَنَّا البَلَاءَ وَالوَبَاءَ وَالزَّلَازِلَ وَالمِحَنَ، مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَمَا بَطَنَ، عَن بَلَدِنَا خَاصَّةً، وَسَائِرِ البُلْدَانِ عَامَّةً، يَارَبَّ العَالَمِينَ. رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنيَا حَسَنَةً، وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً، وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ.
عِبَادَ اللهِ، إِنَّ اللهَ يَأْمُرُ بِالعَدْلِ وَالإِحْسَانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي القُرْبَى، وَيَنْهَى عَنِ الفَحْشَاءِ وَالمُنكَرِ وَالبَغْيِ، يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ، فَاذكُرُوا اللهَ العَظِيمَ يَذْكُركُمْ، وَاشْكُرُوهُ عَلَى نِعَمِهِ يَزِدكُمْ، وَاسْأَلُوهُ مِن فَضلِهِ يُعطِكُم، وَلَذِكرُ اللهِ أَكبَرُ، وَاللهُ يَعلَمُ مَا تَصنَعُونَ.
