Khutba points in the aftermath of Boston terrorism and ricin poison

April 19, 2013

Assalamu Alaikum

Kindly choose the Quranic verses given below.
Feel free to choose the points you feel comfortable in making.
These are our quick advice. You know your community best.
Salam

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All Muslims have been in sympathy with the victims of Boston Marathon tragedy.

Many Muslims ran the marathon. Some Muslims are injured in bombing. But what the world does not know that there were many Muslim first responders, physicians, and surgeons who were busy saving lives in emergency rooms and hospitals around Boston area.

The media is identifying suspects to be from a Russian region where about 20 percent population is Muslims.

Although we don’t know if they were Muslims or not, the Islamophobes have already been blaming Muslims.

Advice to Muslims

• You have done nothing wrong.
  • So stay proud of your peaceful community and faithful family. If some one does a criminal act they are responsible for it, not 1.5 billion peaceful Muslims.

• Be careful, thoughtful in moving around alone.
  • This is important since several Muslims have been attacked since Monday including a physician.

• Comfort children:
  • Since there is a lot of pressure on children, please sit down in family and talk to children about the incident. Tell them those who harm others are not good people.
  • Tell them that among 1.5 billion Muslims there can be bad people as there are bad Christians.
  • Muslims are always on the side of victims who have been wronged not on the side of criminals who might be Muslims.

• One long term solution is media
  • Muslims should master the art and technology of communication to counter the bad media
  • There will always be criminals but some media takes those people and demonizes Muslims
  • The result is that more Muslims are killed and more neighbors are hurt
  • Jews were blamed by Christians for killing Jesus. No one hears that accusation any longer since Jews worked heard to master the art and technology of communication to tell their story.
  • More than 1200 anti Muslim films and tv programs are repeated throughout the year.
  • We must learn to counter bad media by using the media for which we have full freedom to do.

Good Muslims and Bad Muslims

• Al-Qaeda and affiliated organizations have killed a lots of civilians.
• It is wrong and un-Islamic.
• It has given bad name to Islam and Muslims. Unlike Salahuddin who gave good name to Islam and Muslims
• When Muslims are wrong it is our duty to say they are wrong.

Advice to our neighbors and media

• Don’t generalize:
• No one asked the faith of the Mississipi suspect who sent deadly ricin poison to the President.
• No one is asking about the faith of Sandy Hook school suspect who killed so many children.
• We ask media to extend the same courtesy to the Muslim community.
• A criminal is a criminal. A terrorist is a terrorist.
• By dwelling on the race of a criminal media creates racism.
• Dwelling on the faith of a criminals we have created Islamophobia.
• Muslims condemn terrorism, war and Islamophobia as the evil triplets.

Quran References to choose from about the Sanctity of Life

Sanctity of Life in Islam is paramount, without qualification:

Say: "Come, I will rehearse what God hath (really) prohibited you from: Join not anything as equal with Him; be good to your parents; kill not your children on a plea of want--We provide sustenance for you and for them; come not nigh to shameful deeds, whether open or secret; take not life, which God hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law. Thus doth He command you, that ye may learn wisdom" [Q 6:151]

We ordained for the children of Israel that if anyone slew a person, unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land, it would be as if he slew the whole of mankind. And if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of a whole people. (al-Ma’ida, 5:32)

"Nor take life which God has made sacred, except for a just cause" (al-Isra', 17:33).

Al-Ghazali has quoted these ayat and drew the conclusion that "in respect of the sanctity of life and the prohibition of aggression against it, Muslims and non-Muslims are equal. Attack on the personal safety of non-Muslims invokes the same punishment in this world and the Hereafter". [Muhammad Al-Ghazali, Huquq al-Insan, p. 54]

Dua

Make extended Dua and a shorter khutba points

• May Allah keep us safe.
• May God keep our neighbors safe.
• May He guide the angry, the hateful and the fearful to the positive direction.
• May God open our hearts towards our neighbors and may He open their hearts towards us.