Radicalism Conflict with Purpose and Message of Islam - Corrected Khutba by

Radicalism: Conflict with Purpose and Message of Islam

Shaykh Abdul Nasir Jangda

Opening

In the name of Allah, and praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and companions.

Introduction

Usually this late, I would prefer having a more light-hearted session. I basically would prefer to get up here and just crack a few jokes. Because those who know me, know I have a fantastic sense of humor. Say, masha'Allah everybody. Thank you very much. Alright. I appreciate it. Alright.

But I have a very serious topic today. And that is radicalism. And how it conflicts with the core purpose, and the message of the Quran.

Defining the Terms

I wanted to start off by defining these terms. The two key terms, radicalism and extremism. A very basic definition of these two words. Because the definition tells us a lot about these two issues, these problems, these plagues that we are dealing with right now.

Radicalism and Extremism Defined

Radicalism is defined as an opposition to all forms of government, social hierarchy, or authority.

Extremism is defined as being any ideology or political act that operates, acts, or violates common moral standards.

And the word extremism is basically the antonym, the opposite of moderation. And the reason why that should raise a red flag in the head of every single Muslim is because our entire deen is based around the concept of moderation.

Islam's Foundation: Moderation

Allah tells us:

"And thus we have made you a moderate people, a moderate nation."

(Source Name)

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: "The best of affairs is those that are moderate."

And so moderation is the major theme of our way of life.

And it is the way of life that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم brought to us, that the Quran teaches us. So that should immediately raise a flag in the head and in the heart of any believer. Of anyone who claims to be a Muslim.

Political Nature of Extremism

The other thing that I found that was very interesting was radicalism or extremism. Both these ideas, these concepts. They both have very very strong political associations to them.

Which is another major factor and issue that I want to get out of the way before we go forward. That often times radical movements or extremist ideology is very seldom. It is very rarely spiritually motivated, religiously motivated. It is primarily a political cause and concern. And so automatically it has little to nothing. It has little to nothing to do with deen, religion, spirituality or any of these things.

The Quran's Self-Definition

Now having said that, the Quran. Let's come to the Quran. Having understood what is radicalism, what is extremism. Let's come to the Quran. One of the unique features of the Quran which sets it apart from any other religious text or religious scripture. Regardless of what religion we're talking about.

Is that the Quran spends a lot of time defining itself, introducing itself, talking about itself. And this is from the clarity of the Quran. That the Quran actually invest a lot of time into explaining what is the Quran.

I'm going to present three basic ayahs or parts of ayahs. Where Allah explains to us what is the Quran.

First Definition: Surah Yusuf

The first one is from Surah Yusuf ayah number 111:

Allah tells us: "That this is not conjecture, this is not something that somebody conjured up, somebody made up. This is not a fairy tale. Rather it affirms reality. It affirms and confirms reality, the truth. And it is a detailed elaborate structure. Within which human beings can find meaning. A meaningful existence which our previous speaker was talking about. It is guidance through and through. In every situation, in all walks

of life for all people. And again it is mercy in every situation in all walks of life. For people who are willing to believe. For people who will approach it with an open mind and an open heart."

Second Definition: Surah Al-Isra

In another place in the Quran, in Surah Al-Isra, Surah 17, Ayah 82, Allah tells us:

"And We are revealing from the Quran that which is a cure all. A complete cure. And it is a divine mercy for the believers."

Third Definition: Surah Al-Baqarah

And yet another place in the Quran, Surah Al-Baqarah, Ayah 185, Allah says:

"The month of Ramadan. The Quran was revealed in it. And what is the primary function of the Quran? Guidance for all of humanity. Guidance for all of mankind. Without prejudice, without bias. It is open accessible guidance to every single living breathing human being."

Moving from Defense to Offense

If that is the premise of the Quran, if that is the role of the Quran, if that is the nature of the Quran, then what we come to realize is that extremist ideology, radical mentality, or causes or agendas, have nothing to do with the Quran. And I wanted to actually say something here. And Imam Khalid touched on this and I was really, really happy that he touched on this when he was talking about the rope-a-dope.

When he said George Foreman, how many of you thought about grills? Shame on you people. He's a boxer. But when he was talking about rope-a-dope and talking about the strategy and the focus, he brought up something very, very important.

Time to Go on the Offensive

And I wanted to touch on this. We've been on the defensive for far too long. Yes, we dealt with some very, very difficult circumstances. Things got really, really tough there for a while. And they are still pretty tough. But we've been defensive for far too long.

We have spent too much time, too much energy, justifying, proving, explaining, how radicalism and extremism does not have anything to do with the Quran or Islam. But it's about time that we flip the script. We went on the offensive.

And we put the onus back on the people who are making the claim. Because part of the legal structure even in Islam is when you make a claim, the onus of proof and evidence is on you. So we need to put it back on them.

They need to let us know. They need to explain themselves, how radicalism or extremism has anything to do with the Quran or Islam. We have no need to explain ourselves.

We need to move beyond this. It is a defensive mentality. And it's backed us into a corner like our imam said. And we don't know where to go now. It's about time like when he said, finally at the end of the game, he would rush out of that corner like a man on a mission, bull charge. That's basically what we need to do.

What the Quran Actually Says

And that's the point that we are at right now. And it's very, very important that we take this step. Because I'll tell you what, when I read the Quran, because I don't know what Quran anyone else is reading.

And when I talk about radicalism and extremism, I'm talking about both extremes of it. The voices within the Muslim community that might be calling for violence against civilians. And I'm also talking about the other extremism, where they have made Muslims the object of hatred and animosity, and fear mongering.

The Merciful Nature of Allah

Both extremes. Because I'll tell you when I read the Quran, and I don't know what Quran they're reading, I started off by saying:

I started off by invoking the merciful attributes of my Lord and my Rabb, Allah.

Surah Al-Fatiha, the opening surah of the Quran:

It talks about how He sustains, how He provides, how He maintains, without prejudice, without bias, all of His creation.

Quran 1:3

The abundantly merciful, the constantly benevolent. That's what the Quran said to me. That's what I read, that's what I understood.

The Prophet as Mercy

We just talked about how the Quran was defined as a cure, as a guidance, as a mercy. And even the man who brought, who delivered the Quran to us, who lived and exemplified the Quran to us, Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم. When Allah introduced him to us in the Quran, Allah again said:

"He is a mercy for all humanity people, whenever and wherever they have ever existed. He is a mercy. He is a mercy."

A Hadith About Mercy in Battle

One time some of his companions came to him in the middle of a war, in the middle of a battle. A battle was raging on. And they came to him in the middle of the battle and they said:

"The people of Thaqif are killing us with their arrows. Make dua, Allah destroys these people, wipes them clean off the face of the earth."

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم raised his hand, raised his hands for dua, supplication. The companion said, we were like, that's it, done deal, it's over. And then when he opened his mouth, he said:

(At-Tirmidhi hadith 2938)

"Allah give guidance to the people of Thaqif."

And he reprimanded his companion, he said:

(Muslim hadith 2599)

"I have not been sent to curse people, to damn people, to doom people. I have been sent as a mercy for people, as a mercy for Allah's creation."

The True Message of the Quran

So finally, what is the message of the Quran? If it is not radicalism, it is not extremism, then what is it? And there are many things that can be talked about here but I've boiled them down to three key items I'd like to highlight.

1. Spirituality

Number one is spirituality. And what I mean by that, what I'm referring to is a unique, individual, intimate relationship with Allah. Every single human being is due, has the opportunity to achieve an individual, unique, intimate relationship with Allah. And how is that facilitated?

Through the Quran