New Beginnings- Mobilizing and Motivating a Generation

New Beginnings: Mobilizing and Motivating a Generation

Opening Invocation

Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Raheem. Wa salatu wa salamu ala Sayyidina wa Habibina Muhammadin wa ala alihi wa sahbihi wa sallam tasliman kathira. Wa la hawla wa la quwwata illa billahi al-'aliyyi al-'azim.

Acknowledgments and Introduction

Alhamdulillah, my esteemed brother Imam Siraj Wahaj, Imam Qasim, all the other Imams and scholars here and all the people and our translator here who I always get worried they're saying this person is completely mad. But that's the basis of translators, they have to be trustworthy. We were in a car once and one of my little boys said to my four-year-old, say to dad to go and get some ice cream. And so he said, say to dad to go to get some ice cream. And I realized that secret of (قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ - qul huwa Allahu Ahad) (Quran 112:1). You know when Allah said, "say," the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam was so trustworthy and faithful in his transmission, he said exactly what he was told to say, "say." Because you have to be trustworthy to translate.

The Story of Qaloon: A Testament to Faith

Now, God, God, I love that, God. That's amazing. God. Allahu Akbar. Just for the people that are listening through the sign language, Qaloon, who's one of the great Quran reciters and he is a, he has a recension from Imam Nafi. Qaloon was deaf. He couldn't hear except the Quran. And that's confirmed in all our books of Quranic transmission. He could only hear the Quran. Alhamdulillah.

The Impact of ISNA and MSA on Our Youth

The MSA, I was, I heard Dalia Mogahed said something last night, our really sister that we're all very proud of, doing incredible work. Dalia Mogahed said something last night that really affected me. She said to Pastor Rick Warren that she grew up in ISNA. And she said that this organization had such an impact on forming her personality and her understanding of her faith. And that really struck me because sometimes we tend to forget the impact that these events have on our young people especially. I mean, some of the old people also benefiting and getting impact, but the young people, these can be turning points in their lives.

And I was in Chicago and I, somebody picked me up in a car and, and they said, you know what, the first time I ever met you was at ISNA. I was 14 years old. He was now 30 years old. So that tells you how long I've been coming to ISNA. And he said, I remember everything you said to me in that meeting, that brief meeting. And it really struck home to me the importance of recognizing the immense responsibility that we have towards our youth and providing these. And the MSA, the Muslim Students Association is an extraordinary organization that has the potential to really transform Islam in America. I believe that.

The Prophet's Companions: A Generation of Youth

The Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, his companions were young people generally. The people that followed him were young people. He had many, many very young men, many of them under 20. Sayyidina Ali is really, when Sayyidina Ali became Muslim, he was only 7 years old. But he was so fervent in his belief and faith and the Prophet acknowledged him, Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, when he was the only one that said, I'll stand by you. A 7 year old.

Independence Day and Dependence on Allah

In the spirit of July 4th, Independence Day, I mentioned earlier that Independence Day is a Muslim celebration and because Independence Day in 1187, July 4th, 1187, Salahuddin Al-Ayyubi's army defeated the Crusader State at the Battle of Hattin. So when we see the firework going off, we can remember July 4th. July 4th, 1187.

Now, Independence Day is a celebration of freedom. But Muslims celebrate everyday Dependence Day, which is a celebration of servitude to Allah. That we are servants of Allah. And this is what our young people have to recognize, that life is about service. Life is not about licentiousness.

True Freedom vs. Slavery to Desire

Liberty and libertine are related words. Liberty is freedom, but libertine is the one who acts without any constraints. Libertine in English is a negative word, liberty is a positive word. There are negative aspects to the ability to do what you want to do. When you want to do what Allah wants you to do, you are truly free. But when you do what you want you to do, you are a slave to yourself. You are not a free person.

The Arabs, the Hurr in Arabic, the Arabs say (الْعَبْدُ حُرُّ مَا قَنِعَ وَالْحُرُّ عَبْدٌ مَا طَمِعَ - Al-'abdu hurrun ma qani'a wal-hurru 'abdun ma tami'a) - The servant, the slave is a free man as long as he is content. And the free man is a slave as long as he is covetous. The free man is a slave as long as he is a slave to his passion.

The Opportunity and Responsibility in America

This country has afforded many Muslims an extraordinary opportunity. But we as a community have to begin to give back in a much bigger way to this country. And the African American community, there is a whole separate history there. I'm talking to the immigrant community that's come here after 1965, when a lot of people got their heads bashed in before that so that you could come here and get jobs and work and eat in restaurants and be treated like human beings. But it's time for this community to give back.

America's Current Crisis

This country is in a crisis. It's in a moral crisis. It's in a financial crisis of unprecedented proportion. Trust me, this crisis is far worse than what happened in 1929. It's far worse. If you actually understand what happened and the amount of credit that was created, the amount of debt and deficit financing that has been the practice of this country for far too long. There hasn't been a balanced budget since John F. Kennedy. And claiming Clinton,

claiming that he balanced the budget is a false claim because what he did was he used Social Security money to pay for his budget. So he was actually borrowing, instead of borrowing from banks by selling treasury bonds, he was borrowing from the future income or earning of people that are putting that wealth, thinking that the government is actually saving that wealth for them.

This country, according to the federal controller who resigned a few years ago to go around the United States and warn this country about the impending financial tsunami, proved that this country has liabilities and debts reaching over $50 trillion. So the $11 trillion official debt is only part, it's the tip of the iceberg. And we're on the Titanic. We're on the Titanic. And people are singing and shooting off fireworks. They're celebrating an indebted nation that's indebted largely to China with Chinese firecrackers that they bought in China. We don't even produce firecrackers. So there is a lot of work to do.

Muslim Physicians and Healthcare Crisis

I believe the Muslim physicians alone could solve the healthcare crisis by doing what Bill and Charlie Mayo, who founded the Mayo Clinic, did. Bill and Charlie Mayo serviced 30% of all their patients de gratis because they believe that as physicians they should be serving the poor for free. That was the Mayo Clinic. That was Bill and Charlie Mayo. That's American history. It's about time that people started thinking about serving the underserved in this country.

Serving the Poor in America, Not Just Abroad

We talk about, Rick Warren was talking yesterday about Rwanda because I said Muslims need to get together with Christian doctors and serve the poor. He said, yes, in Rwanda we're doing this. I said, I'm not talking about Rwanda. I'm talking about East L.A. I'm talking about Washington, D.C. I'm talking about Jacksonville, Florida. The ER doctors have seen an increase since this financial collapse because people are using the ER as a primary care because they don't have insurance to go to a doctor. They can't afford to go to a doctor. We have people that can't take their children to doctors because they can't afford that.

The Muslims have over 30,000 doctors in the United States. If each one of those doctors gave one day out of the week for the sake of Allah and his Messenger to serve the poor people, we would solve a great deal of the underserved problems in medicine in this country. Now, that's a sacrifice, and maybe it's asking too much, but I don't think it's asking too much. Personally, I don't think it's asking too much. We can do this.

True Witnessing Through Service

And that's when people, yesterday, Rick Warren, I thought Rick Warren was going to do what evangelical people call witnessing, which is where if they meet people that don't adhere to their faith, they tell them about Jesus Christ being the personal Savior. Rick Warren does so much social work, he doesn't have to witness about Jesus Christ. All he has to tell you is about what his group is doing. That's his witnessing. That's his witnessing. That is what the Muslim community needs to do. We need to be witnesses over mankind by serving humanity.

The Call to Serve Allah's Creation

The Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam said (خَيْرُ النَّاسِ أَنْفَعُهُمْ لِلنَّاسِ - Khayru an-nasi anfa'uhum lin-nas) (Reported in Al-Mu'jam al-Awsat by Tabarani) - The best of you are the most beneficial to the dependents of God. The dependents of God, which is a worthy air of use for children. The best and most beloved of you to Allah are those who are most beneficial to the dependents of Allah. Service. We need to call our community to service.

We don't need President Obama to call us to service. Our God has called us to service. Our God has called us to service. We don't need the President of the United States to call this community to service because Allah and His Messenger have called us to service. (يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ - Ya ayyuha allatheena amanoo istajeeboo lillahi wa lir-rasooli idha da'akum lima yuhyeekum) (Quran 8:24) - Answer the call of God and His Messenger when they call you to bring you back to life through service. Life through service.

The Prophet's First Khutbah in Medina

The first khutbah that the Prophet Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam gave in Medina. When he arrived to Medina, the very first khutbah that he gave (يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ أَفْشُوا السَّلَامَ وَأَطْعِمُوا الطَّعَامَ وَصَلُّوا بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّاسُ نِيَامٌ تَدْخُلُوا الْجَنَّةَ بِسَلَامٍ - Ya ayyuha an-nasu afshus-salama wa at'imut-ta'ama wa salloo bil-layli wan-nasu niyamun tadkhulul-jannata bi-salam) (Sunan Ibn Majah 1334, Sunan al-Tirmidhi 2485) - O humanity, O people, spread peace, feed people, give some portion of your night to God and you will enter paradise without any difficulties. Two-thirds of that message is service to others, is spreading peace.

The Parable of Three Men: A Lesson in Gratitude

If you look at the famous hadith in Sahih Muslim, in which the three people, there was the abras, the aqra', and the a'ma. There was a man who had vitiligo, a skin disease. There was a man who was bald. He lost his hair through an illness. And there was a blind man. And Allah sent an angel to test them. And this is a proof that somebody could come to you and he's an angel. He sent an angel to test these people.

The first one that he went to was the man with vitiligo. And he said, what is the most beloved thing to you? He said, to have good skin. And then he said, then let it be that. And he made a prayer, wiped over him, and his skin came back. But the reason that he wanted good skin is because he said, (النَّاسُ يَقْذَرُونِي - An-nasu yaqzharooni) - People don't like my skin. They look at me and they don't like me. So he was worried about what people think. That's why he wanted good skin.

Then he asked him, what wealth do you like? He said, camels. So he gave him camels. And then he went. And he came to the next man who lost his hair. And he said, what is the most beloved thing to you? And he said, that I have nice hair. So that people don't look askance at me. So he said, may you have good hair. His hair came back. He said, what type of animal do you like? He said, I love cows. He said, may you have cows. He gave him cows.

The True Muslim Who Served for Allah Alone

He ends his narrative when he was in the village of Sibu in Nubia. He had a young boy with him that was serving him. And he got so sick that when the caravan left, they left this boy behind to die. When he found this out, they got to the village of Sibu, he found this out and he said, where was the boy? And they said, oh, he was left. And he said, why? And he said, because he was too sick to travel with us. And George English was so distressed by this. He said, no, you have to go back and get this boy. And they said, there's no point. There's no hope for him.

He said, if this was a Christian, we would have 40 men go back and get this boy. And then he convinced the sheikh of the village. And he spoke Arabic. He convinced the sheikh to send somebody. He traveled on to Aswan. When he got to Aswan, he writes, and this is how he ends his narrative. And you can read this online. He ends his narrative. And this was a bestseller in the United States of America.

He ends his narrative by saying, three days after I arrived in Aswan, I met a Nubian traveler who had found the boy. He told me he found him. He had fallen into a ravine and he was nearly dead. And he helped him. He gave him food. He took him on his camel. He brought him to the village. And the boy died and he buried him. And I said to this man, I promised a reward for anyone who would help that boy. And I want to give you that reward. And he said, quote, to my astonishment, he said, I don't want your reward because I didn't do it for you. I did it for one who can give me a much greater reward than you could ever give me. I did it for my God.

And this George English ends his narrative by saying, I said to this man, I am so pleased to meet a true Muslim who is following the precepts of the Quran that demands people act charitably and with benevolence to people in distress. This is how he ends his book. That I am happy to meet a true Muslim who acts according to the precepts of the Quran.

The People of Constancy

This is the ulu baqiya, the people of constancy who have become too far between and too few in the Muslim ummah today. And this is what we as Muslims in the United States of America have to become. The people of

ulu baqiya, the people that are constant in the virtues and the uprightness of our tradition. As well as the best of America because that's what George English represents. He represents the best of this country. And that Nubian man that he met, who we don't know his name, he said to that man, in ending his narrative, he said, I am assured that this deed of yours will fill a great space on the blank page of our good deeds on the day of judgment. And that's how he ends his book.

Filling Our Blank Pages with Good Deeds

Our page is too blank and it's time to fill that page up with great deeds. Great deeds. Wallahi, thumma wallahi, I swear to God, and God is my witness, the power in our community for regeneration in this country is awesome. It's immense. There's so much power in this room. There's so much power in our young people. Look at these young people. I was just in a room filled with these young people. Beautiful, innocent, bright faces. And we have to help them to make this place a better place because we are demanding of this country to call itself to a higher standard. To a higher standard.

This country has fallen by the wayside. This country has gone far too off course. And because the shift of this country is so important to the rest of the world, if we go off course, we take far too many people with us. It's time for the Muslims in America to live the truth of their religion and to call people in this country to the highest ideals. The ideals of George English and that Nubian man of acting with charity and benevolence to those in stress.

The Planet in Distress

We're on a planet that is in distress. We've got over 3 billion people living in subhuman conditions on this planet. More than half of this planet is living in subhuman conditions. Those of us who are enjoying the fruits of life on earth have to begin to share those fruits. When Aisha radiallahu anha had a grape and a beggar came and asked for something, she split the grape and she gave half the grape to that man. And one of the sahaba that were with her said, Is there any benefit in half a grape? And she said, How many atoms is in that grape? How many atoms is in that grape?

If you do an atom's weight of good, you will see that on the day of judgment.

We have a world that is so dysfunctional, that is so distraught, that is so troubled, that even the smallest acts of charity fill up big pages on the blank page of our good deeds on the day of judgment. Go out.

A New Era of Hope

I'm overjoyed. This year when I came, I thought a cloud was lifted from the Muslim community. Or you could also say, I feel like we got out from under a thorny bush that we were just burdened with. All of us were wondering if we'd end up, if we'd end up in orange suits with earmuffs on our things and things on our eyes

somewhere, wondering where we were, what planet we were on. Like Mr. K in the castle, who's never told the crime that he committed. But some barakah came down. Really. Some barakah came down. Some hasana. Some hasana. You know some hasana. Obama, Obama. He's made some mistakes already. That's okay. Obama, Obama.

The Meaning of Obama

I'll finish this. Obama, two things. Obama is in the Arabic dictionary. It's in Taj al-Arus, Imam Zabidi's extension of the Qamus. It's under the Madda Alif Ba Mim. He says, and I'm quoting, Obama 'ala wazni Usama. Obama on the paradigm of Usama. Because Usama is a common name, so the Arabs put something so you know how it's pronounced. Obama, which is pronounced like Usama, is Obama Ibn Ghatafan. He's Obama, the son of Ghatafan, one of the great tribal chieftains of Arabia. And then he says, And his nickname was this black guy. You know, God has, there's humor in the world. I'm telling you. There's more connections than people are aware of.

The Responsibility to Call America to Higher Standards

But Obama gave a speech in Cairo where he unclenched the fist of America and extended a hand of friendship. But, and buts are important little prepositions there. But, but, as long as this country is dropping bombs on civilians in Afghanistan, it's going to be hard for Muslims to open up their hands. As long as this country is causing havoc in Iraq, it's going to be hard for Muslims to feel comfortable about opening the hand.

When there was an incident in one of the Gulf states of torture recently and we had our Secretary of State decry the outrageous practice of torture, that sounded very hollow to many people around the world coming from the United States of America after Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo, after waterboarding. This country needs to be called to a higher standard. We're the community that can do it with other communities, but we have to be living at the highest standard of moral observance. Because if we don't live that moral truth, we can't call others to that moral truth.

Much of the Muslim world is morally bankrupt. We sound very hollow when we're calling America to a higher standard when we're not living up to that standard. But the Muslims in this country, we can achieve that. We have the wealth, we have the intelligence, we have the communities.

Rise Above Division and Work Together

Let's rise above sectarianism, get beyond the Sufi Salafi debates, get beyond the Sunni Shia debates. They're not going to be resolved in our lifetime. Allah says, just wait, I'm going to make it all clear on the Day of Judgment when you get the director's cut, you get to watch the whole thing, you get the director's commentary, it's all going to be made clear. Those are the special features of the Day of Judgment. It's all made clear. Let's just wait. May the best da'wah win, but let's all work together for virtue. Virtue.

Vie with each other in virtue.

Closing

والسلام عليكم ورحمة الله وبركاته "Wa as-salamu 'alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh"