The Next Generation Pays The Price
By Nouman Ali Khan | 2026-01-08T17:41:08.641233+00:00 | Topic: Muslim Identity
The Next Generation Pays The Price
Khutbah by Nouman Ali Khan
Opening Du'a
Introduction: Our Responsibility as Parents and Community
The focus of the next couple of khutbahs will be dedicated to ourselves and our children. This begins with addressing the parents' generation, the older generation, and examining what Allah tells us about our responsibility - not just as individual parents, but as a people altogether.
The Universal Nature of Islam
The Common Root of All Divine Religions
Allah Azza wa Jalla has given the same religion since Adam (peace be upon him) all the way to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). As Allah states:
"Indeed, the religion in the sight of Allah is Islam."
When Allah described the Israelites, the people before us, they declared:
"We are Muslim only before Allah."
Later in the Qur'an, we also said:
"We are Muslim before Allah."
The religion that they had is the same in source as ours. Allah describes our common lineage from Ibrahim:
"And that which was given to Ibrahim and Ishmael and Isaac and Jacob and the Descendants and that which was given to Moses and Jesus and the prophets from their Lord."
Understanding the Differences Within Unity
While there are differences in the laws given to different prophets - the Jewish law given to Musa (peace be upon him) differs from the shariah given to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) - the foundation remains the same.
Think of it as one tree with the same roots and bark, but different branches. Each branch goes back to the same roots. The tree doesn't die if one branch is cut off, but it dies when the roots are attacked.
The Common Roots of Faith
The Two Fundamental Principles
The common root that Allah has always given boils down to two things:
- Being honest, grateful, and sincere to Allah - admitting mistakes before Allah, being humble before Allah
- Being good to humanity - not cheating in business, not mistreating children or parents, taking care of neighbors, doing right by people
These two principles have always been part of the root of this religion across all prophets.
The Problem of Religious Factionalism (Tafarruq)
When Details Become Sources of Division
Our religion contains many detailed practices. For example, in prayer there are dozens of sunan and wajibat that the fuqaha mention. There are various du'as that can be recited, different positions for hands, different practices in ruku and sujud.
The problem arises when people become so committed to their understanding that they become critical of others' practices, even defining others as practically non-Muslim based on minor differences.
This is called (تَفَرُّق - tafaruq) - when you decide that you are one group and somebody else is a different group, no longer seeing yourselves as united Muslims.
Allah's Warning Against Division
Allah commands us in the Qur'an:
"He has ordained for you of religion what He enjoined upon Nuh and that which We have revealed to you, and what We enjoined upon Ibrahim and Musa and Isa - to establish the religion and not be divided therein."
Allah emphasizes that the same message was given to all these prophets despite their different times and laws, and commands us not to create factions within the religion.
The Qur'an also states:
"And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided."
The Personal Journey: From Unity to Division
The Natural Progression of Learning
When someone begins learning about Islam, they develop love for any Muslim and admiration for those they see in the masjid. There's a natural humility toward fellow believers.
However, as one learns more, depending on who they learn from, they may start learning about what makes "this understanding the right understanding" and "everybody else is wrong."
Unfortunately, much of religious discourse becomes focused on how wrong other groups are, with an obsession on refuting others rather than building unity.
The Disease of Knowledge Misused
Allah describes what happened to previous nations:
"And they did not become divided until after knowledge had come to them."
The Israelites before us didn't fall into factions until after knowledge came to them. They used knowledge to justify their contentions.
Allah describes this as:
"Out of envy between themselves."
This isn't about serving Allah's deen, but about feeling superior to others - it becomes a power struggle rather than sincere service to Allah.
The Proper Etiquette of Disagreement
Private Correction vs. Public Humiliation
When you have a disagreement with someone in our religion, the fundamental teaching is to approach them privately, not publicly humiliate them. You speak to them out of concern, as they are your brother or sister in faith.
People of the past would make du'a for the person they disagreed with before stating their disagreement, then make genuine du'a after the disagreement, without publishing it online.
Public "du'a" like "May Allah guide you" in front of others is actually insulting - it tells everyone that person is beyond help except for divine intervention.
The Danger of Sweeping Judgments
Tafarruq allows people to make sweeping judgments about entire groups with one statement: "I know what they're about." This ignores that individuals within groups are different and often don't even identify with the labels others assign to them.
The Devastating Consequence: The Next Generation's Doubt
Allah's Warning About Future Generations
Allah warns of a terrifying consequence of religious factionalism:
"And indeed, those who were given the Scripture after them are in doubt about it, disturbing [doubt]."
When the first generation becomes obsessed with disagreements and arguments, the next generation observes their elders constantly fighting, declaring each other bound for jahannam. They become confused about who is right and begin to think:
"This religion thing is way too confusing. Even the people who learn it can't agree. So who am I? I don't think this Islam thing is for me."
The Multiplication of Doubt
The word (مُرِيب - mureeb) indicates doubt that spreads to others. Not only does the next generation become confused, but they start sharing their doubts - posting about skepticism, explaining why they don't pray or follow Islam anymore.
This creates a multiplying problem where doubt spreads throughout the community.
The Solution: Returning to Fundamentals
Public vs. Private Religious Discourse
The solution is understanding that:
- Public discourse should focus on the roots and values that Allah teaches in His book
- Private conversations are for discussing specific details and differences of opinion
It's acceptable to believe in different positions after study, but once you reach your conclusion, your job is not to grab a microphone and convince everyone else that your conclusion is the only right one.
A Historical Example: The Wisdom of Early Scholars
During the time of Khalifa Harun al-Rashid, an incident occurred during Hajj. The Khalifa had gotten cupping done (which causes bleeding) right before leading prayer at the Ka'bah.
According to his teacher Qadi Abu Yusuf (Hanafi school), bleeding breaks wudu. According to Imam Malik (Maliki school), bleeding does not break wudu.
Faced with the choice of either missing the prayer time or following a different opinion, Harun al-Rashid asked Imam Malik about his wudu status. Imam Malik confirmed it was valid, and he led the prayer.
When the Hanafi students questioned this, Qadi Abu Yusuf said that anyone who doubts that prayer is from the khawarij (those who left Islam).
The Lesson of Humility in Differences
This demonstrates how early scholars understood differences:
- "This is the most convincing argument to me, but Allah knows best"
- Recognition that others may have equally valid reasoning
- Humility in not claiming absolute truth
- Giving benefit of the doubt to fellow Muslims
Compare this to how easily we "kick someone out of Islam" today over minor differences in prayer positions or other practices.
The Call to Unity
Our Responsibility to the Next Generation
If we continue with divisive discourse and make it public constantly, the price will not be paid by us in this world. The price will be paid by the next generation, who will fall into doubt about the religion altogether. This is a guarantee from Allah in the Qur'an.
The Proper Approach to Differences
Allah commands:
"I believe in what Allah has sent down of the Book, and I have been commanded to do justice between you. For us are our deeds, and for you are your deeds. There is no argument between us and you. Allah will bring us together, and to Him is the destination."
Personal Relationships Despite Differences
Maintaining Respect and Civil Discourse
We can have disagreements while maintaining mutual respect. Private conversations with other scholars can include frank discussions: "I respect your work, but this makes no sense to me - please explain it." Afterward, we can still eat together and visit each other's homes.
If we can have civil conversations with Christians, Jews, and atheists, why can't we have civil conversation with Muslims? The ummah has lost its ability to show mutual respect only because of disagreements.
The Distinction Between Ikhtilaf and Tafarruq
- Ikhtilaf (difference of opinion) is acceptable and natural
- Tafarruq (creating hostile factions) is destructive and forbidden
Conclusion: Teaching Our Children Unity
The way we teach our children will be different from how others teach their children. But if they grow up thinking that those who pray differently are kafir, misguided, or deviant, we have done a disservice to our children. This attitude nullifies and invalidates their prayers if they become people of tafarruq.
May Allah make us a people that cause unity between hearts, not tafarruq. May Allah make us committed to the truth and committed to our values, while maintaining the humility to disagree respectfully and privately.