IN THE NAME OF ALLAH MOST GRACIOUS MOST MERCIFUL
AL – NOOR MASJID, ICICE, WUSE II, ABUJA
Jumu’ah Khutbah Translation 5th Safar, 1444AH, Equivalent to 2nd September 2022
COOPERATION AMONG MUSLIMS
All praise is due to Allah, we seek His help and forgiveness, we seek refuge with Him from the evils of ourselves and the evils of our deeds. Whoever Allah guides cannot be misguided by anyone and whoever Allah sets astray cannot be guided by anyone. I bear witness that none deserves the right to be worshiped except Allah alone Who Has no partner and I bear witness that our master Muhammad is His servant and messenger.
Indeed, Allah Has created human beings to be weak, they always need the help of others to continue living and this is obvious in the worldly issues. A man needs someone to plant for him, someone to harvest for him, someone to manufacture machines for him, someone to market his commodity and someone to buy, in a nutshell, the lives of people cannot stand without them helping one another.
Sheikhul Islam Ibnu Taimiyya said:
“The lives of sons of Adam and their livelihood in this Dunya is not complete unless they help one another in words… and in deeds as well”.
In the religious aspects, it is also the same because no prophet among the prophets has executed his mission except that he needed helpers that aided him to actualize monotheism and extinguish Shirk (associating others with Allah in worship). The impact of that is apparent during expeditions and wars. It is also the same when it comes to teaching and learning, taking care of the destitute and standing by widows and orphans. Allah says: “˹Imagine˺ how many devotees fought along with their prophets and never faltered despite whatever ˹losses˺ they suffered in the cause of Allah, nor did they weaken or give in! Allah loves those who persevere.” [03:146]
In Sahih Muslim, Ibn Mas’ud reported Allah’s messenger as saying, “There was no prophet whom Allah chose among his people before me who did not have from among his people apostles and companions who held to his sunnah and followed what he commanded…”
Verily, Muslims need one another in their religious and worldly lives, that’s why cooperation among Muslims is a great issue, Allah has made it compulsory because he made it to be a foundation of people’s religiosity and worldly life. Allah has mentioned in the Quran that if Muslims actualize this cooperation, they become like a solid cemented structure, and in a prophetic narration like a single body. All of this confirms that cooperation between Muslims, solidarity and cohesion is compulsory, it includes many aspects of the life of Muslims that are combined by the two words “righteousness” and “piety”. Allah says: “And cooperate in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression. And fear Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in penalty.” [05:02]
Allah also says in a different verse: “Righteousness is not in turning your faces towards the east or the west. Rather, the righteous are those who believe in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Books, and the prophets; who give charity out of their cherished wealth to relatives, orphans, the poor, needy travelers, beggars, and for freeing captives; who establish prayer, pay Zakah, and keep the pledges they make; and who are patient in times of suffering, adversity, and in ˹the heat of˺ battle. It is they who are true ˹in faith˺, and it is they who are mindful ˹of Allah˺.” [02:177]
It is because of the above reasons that the messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) when he migrated to Madina, the second task he partook in after the building of his mosque was to establish brotherhood among Muhajiroon and Ansar by pairing them up. He did that because the Muhajiroon when they migrated to Madina didn’t have any wealth or properties in their custody, they left all they had in Makkah, so the messenger (peace be upon him) intended to solve this material crises that swept the Muhajiroon by so doing. The extent of this brotherhood, as the scholars of Tafseer said, has reached the level where the paired brothers could inherit each other until a verse of the Quran came afterwards to substitute that ruling.
Also, they used to share their whole wealth in halves to give their brothers equal shares, while some of them would offer their brothers in faith to choose among their wives whom they want so that they divorce them for their brothers in faith to marry them. Allah has narrated this about the Ansar (people of Madina who welcomed the messenger and his companions) while praising them saying: “As for those who had settled in the city and ˹embraced˺ the faith before ˹the arrival of˺ the emigrants, they love whoever immigrates to them, never having a desire in their hearts for whatever ˹of the gains˺ is given to the emigrants. They give ˹the emigrants˺ preference over themselves even though they may be in need.
And whoever is saved from the selfishness of their own souls, it is they who are ˹truly˺ successful.” [59:09]
Imam Muhammad Bin Ahmed Bin Jazi Algharnati listed the rights of brotherhood (i.e. the rights of brothers towards one another) in his book “Alqawaneen Alfiqhiyya”:
“The rights of a Muslim over a Muslim are ten: To say Salam to him when he meets him, to visit him when he is ill, to answer him when he calls, to respond to him when he sneezes, to attend his Janaza when he dies, to help him fulfill his oath, to advise him when he seeks advice, to love for him of goodness what you love for yourself, to stop evil towards him as much as you can; because a true Muslim is the one who other Muslims are safe from his hand and tongue, and he (a brother) showers him with his goodness as much as he can in his religion and the worldly materials, and if he is not able to do anything, then a kind word”.
Sheikh Abdulaziz Bin Baaz (May Allah have mercy upon him) said: “It is well-known that the affairs of the servants are not completed among themselves, their interests are not organized, their words are not united, and their enemy does not fear them except with Islamic solidarity, the reality of which is cooperation in righteousness and piety, solidarity, sympathy, advising, admonishing the truth and being patient with it. There is no doubt that this is among the most important Islamic mandatory acts. The Qur’anic verses and hadiths of the Prophet stated that Islamic solidarity among Muslims – individuals and groups, governments and peoples – is one of the most important tasks, and among the indispensable duties for the betterment of all, and among drivers of establishment of their religion, solving their problems, uniting their ranks, and uniting their word against their common enemy. There are many verses and hadiths on this subject…
(Solidarity among Muslims) includes enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong, calling to Allah Almighty (Da’wa), guiding people to the causes of happiness and salvation, which includes mending the affairs of the world and the hereafter. This also includes educating the ignorant, bringing relief to the distressed, helping the oppressed, repelling the oppressor from his oppression, establishing justice, maintaining security, engaging corrupters and saboteurs, protecting the roads for Muslims inside and outside, providing land, sea and air transportation and telecommunications between them to achieve common interests of religion and worldly matters, and facilitating cooperation among Muslims in everything that protects the truth, establishes justice, and spreads security and peace everywhere.”
Sheikh Bin Baaz also added: “Among what is narrated to us of the Hadith of the messenger (peace be upon him) on Islamic solidarity, which is all about cooperation upon righteousness and piety, is the saying of the messenger (peace be upon him): “Religion is sincerity (An-Nasihah).” They said: “To whom, O Messenger of Allah?” he said: “To Allah, to His Book, to His Messenger, to the imams of the Muslims and to their common folk.”
He also said: “A faithful believer to a faithful believer is like the bricks of a wall, enforcing each other.” While (saying that) the Prophet (peace be upon him) clasped his hands, by interlacing his fingers.” And he said: “The believers in their mutual kindness, compassion and sympathy are just like one body. When one of the limbs suffers, the whole body responds to it with wakefulness and fever”.
These hadiths and what came in their meaning indicate a clear indication of the necessity of solidarity among Muslims, compassion and sympathy and cooperation upon every good. In likening them to a single building and a single body, is an indication that it is with their solidarity, cooperation and mercy that their words become united, their ranks are organized, and they are safe from the evil of their enemy. Allah says: “Let there be a group among you who call ˹others˺ to goodness, encourage what is good, and forbid what is evil—it is they who will be successful.” [03:104]
And the leader of all in this good call and our example in this valuable path is our Prophet, our master and our greatest leader, he is our Prophet Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. He is the first to call this nation to monotheism, to hold on to Allah’s rope (path), to unite its word on the truth, to stand united in the face of its common enemy, and to achieve its interests and just causes working based on the command of Allah to him where he says: “Invite ˹all˺ to the Way of your Lord with wisdom and kind advice, and only debate with them in the best manner.” [16:125] Allah also says: “Say, ˹O Prophet, ˺ “This is my way. I invite to Allah with insight—I and those who follow me. Glory be to Allah, and I am not one of the polytheists.” [12:108]
His honorable companions, and their followers in goodness, may Allah be pleased with them followed his path in this, so they succeeded in that with great success, and Allah fulfilled for them what he promised them of honor, dignity and victory…” “Fatawa Ash Sheikh Bin Baaz”.
Brothers and sisters in faith, to alleviate the pressing issues bedeviling us in the Muslim Ummah of insecurity, backwardness, idleness, unemployment, illiteracy, and many more, we have to uphold these values made compulsory by our creator and which were applied by our prophet and his companions. We should carry our fellow Muslim brothers and sisters along; we should prioritize our common interests as an Ummah over our personal interests. We should mentor our fellow Muslims especially younger ones, we should empower them, we should help them become skillful and productive, we should sponsor their education as much as we can, and above all, we shouldn’t be self-centered.
Finally, from all of this, the obligation of cooperation between Muslims in righteousness and piety can be deduced, and Muslims should follow the means that enable them to achieve these aspects of cooperation, such as establishing associations, organizations, advocacy centers, Qur’anic circles, and other things, which contribute to the concentration of efforts, and it is binding on Muslims to extend a helping hand to them, and give of their time and money what contributes to building edifices of cooperation on righteousness and piety, and the true Muslim does not fail to find something to offer to his brothers, and help them in what they need for their religion and their worldly life.
May Allah guides us aright…
Leave a reply