Saturday 13 Jun 2015 - 15:10 Makkah mean time-26-8-1436
Makkah (IINA) - Imams in mosques across the Kingdom, including the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet’s Mosque Madinah, used Friday's sermons to welcome the holy month of Ramadan with an immense sense of piety and requested their respective congregations to strictly follow the teachings of the Holy Qur'an during the fasting month.
Ramadan is expected to begin Thursday (June 18), depending on the visibility of the crescent. Last week, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Naif, deputy premier and minister of interior, approved the emergency plan of General Directorate of Civil Defense for Ramadan in Makkah and Madinah, which aims to strengthen preventive measures related to the works of civil defense and maintain the safety of Umrah performers throughout the holy month.
Imams of the Grand Mosque in Makkah and the Prophet's Mosque in Madinah have exhorted Muslims to get ready to avail of the manifold bounties of Almighty Allah during the coming month of Ramadan. Sheikh Dr. Saleh Bin Abdullah Bin Humaid, Imam and Khateeb of the Grand Mosque, said the wise person is the one who does self-introspection and prepares for the life after death. In his Friday sermon, Sheikh Bin Humaid said self-introspection is the approach of sincere and righteous worshipers. He said the holy month of Ramadan is a treasure for the God-fearing. He said obeying Allah Almighty is an honor. Bin Humaid said Allah has compensated the short life with great rewards for good deeds during the holy month. During Ramadan there is a night that is more rewarding than praying a thousand months. Any one unable to avail of the bounties of this night is a loser, he said.
Sheikh Bin Humaid said that during this blessed month the gates of heaven are opened, the gates of the hell-fire are closed and the satans are chained. He said the degree of sincerity in welcoming this month is to combat the Satan and one's own whims and desires. A person must work hard in seeking reward from Allah, he said.
Among the preparations for Ramadan is sincere repentance, giving up sins and having a strong determination not to commit the sins again. One should seek to do good, benefit from the seasons for good deeds and increase acts of worship including fasting, praying, giving alms, performing late night prayers, reciting the Holy Qur’an, supplicating and contacting and visiting relatives. The Muslim must purify his heart by keeping away from anger, hatred, envy, arrogance and backbiting. Sheikh Bin Humaid regretted the unfortunate and seditious events in some regions and blamed deviant youth for them. He said these youths are playing into the hands of foreign elements and tampering with the security and stability.
Sheikh Bin Humaid asked: What kind of jihad or victory is there in blowing oneself up in the mosque where people are performing Friday prayer? How can this happen when our religion has forbidden the killing of monks in their churches? How can worshipers be killed in mosques while performing Friday prayer? The Prophet (peace be upon him) said that whoever has entered the mosque is safe. If killing worshipers in the mosque has become permissible, what is left? Bin Humaid said the Kingdom has fought terrorism represented by Al-Qaeda with all its capability.
Dr. Abdulbari Awwadh Al-Thubaiti, Imam and Khatib of the Prophet’s Mosque, elaborated on the noble characteristics of the believers who follow the path of the pious ancestors based on the way shown in Allah’s Book and the Prophet’s Sunnah. Al-Thubaiti said if the believer is afflicted with something good he thanks Allah and if he is afflicted with some harmful matter, he is patient and this is good for him. The Muslim earns a good characteristic by learning the Qur’an and teaching it as well as by seeking knowledge on the Shariah. He stressed on the necessity to seek knowledge and its role in the advancement of the Ummah.
In his sermon at a mosque in Malaz in Riyadh, an Imam described Ramadan as the month of charity and requested Muslims to help alleviate poverty from society. “Helping the less fortunate is a must during the holy month,” he stressed. He urged the members of the congregation to cultivate the habit of fasting among their children during the holy month. He added that such habits will go a long way in the children's life since they are the future generation of the Kingdom. An imam in another mosque said that Islam allows the sick to abstain from fasting but he stressed that they have to feed the poor in compensation for their loss of fasting days.
Pregnant and feeding mothers can refrain from fasting but they have to cover up the lost days during their healthy period. "The month is an ideal opportunity for people to relinquish their bad habits and cultivate healthy behavioral patterns", the imam said. Quoting a well-known Islamic saying, an imam at a mosque in Nasseriyah said: "A day of fasting during this holy month will keep a Muslim away from hell for 70 years." "You must mentally prepare yourselves to perform meritorious work during the holy month of Ramadan which comes once a year," the imam said.
HA/IINA
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