Friday speeches 28dhû al-qi‘da 1426h/30 December 2005AD

The two occasions of Christ's birth and the beginning of the New Year 2006, merit a pause to study the lessons they provide.

As for the occasion of Christmas , we go back in the beginning to the birth of lady Mary (a.s.). Her birth was so spiritual that Allah, the most Exalted, says that her mother had dedicated the child whom she was about to deliver to the service of Allah, the most Exalted: Behold! a woman of 'Imran said: "O my Lord! I do dedicate unto Thee what is in my womb for Thy special service: So accept this of me: For Thou hears and knows all things."

But she was surprised that it was a girl, and girls were not allowed at that time to serve in the House of Allah : When she was delivered, she said: "O my Lord! Behold! I am delivered of a female child!"- and Allah knew best what she brought forth- "And no wise is the male like the female. I have named her Mary, and I commend her and her offspring to Thy protection from the Evil One, the Rejected," calling on Allah to let the girl be pious, and keep her away from Satan.
This is what we have to think about when we are dealing with the issue of our children. We should not be concerned with the gains we might get from them, or with their own worldly gains, but rather with piety, which means that we have to make all effort in raising them to ensure that they are pious , truthful , just and loving the good . Allah, the most Exalted, responded to her supplication :Right graciously did her Lord accept her: He made her grow in purity… To the care of Zakariya was she assigned. Allah made one of His Prophets care for her. And we can imagine how spiritual, pious and moral one will be when raised by a prophet.
So, Mary was raised under the sponsorship of Prophet Zakariya. And she became a young women that worships God in her sanctuary. Each time Zakariya came to her, he found that she had freshly cooked food that he did not bring for her: Every time that he entered (Her) chamber to see her, He found her supplied with sustenance. He said: "O Mary! Whence (comes) this to you?" She said: "From Allah: for Allah Provides sustenance to whom He pleases without measure."
. When he asked her about from where she had this, she said it is from Allah.
Things continued like this, in this spiritual climate until one day she had some news that shocked her. Behold! the angels said: "O Mary! Allah has chosen thee and purified thee- chosen thee above the women of all nations:
She will have a baby that will be born through Allah's Word.
For He needs only to say "be and it is" : Behold! the angels said: "O Mary! Allah gives thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honor in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to Allah;
for he will convey the Message of Allah, and he will be followed by the people who will believe in him.
He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity. And he shall be (of the company) of the righteous
Mary was so surprised because she was a pure and weak young woman who did not have any relations with men whether legally or not, and she knew that having a baby needs such a relation. She said: My Lord! Where from shall there be a son (born) to me, and man has not touched me?. He said: Even so, Allah creates what He pleases; when He has decreed a matter, He only says to it, Be, and it is

Allah's ability is not limited to such a way of creating humans. He created Adam from clay, with no father or mother, and He wanted to show that He can create a child without a father. If he wants something He says be and it is.
And Allah will teach him the Book and Wisdom, the Law and the Gospel. He was sent in the beginning to the Children of Israel but through them to all mankind, since he is one of the messengers endowed with constancy .
But since there were many tyrants and that he had to convince them that he was a Messenger from Allah, he had to come up with a sign from God: And (appoint him) a messenger to the Children of Israel, (with this message): "'I have come to you, with a Sign from your Lord, in that I make for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by Allah's leave: And I heal those born blind, and the lepers, and I quicken the dead, by Allah's leave; and I declare to you what ye eat, and what ye store in your houses. Surely therein is a Sign for you if ye did believe;

I have come to you), to attest the Law which was before me. And to make lawful to you part of what was (Before) forbidden to you; I have come to you with a Sign from your Lord. So fear Allah, and obey me.

I do not cancel the Book that was sent before me. I only came to complement it. Prophet Muhammad too has said "I came to complete the sublime morals”. Christ also came to make lawful some of what was prohibited .
He also came with a sign from God so that you may not say that Christ is the son of Allah, the most Exalted, as did some of those who came after him.
But when they did not respond to his call, in spite of all the signs he brought them: When Jesus found unbelief on their part He said: "Who will be My helpers to (the work of) Allah?" Said the disciples: "We are Allah's helpers: We believe in Allah, and do thou bear witness that we are Muslims.
way) of Allah: We believe in Allah and bear witness that we are submitting ones.
"Our Lord! we believe in what Thou hast revealed, and we follow the Messenger; then write us down among those who bear witness."

And (the unbelievers) plotted and planned, and Allah too planned, and the best of planners is Allah. .

We have to know how Mary gave birth to Jesus, and the sufferings she had to endure in this difficult experiment.
Relate in the Book (the story of) Mary, when she withdrew from her family to a place in the East.

She placed a screen (to screen herself) from them; then We sent her Our angel, (Thought to be Jibrail)and he appeared before her as a man in all respects.
Mary was in seclusion worshiping God, when a young handsome man entered. It is obvious that a pious woman in such a situation would feel afraid and ask him not to harm her : She said: "I seek refuge from thee to (Allah) Most Gracious: (come not near) if thou dost fear Allah."
He said: "Nay, I am only a messenger from thy Lord, (to announce) to thee the gift of a holy son. to complete the miracle you were promised with by the angels, and she said : "How shall I have a son, seeing that no man has touched me, and I am not unchaste?"

He said: "So (it will be): Thy Lord says, 'that is easy for Me: and (We wish) to appoint him as a Sign unto men and a Mercy from Us':It is a matter (so) decreed."

So she conceived him, and she retired with him to a remote place.
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And the pains of childbirth drove her to the trunk of a palm-tree: There is nothing hard if Allah wants something to be done. He is a sign of God in that he was born in a different way then that others are created. Then when Mary felt how hard the situation was, she started to think about how to face the people and what to tell them.
She wished that she were dead, and totally forgotten But (a voice) cried to her from beneath the (palm-tree): some say the angel and others say it was Jesus himself "Grieve not! for thy Lord hath provided a rivulet beneath thee;
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"And shake towards thyself the trunk of the palm-tree: It will let fall fresh ripe dates upon thee.
So eat and drink and cool (thine) eye. And if thou dost see any man, say, 'I have vowed a fast to (Allah) Most Gracious, and this day will I enter into not talk with any human being'"
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At length she brought the (babe) to her people, carrying him (in her arms). They said: "O Mary! truly an amazing thing hast thou brought!

"O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!"

But she pointed to the babe. They said: "How can we talk to one who is a child in the cradle?" Are you making fun of us

At this point Allah, the most Exalted, made Jesus talk .He said: "I am indeed a servant of Allah: He hath given me revelation and made me a prophet;

And He hath made me blessed wheresoever I be, and hath enjoined on me Prayer and Charity as long as I live;

: "(He) hath made me kind to my mother, and not overbearing or miserable;

: "So peace is on me the day I was born, the day that I die, and the day that I shall be raised up to life (again)"!

Such (was) Jesus the son of Mary: (it is) a statement of truth, about which they (vainly) dispute.
It is not befitting to (the majesty of) Allah that He should beget a son. Glory be to Him! when He determines a matter, He only says to it, "Be", and it is.

Verily Allah is my Lord and your Lord: Him therefore serve ye: this is a Way that is straight.

At this point, I would like to point out to many of our brothers who like to imitate the Christians in lighting a Christmas tree. We are not against celebrating Christians, for Jesus is a Prophet of God, but the Christmas tree came from the West. if you want to put a tree let it be a palm tree, as the Quran says that Mary sat near a palm tree and ate from its dates.
But it seems the Christ was not born in December, because it is not the season dates ripe, although some say that it was another miracle.
If Muslims wish to celebrate Christmas, they should read the Sura of Mary. We have to teach our daughters and women who Mary was: The pure, chase and honorable worshipper who relied on Allah alone. If we want to celebrate the occasion we should do so in an Islamic fashion and not use it as an excuse for dissoluteness.
As for the New Year, it represents an occasion to hold ourselves accountable.
We should review how we acted last year, and how we should act in the New Year… If we were mistaken, we should ask God for forgiveness, and if we had good deeds we should ask Allah to increase them. We should study our points of strength and weakness, to know how to act in the future. And we know that Imam Zein al-Abidien taught us what to ask God at the beginning of each day, month and year:
O God,
bless Muhammad and his Household and make this the most fortunate day we have known, the most excellent companion we have accompanied, and the best time in which we have lingered!

Place us among the most satisfied of all Thy creatures whom night and day have passed by, the most thankful of them for the favors Thou hast done, the firmest of them in the laws Thou hast set down in the Shari'a, and the most unyielding of them toward the prohibited acts against which Thou hast cautioned!

Let our coming year be a year that we draw nearer to God and use all our potentials in increasing the good and in establishing justice.

The Middle East region is facing political and security quakes as a result of the joint American and security plan that turned the entire region into a big fire.
All places in the region were burnt by the flames of this fire to serve the Zionist strategy that allows Israel to gradually eradicate the Palestinians. They are killing the Mjuahideen who seek the freedom of their country, as well as invading the towns and villages, detaining the youth and brutally dislocating the Palestinian people.
In this respect, the enemy decided to create a security zone in Gaza, claiming that he wants to protect his soldiers from the Palestinian rockets, although everybody knows that the Palestinians launch their rockets as a reaction to the Zionist aggressions, which the American and Europeans, have not condemned despite the brutal atrocities that terrorize this wounded and struggling people.
We believe that the Mujahideen in occupied Palestine will find a way to thwart this plan of aggression. A few days age two Mujahdeen performed a martyr operation, and it will be followed by other operations that reassert the determination of these great people to continue their struggle for liberation, to prove that they do not back down, retreat of feel afraid.
We ask the UN: Why were there not resolutions issued to condemn Israel's terrorism, or to implement the Palestinian rights which the Western world is waging a war against, disregarding the UN resolutions pertaining to independence and freedom?
In addition, the Western world is pressurizing the Palestinians regarding their right to vote and threatening the Palestinian Authority to cut the aid if the Palestinians vote for Hamas.

America is still pressurizing Iraq that is living a state of political turmoil as a result of the various accusations regarding the elections.
This sectarian atmosphere has made it very difficult to form a government of national unity. In the meantime, more blood is being spilled among the civilians, while the occupation continues to run the internal game in a way that serves its interests that are not limited to the Iraqi front, but rather extend to the entire regions, excising pressures on the neighboring countries.

Israel continues, in a concerted plan with the US, to threaten to hit the peaceful Iranian nuclear program, talking about Iran’s ability to posses the bomb in a matter of few months and suggesting that this threat to the entire world. On the other hand, nobody talks about the threat Israel nuclear arsenal represents to the entire region.
On another level, we have to point out that the US pressurizes the American Muslims in their mosques and accuse them of possessing radio-active materials, which makes each of them feel that he is guilty until proven innocent, in a process that resembles racial discrimination.

Lebanon is still under the influence of political polarization, which has entered us in a new state of mounting tensions, especially with all these exchanged accusations of regional and international interference, in an atmosphere that is clouded with a multitude of analysis and opinions.
We welcome all the talk about refusing the foreign tutelage, but we call to study the motives that lie behind the political pressures, because we see some behind the scenes interferences at times, and visible ones at others.
The question that needs to be answered is: If the parliamentary majority is the one that is ruling in Lebanon, then why don't the Lebanese go back to suggesting the numerical majority just as in all the developed countries.
We have not so far proposed that, but the logic that is adopted by some these days could raise the issue in principle, although in a way that has nothing to do with the sectarian sensitivities of some confessions in Lebanon.