The call for Muslim unity is indeed one of the most pressing issues of our times and the status quo of the Muslim Ummah stands witness to this fact. It is all too easy to verbally declare one's adherence to Allah ta'ala's statement, the meaning of which is: "And hold fast, all together, to the rope of Allah and be not divided among yourselvesÂ…" (Aali 'Imran: 103) But in raising this banner we are then faced with the dilemma of having to defend our stand against extremism and consider compromising when it comes to deciding what we are uniting upon and with whom we should unite. On the one extreme we may come across a party who might be motivated by nothing short of partisanship and so anyone who doesn't conform to what their "Shaykh" has set out as the conditions for unity has to be boycotted and isolated. On the other extreme you will find other parties who will copromise on everything for the sake of achieving unity. Even if this means co-operating with deviants, such as those who curse the Sahabah, radhi Allahu anhum, or those who don't believe in the seal of Prophethood, or others who practice incantations etc! It should be realised that despite all the apparent divisions that exist within the ummah, the circle of "Ahlus-Sunnah Wal-Jama'ah" refers to those Muslims who have sound 'Aqeedah (creed), and who adhere to the teachings of the glorious Quran and the Sunnah of Allah's Messenger, sallallahu alayhe wa sallam as was interpreted and implemented by our pious predecessor Muslims. It should be understood that the one who ascribes himself to "Ahlus-Sunnah Wal-Jama'ah" is not calling to sectarianism and partisanship! Rather, it is a way to classifying and separating them from the Ahulul-Bid'ah, the people of innovations, whose existence dates back to the time of the rightly guided Khilafaa that ruled the Ummah after the passing away of our beloved Prophet, (SAWS). The Ahlul-Bid'ah are numerous in this day and age and their beliefs and practices stand as obstacles in the way of advancement of the Ummah and the spreading of Da'wah to mankind. It is therefore incumbent upon us all to root out these obstacles by striving vigorously against ignorance, the major factor behind the ill practices of Ahlu-Bid'ah. While the pressing need for Muslim unity involves struggle against ignorance with the wisest of approaches as well as patience, it does not mean that if ignorance persists, that we should accept defeat and seek to compromise. We must realise that compromise is the core weakness of the Ummah ever since the decline of the Khilaafah. SoÂ… if we are really sincere in our efforts to unite Muslims, we need to screen out all those who persist in their evil beliefs and corrupt practices and rally under no banner except that of Ahlus-Sunnah Wal-Jama'ah. Otherwise, we may never be rid of the shameful mishaps that have been overwhelming the Ummah for centuries now. We may end up like the froth (scum) on the sea as described by Allah's Messenger, (SAWS), despite all our millions! . -- Al Manar magazine ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Get fast access to your favorite Yahoo! Groups. Make Yahoo! your home page http://us.click.yahoo.com/dpRU5A/wUILAA/yQLSAA/TXWolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> *************************************************************************** {Invite (mankind, O Muhammad ) to the Way of your Lord (i.e. Islam) with wisdom (i.e. with the Divine Inspiration and the Qur'an) and fair preaching, and argue with them in a way that is better. Truly, your Lord knows best who has gone astray from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of those who are guided.} (Holy Quran-16:125) {And who is better in speech than he who [says: "My Lord is Allah (believes in His Oneness)," and then stands straight (acts upon His Order), and] invites (men) to Allah's (Islamic Monotheism), and does righteous deeds, and says: "I am one of the Muslims."} (Holy Quran-41:33) The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "By Allah, if Allah guides one person by you, it is better for you than the best types of camels." [al-Bukhaaree, Muslim] The prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said, "Whoever calls to guidance will have a reward similar to the reward of the one who follows him, without the reward of either of them being lessened at all." [Muslim, Ahmad, Aboo Daawood, an-Nasaa'ee, at-Tirmidhee, Ibn Maajah] -------------------------------------------------------------------------- All views expressed herein belong to the individuals concerned and do not in any way reflect the official views of IslamCity unless sanctioned or approved otherwise. If your mailbox clogged with mails from IslamCity, you may wish to get a daily digest of emails by logging-on to http://www.yahoogroups.com to change your mail delivery settings or email the moderators at [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the title "change to daily digest". Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/islamcity/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
