Sheikh Abdurrahman al-Shuraim – 14 Muharram 1436

His Eminence Sheikh Abdurrahman al-Shuraim – may Allah protect him – delivered this Friday Khutbah entitled “Maintaining Society’s Security” in which he dealt with the need to preserve security in society. He focused on the fact that maintaining security is at the root of all good benefiting. He made it clear that security is the responsibility of each member of the Ummah and highlighted the importance of intellectual security, moral security, etc. for social order.

Praise is due to Allah, the Supreme, the All-Sublime, the Glorious, the Almighty, the Owner of Absolute Dominion, and the Exalted! To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens, the earth, and all that is in-between. He is Mighty in strength and Severe in punishment. I bear witness that there is no deity except Allah, alone with no associate. He revealed the Book (the Qur’an) to us, clarified its content, and cited parables. I equally bear witness that Muhammad is the Servant and Messenger of Allah. He is truthful is speech and commendable in behaviour. He preached good deeds in all circumstances, and warned against evil, imprudence, and undesirable endings. May Allah send His profuse Salat (Graces, Honours, and Mercy) and Peace upon him, his virtuous and immaculate family, his righteous Companions (serving as exemplary models for believers), the tabi’īn (the contemporaries of the Companions of the Prophet [May Allah’s Salat and Peace be upon him] after his death), and all their followers in righteousness as long as rain is heralded by massive clouds and as flora casts shade.

Now then,

O People! I exhort you and myself to observe Taqwa (fear of disobeying divine commands) vis-à-vis Allah Almighty, hold fast to His firm bond, grab His indissoluble link, and commit yourself to the Jama’ah (the Sunni Muslim community), for Allah lends hand only to the Jama’ah. Beware fabricated inventions in religion, for every fabricated invention is a bid’ah (i.e. innovation, undesirable belief or ritual appended to religion) and every bid’ah is misguidance:

Surat Al-Raad, Verse 13: “…And He is Mighty in strength and Severe in punishment”.

“And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger (Sallallahu Alayhi Wa Sallam), fears Allah, and keeps his duty (to Him), such are the successful ones.” [Al-Noor: 52]

O People!

Devoid of security, human life, with all its modern conveniences and welfare facilities, is but utter deception … deception … deception. It still remains as vulnerable as a premature newborn baby. Likewise, sleep in insecure conditions is indeed anxiety and insomnia. Worship without security is also liable to distraction, as worshippers on their guard keep turning their faces in all directions. As a rule, mankind is in dire need of security, whose attainment is a direct reflection of the nature and degree of their own faith, for whoever embraces faith will enjoy security and whoever enjoys security will benefit from advancement. In fact, there will be no stability in life without this pyramidal view: faith, security, and advancement:

“It is those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah and worship none but Him Alone) and confuse not their belief with Zulm (wrong i.e. by worshipping others besides Allah), for them (only) there is security and they are the guided.” [Al-An’am: 82]

What is meant from the Qur’anic verse above is that the believers will enjoy “security” in the herein and the hereafter.

O Servants of Allah! Security is a universal claim, for all nations are in pursuit of security. Nobody can ignore it except those who abhor decent life and reject the idea of Allah as their Lord, Islam as their religion, and Muhammad (May Allah’s Salat and Peace be upon him) as their Prophet and Messenger.

This is not surprising, because security is the blessing whose endower must be shown profuse gratitude through worshipping Him in a way that ensures His satisfaction:

“So let them worship (Allah) the Lord of this House (the Ka’bah in Makkah). He) Who has fed them against hunger, and has made them safe from fear.” [Quraish: 3-4]

In reality, one can never enjoy even one’s meal under constant threat and fear at point-blank range. Besides, any form of worship will never be perfect or stable when associated with trepidation imparted from all directions. An example at hand is the abridged form of the Fear (or Danger) Prayer, whose nature, number of Rak’ahs, conditions, and ways of performance are reduced and simplified due to fear and insecurity. Thus, there can be no security without faith, and no progress without security and actual guarantees to eliminate whatever might disturb the smooth running of daily life.

Servants of Allah! Security is one of the inalienable necessities of life; it is not an object of blackmailing or arm-twisting, but rather a concept that does not tolerate sheer interpretation, misunderstanding, or negligence. Security, servants of Allah, is a prerequisite contingent upon the preservation of the five essentials of life on which all religions and denominations have consensus: namely, religion, life, property, honour, and reason.

Therefore, whoever breaches security is comparable to someone who makes a hole into the body of the sailing ship of society. Accordingly, the passengers onboard are simply supposed to throw the violator overboard lest the ship sinks and with it all the people aboard.

Blackmailing society into neglecting its security would never take place without the existence of a whole network of enemies lying in ambush who, for the sake of achieving destabilisation in that society, resort even to the recruitment of naive and ignorant people as well as the feeble-minded from among its fellow compatriots.

Whoever destabilises society’s security is in fact destabilising his own security and that of his mother, father, brother, sister, partner, and children before destabilising the security of society at large. Such destabilisation can take the form of atheism which rocks religion, bloodshed which claims lives otherwise sanctified by religion, drug addiction, alcoholism which effaces the faculty of reason, stealing money, fraudulent use of funds leading to the violation of society’s economic rights, disgracing others, or committing fornication which undermine personal honour and human integrity.

Anyone who perpetrates such deviant acts, which occasion both his own people and his society a similar damage, is in fact self-induced to be confronted with his fate, no matter how energetic, brave, cunning, and deceitful he might be, for Allah is the best of planners.4 For this very reason, killing just one criminal is seen as the generator of cheerful life for a whole community:

“And there is (a saving of) life for you in Al-Qisâs (the Law of Equality in punishment), O men of understanding, that you may become Al-Muttaqûn (the pious – see V.2:2).”[Al-Baqarah: 179]

Our venerated Sharῑ’ah (religious code) includes severe penalties to guarantee the security of the whole society, security that concerns all citizens without distinctions. The Sharῑ’ah has neutralised all tracks leading to negligence in the enforcement of such a penal code – no matter what the nature of this negligence might be – i.e. be it a vexing feeling of embarrassment triggered by the mockery of Westerners or the dynamic role of mediators who would seek to annul or marginalise the implementation of punitive measures. This is why the Prophet (May Allah’s Salat and Peace be upon him) has been categorical vis-à-vis such laxity whenever the necessity to reinforce security is at stake. He (May Allah’s Salat and Peace be upon him) said, “I swear by Allah Almighty, even if Fatima, the daughter of Muhammad, committed theft, I would definitely amputate her hand.”

Those who play with the security of the Muslim society are indeed burying their necessary inheritance (i.e. their security). They are also cutting the life source of the current generations. In so doing, they consciously or unconsciously serve as a springboard for their enemies lying in ambush for them. The outcome is that their conditions continue to deteriorate and their case gets further complicated (as if fuel were added to fire). Even worse, their presumed enemy may be inducing them to savour the illusory delight of their deadly sin; thus, they have the chimerical impression that it tastes sweet although it in fact bitter, that it seems to be easy although, in essence, it is difficult, and that it looks beautiful though, in reality, it is quite ugly. The only certainty about it is that it is erroneous on the whole and in detail:

” …So after the truth, what else can there be, save error?…” [Yunus: 32]

O Servants of Allah!

The evaluation of a phenomenon derives from its very conceptualisation. Thus, in order to reach a precise definition of security and its various aspects, we need to be equipped with a comprehensive understanding of its nature. We must not adopt a reductionist and naive definition of the term as being synonymous to the absence of criminal offences in society. The concept of security is much wider in scope than such a restrictive interpretation.

A security officer should not be the only one in charge of maintaining security. In fact, every member within the community carries the obligation to do so as the Prophet (May Allah’s Salat and Peace be upon him) said: “Everyone of you is a guardian and is responsible for his charges: The Imam (ruler) is a guardian and is responsible for his subjects; a man is the guardian of his family (household) and is responsible for his subjects; a woman is the guardian of her husband’s home and is responsible for it; and the slave is a guardian of his master’s property and is responsible for it. Surely, everyone of you is a guardian and is responsible for his charges… (See the rest of the Hadith).” [Narrated by Bukhari and Muslim]

Therefore, if we put it all in perspective – O Servants of Allah – we will then be able to realise how so holistic the ‘security’ concept (in Islam) is, as it encompasses the various areas of leverage within the single Muslim community, notably that of religious security, which is realised through submission to Almighty Allah, adhering to His religion, seeking His satisfaction by carrying out His orders and avoiding His proscriptions, and through worshipping Him in accordance with His command. In effect, Allah (Sublime be He) said:

“And let those who oppose the Messenger’s (Muhammad) commandment (i.e. his Sunnah legal ways, orders, acts of worship, statements, etc.) (among the sects) beware, lest some Fitnah (disbelief, trials, afflictions, earthquakes, killing, overpowered by a tyrant, etc.) befall them or a painful torment be inflicted on them.”[Al-Noor: 63]

Whenever affliction befalls a Muslim community, the cause thereof has to be a defect in their rapport with their Lord for the sins they have committed or their dereliction of duty. This is to confirm that sinning breeds adversity and penitence is the only way out of it.

(In this context, the Sheikh quotes two lines of poetry thus):

When people are granted security
Then, they can enjoy life and prosperity
For a dreadful land may never be a place for felicity As perversity is but an outcome of insecurity

May Almighty Allah spare all of us the evil of fitnahs (seditions), those of them which are apparent and those which are concealed! Indeed, there is no power or strength except with the help of Almighty Allah!

This is what I have said. If it is correct, it is so thanks to Allah, but if it is wrong, it is my own fault and Satan’s. I ask Allah to forgive my sins, yours, and those of all the Muslims, so ask Him for forgiveness, for He is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful!