Today, mosque imams deliver the Friday sermon under the title “The strong believer is better and more beloved to Allah than the weak believer,” a topic that the Ministry of Endowments had previously determined, stressing to imams the necessity of adhering to the sermon’s topic in text or content at the very least, and that the sermon’s duration should not exceed 15 minutes, with a maximum of between ten and fifteen minutes for the first and second sermons together, while emphasizing that eloquence is brevity, and that it is better for the preacher to end his sermon while people are eager for more than to prolong it and they get bored, and there is plenty of room in lessons, seminars, and intellectual gatherings.
The Egyptian Ministry of Endowments has set the topic of today’s Friday sermon, August 23, 2024 AD, as: A strong believer is better and more beloved to God than a weak believer.
The Ministry of Endowments said that the goal to be conveyed to the mosque audience through this sermon is to direct the awareness of the mosque audience to the fact that the strong do not weaken in the face of drugs, and their minds do not weaken in the face of rumours.
The Ministry of Endowments added that the elements of the sermon aim to explain the meaning of strength, the types of strength, the importance of the strength of the mind, the danger of drugs, and the danger of rumors.
The following is the text of the Friday sermon:
Praise be to Allah, the Almighty, the Praiseworthy, the Strong, the Glorious. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, without partner, a testimony that whoever utters it is happy. Glory be to Him, He has guided the minds with the wonders of His wisdom, and has encompassed creation with the greatness of His blessings. He has established the universe with the greatness of His manifestation, and has sent down guidance upon His prophets and messengers. I bear witness that our master Muhammad is His servant and messenger. He has expanded his chest, raised his status, and honored us. With him, and made us his nation. O God, bless and grant peace and blessings upon him, his family and companions, and those who follow them in goodness until the Day of Judgment. And after that:
The Messenger of God (may God bless him and grant him peace) said: “The strong believer is better and more beloved to God than the weak believer.” So what is strength? Strength in its complete meaning is strength of the body, strength of the mind, and strength of the spirit. As for strength of the body, it means that a person protects his body from diseases and illnesses, and makes his food and drink good. Strength of the mind means that a person’s heart is filled with knowledge, awareness, and awareness, and that he is far-sighted, and that he is always learning. Strength of the spirit means Tranquility means certainty, it means that a person can overcome all his sorrows and pains!
Here we pause to consider the strength of the mind. The mind cannot be strong if it is weakened by drugs. The mind cannot be strong if it is frequently confused by rumors.
The Holy Qur’an told us at the end of Surat Al-Kahf about material power in the story of a righteous man who ruled the east and west of the earth – he was Dhul-Qarnayn – and he was given a reason for everything, when he said to a group of people: {So help me with strength}, so strength was the reason for the success of construction, building and development.
As He told us in the opening verses of Surat Maryam about the power of reason, knowledge and wisdom, when He told us about a noble prophet of God Almighty, whom He, glory be to Him, wanted to have knowledge and wisdom during his youth, so God Almighty said to him: {O Yahya, take the Book with strength}, so strength was the key to knowledge and understanding.
So be strong, for Allah the Almighty loves the strong, steadfast, courageous, and fortified believer, who protects his body, mind, and soul from everything that harms, weakens, and debilitates, or threatens the body with disease, the mind with deviation, or the soul with weakness.
The Sharia wants man to be strong, wants the family to be cohesive, wants minds to be aware, wants countries to be lofty, and wants awareness to be alert. Can man achieve all of that if he is weak in the face of drugs and rumors?!
Drugs are the key to anxiety, depression, nervous and psychological tension, memory disorders, forgetfulness, introversion, isolation, frustration, despair, and family disintegration. How many homes have been destroyed, families have been broken, and children have been displaced and their futures have been ruined because of drugs that obscure the mind and paralyze the will? It transforms a person from a strong, lofty being into a defeated, weak, weak, confused, and lost one! He wastes himself, his youth, and his health, and destroys his family with his loss and his own loss!
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Praise be to God, Lord of the Worlds, and prayers and peace be upon the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers, our Master Muhammad (may God bless him and grant him peace), and upon all his family and companions. And now:
O man, be strong and resistant to all that affects your mind and psyche from superstition, misguidance, sorcery, doubt and rumors. The strong believer does not weaken in the face of false, invalid, forged and fabricated news, and does not rush to spread it and disseminate it among the people, whether that is in reality or he hastens to share it on the grounds of Social media sites, without verification or clarification.
Be strong, and know that spreading and promoting rumors is a great sin. Consider this strong prophetic warning against spreading news without verification or confirmation. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “It is enough of a sin for a person to speak of everything he hears.” And ponder this other calamity in the hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “Indeed, A servant may utter a word that pleases Allah, without thinking about it, and Allah will raise him in status because of it. And a servant may utter a word that angers Allah, without thinking about it, and he will fall into Hell because of it.”
Rushing to spread news that hurts people and confuses society is not a trivial matter, {And you think it is insignificant while it is, in the sight of Allah, grave}!
O Allah, keep us healthy in our bodies and minds, and make us strong in the truth and helpers in it.
