In the Name of Allah, The Most Merciful, The Most Kind
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds. May His blessings and benedictions be upon the Messenger, his household and companions.
Dear brothers and sisters! Know that the words ‘Allahu akbar’ means ‘Allah is the greatest.’ It’s a phrase uttered by Muslims many times a day in prayers, in greetings. But also ‘Allahu akbar’ has often been chanted by armed bandits, terrorists and mobs, too, as they committed their crimes, including Muhammed Yusuf, Abubakar Shekau, Kabiru Sokoto, Bello Turji, Halilu Sububu, Dogo Gide, Baleri, Dan Karami, Ado Aleru, Wala Burki, Manchester Mobs etc. those killing people in their unholy, merciless and unIslamic attacks.
Respected brothers and sisters! We say ‘Allahu akbar’ dozens of times a day. We say it during prayer. We say it as an expression of reaffirmation and gratitude to Allah Almighty. We said it when our children was born, and there will be someone to say it over us when we are buried. We say it when we witness beauty.
In 1985, Lutheran Bishop Krister Stendahl, in defending the building of a Mormon temple by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Stockholm, enunciated “Three Rules of Religious Understanding:”
She said:
“When trying to understand another religion, you should ask the adherents of that religion and not its enemies.”
“Don’t compare your best to their worst,” and:
“Leave room for holy envy.”
Here Krister Stendahl challenges her people to be open to recognising elements in other religions—even those that may appear foreign or threatening—and to consider how they might wish to support, embrace, emulate or further explore those elements that might help them to deepen their understanding of their own religious traditions and more deeply connect to others: to embrace ‘holy envy.’
Dear servants of Allah! Islam, a religion of mercy, does not permit banditry and terrorism. In the Qur’an, Allah Almighty has said:
“Allah does not forbid you from showing kindness and dealing justly with those who have not fought you about religion and have not driven you out of your homes. Allah loves just dealers.” [Qur’an, 60:8]
The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him), used to prohibit soldiers from killing women and children [Bukhari and Muslim], and he would advise them: “…Do not betray, do not be excessive, do not kill a newborn child.” [Muslim and At-Tirmidhi]. And he also said:
“Whoever has killed a person having a treaty with the Muslims shall not smell the fragrance of Paradise, though its fragrance is found for a span of forty years.” [Bukhari and Ibn Majah]
Also, Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) has forbidden punishment with fire. [Abu Dawud]
He once listed murder as the second of the major sins [Bukhari and Muslim], and he even warned that on the Day of Judgment:
“The first cases to be adjudicated between people on the Day of Judgment will be those of bloodshed (This means killing and injuring).” [Bukhari and Muslim]
Talk less of Humans, Muslims are even encouraged to be kind to animals and are forbidden to hurt them. Once the Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said:
“A woman was punished because she imprisoned a cat until it died. On account of this, she was doomed to Hell. While she imprisoned it, she did not give the cat food or drink, nor did she free it to eat the insects of the earth.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
He also said that a man gave a very thirsty dog a drink, so Allah forgave his sins for this action. The Prophet (Peace be upon him), was asked, “Messenger of Allah, are we rewarded for kindness towards animals?” He said: “There is a reward for kindness to every living animal or human.” [Bukhari and Muslim]
Additionally, while taking the life of an animal for food, Muslims are commanded to do so in a manner that causes the least amount of fright and suffering possible. The Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) said:
“When you slaughter an animal, do so in the best way. One should sharpen his knife to reduce the suffering of the animal.” [Muslim and At-Tirmidhi]
In light of these and other Islamic texts, the act of inciting terror and fear in the hearts of defenseless civilians, the wholesale destruction of buildings and properties, the bombing, maiming, kidnapping and killing of innocent men, women, and children are all forbidden and detestable acts according to Islam and the Muslims. Muslims follow a religion of peace, mercy, and forgiveness, and the vast majority have nothing to do with the violent events some ignoramus have associated with Muslims. If an individual Muslim were to commit an act of banditry or terrorism, this person would be guilty of violating the laws of Islam.
Therefore the words ‘Allahu Akbar’ translate to mean ‘Allah is the greatest,’ which is an Arabic phrase frequently used by over 2 billion Muslims around the world. The phrase has a very significant meaning for Muslims and is often used as a call to prayer. It is used when someone sees a beautiful sunset, when a baby is born or when a doctor’s patient gets better from treatment, when a favorite sports team wins a game, at a wedding, and even at funerals.
But unfortunately, the meaning of ‘Allahu Akbar’ has changed over the past several decades with the rise of terrorists, bandits and mobs attacks and the media’s coverage and portrayal of them.
All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds. May the peace, blessings and salutations of Allah be upon our noble Messenger, Muhammad (Peace be upon him), and upon his family, his Companions and his true followers.
Murtadha Muhammad Gusau is the Chief Imam of: Nagazi-Uvete Jumu’ah Mosque; and Late Alhaji Abdur-Rahman Okene Mosque, Okene, Kogi State, Nigeria. He can be reached via: [email protected]; or +2348038289761.
This Friday sermon (Jumu’ah Khutbah) was prepared for delivery today Friday, 17 Rabi’ul Awwal, 1446 AH (September 20, 2024).
