Staying Positive in Negative Times

Friday Khutbah at ICNEV

Friday Khutbah at Masjid as-Salam

The last couple of months have not been easy for the Muslim community in the U.S. From the Fort Hood shooting to honor killing onto the Rifka Barry propaganda and now the issue of homegrown terrorism, the Muslim community had a little air to breathe. With that came an outburst of anti-Islam and anti-Muslim literature mostly on electronic media. Muslim bashers must have had a blast!!! Islam bashing is a booming business. What’s so alarming is that there are now more voices who are seeking to outlaw Islam as a religion and to criminalize Muslims for the mere fact of adhering to it. The average Muslim feels intimidated, threatened, and powerless. It’s easy to succumb to those forces that are seeking to marginalize and criminalize Islam and Muslims, and develop a very negative attitude toward the whole situation. It’s easy to say there is so much bad publicity out there and there is nothing we can do. In short, it’s easy to be a pessimist. Not if you are a true Muslim!! Islam teaches us to stay positive regardless of the adversities that we face now and then. When Prophet Muhammad was sent over 1400 years ago, the situation wasn’t much better. The Arabs were addicted to worshipping idols, mistreating women, tribal retribution and warfare, to mention a few vices. In addition, they were very hostile to the message that Prophet Muhammad brought. They called him a magician, a sorcerer, an insane man, and a liar. They tortured his companions. Yet, the Prophet chose to focus on the positive side. It’s reported in an authentic narration that he has said, “I was sent in order to complement the best of manners” [al-Hakim]. Despite all the negativity around him, he was able to find some good qualities in his society. After all, the Arabs were known for their courage, hospitality, eloquence, and shame of lying. The Prophet could have focused on the negative aspects of his society, and they were many, and said something like, “I came to eradicate all bad manners”. Rather, he chose to make his mission statement positive, acknowledging the good in his society and committing to make it better. Muslims today has to re-ignite this spirit of optimism dealing with the current challenges. Optimism is not just a statement nor an action or two. Optimism is a way of life. If you study the life of Prophet Muhammad, this concept becomes so evident. Some people think that the Prophet was always serious or even frowning. But, there are authentic narrations, recorded by Imam Ahmad, that the Prophet used to smile all the time. Some of the invocations he taught us centered around how we get rid of negative qualities. Consider for example the following supplication, “Oh God, I seek refuge in You from worries and sadness, from inabilities and laziness, and from cowardice and stinginess”. Think for a moment, if we are able to rid ourselves from those negative qualities, we will overcome our current weakness. See one of the definitions of optimism is the ability to turn difficulties into opportunities. The Muslim communities in the West are currently facing tremendous difficulties without a doubt. But the challenging question is; are we going to be able to turn those difficulties into opportunities? I think it’s up to us! Now, we can cease the opportunity of telling others who we are and what a great religion we have. But, there is always the easier path. We can choose to turn this opportunity into a difficulty. This would be the definition of a pessimist. Which path do we want to collectively take? The choice is ours …