MCC | Today's khutbah was at MCC. It was interesting, unfortunately, not as good as last week's. The khateeb this afternoon was a guest from the UK. I will begin by describing his appearance. |
He looked Desi, South Asian, Indian/Paki/Bengali/From that Area. He spoke with a proper and intelligibly British accent, so he probably didn't grow up in Liverpool. He was a bit hefty, lacked a mustache but had a full beard, and had a soft voice. He doesn't seem to be older than 35 or thereabouts. He mentioned he was in the states about 13 years ago and was delighted to see so many Muslims. Not sure if he was referring to MCC specifically, but I think it's safe to say that the number hasn't changed all that much in the last 13 years or so.
He began by introducing himself to the congregation, that makes sense, but stating your name and where you are coming from is more than enough for our purposes. However, he didn't stop there, he basically read his resume or CV to us, also making a distinct comparison between himself and Mufti K (the khateeb from last week's khutbah), stating that he attended a similar school of learning as the Mufti. Then he went on to state he possesses a master's degree in social science and teaches at a university. Great... none of this information benefits me, I am glad you are well educated, and I tend to assume that people who are invited to speak at Jummah prayers tend to hold similar merits, they aren't just random people off the street.
Anyway, he decided it was time for us Muslims to know why knowing the meaning of the Qur'an is so important, why knowing the meaning of the duas we recite is so important. He made it quite clear that his opinion on this matter is that this is essential to being a good Muslim. I totally disagree. It is not essential to know the meaning of the Qur'an or Duas being recited, this does not keep one from being a good Muslim. It is, of course, better to know these things, but they do not constitute the grace bestowed upon an individual. Proof for this is quite simply that it is not a prerequisite for a person wanting to convert to Islam to first learn Arabic, or first learn the prayers and Qur'an. No, they simply need to believe the Oneness of God and in His Last Messenger (S) and that's it. There are no stipulations. Granted, it can only serve to help you the more you know and understand, then again, if you misunderstand it can actually lead you astray.
The khateeb made some more comments and points, many of which were simply boring and irrelevant. I think this may have been a better talk if he was giving a lecture on this topic with a appropriate title targeting a specific audience. Khutbah related talks should hold more water than this talk did. You can sense the lack of proper inspiration amongst today's khateebs, and this khateeb in particular. It's as if he was struggling to figure out what he should discuss and after exhausting all ideas that came to his mind, he relapsed and chose a convenient one. I could be wrong, God knows.
3 stars for this hadith, and I am being generous.
[Abu Fulan]
He began by introducing himself to the congregation, that makes sense, but stating your name and where you are coming from is more than enough for our purposes. However, he didn't stop there, he basically read his resume or CV to us, also making a distinct comparison between himself and Mufti K (the khateeb from last week's khutbah), stating that he attended a similar school of learning as the Mufti. Then he went on to state he possesses a master's degree in social science and teaches at a university. Great... none of this information benefits me, I am glad you are well educated, and I tend to assume that people who are invited to speak at Jummah prayers tend to hold similar merits, they aren't just random people off the street.
Anyway, he decided it was time for us Muslims to know why knowing the meaning of the Qur'an is so important, why knowing the meaning of the duas we recite is so important. He made it quite clear that his opinion on this matter is that this is essential to being a good Muslim. I totally disagree. It is not essential to know the meaning of the Qur'an or Duas being recited, this does not keep one from being a good Muslim. It is, of course, better to know these things, but they do not constitute the grace bestowed upon an individual. Proof for this is quite simply that it is not a prerequisite for a person wanting to convert to Islam to first learn Arabic, or first learn the prayers and Qur'an. No, they simply need to believe the Oneness of God and in His Last Messenger (S) and that's it. There are no stipulations. Granted, it can only serve to help you the more you know and understand, then again, if you misunderstand it can actually lead you astray.
The khateeb made some more comments and points, many of which were simply boring and irrelevant. I think this may have been a better talk if he was giving a lecture on this topic with a appropriate title targeting a specific audience. Khutbah related talks should hold more water than this talk did. You can sense the lack of proper inspiration amongst today's khateebs, and this khateeb in particular. It's as if he was struggling to figure out what he should discuss and after exhausting all ideas that came to his mind, he relapsed and chose a convenient one. I could be wrong, God knows.
3 stars for this hadith, and I am being generous.
[Abu Fulan]
