http://www.arabnews.com/?page=13§ion=0&article=81875&d=9&m=5&y=2006&pix=kingdom.jpg&category=Local%20Press
Monday, 8, May, 2006 (10, Rabi` al-Thani, 1427)
Friday Preachers, Why Do You Ignore Reality?
Abdullah Al-Fawzan, Okaz
Despite the fact that our society is full of such social problems as domestic violence against women and children, murder, drug abuse, liquor, poverty, unemployment, begging, divorce, theft, deception, bribery, suicide, kidnapping, forgery and many others - we never hear a word about any of them in the Friday sermons.
We put the blame on preachers because millions of Muslims go to prayers to hear the Friday sermon. That is certainly a golden opportunity for increasing people's awareness of the problems and presenting Islamic solutions to them. It is not impossible to educate people in how to deal with their fellow men and women. It is unfortunately sad but true that most Friday sermons are far from actual realities and problems of people. I recently asked my students if they were ever influenced by Friday sermons and was deeply shocked when they answered in the negative.
I cannot forget the request to universities and teachers by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs which asked for suggestions for topics for Friday sermons. We supplied them with many that are of concern to people in their everyday lives but unfortunately we have not heard a single one of our topics mentioned. The Friday sermons are on a different plane from the daily problems of people. This should certainly not be the case. The mosque in our society is a very important educational institution and it must interact and involve itself with people's daily lives and needs. The preacher's role is to guide people according to Islamic logic.
The Friday preacher should put more effort into writing the sermon; he should contact people and get an overview of daily issues and problems. He should search for statistics to support his points. A Friday sermon is more than a job. It should not bore people with the constant repetition of the same subjects. People should leave the mosque on Friday feeling that the sermon had made an important contribution to their lives.
My students told me that the Friday sermon never affected their lives or their behavior. What could be a clearer indication that something is seriously wrong with the sermons' contents? What is the basis for choosing a Friday preacher? His first qualification should be that he is in close touch with people's lives and what their problems are. Would it be too much to hope for some answers from the officials at the Ministry of Islamic Affairs?
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