In Friday sermon, Muslims urged to treat refugees with dignity and respect
Published on: Friday, June 21, 2024
By: FMT
The sermon, titled ‘Humanitarian Crisis: A Test for Muslims’, was written by UNHCR for World Refugee Day and delivered across all mosques in the federal territories today. (Bernama pic)
PETALING JAYA: Muslims have a responsibility to help refugees, whose presence is a test of their faith, according to a special Friday sermon delivered across all mosques in the federal territories today.
The sermon, titled “Humanitarian Crisis: A Test for Muslims”, was specially written by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in conjunction with World Refugee Day.
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According to the text, Muslims were called to reflect on the story of how Prophet Muhammad patiently dealt with a Bedouin Arab who urinated in the mosque.
“(He) was cool and patient in handling such an ignorant person. (He) reprimanded the harsh way in which the companions treated the Badwi Arab, and asked them to let him continue until he fulfilled his needs,” it read.
The sermon then referenced a hadith in which Prophet Muhammad taught that mosques should not be desecrated and are meant for worship, zikrullah (remembrance of Allah), solat, and reading the Quran.
“The Prophet thereafter asked a companion to take some water and to clean the place from urine,” it said.
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As such, the sermon called on Muslims to be patient with refugees who may not fully understand local culture and to help them adapt to the way of life.
It also reminded Muslims that refugees flee because of life-threatening oppression, not for better lifestyles.
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“Refugees are not those who migrate to find a better lifestyle, instead they have had to leave their home countries for the sake of saving themselves from being brutally oppressed due to their race, religion, citizenship, social groups and so on,” the text read.
“They should be given the right to have better treatment and assistance to continue with their life.
“According to Islam, migration is required when subjugation and oppression happen in a person’s own homeland. Allah declared this in Verse 97 of Surah Al-Nisah.”
The sermon also called on Muslims to be sympathetic with refugees and treat them with dignity and respect, recognising them as “brothers within the bounds of faith and Islam”.
It further encouraged Muslims to show sympathy, provide necessary support such as shelter, food, money, clothing, and medicines, and assist through official agencies for refugees outside the country.
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