Advocate Righteousness and Forbid Evil

1. Advocate Righteousness and Forbid Evil 20th Annual Conference United Submitters International

2. Why is it important? • The two ends of the spectrum:

3. God Advocates Righteousness and Forbids Evil: • [16:90] GOD advocates justice, charity, and regarding the relatives. And He forbids evil, vice, and transgression. He enlightens you, that you may take heed.

4. Satan Advocates Evil: • [24:21] O you who believe, do not follow the steps of Satan. Anyone who follows the steps of Satan should know that he advocates evil and vice. If it were not for GOD's grace towards you, and His mercy, none of you would have been purified. But GOD purifies whomever He wills. GOD is Hearer, Knower.

5. Satan’s Constituents Advocate Evil and Forbid Righteousness: • [9:67] The hypocrite men and the hypocrite women belong with each other - they advocate evil and prohibit righteousness, and they are stingy. They forgot GOD, so He forgot them. The hypocrites are truly wicked.

6. Is Advocating Righteousness and Forbidding Evil a commandment? • [3:104] Let there be a community of you who invite to what is good, advocate righteousness, and forbid evil. These are the winners.

7. What is a commandment? • A direct order to all believers usually starting with “You shall” or “You shall not”

8. Some Examples: • [2:43] You shall observe the Contact Prayers (Salat) and give the obligatory charity (Zakat), and bow down with those who bow down. • [4:86] When greeted with a greeting, you shall respond with a better greeting or at least an equal one. GOD reckons all things.

9. More Examples: • [2:84] We made a covenant with you, that you shall not shed your blood, nor shall you evict each other from your homes. You agreed and bore witness. • [3:130] O you who believe, you shall not take usury, compounded over and over. Observe GOD, that you may succeed.

10. Another example and a very important commandment: • [2:152] You shall remember Me, that I may remember you, and be thankful to Me; do not be unappreciative.

11. Back to our question… • Is Advocating Righteousness and Forbidding Evil a commandment?

12. Not a commandment to all: • Let’s read 3:104 one more time: [3:104] Let there be a community ofyou who invite to what is good, advocate righteousness, and forbid evil. These are the winners.

13. If not a commandment, then why should we be concerned with it? • [3:110] You are the best community ever raised among the people: you advocate righteousness and forbid evil, and you believe in GOD. If the followers of the scripture believed, it would be better for them. Some of them do believe, but the majority of them are wicked.

14. If not a commandment, then why should we be concerned with it?... • [2:148] Each of you chooses the direction to follow; you shall race towards righteousness. Wherever you may be, GOD will summon you all. GOD is Omnipotent. • [57:21] Therefore, you shall race towards forgiveness from your Lord, and a Paradise whose width encompasses the heaven and the earth. It awaits those who believed in GOD and His messengers. Such is GOD's grace that He bestows upon whomever He wills. GOD is Possessor of Infinite Grace.

15. In order to participate, preparation is needed: • [3:114] They believe in GOD and the Last Day, they advocate righteousness and forbid evil, and they hasten to do righteous works. These are the righteous.

16. Preparation: • [3:92] You cannot attain righteousness until you give to charity from the possessions you love. Whatever you give to charity, GOD is fully aware thereof. Remember Solomon and his horses?!

17. A Delicate Matter: • Nobody likes to be told that what he/she is doing is wrong, or be pushed into doing something supposedly righteous.

18. A Delicate Matter… • God gave us the brain so the soul can use it to recognize His signs and appreciate and submit to Him. Satan influences our mind to protect our ego.

19. A Delicate Matter… • In advocating righteousness and forbidding evil, we need to be aware of the battle between soul and ego. We need to use wisdom and kind enlightenment to help awaken the souls to kill their egos.

20. Quranic Guideline: • [16:125] You shall invite to the path of your Lord with wisdom and kind enlightenment, and debate with them in the best possible manner. Your Lord knows best who has strayed from His path, and He knows best who are the guided ones.

21. If not done correctly, can become an evil in its own right: • Example of so called Islamic regimes: Advocating righteousness and forbidding evil, or a misguided understanding of it -when done in a compulsory fashion- will create resentment and resistance: Forcing people to follow a certain dress code, inspecting vehicles and homes for banned items and mandatory closing of businesses to attend contact prayers are some examples.

22. Adhering to one commandment should not conflict with upholding others: • Same is true with spreading God’s message, In the course of advocating righteousness and forbidding evil, we should be wary of not stepping into aggression, suspicion, following our personal opinion…

23. Some suggestions for becoming part of the community in 3:104: • Start from oneself… Pay attention to this verse: [9:112] They are therepenters, the worshipers, the praisers, the meditators, the bowing and prostrating, the advocators of righteousness and forbidders of evil, and the keepers of GOD's laws. Give good news to such believers

24. Pay attention to the order: • the repenters, • the worshipers, • the praisers, • the meditators, • the bowing and prostrating, • the advocators of righteousness and forbidders of evil, • and the keepers of GOD's laws.

25. What do you see? • “advocators of righteousness and forbidders of evil” follows a series of other qualities, starting with “repenters”, and it is only followed by “the keepers of GOD's laws” (such as be humble, kind, equitable; do not aggress, backbite, suspect, accuse...)

26. Start from oneself: repenters • Repenters: Pick a weakness that can be improved and the result would please God. Make note of the inner battle; if necessary, keep a journal of the internal conversation. Human beings are similar in their inner workings, what you feel as a resistance or a stumbling block; same can be true for others. What differentiates good advocators of righteousness from self assigned “preachers” is the fact that they convince their audience that they mean what they say, and have lived the process and abide by it: It shows in their actions.

27. Start from oneself… • Be open to criticism; criticism is a gift given to your soul. It hurts the ego but can be essential in growing the soul. • See criticism as a gift wrapped tastelessly. Would you throw away a beautiful diamond because the gift box that contained it was damaged or the wrapping paper was stained?

28. Start from oneself… • Souls can be mirrors for each other: we can not see our spiritual self the same way we can see our physical self in a mirror. Another soul can play the mirror for our soul by showing us our spiritual flaws. Would you break a mirror because it shows you that a piece of spinach is stuck between your teeth??

29. Start from oneself… • Would you get upset at the mirror if it shows that you have gained some unwanted extra pounds?? Then why do you get upset with others that present you with a gift that -although carelessly wrapped- shows you your spiritual flaws and can help you see and purify yourself: God loves those who purify themselves (9:108)

30. Suggestions for self purification Reflect on Quranic Wisdom: • Ponder on verses that outline interaction and code of conduct with others • Don’t pick and choose verses • Reflect on examples of good responders and their responses in Quran • Put your understanding to the test • Share your findings with others