All too often I will approach my fellow sisters and try to persuade them to help in the Jihad, and all too often my face falls to the ground as I am sincerely gutted and my heart feels as though it has an elephant sitting on it after recieving the negative blow. I walk away wondering what it is. Is it me? Am I too daunting? I mean how hard can it be to respond to action alerts to defend the Ummah? How hard is it to attend demo's and events which practice active Islam and actively enjoins the 'right and forbids the wrong?' Why do they always reject Jihad, (the protection of Islam and defending the oppressed, and brush it off?

It is not my intention to criticise or disregard the good deeds that fellow Muslims enjoin, Alhamdollillah it's great to study Islam and gain as much knowledge as possible! However, one must stop and think...must our attempts to gain inward piety be at the cost of our brothers and sisters lives across the world? Each day as we attend pacified talks and events, the oppression of Muslims across the globe continues. Yet we feel 'holy' and content, if not satisfied with ourselves as we feel that little bit closer to God. We feel good about our spiritual devotion and worship, but why can this not go hand in hand with an active devotion to Allah SWT? We need to learn this, master this, and only when we can do this, will we be able to aid and protect people who are being suppressed and scrutinized under the name of Islam. Only then will we truly be practicing Islam.

The Prophet (pbuh) has said, 'I swear by Allah, you cannot attain salvation unless you prevent the oppressors from oppresing'. This was elaborated by Farid Esack: 'This underlines the futility of personal piety within an exploitative society.'

Perfecting our characters and souls can go on for a lifetime, there is no limit to the knowledge a Muslim can learn and gain about Islam. So in the meantime, is it permitted in Islam, humane even, to allow the suffering and oppression of Muslims to go on whilst we become 'practicing' Muslims? Is it right for us to be idle whilst Islamaphobia and attacks on our religion increase day by day? How many more excuses will I hear...

Whilst innocent children are being murdered, and whilst Palestinian mothers are crying themselves to sleep every night, more and more Muslims ignore their cries of Jihad. They are silenced like an annoying buzzing sound, yet their hell on earth continues. All whilst we continue to reach out and gain as much 'knowledge' about Islam and perfect our character.

I wonder why Muslims feel the need to bend over backwards to obtain inward 'piety', but won't ever lift a finger to help better the situation of our brothers and sisters in the world. Especially when there is so much one can do, often from simply sitting behind their PC. Is it because they don't care? (that I find hard to believe) Or they don't know how to? (Again, hard to fathom, as we are willing to travel to learn about Fiqh issues, but ignore active groups that do Jihad everyday such as MPACUK - information about Jihad is very easily accessible.) Or is it because nobody has taught them that Jihad, protection of the oppressed and defence of Islam, is a FARD? That Allah has ordained it upon His servants and if we do not partake, then we die upon a type of hypocrisy.

I know my friends have been taught that Hijab is a FARD, that Salah is a FARD, that Fasting is a FARD, and if ever they exclude from these duties to Allah, they would be held accountable.

So why do Muslims never feel the guilt, the pressure even, of abstaining from the FARD Jihad?

Why?

Because they have never been taught that Jihad is a FARD. Ask yourself if your (Mosque) teacher or parents ever even mentioned the word Jihad. I for one never even heard of the word throughout my 10 years of learning in a Mosque. I speak to my Mosque teacher up till this very day, and he still does not realise that Jihad is a FARD.

But why is our education so weak, why does it lack the culturing and teaching of a fundemental pillar of Islam, especially when the Hoy Quran explicilty outlines that this is a core pillar in Islam and is ordained from Allah?

It is only when we accept that we cannot pick and choose the Islam that we follow, but must follow Islam as Allah has ordained in the Quran, that we will find the will to demand our teachers and scholars teach us the FARD of Jihad.

'Jihad (holy fighting) in Allah's cause (with full force of numbers and weaponary) is given the utmost importance in Islam and is one of its pillars (on which it stands). By Jihad, Islam is established, Allah's word is made superior, (His Word being La ilaha illallah which means none has the right to be worshipped but Allah) and His religion (Islam) is propagated. By abandoning Jihad (may Allah protect us from that) Islam is destroyed and the Muslims fall into an inferior position; their lands are stolen, their rule and authority vanish. Jihad is an obligatory duty in Islam on every Muslim, and he who tries to escape from this duty, or does not in his innermost heart wish to fulfill this duty, dies with one of the qualities of a hypocrite.'

[Taken from the interpretation of the meaning of the Holy Quran. By Muhammad Taqi-ud-Din Al-Hilali and Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan]

---