Dredging up the sins of other people is a form of spiritual grave-digging. Personally, I don’t want to hear about anyone's sins, any more than I want to hear about my own. We all have skeletons in our spiritual closets. If we declared open season on them, the rattling and banging of them emptying out would go on forever.
Sadly, exposing other people’s sins is a form of social currency within some families. It gets one attention. It gives one momentary power. The more “juicy details” one knows, the more transient acclaim they get. It makes the “best,” gossip the focus of Eid dinner conversation. It gives one the power to discredit the validity of someone else’s present, fruitful, life.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been exposed to an endless cataloguing of people. I’m fed up with it; sick of hearing it, weary of talking about it. Allah knows whether the sinners we expose have repented or not, and Allah alone is their Judge. The same goes for the rest of us. All of us have sinned. The only difference is perhaps in the kind, frequency and amount of sins. None of us has a pristine closet. We all have something to be ashamed of in our pasts.
Those who are of the tattle tail kind however, will continue to remind us of others' sins at every opportunity. They will seek to grind the noses of the people in shame and accusations. Their life is about gossip and slander. Little have they spied the Qur'an to know what Allah says about them, "Woe to every slanderer and backbitter. Who collects wealth and [continuously] counts it. He thinks that his wealth will make him immortal. No! He will surely be thrown into the Crusher. And what can make you know what is the Crusher? It is the fire of Allah , [eternally] fueled, Which mounts directed at the hearts. Indeed, Hellfire will be closed down upon them. In extended columns." (Surah Humazah)
God's people– if indeed they are God's people – do not accuse, tear down, remind of, and constantly traffic in, each other’s failures and shortcomings; rather, they build up, edify, encourage, forgive and cover the indiscretions – as does Allah himself. The hearts should not be a place of judgment ("Indeed, those who like that immorality should be spread [or publicized] among those who have believed will have a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah knows and you do not know." Surah Nur: 19) but a place of healing and good counsel ("The believing men and believing women are Auliya' (helpers, supporters, friends, protectors) for one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and establish prayer and give zakah and obey Allah and His Messenger. Those - Allah will have mercy upon them. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise." Surah Tawbah: 71).
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want anyone to come out a loser in the Judgment that we shall all inevitably face – me included. I believe in the old saying that when you point the accusing finger at another, you’ve got three others pointing back at yourself. When it comes to purity, none of us has anything to crow about.
This is an exhortative, and somewhat corrective article. I felt it needed to be written. I’m writing it as much to myself as to anyone. If we insist on bringing other people's mistakes, dusting them out, examining them, analyzing them, and otherwise discussing them. If we try to inflict “guilt trips” as a means of humiliating others, and keeping them one down to us, we may find it backfiring on us. The Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) warned us according to a hadith in Bukhari, "O those who have embraced Islam only with their tongue, while Emaan has not yet entered their hearts, neither harm Muslims, nor mock them, nor try to expose their mistakes, for anyone who chases after and searches for someone's shortcomings, Allah will expose their sins and humiliate them within their families and on the Day of Judgement."
We have all done our share of gossiping, myself included. Can we please get over it? Can we not move ahead and up to higher ground?
Sadly, exposing other people’s sins is a form of social currency within some families. It gets one attention. It gives one momentary power. The more “juicy details” one knows, the more transient acclaim they get. It makes the “best,” gossip the focus of Eid dinner conversation. It gives one the power to discredit the validity of someone else’s present, fruitful, life.
I don’t know about you, but I’ve been exposed to an endless cataloguing of people. I’m fed up with it; sick of hearing it, weary of talking about it. Allah knows whether the sinners we expose have repented or not, and Allah alone is their Judge. The same goes for the rest of us. All of us have sinned. The only difference is perhaps in the kind, frequency and amount of sins. None of us has a pristine closet. We all have something to be ashamed of in our pasts.
Those who are of the tattle tail kind however, will continue to remind us of others' sins at every opportunity. They will seek to grind the noses of the people in shame and accusations. Their life is about gossip and slander. Little have they spied the Qur'an to know what Allah says about them, "Woe to every slanderer and backbitter. Who collects wealth and [continuously] counts it. He thinks that his wealth will make him immortal. No! He will surely be thrown into the Crusher. And what can make you know what is the Crusher? It is the fire of Allah , [eternally] fueled, Which mounts directed at the hearts. Indeed, Hellfire will be closed down upon them. In extended columns." (Surah Humazah)
God's people– if indeed they are God's people – do not accuse, tear down, remind of, and constantly traffic in, each other’s failures and shortcomings; rather, they build up, edify, encourage, forgive and cover the indiscretions – as does Allah himself. The hearts should not be a place of judgment ("Indeed, those who like that immorality should be spread [or publicized] among those who have believed will have a painful punishment in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah knows and you do not know." Surah Nur: 19) but a place of healing and good counsel ("The believing men and believing women are Auliya' (helpers, supporters, friends, protectors) for one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and establish prayer and give zakah and obey Allah and His Messenger. Those - Allah will have mercy upon them. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise." Surah Tawbah: 71).
I don’t know about you, but I don’t want anyone to come out a loser in the Judgment that we shall all inevitably face – me included. I believe in the old saying that when you point the accusing finger at another, you’ve got three others pointing back at yourself. When it comes to purity, none of us has anything to crow about.
This is an exhortative, and somewhat corrective article. I felt it needed to be written. I’m writing it as much to myself as to anyone. If we insist on bringing other people's mistakes, dusting them out, examining them, analyzing them, and otherwise discussing them. If we try to inflict “guilt trips” as a means of humiliating others, and keeping them one down to us, we may find it backfiring on us. The Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) warned us according to a hadith in Bukhari, "O those who have embraced Islam only with their tongue, while Emaan has not yet entered their hearts, neither harm Muslims, nor mock them, nor try to expose their mistakes, for anyone who chases after and searches for someone's shortcomings, Allah will expose their sins and humiliate them within their families and on the Day of Judgement."
We have all done our share of gossiping, myself included. Can we please get over it? Can we not move ahead and up to higher ground?
No comments:
Post a Comment