Dear Brothers and Sisters! One of the most special and exceptional time periods in terms of reward is the upcoming month of Dhul-Hijjah. The month of Dhul-Hijjah, which will start from next Sunday, contains many blessings. The month of Dhul-Hijjah is considered to be one of the sacred months in Islam, in which it is specifically forbidden to do injustice. Even though it has not been done for the past two years due to the pandemic, it is the day of pilgrimage where millions of Muslims gather in Arafat, Mina and Muzdalifah to make the pilgrimage and perform prayers and worship that will lead to purification.

Honourable Believers! As Muslims, our goal is clear. By engaging in actions which are pleasing to our Lord, entering Paradise with our loved ones is our greatest hope. The way to achieving this goal has been mapped out by our Lord out of His great bounty and mercy. By revealing the Holy Qur’an and sending the best of examples, the Prophet Muhammed ﷺ, Allah (SWT) has communicated the means to attaining this goal.

Dear Brothers and Sisters! Health is undoubtedly one of the greatest blessings bestowed upon us by Allah (swt), after Imaan. Rasulullah (saw) has said, “There are two blessings that many people are deceived into losing: health and free time.” When we are in good health for a long time, we may be neglectful about how great a blessing health is. But when we fall ill, we remember its value again.

Dear Brothers and Sisters! Believers who believe in Allah (swt) and the Last Day know that each of the orders and prohibitions of Allah and His Messenger has a different wisdom. Prayer elevates us spiritually and keeps us away from evil. Fasting disciplines our souls. Zakat cleans our property.

Dear Muslims! The word ‘Rizq’ is defined as something that which nourishes us. The Islamic perspective and take on this word adds a spiritual meaning, which encompasses wealth, family ties, spirituality, our faith, intellect, health and everything else that are beneficial to us and can help us fulfil our duties and obligations to serve and obey Allah, and care for this earth.

Dear brothers and sisters! Human beings, the most honorable of all creations in the universe, have been created worthy of all praise and respect. As it has superior qualities such as reason and will, it can distinguish good from bad, right from wrong, and beautiful from ugly. Every human being is born as free and innocent. It is forbidden by our religion to interfere with the freedoms of people, to restrict their rights of life, to take away their freedom of belief and worship, and to steal their rights of owning possessions. These issues have been accepted as mutual human values by all religions throughout history. Therefore, no human being can be subjected to a different treatment due to their belief, language, race, and color. The freedom of thought and belief and the desire to worship freely are the most natural rights of every human being.

Dear Brothers and Sisters! With the grace of Allah (swt), we evaluated Ramadan, the sultan of eleven months, with Ibadah despite some difficulties brought by the pandemic. We tamed our Nafs by fasting, approached Allah (swt) by performing tarawih prayers, blessed our goods by paying our zakat, opened ourselves to Allah (swt) with our duas, and we gave our way of life again by reading our book of life, the Quran. Praise be to Allah who made us successful in committing these righteous deeds. We must now continue these beauties, which we have earned in line with our identity as a believer, which continues every day of the year.