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Brief Introduction of the Speakers

for Women's Day 2006

Sr. Syeda Naqavi

Sister Syeda Naqavi went to acquire religious education from the Hawza of Qom at a tender age of 13. She studied there for six years and reached the level of 'Makasib'. After returning to Karachi, she taught Arabic and other subjects for nine years. Syeda opened three madrasas for girls during this time. She also instructed girls on 'Zakiri' (public speaking for majalis). Meanwhile, she continued her education and did her Master's from Karachi University in Islamic Studies.

After getting married, she moved to the US in 1997. Here, too, she is invloved in reading majalis and imparting religious education. She has three kids.

Sr. Fatima Sabour

Sister Fatima Sabour is married to Ahmad Sabour and has an eight year old daughter, Zainab Isabella. She was born in California but was raised in Mexico, in a little town approximately 4 hours away from the border.  Her family returned to the states when she was a teenager.  Both she and her husband, who is originally from San Francisco, are the only family members that follow Islam. She reverted to Islam in the summer of 1983.

Currently, she is a Social Studies teacher and a Business Entrepreneur. Fatima's passion in life is to share her knowledge and experiences about the Islamic world view with all who are unfamiliar with Islam and the culture of its followers. She is a Muslim Activist who delivers frequent lectures at local schools, churches and various Islamic centers throughout Texas and other states. She has coached 30 local Muslim students who competed in this year's Muslim Interscholastic Tournament (MIST). She has also coached for her Muslim girl's basketball team for the past two years. Also, a Member of I.E.C.-Houston Public Relations and DAWAH Committee.

Sr. Zaynab Abassi

Sister Zaynab Abassi (Patricia Perez-Abassi) is originally from Tamaulipas , Mexico . She has a Texas Teaching Degree and a B.A. in Spanish and a minor in Psychology. She has taught for seven years in public schools and three years at Al-Hadi School  in Houston .

She was introduced to Islam in 1995, but reached self-conviction after 4 years of independent comparative religious studies and became a Muslima on November 6, 1999, the day her son Isaac was born (who is 6 years old now). This day was her deadline to finish her research about Islam and start practicing Islam as a new mother with a new religion, thus, abandoning Christian mentality.

She has been active in organizing Sunday School Madressa in her home town in South Texas before coming to Houston . In Houston , she has been involved with children's programs during the months of Ramadhan and Moharram every year.

She has also been the Teacher Representative for PTO (Parent-Teacher Organization) for a year, Da'wa Speaker, IEC (Islamic Education Center) Committee Member, Spanish Da'wa Member, and MIST( Muslim Interscholastic Tournament) Coach for an Islamic School, PSIA (Private Schools Interscholastic Association) Coach, and a Spelling Bee Coach. Also a Member of I.E.C.-Houston Public Relations and DAWAH Committee.

Sr. Erum Devjani

Sister Erum Devjani is originally from Karachi where she has been involved with studying and educating at religious institutions. She has been settled in Dallas for the last six years. In order to spread the teachings of Islam, she also speaks (zakira) at ladies' majalis. Currently, Erum is teaching Fiqh class (Tawzeehul Masail) to women and girls at MOMIN Center every Friday. She is a also teacher at the Islamic School of MOMIN.

Speeches

Topic: To serve in the way of Allah

a) Why Serve?

Speech Presented by

Sr. Fatima Sabour

July 16, 2006

Bismillah, Arrahman, Arrahim

• I. Whom do we serve?

• To serve Allah swt we must first serve ourselves by making sure that our lives are lived in accordance with Islamic Shariah; we must struggle to resist lustful appetites so as to strengthen our Eman . These are prerequisite steps in preparing one's self to meet the challenge of serving others. It is important that in serving the needs of others, we do not neglect serving the needs of our immediate and extended family, friends, neighbors, co-workers, classmates, etc. Ultimately, we are to serve our brothers and sisters in Islam and humanity but only after we have begun the incremental process of service that begins with ourselves.
•  
• If we ignore one of these prerequisite steps, all our efforts to serve the broader community will invariably fail because the moral and spiritual endurance needed to resist and overcome any lust for power, wealth and carnal pleasures will not have been perfected. Countless humanitarian programs with the most lofty aims and objectives have failed because the prerequisite step of conquering one's self was not sufficiently executed.

II.

• Now to the question of “Why Serve?” Man is a social creature and thus has an innate longing to interact with others . Human beings are the only servants of Allah endowed with the attributes of logic and reason, and distinguished by their capacity to exercise freedom of choice. Unlike the rest of creation, man uses this uniquely God-given facility to discharge his responsibilities to humanity in the most prudent and just manner.

• The role of women is of paramount importance in society. As women, we live our lives in constant servitude—not in a negative way—but in ways that are essential to the survival and advancement of civilization. Many among us have professional careers that provide critical service to others. We serve our spouses, children and parents—and as doctors, nurses and teachers we also serve others. Because of our innate maternal leanings such service comes natural for most of us.

• Do we realize the value of our actions?

Does a doctor or a teacher say in his heart, “let me rush and get to work so that I can serve Allah swt? Does a mother ask Allah to favor her with more patience and strength so that she can better serve Him through her commitment to her family? Do we even think about Allah while engulfed in the pursuit of our daily mundane affairs?

• If we serve without thinking, complete our tasks haphazardly, while remaining impervious to the omnipresence of our Supreme Master ; we will deprive ourselves of the innumerable benefits of Allahs' bounties. Unfortunately, many times we complain because we forget that every single action will be weighed and measured by the standards set by Allah.

•  In order to answer the question of Why serve, we must first ask ourselves, why were we created? What is the purpose of this life? Who gave us this life? Who decides when it will come to an end?

•  Who's Allah swt? He is our GRAND MASTER; he is the One that owns our soul. Our Lord, the Master of the Day of Judgment, or as we teachers would say, He is the One that will give us our final examination score. Therefore, doesn't it make sense to always behave in a way that evokes His pleasure?

Bibi Fatima Zahra, sa, addresses us and says:

•  We were created as Allah's representatives on this planet , as His Vicegerents, we have assignments that we must fulfill in order to be successful in this life and the hereafter.

•  One of the best ways of fulfilling our assignments is to promote the religion of Mohammad (pbuh) through word and deed. This is the best foundation for supporting any successful community service activity.

•  As good Muslims, we pray, give zakat and go to Hajj, if we can afford it. But should that be the extent of our responsibility? Not to say that any of this tasks are unimportant, or easy to do. Shaitan is always tempting us make light of any action that is pleasing to Allah.

•  But let's be realistic. We have to accept that on a daily basis, Allah does not require much from us. Wudu, salaat and even ghusul consumes only a minimal of our time—perhaps 30-40 minutes tops. What are we suppose to do with the remainder of the time we have available? Do we consider ourselves “off duty” for the rest of the day? Are we His vice-gerents for only 40 minutes of the day? We receive Allah's bounty 24/7, yet most of us are only willing to sacrifice a mere 40 minutes out of our day?

•  When we ponder upon this question of service we realize we are to serve and worship Allah swt by helping all other created beings, including animals, because the act of serving with proper niyyah, is an act of worship and the benefits are astronomical!!

•  As I mentioned before, raising our kids, honoring our parents, supporting our spouses, showing patience with our in-laws, are all honorable acts of worship when our intentions are solely to please Allah.

•  Once we accept our role as responsible representatives of Allah in this world, we will then be prepared to act as conduits for the transmission of God's grace and mercy upon our brothers and sisters in humanity.

•  When we fail to appreciate our role as vicegerents, and refuse to support and assist one another we diminish the flow of Allah's Mercy in this world.

•  For one to TRULY grasp the profound implications of what it means to serve one must understand the significance total submission to the Will of Allah. This is the essential definition of Islam. We will come to realize that the value of our ritualistic acts of worship and our selfless devotion to those around us are inseparable. The joy and enthusiasm we show will reflect our grasp of the inseparability of the two. At this stage of our growth we will do good deeds selflessly and with a show of gratitude for the opportunities Allah has given us to gain more of His favors.

•  What are the consequences of our not caring about those around us and our unwillingness to sacrifice what needed for the benefit of others?

•  Imam Mahdi (as) went into hiding because there weren't enough people who were truly ready to serve him. His life was in constant danger and there weren't enough people to stand up to the evil doers. And he remains in hiding today for the same reason.

•  Think about Imam Hussein (as) the child of our beloved Fatima (sa). He died asking the question “Is there anyone to help me?”

•  Remember Bibi Zainab and the things she said to the people of Kufa? She told them that she was going to complain to her grandfather! She asked them, “now you cry, now you care about us? Imagine how those who were not ready or willing to serve will be feeling on the Day of Judgment, when they're asked to explain themselves as to why they didn't help Allah's beloved Hussein (as).

Final Thought:

• Today, who is going to complain against you? Against me?
• Who did we fail to give a helping hand to?
• Whose personal secrets did we not guard? Whose weaknesses did we expose? Whose rights did we violate?
• What poor child went hungry or without shelter because we did not find the time to help or become informed about him/her?
• Have we taken on our responsibility as God's representatives seriously enough to care about the welfare of my brother and sister in humanity - or not?

WHEN YOU AND I TRULY BELIEVE IN “LA ILAHA ILALA” WITH ALL OF OUR HEARTS, AND MINDS—YOU WILL HEAR IT FROM OUR MOUTHS AND SEE IT IN OUR ACTIONS . O nly then will we see an end to poverty and oppression.

b) THE IMPORTANCE OF WOMEN IN COMMUNITY SERVICE IN ISLAM

By: Sr. Zaynab Abassi

JULY 16, 2006 SPEECH

QUR'AN AYA ABOUT COMMUNITIES

In Surat al-Jathiyah, the verse 28 states:

Every ummah (society) shall be summoned to its record. (45:28)

COMMUNITY'S RESPONSIBILITIES AND TRADITION OF PROPHET MUHAMMAD (SAW)

Why is Community Service So Important?? Because we come to know that not only individuals have a particular record of deeds of their own, but societies are also judged by their own records of deeds, because they, too, are like living beings who are conscious, responsible, and accountable for their acts, as they have freedom of will and act accordingly.

* Hadith of the Prophet In Regards to Community Service

In private and in public, Prophet Muhammad (saw) practiced traditions that are so impor­tant in Islam, consisting of the words which he spoke, the laws he brought, his conduct in relationship to the deeds he performed, things he remained silent about or did not disagree with and deeds he actually performed in his lifetime without telling others that they should perform them. The Traditions of the Prophet, then, are his words and his conduct in private and in public.

WHY ARE WOMEN IMPORTANT IN COMMUNITY SERVICE?

Reason 1: We are part of the decision-making process in our community, and we will be affected in our own homes with our own children whether we participate or don't participate.

Reason 2: We are responsible to create new programs where we get our women in the community involved as well as our children in the way of Allah in order to reduce the generation gap between mother and daughter and father and son.

Reason 3: We must continue to develop in our education and acquire new skills in order to become more resourceful for our community and our families.

  EXAMPLES OF WOMEN IN COMMUNITY SERVICE

(5 EXCELLENT COMMUNITY SERVERS IN ISLAM)

•  Bibi Asiya(sa): Raised an orphan child from her community and protected him from an oppressor, thus was the case of Prophet Musa (as) and Firawn.

2. Bibi Maryam(sa): Fed the poor people from the community and cured them through Allah's miracles.

3. Bibi Khadijah(sa): Spent her wealth to feed the poor and Orphan people of the community.

4. Bibi Fatima(sa): Active in the community in different ways that will be discussed in the next section.

5. Bibi Zaynab(sa): Excellent community speaker and first to establish Majalis for Imam Hussain(as).

  BIBI FATIMA AZ-ZAHRA(SA)'S HADITHS ON COMMUNITY PARTICIPATION AND SOME OF HER CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE MUSLIM UMMA.

HADITH 1: “And Allah caused) commanding goodness & forbidding to do evil for the amendment & correction of society & the common folks (public).

HADITH 2: “Allah saw nations & groups had various different sects in their religion & scattered & staying on the verge of the fires of differences, busy with their idol worshipping. They denied God with all the signs and symbols of HIM. So Allah illuminated the darknesses through my father Mohammad (saw) and removed the darknesses from my their hears, removed (cured) the blindness of the eyes.

FATIMA, THE TEACHER:

Al-Zahra (as) did not restrict herself to writing down the knowledge, and collecting it in a book or other written texts; she also worked to propagate it in the Muslim society. Also, she did not wait for people to come to her with queries and to provide the answers to them, but took the initiative to spread knowledge in society. The writers of her history narrated that she used to teach lessons to the women of the Migrants ( muhajroon ) and Supporters ( ansar ), who used to gather for her teaching lessons, rather as pupils assemble for the lessons given in the religious schools we know today. Her sermon in the Mosque, in which she explained the secrets of jurisprudence and Divine laws, as well as other points, is a living document and the best testimony of Fatimah's cultural message and her educational, intellectual responsibility

FATIMA, THE STRUGGLER:

Fatimah (as) did not live in seclusion. Rather her short life was filled with the wonderful holy struggle on all fronts, and that she lived for Allah and His way, and to implement truth .

a.) In the Battles:

She used to accompany her father (sawa) in some of his battles and wars. Historians have said that: 'When the Messenger of Allah (sawa) was wounded in the Battle of Uhud, Ali was bringing water, using his shield, from al-Mihras - the water source there - to wash the wound, but the blood did not stop.' [24] Fatimah (as) now played the role of a nurse: 'Fatimah came - gave him a dose of kindness first - and embraced him, crying, then she burned [palm tree] mat and put its ash on the wound and the blood stopped.' [25]

b)    Angry for the Truth:

After the death of the Messenger of Allah (sawa), she started a holy struggle of another kind.  Her biggest concern was to prove the right of Ali to the caliphate, as an Imam appointed by Allah. All her actions centred upon this high goal, and when she talked about Fadak, she did not do so because it represented a financial need, as other people might try to acquire money, for - to her and her husband - Fadak was not worth anything. As Ali (as) put it: 'What do I do with Fadak and [anything] other than Fadak when the self will, tomorrow, end up in a grave?' [26]

c) Her Visits to the Houses of the Ansar :

She retained this same firmness in her stance to the extent that, according to some narrations, she used to go out with Ali (as) to the houses of Muslims, especially the Ansar , to talk to them about the right of Ali (as) and his suitability for the caliphate. They would reply: 'Had your husband and cousin come to us before Abu Bakr, we would have never chosen any one else!' and Ali (as) would reply: 'Do you want me to leave the Messenger of Allah (sawa) in his house, unburied, and go out to quarrel with people about his rule?' And Fatimah (as) would say: 'Abu al-Hasan could not do otherwise, and they did what Allah would judge them and reclaim from them!' [29]

d) The Orator:

Fatimah (as) stood like a revolutionary or opposition activist, giving voice to her side of arguments in sermons matching argument with argument, offering rebuke when strong rebuke could emphasize the meaning of truth, and being lenient when leniency and gentleness could be useful.

FATIMA , AS THE MOTHER OF HER FATHER:

While her father bears the mandate of consciousness for mankind upon his shoulders and suffers the enmity of the enemies of the people, Fatima tastes the suffering, sadness and anger of life. Because she is very young, she can move about freely. She makes use of this freedom to accompany her father. She knows her father has no life of his own to be able to take hold of his child's hand and walk freely and easily down the streets and into the bazaar. He always goes alone. In the wave of the town's enemies and enmity, he swims with dangers on all sides. The -small girl, who knows her father's fate, never lets him go alone.

Many times she sees her father standing amidst a crowd of people. He speaks to them softly and they, in turn, harshly send him away. Their only answers are to make fun of him and show him enmity. He feels lonely and friendless again: But quietly and patiently, he gathers, another group together. He begins his speech all over again. At the end, tired and having brought forth no result, like fathers of other children who return home from their jobs, he also returns home seeking a bit of rest and then returns once more to his work.

History reminds us that once when he had gone into the Masjid al-haram, and is called bad names and is beaten, Fatima, a small child, is standing alone a short distance from the scene. She watches and then returns home with her father.

The day when he has prostrated himself in the mosque and his enemies throw the intestines of a sheep at him, suddenly, little Fatima , reaches towards her fa­ther, picks it up and throws it away. Then with her small, loving hands, cleans her father's head and face, comforts him and returns him to their home.

People who see this thin, weak girl, alone, beside her champion father, see how she comforts him. She sup­ports him through his troubles and sufferings. With her pure, child-like behavior, she sympathesizes with him. It is because of this that she comes to be called umm al-abi­ha, the mother of her father.

•  THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF COMMUNITY SERVICE BY WOMEN

EFFECT 1: It is an opportunity to spread knowledge to others and fulfill our obligation of acquiring knowledge.

EFFECT 2: Community looks up to women organizers, women teachers, women assistants in order to help educate the community's children.

EFFECT 3: The community will feel strong by having moral and active support they can count on in order to be productive and successful in society.

•  THE NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF NOT SERVING IN THE COMMUNITY

EFFECT 1: Ignorance will prevail when we fail to educate ourselves and educate others.

EFFECT 2: Islam offers the organizational formula for every organization to become successful, but we don't

have enough organizers, so our community will struggle much more in order to succeed.

EFFECT 3: Without enough women participation and without enough moral support, the community will be doomed to fail if we don't act.

AN INVITATION TO SERVICE

  The Prophet (sawa) wanted for Fatima to relieve her pains by becoming busy with Islamic values and propagating them to people. This suggests to us that we should be aware of our missionary role more than our pains, so that we might beat our pain through our mission, for whoever lives the concerns of the grand issues forgets his pains and renders them insignificant.

THE QUR'ANIC VIEW

It may be said on the basis of the study of the Quranic verses that sociability is inherent in the very nature and creation of man. In the Surah al Hujurat the Quran says:

O mankind! We have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes, that you may know one another [not that on account of this you may boast of being superior to others]. Certainly, the noblest of you, in the sight of Allah, is the most God-fearing among you ....(49:13)

It may be inferred that the Quran believes in a certain kind of life which is the collective and social existence.

In verse 34 of Surat al-'A`raf, the Quran asserts:

And every ummah (society) hath its term, and when its term cometh, they cannot put it off an hour nor yet advance (it) . (7:34)

  REMEMBER…

Fatima(sa) lived for the major issues and never for the minor ones, because whoever lives for Islam and all truth will have to be of the size of Islam and truth, and will have to stay firm - not to take sides or to flatter, back down, weaken, or be humiliated or saddened.

c) “How to serve? Needs & Options”

  Translated Summary of the Urdu Speech

by Sister Erum Devjani

July 16, 2006

Surah Kahaf, verse 30: “As for those who have faith and do righteous deeds – indeed We do not waste the reward of those who are good in deeds.”

Allah asked Prophet Musa (a.s.) if he had performed any deed only for His Sake. Prophet Musa replied that he prayed, fasted and praised Him. Allah told him that prayer is for crossing the bridge of ‘sirat', fasting is a shield from hellfire, praising is a means for increasing one's rank in heaven. All these are good for his own sake. What has he done for Allah's sake only? Prophet Musa started weeping and then asked God what deed was for His sake only? Allah said if an oppressed was helped? A naked person was clothed? A thirsty person was given water? An Aalim was respected? Remember Musa that these deeds are for My sake only.

How can one momin help another momin?

• Visiting the sick
• Feeding the hungry
• Fulfilling someone's monetary need
• Making them happy
• Quenching someone's thirst
• Assisting the oppressed
• Giving good advice
• Removing someone's distress
• etc

There is a general belief that serving the community only means that a wealthy person may give money, an aalim or teacher may give education, etc but this is not all. Everyone can serve according to their abilities:

• A sister who is a doctor can help by volunteering few hours for the community
• A homemaker who is educated can get trainings such as First Aid so that she can help in case of Emergency.
• Another homemaker could serve by cooking meals for the Center or using other skills to support the Center.
• Someone who is good in other fields such as computers could teach others.
• One who is learned in religious education can impart that knowledge to others.
• There are many small jobs that can be done in order to help out for example,
1. Responsibility of opening and closing the Center
2. Serving dinner to the momineen
3. Giving a helping hand in cleanup to the sister's rep
4. Picking trash
5. And one of the most important and easiest services to the House of God and Imams can be: to maintain silence during Salaat and program.

All these services need to be done for the sake of Allah alone. If we are not expecting anything in return, if we do not hope for praises or acknowledgments, if we do not count our favors to others, and such; then we can be assured that our intentions are true.

Surah al-Qasas, verse 54:

“Those will be given their reward two times for their patience. They repel evil [conduct] with good, and spend out of what We have provided them, and when they hear vain talk, they avoid it and say, ‘Our deeds belong to us, and your deeds belong to you. Peace be to you. We do not court the ignorant.'

Most important responsibility and biggest help:

We should be thankful to the persons who are serving in the way of Allah. If we see any defect or mistake, we should ignore it and forgive. Instead of finding faults, we should look at their services and give them respect. Allah says return favor with favor.

Another important service is to train and raise our children in this manner that they recognize their duty and learn to do things for Allah's sake, not to show to anyone else.

d) From the life of Sayyida Fatima Zahra(s.a.)