Worship must transform your character
“You have to make sure you're working on the person who's doing those prostrations.”
True worship includes character: prayer, fasting, charity, and Quranic practice must transform how we treat others, especially by abandoning arrogance and backbiting and holding ourselves accountable.
The khutbah in 5 steps
- Religious worship and personal character should not be treated as separate categories.
- The Quran and hadith warn that harm, arrogance, and violated rights can erase the value of worship.
- Backbiting is presented as a severe disease of the tongue that people often rationalize as advice or venting.
- Believers should forgive, make du'a for people they resent, and interrupt backbiting in the moment.
- Self-accountability should ensure that prayer, fasting, charity, and Quran recitation transform the heart and conduct.
In the khateeb's words
“But you have to stop there in the moment and think, do I want to lose all of my good deeds?”
“you have to forgive individuals and recognize that holding on to that crime they may have committed against you, holding on to that issue that you have with them, is going to hurt no one but you.”
“So today, make that commitment to yourself that in addition to working on your salats and your zakat and your relationship with the Quran, you have to make sure you're working on the person who's doing those prostrations.”
For the dinner table
Today’s khutbah reminded us that worship is not only prayer, fasting, charity, and Quran recitation; it must also improve how we treat people. Backbiting, arrogance, and harming others can cause us to lose the reward of good deeds. When we feel tempted to speak badly about someone, we can stop, forgive them, and make du'a for them instead. We should regularly ask ourselves whether our worship is changing our hearts and behavior. The goal is to become people whose worship makes them kinder, more humble, and more careful with their tongues.
- When has it been difficult to control your tongue, and what could help next time?
- How might making du'a for someone change the way you think about them?
- What character habit would you like your worship to improve?
The masjids
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