"As Americans and also as Muslims we have to carry the burden of the crisis in the Middle East. Don't think that we can escape this and be healthy in our souls. We are not going to be pleased in our souls no matter how much we fool our hearts with our rationalizing and fabricating and pretending that behavior is right. If Muslims suffer anywhere in this world, it is supposed to burden Muslims everywhere in this world. The Palestinian situation is a burden and a pain on us. And we cannot accept it and never will. If we can find any way to make a contribution to their relief, we should want to do it. We have to support our Palestinian Muslim brothers. If they were not Muslims, we would be obligated. We should support any people against those who would mistreat them.

We belong to the same religion. What happens to the Palestinians must affect us sooner or later, one way or the other. We are together in this, and that is what we have to understand. Allah says, "You are one community, and I am your Lord. Therefore, worship Me (obey Me)."

If we have brothers or nations that are not obeying Allah, let us deal with that problem separately! Don't wait until the brother gets in trouble and simply dismiss our obligation by saying to him. "You are not obeying Allah.': You knew he wasn't obeying Allah before the trouble, so how come you did not go and help him gain obedience to Allah? Now that he is in trouble, go and help your brother. After you have helped him, then talk to him about his shortcomings in the religion.

We have to help him first. Prophet Muhammed said to "help him by pulling him back from the wrong." We are not to wait until his oppressor stops killing him. It is too late to help him when he is dead. We are to help him get the oppressor off of him. If the Muslim brother is the one at fault, then we are to condemn our Muslim brother.

We also are to be in sympathy with the developing world, for I hate to use the term "third world." We have to have sympathy with the developing world people. How can we be Muslims upholding the justice of the Qur'an and the life of the Prophet (the prayer and the peace be on him) and not be sympathetic with oppressed and mistreated people in what we call the poor and developing nations? Some will say, "Oh, that is getting political." A Muslim has to be political.

This religion is a comprehensive religion. It requires of us that we answer every legitimate human and society concern. We can't stop and say, "Oh, this is economics." Allah wants us involved in economics and in politics. It does not mean that we must stand by any particular nations just because we sympathize with them in their suffering. We may not like their behavior either. However, if they are being mistreated, we are supposed to come to their side and be against all oppressors on both sides of the conflict.

Most of the "third world" or what we call the developing nations are not like they used to be during the colonial days and immediately after. Now most of what we call the developing nations today are oppressed by their own people. Their own people are following the ways of the oppressors who oppressed them during the colonial days."

 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Language-Commentaries-of-WDeenMohammed/