STATEMENT THANKING CANADIAN MUSLIMS AND MOSQUES FOR THEIR EFFORTS, COOPERATION AND PATIENCE AS WE HEAD INTO FALL
September 21, 2020 | Safar 4, 1442 AH
Bismillah hirRahman nirRaheem
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Abundant Peace, Blessings and Salutations upon the Prophet Muhammad (S)
Dear Canadian Muslims,
Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh
May the peace, mercy and blessings of Allah be with you
We are living through unique times. We are very grateful to our Muslim Community who has shown exceptional resilience and respect for adhering to protocols from authorities across Canada. Despite feeling isolated, many of our elders are staying safe by choosing to stay at home instead of attending their mosques. Giving up social activities, many youth are gathering less with their friends. Regardless of the challenges of childcare, many families are keeping their children home and have chosen online learning for them. Respecting mosque administration, our mosque goers are coming with masks and mats. Everyone is looking out for each other. Anas ibn Malik reported: The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, “Deliberation is from Allah, and recklessness is from Satan” (Hasan).
We don’t know how long this pandemic will last but we know that it will come to an end, Bi’ithnillah. We place our trust in Allah to bring an end to this pandemic. As cases are increasing, we are urging our community to continue adhering to government and mosque protocols. We must continue to remind each other to be patient, as Allah tells us in Surah al-‘Asr, “and encourage one another to patience.” While adhering to the protocols, please remember that our religion encourages us to take extra precautions for our safety. Scholars tell us that it is safer to stay within the rules of what is permissible and recommended, than to walk the edges of the neutral or disliked. It is easier to fall into the unlawful from the disliked than if one was more precautious and stayed within the rules of the recommended. In our current context, we have provincial protocols which we are doing our best to follow. However, being more precautious is even better as it will keep us more protected from outbreaks, which can cause the closure of our mosques. We want our mosques to remain open. This will take a community effort and we have seen that it can be done, Masha Allah.
Our recent release recommended reducing in-person activities and curtailing of multiple Friday prayers in identified COVID-19 hotspot regions because of the stated reason above. We are aware of the hardship that this will place on many of our mosques. However, Allah Subhanahu wa Ta’ala has promised that through every difficulty comes ease.
We will continue to provide support and service to our community. Please feel free to reach out to us.