3. WHY WORK FOR CHANGE?
WHY Should We Volunteer?
WHY Bother with Community
Activism?
4. 1. It’s the Mission Statement for Muslims
Given By God: To invite people to
goodness and to warn them about evil.
5. 2. We are Khalifah’s (Representatives and
Ambassadors) of God on Earth. We are the
Agents of Positive Change. We are the Change!
6. 3. We want to be the BEST!
“The best
among
people is
the one...
Who takes
keen
interest in
enjoining
good and
forbidding
wrong...”
-Prophet Muhammad
[Musnad Ahmad]
7. 4. Community Service was the Sunnah
(Lifestyle) of Prophet Muhammad
“The Leader of the community is their Servant.”
- Prophet Muhammad [Daylami and Tabarani]
8. 5. Desire to be Part of the Special
Community of Prophet Muhammad:
“He is not one of us, who….does not work to bring
people to good (Ma'ruf) and repel them from evil
(Munkar).” – Prophet Muhammad [Ahmad]
9. 6. Prophet
Muhammad
Encouraged Us to
Take Action:
“Whoever sees an evil, let
him change it with his
hand; and if he is not able
to do so, then [let him
change it] with his tongue;
and if he is not able to do
so, then with his heart —
and that is the weakest of
faith.” – Prophet Muhammad [Muslim]
10. 7. God will Not Change Our Condition unless We
Work to Change
"Surely, Allah does not change
the condition of a people until
they change that which is in
themselves." [Quran 7:11]
11. 8. To Stay Focused &
Be Productive!
Idle Mind
-> Satan
-> Sins
-> Unproductive
"One of the many signs
that one is disliked by
Allah is the wasting of
his or her time” (i.e.
he/she would be
involved useless things).
– Ibn Qayyim
12. 9. Volunteering is Our Way to Thank
God & Thank People
"He who does not thank people, does not thank Allah.”
-Prophet Muhammad [Tirmidhi & Abu Dawud]
13. 10.Care for Others is a Condition to Receive
God’s Mercy
“Have
mercy
(Rahma) on
those on
the earth
so that the
One in the
Heaven
may have
mercy on
you.”
[Tirmidhi]
14. 11. Act While We have the Opportunity!
"Good health and spare time are two of the
blessings of Allah, with respect to which many
people are deceived." – Prophet Muhammad [Bukhari]
22. 20.We Can Bring Spiritual & Social Revival:
“Revolutionaries
are the children
and young
people…
The young
people are the
ones who most
quickly identify
with the struggle
and necessity to
eliminate the
evil conditions
that exist.”
– Malcolm X
23. 20.Canada Needs Volunteers!
• 13.3 million Canadians contribute
2.1 billion hours, the equivalent of
1.1 million full-time jobs
• 47% of Canadians volunteer
• Religion plays an important role
in formal volunteering: 65% of
Canadians who attended weekly
religious services did volunteering,
compared with 44% of those who
did not attend weekly or at all.
• Volunteers who were frequent
religious attendees dedicated
about 40% more hours on average
than other volunteers.
(Source: Canada Survey on Giving, Volunteering and
Participating, 2010)
24. Where Do I Start?
Ask Yourself… I POSTER
1. Is my intention pure?
2. What are 2-3 skills or talents I have that I
can contribute to community?
3. How much time an I willing to commit
daily or weekly? Weekdays? Weekends?
4. What kind of cause or project or
organization I am more passionate about?
5. What kind of experience I would like
obtain from volunteering?
6. Can I ensure to be regular in volunteering?
7. Am I willing to make helping others a
priority?
Notas del editor
“Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that is good (Khayr) , enjoining good (Al-Ma'ruf) and forbidding evil (Al-Munkar). And it is they who are the successful.” [3:104]
This requires proactive outreach, principled leadership, and deep consciousness of this responsibility. Can’t passively observe the Earth being destroyed and people being treated unjustly!
While Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was delivering a sermon someone asked him, “O Messenger of Allah, who is the best of people?” The Prophet (pbuh) told him, “The best among people is the one (1) who is the most pious, (2) reads the Book (Quran) frequently, (3) takes keen interest in enjoining good and forbidding wrong, (4) and maintains relations with his relative.” [Musnad Ahmad]
Example from Sirah: The Prophet’s (pbuh) own involvement with the building of the first Masjid
Example from Sirah: Abu Bakr sweeping Masjid an-Nabawi in the morning
Example from Sirah: Omar bin Al-Khattab Carrying load for an old woman during his Khilafah
The Prophet said: “By Allah, Whose Hand possesses my soul, all of you should enjoin good and forbid wrong, otherwise you will incur Allah’s displeasure, which is inevitable.” [Tirmidhi]
The Prophet said: “By Allah, Whose Hand possesses my soul, all of you should enjoin good and forbid wrong, otherwise you will incur Allah’s displeasure, which is inevitable.” [Tirmidhi]
Islamic life by nature requires change in every aspect and activity: character, spirituality, intellect, family affairs, society, and politics.
Islamic activism keeps our minds and bodies involved with a productive cause. Shaytan loves attacking people sitting idle or passively involved with wrong environment.
The Prophet said: “People are dependants of Allah; the closest to Him are those who are most useful to His dependants.” [Muslim]
Working for Change requires a Living heart that hurts at the thought of people suffering due to social and psychological illnesses!
We are not sure whether we will live until tomorrow to be able to contribute something valuable to Islam.
Hassan al Basri: "I have lived with a people who were more stingy with their time than you people are with your money."
A Predecessor: "I do not regret anything as much as I regret a day in which my good actions have not increased."
Imam Ash-Shafiee: “Time is like a Sword. Cut it (wisely), before it cuts you!"
Learn a new language.
Learn a new language.
Helps you understand others and yourself better!
A small proportion of volunteers do most of the work. In fact in 2010, 10% of volunteers accounted for 53% of all volunteer hours given to non-profit and charitable organizations. They dedicated more than 390 hours to their volunteer activities, the equivalent of at least 10 weeks in a full-time job.3
Another 15% of volunteers logged between 161 and 390 hours, corresponding to between 4 and almost 10 full-time weeks of unpaid work; they contributed 24% of the total hours devoted to volunteer work in 2010.
Most notable, however, is the relationship with religiosity. In 2010, 21% of people who went to religious services once a week were top volunteers, compared with 10% of people who attended less frequently (including adults who did not attend at all).