First Khutbah
Indeed, all praise belongs to Allah. We praise Him, we seek His help and we ask His forgiveness. We seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our souls and from our bad deeds. Whomever Allah guides, none can lead astray; and whomever He leaves astray, none can guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, without partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.
﴿يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ ٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِۦ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنتُم مُّسْلِمُونَ﴾
“O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims [in submission to Him].”
Dear brothers and sisters, every chapter of the Qur'an but one begins with Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim — in the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. Before we read a single command, we are reminded of His mercy. And the one He sent to us was described in the same way:
﴿وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَٰكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةًۭ لِّلْعَٰلَمِينَ﴾
“And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds.”
Today I want us to reflect on the mercy that Allah asks us to show — to our families, to the weak, to strangers and even to animals — and on the promise attached to it.
The merciful are shown mercy
The Prophet ﷺ gave us a principle that is easy to remember and hard to live by: “The merciful are shown mercy by Ar-Rahman. Be merciful on the earth, and you will be shown mercy from Who is above the heavens” [Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1924, graded sahih by al-Albani]. And he said, in the opposite direction: “Allah will not be merciful to those who are not merciful to mankind” [Sahih al-Bukhari 7376].
Allah described the companions of the Prophet ﷺ as:
﴿رُحَمَآءُ بَيْنَهُمْ﴾
“merciful among themselves.”
And the Prophet ﷺ described the believers as one body: “The similitude of believers in regard to mutual love, affection, fellow-feeling is that of one body; when any limb of it aches, the whole body aches, because of sleeplessness and fever” [Sahih Muslim 2586]. When Muslims anywhere are suffering — from war, hunger or disaster — a heart that feels nothing should ask itself whether it is truly part of that body.
Mercy begins at home
One day the Prophet ﷺ kissed his grandson al-Hasan. A man sitting with him, al-Aqra' ibn Habis, said that he had ten children and had never kissed any of them. The Prophet ﷺ looked at him and said: “Whoever is not merciful to others will not be treated mercifully” [Sahih al-Bukhari 5997]. When a Bedouin said, “We don't kiss them,” the Prophet ﷺ replied: “I cannot put mercy in your heart after Allah has taken it away from it” [Sahih al-Bukhari 5998].
Some of us were raised to believe that affection is weakness, that a father should be distant and a husband should be hard. This is not the Sunnah. The Prophet ﷺ, the leader of the believers, even shortened the prayer for the sake of a crying baby and its mother: “When I start the prayer I intend to prolong it, but on hearing the cries of a child, I cut short the prayer because I know that the cries of the child will incite its mother's passions” [Sahih al-Bukhari 709].
Mercy also includes our elders. The Prophet ﷺ said: “He is not one of us who does not have mercy on our young and does not respect our elders” [Jami` at-Tirmidhi 1919, graded sahih by al-Albani]. Our ageing parents, the elderly neighbour, the old man struggling to find a place in the row — these are our tests of mercy.
Mercy to every living thing
Islam's mercy does not stop with human beings. The Prophet ﷺ told of a man who, while travelling, was overcome by thirst, found a well and drank. Coming out, he saw a dog panting and licking the mud from thirst. He went back down, filled his shoe with water and gave the dog a drink. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Allah thanked him for that deed and forgave him.” When the companions asked whether there is reward even in caring for animals, he said: “(Yes) There is a reward for serving any animate (living being)” [Sahih al-Bukhari 6009].
And he warned of the opposite: “A woman entered the (Hell) Fire because of a cat which she had tied, neither giving it food nor setting it free to eat from the vermin of the earth” [Sahih al-Bukhari 3318].
Even when slaughtering, the Prophet ﷺ commanded gentleness: “Verily Allah has enjoined goodness to everything; so when you kill, kill in a good way and when you slaughter, slaughter in a good way. So every one of you should sharpen his knife, and let the slaughtered animal die comfortably” [Sahih Muslim 1955].
I say these words and I ask Allah's forgiveness for myself and for you, so seek His forgiveness; indeed He is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
Second Khutbah
All praise is due to Allah, and may blessings and peace be upon His Messenger, his family and his companions.
Dear brothers and sisters, how do we soften a heart that has grown hard? Begin with small acts: sit with an orphan, visit someone who is sick, call a relative who is lonely, feed someone who is hungry, and speak gently to the people who serve you. Mercy is like a muscle; it grows when it is used.
Remember too that gentleness is loved by Allah. The Prophet ﷺ said: “'A'isha, verily Allah is kind and He loves kindness and confers upon kindness which he does not confer upon severity” [Sahih Muslim 2593]. Allah praised those who
﴿وَتَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ وَتَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلْمَرْحَمَةِ﴾
“advised one another to patience and advised one another to compassion.”
So let us advise one another to mercy, in our homes, our masjids, our workplaces and our online spaces, where harshness has become so common.
Allah has commanded us to send blessings upon His Prophet:
﴿إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ وَمَلَٰٓئِكَتَهُۥ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى ٱلنَّبِىِّ ۚ يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ صَلُّوا۟ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا۟ تَسْلِيمًا﴾
“Indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [Allah to grant him] peace.”
As the Prophet ﷺ taught us to say: “O Allah! Send Your Mercy on Muhammad and on the family of Muhammad, as You sent Your Mercy on Abraham and on the family of Abraham, for You are the Most Praise-worthy, the Most Glorious. O Allah! Send Your Blessings on Muhammad and the family of Muhammad, as You sent your Blessings on Abraham and on the family of Abraham, for You are the Most Praise-worthy, the Most Glorious” [Sahih al-Bukhari 3370].
O Allah, put mercy in our hearts, gentleness in our hands and kindness on our tongues. Make us merciful to our children, dutiful to our parents, and caring towards the weak. O Allah, have mercy on the oppressed and the suffering wherever they are, and relieve their distress. Forgive the believing men and women, the living and the dead.
﴿رَبَّنَآ ءَاتِنَا فِى ٱلدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةًۭ وَفِى ٱلْءَاخِرَةِ حَسَنَةًۭ وَقِنَا عَذَابَ ٱلنَّارِ﴾
“Our Lord, give us in this world [that which is] good and in the Hereafter [that which is] good and protect us from the punishment of the Fire.”
Servants of Allah, remember Allah and He will remember you; be grateful to Him and He will increase you. And establish the prayer.