Beirut Friday Prayer: The birth anniversary of Jesus Christ (p.)

The First SermonIn the first sermon, His Eminence, Sayyed Ali Fadlullah, celebrated the birth anniversary of Jesus Christ (p.). He first related the story of the Muslims who migrated to Abyssinia whose king was kind to them and refused to send them back despite the attempts of Quraish. This king would not have acted in this manner and listened to what the Quran mentioned about Jesus had he not been driven by his Christian religion to defend the right.The Sayyed, then, explained that he has recalled this story to prove that the relation between Islam and Christianity is founded on mutual love and brotherhood, having come from the same source and called for the same values.He also highlighted what the Quran said about Christ, starting by his miraculous birth, his childhood, his miracles and the conspiracy of Crucifiction which he was saved from by Allah, as well as the verses that talk about Virgin Mary. The Sayyed, then, outlined the message of Jesus which called for removing injustice, and he described it as one of love and mercy. Jesus also called on the believers to obey Allah.The Sayyed explained that the method of Jesus in his call and throughout his life was based on love, but this love did not signify weakness, or else he would not have thrown the thieves out of the temple and he would not have called to eradicate evil from its roots.The Sayyed concluded that the occasion of the birth of Jesus Christ should be celebrated by both Christians and Muslims. He further asserted that we need to adopt the values Christ had called for and represented throughout his life. We should all join hands to confront moral deviation, international arrogance, and to help the poor, the weak and the needy.The Second SermonThe Sayyed started the second sermon by discussing the situation in Iraq. He said that we rejoiced for the completion of the American withdrawal from Iraq, but we warned that they will not actually leave before planting the seeds of strife.And this is, we are afraid, what has happened with the Iraqis suffering from an acute and dangerous political division that some are trying to portray as a sectarian division, although it is mainly legal.Thus, the Sayyed called on the Iraqi officials to be aware of the dangers and to deal with the issue with full responsibility and wisdom, for a sectarian strife will not bring about benefit to anyone; but rather, it will burn the entire country and make it an easy prey for those who are waiting to seize any favorable opportunity.As for Syria, the Sayyed hoped that the agreement on the mission of the Arab observers would constitute the beginning of a new calm phase that could develop into an agreement that is sponsored by the Arab League based on the dialogue between the regime and the opposition.The Sayyed added that he appreciated the unifying step taken by the Gulf countries, but he advised all the parties not to forget Palestine and explained that any unity that is not directed against the Zionist enemy will play a negative role and will be employed in the internal struggle, or it will turn into a nominal unity.The Sayyed called on the Palestinians, especially those living in Ain Al-Hilwe camp, not to allow strife to make any blood be spilled, and he called for unity and resorting to dialogue.In Egypt, the Sayyed called for making the Army in the service of the people and not directed against them.Lastly, in Lebanon, the Sayyed pointed out that if the raise in salaries is not accompanied by a stabilization of prices, it will be useless. The Sayyed added that the raise should be viewed as one of the workers’ rights and not a political gain by this party or the other./129