"The Night Journey and the Divine Promise"

The First SermonIn the first sermon, His Eminence, Sayyed Ali Fadlullah, celebrated the anniversary of the Night Journey (Isra’) and the Ascension to Heaven (Mi’raj). He narrated the story, highlighting that during this journey, the Prophet had met Musa, Issa, Ibrahim and other Prophets in Jerusalem and led them in prayers, before he ascended to Heaven where he saw Paradise and Hell and reached Sudrat Al-Muntaha where he saw his Lord’s greatest Ayahs (wonders). But when Muhammad (p.) told the people of Quraish what had happened to him, they mocked and ridiculed him, yet this does not alter the fact that the journey actually took place, for mocking is the argument of the weak who have no other proof.The Sayyed then explained the meaning of this miracle. He said that the belief in this journey signifies belief in the unity of the Heavenly Messages and that they have come from the same source. It also means that the Muslims should hold on to their attachment to Al-Aqsa Mosque. The responsibility of liberating it cannot be postponed, nor can the Muslims accept any price for conceding it. It is the responsibility of all Muslims, and not only the Palestinians or Arabs.The Holy Quran has pointed out to the great role that those who came before us played in liberating Al-Aqsa from the children of Israel. It is as if it is calling on us to continue this march and telling us that the victory those before us had achieved can certainly be realized once again by the successors. This is not merely a wish; it is a Divine promise:“And We had made known to the children of Israel in the Book: Most certainly you will make mischief in the land twice, and most certainly you will behave insolently with great insolence. So when the promise for the first of the two came, We sent over you Our servants, of mighty prowess, so they went to and fro among the houses, and it was a promise to be accomplished”. (17:08-12)The second sermonIn the second sermon, His Eminence, Sayyed Ali Fadlullah, commemorated the anniversary of the 1967 Naksa - setback. He said that this Naska could have turned into a major defeat had it not been for the spirit of resistance in Lebanon and Palestine. But the enemy has not given up. In addition to maintaining its military superiority, it is trying to incite strife in our countries, which means that we ought to promote our internal unity and end any sectarian or political division, in addition to strengthening the Resistance.At the same time, we have to keep our eyes on Syria where the conspiracy aims at weakening its army and dividing its people. Therefore, we call on all the components of the Syrian people to be aware of what is going on and build bridges of communication between each other to end the blood shedding. They should know that no external party will help them, since these parties are happy with the Syrian bloodshed, as long as their interests and those of Israel are secured.In Lebanon, the Sayyed renewed his call for an Islamic meeting as a prelude for a national one. This meeting will study the means to end strife that some parties have begun to engage in. He added that if the political powers do not play this role and each party continues to care only about its own sectarian interests, Lebanon will fall into a state of complete chaos.  /129