Islam and the Qur'an As someone who has worked as an imam of a masjid for many years and was taught at an Islamic school, I've had the opportunity to see and to work with hundreds of Muslim children. One thing that I've come to realize is that the way we present and teach Islam to our children is deeply flawed. This is how the average child in the Muslim community learns about Islam. The parents bring their child to the masjid to memorize some verses of the Qur'an, memorize some chapters in Juz'a Amma. They want their kids to learn how to pray, how to fast, how to do wudu, how to make ghusl. And at home they tell their kids, you know, some stories about the prophets. Maybe they send them to weekend school, cover some of those basic topics. That's it. I call it functional Islamic education. We want our children to function as Muslims. They need to learn how to pray, how to fast, how to make wudu. And that becomes the totality of the education that we provide them. That same child, the same one who would run around the masjid and memorize some Qur'an, they'll grow up, they'll get to high school, they'll go to university, and at some point they'll start wondering about some bigger questions. Questions like, why do I pray anyways? Why do I worship Allah? How do I know that God exists? How do I know the Prophet ﷺ was truthful? The more fundamental questions about faith, about Islam start to arise. It might be that even as kids, they had these same questions, even while they were little children in the masjid, but they never felt comfortable asking them. Or it might be that in university and college, they take a philosophy course, and these questions and others begin to arise, and the kids struggle because their Islamic education never addressed these questions to begin with. Instead, their Islamic education was all about functionality. How do I stand? Where do I put my hands? What do I recite in prayer? But never, why should you pray? Why does Allah deserve our worship?
We teach our kids Islam, we often fail to teach them Iman, faith and spirituality. This is a fundamental flaw in how we raise our children, and one which really harmed the upbringing of many Muslim children, and caused many of them to grow apart from their religion. Reflect on this example. The Prophet ﷺ was walking with his cousin, Abdullah bin Abbas radiAllahu anhu, who was only 12 years old at the time. The Prophet ﷺ tells him, يَا غُلَامِ إِنِّي وَعَلِّمُكَ كَلِمَاتٍ O young boy, I will teach you some words of wisdom. What do you think the Prophet ﷺ will teach this young boy? What do you think the Prophet will prioritize for someone his age to learn and to understand? The Prophet ﷺ tells him, اِحْفَظَ اللَّهَ يَحْفَظْكِ اِحْفَظَ اللَّهَ تَجِدْهُ تُجَاهَكِ He said, be mindful of Allah, and Allah will be mindful of you. Be mindful of Allah, you will find Allah before you. The Prophet ﷺ seeks to connect Abdullah's heart to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. The Prophet prioritizes that he knows who Allah is, that he learns and churns to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, that he seeks to understand his Creator, to know that Allah will be there for him, to help him and support him as long as he churns to Allah عز و جل. This advice is central to building iman, building faith in our hearts. And the Prophet ﷺ also knows that young people are typically focused on receiving the admiration and the approval of others. So he orients Abdullah ibn Abbas to realize Allah is the only one worthy of our striving for approval. Be mindful of Allah. Don't be mindful of the people, don't care about what people think. Be mindful of Allah, Allah will be there for you. People sometimes abandon you at your time of need, be mindful of Allah, you will find Allah before you. He ﷺ continues, if you ask, ask Allah. If you rely, rely upon Allah. Don't ask the people, don't be reliant on the people, rather be reliant on Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. He ﷺ continues, know if all the creation joined together to benefit you,
they can't benefit you except with that which Allah has already written for you. And if they gather to harm you, they can't harm you with that except which Allah has already written for you. People can't help you, they can't hurt you. So forget about seeking their approval, rather prioritize the pleasure of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the only one who can help or harm over the pleasure of the creation. This is such a deep spiritual, intellectual meaning that the Prophet ﷺ imparts to Abdullah ibn Abbas. The type of education that is often missing from our education of our children. In the Qur'an Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala captures the conversation of Luqman ʿalayhi as-salām, a wise man and his son. What does he begin with? What does he prioritize in teaching his son about Islam? Allah says, وَلَقَدْ آتَيْنَا لُقْمَانَ الْحِكْمَةَ أَنَشْكُرُ لِلَّهِ وَمَنْ يَشْكُرُ فَإِنَّمَا يَشْكُرُ لِنَفْسِهِ وَمَنْ كَفَرَ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ حَمِيدٌ Allah says, we indeed bless Luqman with wisdom. Be grateful to Allah for whoever is grateful, it is only for their own good. And whoever is ungrateful, then surely Allah is self-sufficient and praiseworthy. Of the wisdom that was granted to Luqman, be grateful to Allah. And whoever is grateful, it's for their own good. Allah is not benefited by our gratitude, He's not benefited by our worship or devotion. And whoever is ungrateful, إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ Allah is غني, He is without need, حَمِيد, worthy of praise. Whether we praise Allah or not, He's worthy of praise. Whether we worship Allah or not, He is not benefited or harmed by our worship. Rather, whoever is grateful, it's for themselves. It helps and benefits themselves. This very fundamental question that your children might be thinking, why should I worship Allah, is answered by Luqman عليه السلام. وَإِذْ قَالَ لُقْمَانَ لِبْنِهِ وَهُوَ يَعِذُهُ يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تُشْرِكْ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُّلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ Allah says, remember when Luqman said to his son while advising him, Oh my son, do not associate anything in the worship with Allah. Indeed, associating others with Allah in worship is a great injustice. Our greatest obligation in this religion is to worship Allah alone.
So Luqman tells his son that shirk, associating in worship with Allah, is a great injustice, a great dhulm. Just as we understand injustice in this world, stealing from others, hurting others, harming others, shirk is a spiritual dhulm, a spiritual injustice. Allah created us, sustained us, gifted us. If we direct our worship to other than Allah, it would be a grave injustice. But the impact of that injustice would fall upon us. We would be the ones to suffer from this injustice. يَا بُنَيَّ إِنَّهَا إِن تَكُمْ اِثْقَالَ حَبَّةٍ مِّنْ خَرْدَلٍ فَتَكُونُوا فِي صَخْرَةٍ أَوْ فِي السَّمَوَاتِ أَوْ فِي الْأَرْضِ يَأْتِبِهَا اللَّهُ Luqman says to his son, Oh my dear son, if a deed were the weight of a mustard seed hidden in a rock, in the depth of the earth or up high in the heavens, Allah would bring it forth. Indeed, Allah is subtle and aware. Luqman teaches his son about the consequences of actions, that Allah knows all that we do, that there's no way we can hide our actions. You can evade the parent or the teacher, even the police, you cannot evade Allah عز و جل. Even if you hid your deeds inside of a rock, buried in the bottom of the earth, Allah can bring it forth. He's connecting his child to Allah, to be conscious and aware of his Creator. Then it's only the next verse that he says, يَا بُنَيَّ أَقِمِ الصَّلَاةِ Oh my son, establish prayer. Whereas our Islamic education tends to begin and end with Salah, Luqman gives his son a holistic Islamic education. He teaches him about Allah, who is Allah, about Tawheed, worshipping Allah alone. He encourages him intellectually and spiritually, connecting him to Allah. And also teaches him about prayer and manners and etiquettes. A holistic education which will help his child be raised as a righteous believer. And as parents, it's important for us to strive to give our children as robust and holistic an Islamic education as possible. Yaqeen Institute offers some great resources that parents can take advantage of and depend on. Including Yaqeen Conversations and Conviction Circles, which has excellent content on topics like
why does Allah deserve our worship? And proofs of prophethood. These resources will strengthen your ability to have these conversations with your children and help answer these questions. And may Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala grant us strength and allow us to raise our kids as good people and as strong believers. Ameen.