Summary: AsSalam o Alaikum Wa RahmatUllah he Wabarkatu!<br> Aa’odu Billah he-minash Shaytannir rajeem<br> Transliteration: SharaAAa lakum mina alddeeni ma wassa bihi noohan<br> waallathee awhayna ilayka wama wassayna bihi ibraheema<br> wamoosa waAAeesa an aqeemoo alddeena wala tatafarraqoo feehi kabura<br> AAala almushrikeena ma tadAAoohum ilayhi Allahu yajtabee ilayhi man<br> yashao wayahdee ilayhi man yuneeb [Surah Ash-Shuaraa, Ayah 13]<br> Translation: He has ordained for you of religion what He enjoined upon Noah<br> and that which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], and what We<br> enjoined upon Abraham and Moses and Jesus - to establish the religion and<br> not be divided therein. Difficult for those who associate others with Allah is<br> that to which you invite them. Allah chooses for Himself whom He wills and<br> guides to Himself whoever turns back [to Him]. [Sahih International]<br> Alhumdulilah he rabbil Aa’lamin, WasSalat o WasSalam u Aa’la Sayidil Anbiya<br> e WalMursaleen wa Aa’laa Ahle he Wa Sahbi he Wa minstanna be Sunnate he<br> ila Yaummid-Deen. Allahuma Ja’alna min hum wa Minalla-dhina aamanu wa<br> Aa’milus Salihat e Wa tawasau bil Haq e Wa tawasau bis Sabr. [Ameen Ya Rubb al<br> Aa’lameen!]<br> When we talk about taking our narrative back, I think we have to divide the<br> conversation into two parts. The conversation has to be taken back from the forces<br> outside of ourselves and the forces within ourselves. And so when we talk about<br> the forces outside of ourselves that are trying to hijack this narrative, the only thing<br> I like to add is a reminder, it is not something new. All Messengers of Allah,<br> Aa’laehi musSalat o WasSalam (ASWS), were faced with a hijacking of their<br> narratives. They were portrayed with something they were not; whether that<br> portrayal started with character assassination; of them being accused of having<br> agendas other than their actual agenda or it being a point of ridicule; that is how<br> could they (the messengers) follow something so not even close to the truth.<br> Whether it was words like magic or sorcery or whether they were accused of being<br> liars. All of this was essentially an attempt to hijack narratives. One of the greatest<br> examples of that, which are repeated in the quran is the discourse between Firoun<br> (Laa’ana hullah) and Musa (AS). It is repeated over and over again in the quran<br> and I want to share with you a couple of really remarkable places in regard to that,<br> before I talk about the challenge within the Ummah itself. [Surah Taha – AYAh<br> 63]<br> “Qaloo in Haadhani Lasahirani”… the narrative given by the leaders of Firoun, the<br> chiefs of Firoun and his ministery, the unanimous press release was that these two<br> are nothing but magicians. Now, who am I talking about; Prophet Musa & Haroon,<br> Firoun said they are nothing but magicians. But he did not just stop there, he said<br> do not get impresses by their tricks, this is just magic, simple, no big deal. He went<br> ahead and says: “Yureedaane un yukhrija kum min ardh-kum be sehri-hima…”,<br> “They intend to get you kicked out of your land by means of their magic”. They<br> (Firoun’s ministers) are going around to the population not only telling them that<br> this guy (Musa AS) is a magician so don’t be impressed, it’s nothing special; on<br> top of that he (Firoun) is saying if you do listen to them (Musa & Haroon AS)<br> watch out they are going to get you out of your land, they are a threat to homeland<br> security – this is what they are. So, I just want to ask you to ponder for a moment,<br> this is the same Firoun who in other places in the Quran says, [Surah Zukhraf –<br> Ayah 51]<br> “ AaLaisa lee Mulku Misra?...”, “Don’t I alone, exclusively own the Dominion of<br> Eygpt”,
