What will your New Year’s Resolution be?

As we end one year and enter a new one, we should one moment to reflect – to reflect on our responsibilities. We have responsibilities to our family and friends, and our colleagues at work or at school. We should also remember our responsibility to our fellow human beings who may not as better off as we are.

Many of us will be setting New Year’s resolutions to lose weight or try something new every day for the next year. With so much suffering in the world, surely one of the new things must be to help people who maybe suffering from illness and are in poverty. It is our duty not just as Muslims, but as simple human beings to help our fellow man. We shouldn’t stand aside and let suffering affect people who aren’t so different from us.

Most of us have so much to be thankful and grateful for. While we are in our warms homes, there is someone out there in the cold; while we are eating our hot dinner, there is someone out there starving; and while we are fit and healthy, there is someone suffering from illnesses such as malaria or HIV/AIDS.

Are you doing enough to help those suffering? Why not make it your New Year’s resolution to start something new and actively help someone who needs that something small to make a difference.

Islamic Dawah at a Critical Crossroad (By Dr Hany El Banna)

Islamic dawah (Islamic education) has reached a critical crossroad. At one side of the crossroad is the dire need of the community for knowledge to be used as action and to be carried by religious and community leaders. On the other side of the crossroad there is a plethora of religions and community leaders who are airing their views through magnanimous road show events.

The people in the middle are desperate, confused, and bewildered.

The glamour of the road show does not solve their personal or community problems. Family issues such as marriage and divorce, violence, denial of rights, as well as general bad habits such as the chewing of qat, paan, and supari, stop some of these community leaders and Imams from fulfilling their duties.

This reminds us of the teaching of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) when he reminded the community that the curse of God will affect the people of knowledge and power before affecting the general people since these leaders did not execute their knowledge to help and serve the community.

The first three people that Allah (SWT) will throw into hellfire are as follows: the martyr, the hafiz, and the scholar who became what they were so that they could be called a martyr, hafiz, and scholar. They did not act sincerely upon the knowledge they had.

I hope that we act upon the little knowledge we have to save the greater community that we belong to.

The Running Clock

I’m sure we’ve all seen the totally fab 80s film, ‘The Running Man’. Here we see Arnold Schwarzenegger battling against time to save his and others lives. The year is 20something, society is in a mess, the economy has completely collapsed, and the government, in an attempt to placate its people, resorts to investing in a TV game show where people get to watch convicted criminals literally run for their lives from a group of gladiators. If they manage to escape then an amazing holiday and other perks is up for grabs.  However if the gladiators manage to catch up, then that’s it, they die.

So what do we learn from The Running Man?
Apart from the fact that spandex is a horror no one can get away with, we learn that time is of the essence in everything we do.  In the case of the Running Man, one wrong move could have changed the entire context of the game for both the hunter and hunted.  The time spent thinking about how to seize the right moment was a key ingredient that determined success for each of the ‘runners’.

So often we say to ourselves ‘I didn’t have enough time to do this or that’. The important thing to note is that it isn’t so much about time itself but how it is utilised. This utilisation can literally mean the difference between remaining in the situation we’re in versus taking that one closer step to the next greatest change for all.

In the case of HIV and AIDS, it is well documented that there are currently over 33 million people living with the virus. We still have time to halt, reverse, and eradicate it. But to do this, we need to dedicate time and utilise it well.  

The clock runs, let’s not get left behind.

Bruce the Turantula & the Bicycle with no Brakes

There was once a turantula called Bruce who decided to take a walk in the park.  Suddenly HAVOC!!! People were scared of him. Some screamed their heads off, some tried to stamp on him, others simply ran. Bruce was shaken. All he had wanted to do was to take a walk in the park and enjoy the sunshine.

This is what people living with HIV and AIDS experience on a regular basis. The stigma that surrounds their existence can prove a crushing blow. The negative attitudes and maltreatment that they endure on a daily basis can be devastating enough to stop them from getting on with their lives.

In both the short and long term it doesn’t do the individual or society any good. The individual can end up being shunned by family and the wider community.  On a community level, those who may be carrying the HIV virus may refuse to go and get tested for fear that they too may end up being rejected by others. This puts others at risk of contracting the virus from them because they are unaware of their HIV status. Stigma can also exist at the government level and prevent action being taken against the pandemic.  This has been the case in many countries.

What we end up with is a bicycle with no brakes going at high speed down a hill.  The situation goes out of control for everyone involved.

Without breaking down the barriers of stigma people will always be fearful of HIV and AIDS. When you fear something you cannot overcome it. If you cannot overcome it, you will not be able to take the first steps to stopping it. The Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) said in a hadith: “Be merciful to those on earth, so that the One above the heavens (God) will be merciful to you.”  We need to let this saying guide our actions towards people living with HIV and AIDS.  Without mercy and compassion we do an injustice to others and to ourselves.