Be A Da'e Before A Judge

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate

Assalaamu alaykum

Dear Friends

I pray that you are well.

The way of purity and sincerity is to look at everyone, friend and foe, with the eye of sincere concern and mercy.

The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said that, “Religion is sincere concern (ad-dinu’n nasiha).” [Muslim and Nasa’i, from Tamim ad-Dari] And, “It is only the merciful who are granted mercy by the All-Merciful. Be merciful to those on earth and the Lord of the Heavens will be merciful to you.” And, “None of you believes until they wish for others as they wish for themselves.” [Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi, from Abdullah ibn Amr (Allah be pleased with him); soundly authentic (hasan sahih) according to Tirmidhi]

If someone is doing something wrong (e.g. he doesn't pray) you will try to help him change it because you want Allah to be pleased with him and not suffer the consequences of disobeying Allah. The correction should take place in private, not in public. Correcting publicly rarely leads to transformation. And those who correct publicly are almost always trying to wound another person, probably as an outpouring of being wounded themselves. Public correction elicits shame and is a breeding ground for bitterness. It is not a breeding ground for transformation.

You don't pass judgment against him. You are not the Judge, Allah is. Your job on this earth is to worship Allah, not to judge people.

A young man asked Imam Ghazali (may Allah have mercy on him), "What is the ruling of the one who leaves prayer?" So, he replied, "The ruling is that you take him with you to the masjid. Be a da'e (caller to goodness/Islam) before you be a judge."

May Allah implant taqwa in our souls and purify them; He is the best able to purify them and He is the soul’s Guardian and Master, the Possessor of Majesty and Generosity.

Allahumma salli 'ala Muhammad wa 'ala aalihi wa sahbihi wassallam.

And Allah knows best.
Wassalaam