In a powerful Friday sermon delivered in mosques across Türkiye, the Presidency of Religious Affairs focused on the critical theme of “Being an Ummah is Being United.”

The sermon passionately condemned the ongoing genocide in Gaza, decried global Muslim disunity, and called for collective action to restore the Islamic Ummah’s strength and dignity in the face of relentless oppression.

The sermon painted a stark picture of the challenges facing the Muslim world, accusing oppressors of exploiting divisions to sow chaos and occupy Islamic lands. “Today, as in times past, the enemies of the Ummah have not abandoned their ambitions to fracture the followers of Prophet Muhammad,” it declared. It accused malevolent forces of employing insidious tactics to undermine solidarity, turning Muslims against one another and inciting violence that leads to “Muslims killing Muslims.” The sermon described harrowing scenes of genocide unfolding before the world’s eyes, with “murderers who respect neither rights nor laws” burning entire communities—children, women, and the elderly—in their own homeland. It highlighted the daily toll of innocent lives lost to relentless bombardment or the slow, agonizing grip of starvation.

The root of these tragedies, the sermon argued, lies not in the might of the oppressors but in the Ummah’s own shortcomings: its disorganization, fragmentation, and numbness to the suffering of its members. “The cries of children shake the heavens, the wails of mothers pierce the skies, and the helplessness of fathers wounds every heart that holds compassion,” it stated, emphasizing that unity brings mercy while division invites divine wrath. The sermon lamented the erosion of the Ummah’s collective strength, invoking the words of the Prophet Muhammad: “Sadly, today we Muslims, despite our great numbers, are scattered like rubbish carried down by a torrent of water.”

Drawing on the Quranic verse, “Hold firmly together to the rope of Allah and do not be divided,” the sermon criticized the drift toward disunity driven by worldly ambitions and personal interests. It warned that such division only emboldens oppressors, fueling their cruelty and enabling further atrocities. The sermon also pointed to the “excessive love of this world and fear of death” as factors stripping Muslims of their dignity and grandeur, making Islamic lands vulnerable to aggressors who descend “like wild beasts upon their prey.”

The path to true peace, the sermon asserted, lies in reviving the spirit of Islamic brotherhood and acting with unity and solidarity. It called on Muslims to embody the Quranic directive, “The believers are but one brotherhood,” by transcending differences in language, color, race, sect, or profession. The sermon urged the Ummah to come to each other’s aid, as mandated by the verse, “…who enforce justice when wronged,” and to bind together “as closely as the bricks of a building,” sharing pain like the members of a single body, as described in the hadith: “Do not envy one another. Do not bear grudges against one another. Do not turn your backs on one another. O servants of Allah, be brothers!”

Further, it emphasized the importance of recognizing all who accept Allah as their Lord, Islam as their religion, and Muhammad as their prophet as part of one Islamic family, referencing the verse, “Indeed, this religion of yours is ˹only˺ one, and I am your Lord, so worship Me ˹alone˺.” The sermon also invoked the Quranic call to “encourage good, forbid evil, and believe in Allah,” presenting these principles as the foundation for a united Ummah capable of overcoming its challenges.

The sermon celebrated historical examples of unity, noting how Islam brought together figures like Umar, Salman al-Farisi, Bilal al-Habashi, and Suhayb the Byzantine as brothers in faith. It described preserving this brotherhood and passing it to future generations not as an option but as a religious duty and moral imperative. “Let us join hands and hearts as Muslims, united by belief in the same Allah, following the same prophet, guided by the same divine book, and facing the same qiblah,” it urged, calling for strengthened solidarity, love, and brotherhood across Turkey and the broader Islamic world.

Turning to the crisis in Gaza, the sermon delivered a searing indictment of the violence, describing a “nation being utterly destroyed” as hospitals, schools, mosques, and churches are reduced to rubble. It decried the targeting of humanitarian aid workers, healthcare providers striving to save lives, and journalists risking everything to expose the persecution. “Not only Muslims but all who carry a spark of humanity are being massacred,” it stated, underscoring the universal tragedy of the crisis. The sermon expressed unwavering faith that oppression will ultimately fail, proclaiming, “The oppressed will surely be delivered to salvation, and the oppressors will never succeed.”

In a powerful appeal, it called on “people of conscience and humanity” worldwide to stand against the “handful of murderous gangs and their accomplices” responsible for the atrocities. It warned that silence in the face of oppression is tantamount to complicity, urging a global, dignified response to the suffering. “Consenting to oppression is, in itself, a form of oppression,” the sermon cautioned, rallying listeners to act with moral courage.

The sermon concluded with a heartfelt plea for the Ummah to rise above divisions and reclaim its unity as a source of strength. It envisioned a future where Muslims, bound by shared faith and purpose, work tirelessly to support the oppressed and restore peace, ensuring the legacy of Islamic brotherhood endures for generations to come. (ILKHA)