28. Al-Qasas/The Narratives
I/We begin by the Blessed Name of Allah
The Immensely Merciful to all, The Infinitely Compassionate to everyone.
28:01
a. Ta. Sin. Mim.
28:02
a. These are the Messages of the Clear Book - The Divine Qur’an.
28:03
a. WE are going to recount to you some of the narratives of Moses and Pharaoh truthfully, for a people who believe.
28:04
a. Indeed, Pharaoh exalted himself in the land of Egypt, and
b. divided its citizens into different ethnic and social factions,
c. seeking to oppress one faction among them - Descendants of Jacob – and depriving them of all human rights and civil liberties,
d. and, slaughtering their baby-boys at birth, while sparing their women/baby-girls.
e. He - Pharaoh - was truly of the oppressors and tyrants.
28:05
a. However, WE wanted to empower those very people who were being oppressed in the land
of Egypt – Descendants of Jacob, and
b. to make them the leaders and to make them the inheritors.
28:06
a. And to empower them in the land by giving them political power and religious authority,
b. and to show Pharaoh and Haman and their armies - through them - the very thing that they had dreaded - and trying to prevent.
28:07
a. And so when Moses was born, WE inspired Moses’ mother by saying that:
b. ‘Keep breast feeding him as usual, but when you fear for his life, then put him afloat into the River Nile,
c. and, once you have done so, then do not fear and do not grieve for he will be saved.
d. Surely WE...
The religious sermon and the speaker play a keyrole in the Islamic societies in shaping and orienting the opinions, beliefs, approach and behavior of the masses. Addressing people is a great responsibility, for which the speakers will be held accountable to Allāh Almighty. Therefore, a speaker of Islām must be equipped with sound knowledge of Islām and well acquainted with the present time, too. Moreover, he must possesstherequired temperament of tolerance, compassion and consideration, while speaking to his audience. The example of the Holy Prophet Muḥammad(r) provides a complete model of conduct for today’s speakers. We notice that audiences are moved with the eloquence of the speakers. A careless speaker may drive his audience into the abyss of disappointment, alienation from Islām, terrorism andextremism, etc. ; On the other hand, he can alleviate their ignorance, reshape them to become the desired peaceful Muslims through his power of speech and influence of his character. In this paper, the author, tried to make the Islamic speakers realize their duties in respect of their audience in the light of the Sunnah of the Prophet(r).
Pakistan is plural country where equal citizenship based on unfettered human rights could lead to many improvement. This can only happen if the country’s leaders and opinion-makers act more responsibility and avoid inciting hatred by preaching tolerance and co-existence. It is imperative for the Pakistani ruling elite to revisit Jinnah’s vision of tolerant, plural and democratic Pakistan, anchored on the principles of equal citizenship and other rights, irrespective of caste, creed or gender. Such an ideal was the original creed of the movement for Pakistan and forms a point of concensus for a vast majority of the population even today. The actions of non- representative regimes and the difficult inter-communal relations have only worsened inter-community relationship in Pakistan. Almost half of the period of Pakistan’s history as a modern nation has seen military rule. In Pakistan religious minorities, especially Christians had to face a number of challenges as citizens. The role of military, the political use of religion by governments and a weak civil society, all pose enormous threats to the Christian minority in Pakistan. The status of Christians in Pakistan has been the subject of much debate and controversy. The Christians remain vulnerable group in Pakistan with inadequate legal protection to the safeguard their rights. The need to ensure protection of minority rights in compelling. Pakistan is yet to ratify the international covenant on civil and political rights and the international covenant on social, economic and cultural rights, among other human rights instruments. Defending the principle of equal citizenship and non-discrimination and disallowing the use of religion to violate the rights of non-Muslim citizens, must be priorities to any government. This isvii perhaps the only way to protect Pakistan’s ethnic and religious diversity, and the security of future generation. For Christian minority in Pakistan to have the necessary influence or the opportunity to either change the events having direct relations to their active participation in development process, there is a need to put mechanism in place that enable them to engage in democratic process in polity and governance. Access to education is critical for benefitting from emerging opportunities. From lower levels of enrollment to a sharp decline in participation in higher levels of education, the situation in Pakistan. The Christian minority is indeed very depressing and the problem is more acute for girls and women. Minorities, especially the Christians are outside social and economic planning and development programs both as providers and receivers. This is a right for true diversity-natural to its population but not reflected in the public spheres because of discrimination and unequal opportunity. Given the precarious conditions of the self-employed persons in the informal sector, especially the home-based Christian women workers, a social security system for such workers may be introduced. Religious violence not only demoralize minorities but render them destitute, making them lose whatever little they have. Nobody among those whose job is to protect the lives and property of citizens have to made accountable or punished.