THIRD REMINDER. Monday. WHY ARE WE SPLITTING INTO SECTS continues_*? Bismillah. Imam At-Tirmidhi said: The meaning of the united community according to the scholars are the people of jurisprudence, knowledge, and prophetic traditions. Source: Sunan al-Tirmidhī 2167. There are two main causes for people to break away from the united community. First, there are those who abandon the scholarly legacy, such as the violent Kharijites, which leads them to persecute other Muslims in the name of religious reform. These are the religious innovators, those who change the religion and prevent people from practicing it as it should be. Second, there are those who foment aggression and hatred between Muslims for some worldly or political end. Ash-Shatibi writes: Indeed, this splitting has happened due to the presence of aggression and hatred. If that is the case, then it is sinful disobedience and not religious innovation. Its example is what happened to the people of Islam when they split due to worldly reasons, such as the division between one town with another because of transgression in wealth or bloodshed… Another cause of splitting is due to religious innovation, such as the splitting of the Khawarij from the Muslim nation whose sect was based upon their innovation. Source: Kitāb al-I’tiṣām 2/702 Hence, it is not simply loyalty to one of the valid schools of theology that prevents sectarianism, but also loyalty to the moral and ethical values that a sound theology must produce. The saved group is not a geographically contained group, but rather it is a broad community of people who share and fulfill the values of faith. Indeed, there are those whose partisanship for their own school of thought has led them to fanaticism and dividing the Muslims. Their theology might be valid, but their sinful behavior was not. Most importantly, the threat of selfish desires and whims infecting our understanding of Islam is the greatest danger to the unity of the Muslims. And the Prophet said: وَإِنَّهُ سَيَخْرُجُ مِنْ أُمَّتِي أَقْوَامٌ تَجَارَى بِهِمْ تِلْكَ الْأَهْوَاءُ كَمَا يَتَجَارَى الْكَلْبُ لِصَاحِبِهِ There will emerge some people in my nation who will be dominated by these desires just as rabies dominates its patient. Source: Sunan Abī Dāwūd 4597. Just as rabies can infect every vein in a person’s body, our selfish desires have the potential to infect every part of our soul and cloud our understanding of true Islam. Rather, we need to constantly purify our hearts of spiritual diseases through prayer, charity, and good works, in addition to continuously seeking knowledge of Islamic sciences. In sum, the Prophet told us that the Muslims would split into many different sects while only one would be saved from the Hellfire. The saved group are those who follow the inherited scholarly legacy, the authentic traditions of the Prophet, and the principles and methods derived by the righteous scholars. Not only that, the saved group acts according to the moral values that underpin the sound Islamic creed. Success comes from Allah, and Allah knows best. May Allah keep guiding us all and protect us from any satanic influences. Aameen.