Friday Prayer

اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ بِجَمِیعِ مَحَامِدِه کُلِّهَا عَلَی جَمِیعِ نِعَمِهِ کُلِّهَا… اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ مالِکِ الْمُلْکِ مُجْرِی الْفُلْکِ مُسَخِّرِ الرِّیاحِ فالِقِ الاْصْباحِ دَیّانِ الدّینِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمینَ اَلْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ عَلی حِلْمِهِ بَعْدَ عِلمِهِ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ عَلی عَفْوِهِ بَعْدَ قُدْرَتِهِ وَالْحَمْدُ لِلّهِ عَلی طُولِ اَناتِهِ فی غَضَبِهِ وَهُوَ قادِرٌ عَلی ما یُریدُ

Praise is to God with all his praises, for all his blessings. . . Praise is to God, the owner of the property, the operator of the orbit, the bender of the wind, the glory of the morning, the religion of the beliefs, lord of the worlds; praise is to God for his dream after his knowledge and thank God for forgiveness after his power, and praise be to God for his long patience in his wrath and he is capable to do what he wills 

و نشهد أن لا اله الا الله وحده لا شریک له، و أَنَّ محمداً عبده و رسوله ارسله بالهدی و دین الحق لیظهره علی الدین کله و لو کره المشرکون اوصیکم عبادالله و نفسی بتقوی الله و اتباع امره و نهیه، و اخوفکم من عقابه

And we bear witness that there is no god but God alone, without partner, and that Muhammad is his servant and messenger, he sent him with guidance and the religion of truth, that he might proclaim it over all religion, even if the polytheists hated it.

Common principles in the life of the prophets

Principle5: Presenting miracles, books and the balance

The holy Qur’an considers one of the common principles among all the prophets to be the presentation of “evidences” meaning living and clear evidences such as miracles, as well as the “book” and the “balance” and says:

لَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلَنَا بِالْبَيِّنَاتِ وَأَنْزَلْنَا مَعَهُمُ الْكِتَابَ وَالْمِيزَانَ لِيَقُومَ النَّاسُ بِالْقِسْطِ؛

Certainly We sent Our apostles with manifest proofs, and We sent down with them the Book and the Balance, so that mankind may maintain justice; (Hadid: 25)

Miracles in words and expressions

Miracle literally means (in Arabic literature) incapacity which leads incapacity on the other side and the term refers to an extraordinary act performed by the person claiming to be a prophet, so that others are incapable of doing it.

The role of miracles in inviting prophets

The miracle in the prophets’ invitation is a mean of proving the truth, and it proves that the person claiming to be a prophet is really related to the unseen world and has been chosen by God, so the miracle performed by them should be a sign of a connection with the supernatural and practical affairs which are considered extraordinary. Of course, this issue (the extraordinary side of the miracle) does not mean breaking the laws of nature and is not a supernatural act, but the miracles of the prophets can be justified in the form of natural laws (natural causes and their effects), but with the divine power of God. The influence of natural causes is not normal, sometimes it is faster and sometimes it is slower.

The necessity of performing miracles by the prophets

The necessity of performing miracles by the prophets was only to dispel the doubts of the opponents, the invitation of the prophets relied on the God-seeking nature of the people and its acceptance by the people was considered natural.

The holy Qur’an states that the wise men and thinkers of different ethnic groups have never hesitated to accept the invitation of the divine prophets:

وَيَرَى الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْعِلْمَ الَّذِي أُنْزِلَ إِلَيْكَ مِنْ رَبِّكَ هُوَ الْحَقَّ وَيَهْدِي إِلَى صِرَاطِ الْعَزِيزِ الْحَمِيدِ؛

Those who have been given knowledge see that what has been sent down to you from your Lord is the truth and [that] it guides to the path of the All-mighty, the All-laudable. (Saba: 6)

The call of the prophets is based on the nature of human beings and does not require miracles to affect the pure hearts and consciences minds, although the truthfulness of their message is sufficient, but since many human beings with false teachings of their parents, relatives and friends, and the polluted environment around them, from the beginning of childhood, receive a veil of delusion on their God-seeking and pure nature, the invitation of the prophets to this group of people seems unacceptable to confront their doubts and objections, so this is where the provision of divine power for the defeat of this group of opponents becomes necessary. Therefore, the miracle, in inviting process of the divine prophets, has only a defensive necessity and is not a kind of propaganda.

The difference between miracles and dignity, magic and priesthood

The difference between the miraculous deeds performed by different people and the miracles of the prophets is that:

Magic and priesthood: An extraordinary act that can be done by common people after training and gaining the necessary experiences.

Dignity: An extraordinary act that is not accompanied by the claim of prophecy and mission from God.

Miracle: An extraordinary act that is accompanied by a claim to prophecy.

Challenging the rivals (Tahddi)

Tahaddi, meaning seeking a rival, is one of the means of the miracles of the prophets; that is, when an action is extraordinary and has the conditions of a miracle might be called a miracle, and it requires the inability of others to learn and perform a similar action.

Proportion of miracles with the requirements of the society and the era of the resurrection of the prophets

It is not possible for the general public audience of the prophets who are unfamiliar with the subtle and precise scientific and technical practices to understand the truth of the miracle; just professional people are able to find out whether the action performed by the claimant of the prophet has the conditions of a miracle or not. However a miracle might be distinguished from other precise scientific and technical practices by the people who have skills and expertise in similar sciences and technologies. That is why scholars acknowledge miracles sooner than others.

So it is necessary that the miracle of each of the prophets to be in accordance with the common sciences, technologies and industry at the time and environment of their resurrection, so that the scholars of their people understand the miracle hidden in that miraculous act, and the purpose of the miracle is fulfilled, and the true invitation of that prophet is proven. That is why we see in the history of the divine prophets that the miracle of Moses, peace be upon him, is changing a cane into a dragon and a bright hand, because in the environment and era of his resurrection, magic and sorcery were prevalent and people were more interested in these extraordinary acts. The miracle of Jesus, peace be upon him, was also resurrection of the dead, healing of the incurable diseases, and healing the blind, miracles were suited the spatial and temporal needs of his society, because in his time Greek medicine was at its best position and the doctors and medical subjects were committing amazing treatments.

Miracle by the permission of the almighty God

In most cases, whenever the holy Qur’an mentions the miracles of the prophets, points out that their miracles were by the permission of God. One should not expect prophets to be active all the times, since they are not able to perform miracles without God’s permission. The holy Quran says:

وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلًا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ مِنْهُمْ مَنْ قَصَصْنَا عَلَيْكَ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ لَمْ نَقْصُصْ عَلَيْكَ وَمَا كَانَ لِرَسُولٍ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ بِآيَةٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ؛

Certainly We have sent apostles before you. Of them are those We have recounted to you, and of them are those We have not recounted to you. An apostle may not bring any sign except by Allah’s permission. Hence, when Allah’s edict comes, judgment is made with justice, and it is thence that the falsifiers become losers. (Ghafer: 78)

وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلًا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُمْ أَزْوَاجًا وَذُرِّيَّةً وَمَا كَانَ لِرَسُولٍ أَنْ يَأْتِيَ بِآيَةٍ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِ اللَّهِ؛

Certainly We have sent apostles before you, and We appointed for them wives and descendants; and an apostle may not bring a sign except by Allah’s leave. There is a written [ordinance] for every term, (Ra’d: 38)

One asked a person who had lost his child! O enlightened old wise man;

You heard the smell of his shirt from Egypt; why didn’t you see it in the well of Canaan?

He said that our situation is a moment of the world; it may be found in an inhale and hidden in the exhale;

Sometimes we sit on top of a throne; sometimes we do not see the back of our feet;

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