The Year of the Family

The First Khutbah All praise is due to Allah, who made the family a blessing to be protected, an affection to be sustained, and a cornerstone upon which nations are built. We bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and we bear witness that our prophet Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. May Allah bless, grant peace, and shower His grace upon him, his family, his companions, and all those who follow him. To proceed: I advise you, O servants of Allah, and myself, to have Taqwa of Allah. ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمُ الَّذِي خَلَقَكُمْ مِنْ نَفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ وَخَلَقَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَبَثَّ مِنْهُمَا رِجَالًا كَثِيرًا وَنِسَاءً﴾. O mankind, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul and created from it its mate and dispersed from both of them many men and women. O believers, Our topic today is the family and its importance. Without it, humanity would not exist on Earth, people would not worship Allah, the Most Merciful (Ar-Rahman), and nations would not be built. This is so that you may know that forming a family and preserving it is a religious commitment, a divine requirement, and a national duty. Through it, life continues, and generations succeed one another in obedience to Allah and in cultivating His Earth. Forming families was part of the guidance and tradition (Sunnah) of the Prophets. Allah Almighty said: ﴿وَلَقَدْ أَرْسَلْنَا رُسُلًا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ وَجَعَلْنَا لَهُمْ أَزْوَاجًا وَذُرِّيَّةً﴾ And We have already sent messengers before you and assigned to them wives and offspring. Allah, glorified is He, mentioned in the Quran the family of Adam, the family of Nuh, ﴿وَآلَ إِبْرَاهِيمَ وَآلَ عِمْرَانَ﴾ And the family of Ibrahim and the family of 'Imran. He narrated to us the stories of the family of Ya'qub, the family of Ayyub (Job), Musa (Moses) and his mother, his brother, and his sister, and 'Isa (Jesus) and his mother, peace be upon all of them. These are prophetic families and Quranic models, which Allah Almighty mentioned to us so that we may emulate them and follow their path. ﴿أُولَئِكَ الَّذِينَ هَدَى اللَّهُ فَبِهُدَاهُمُ اقْتَدِهْ﴾ Those are the ones whom Allah has guided, so from their guidance, take an example. Therefore, strive, O servants of Allah, to care for your families, strengthen their bonds, appreciate their value, and protect their trust. For the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: «إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَائِلٌ كُلَّ رَاعٍ عَمَّا اسْتَرْعَاهُ، ‌أَحَفِظَ ‌أَمْ ‌ضَيَّعَ، ‌حَتَّى ‌يَسْأَلَ ‌الرَّجُلَ عَنْ أَهْلِ بَيْتِهِ» Indeed, Allah will ask every shepherd about what He entrusted to his care, whether he preserved it or neglected it, until He asks a man about his household. The family is like a blessed tree: its shade extends, and its giving continues through the generations, growing as its boughs multiply and its branches increase. The boughs of the family are the children; with them, the adornment and joy of life are complete. Allah Almighty said: ﴿الْمَالُ وَالْبَنُونَ زِينَةُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا﴾ Wealth and children are the adornment of the worldly life. And Allah has mentioned to us in the Quran how the Prophets (peace be upon them) beseeched their Lord and asked Him for offspring and the extension of their lineage, so that the worship of their Creator would continue, their joy would be complete, and their families would be settled. Thus, the supplication of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was: ﴿رَبِّ هَبْ لِي مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ﴾ My Lord, grant me [a child] from among the righteous.   And the supplication of Zakariyya (peace be upon him) was:  ﴿فَهَبْ لِي مِنْ لَدُنْكَ وَلِيًّا* يَرِثُنِي وَيَرِثُ مِنْ آلِ يَعْقُوبَ﴾ So, grant me, from Your grace, a successor, a gift from You, who will inherit me and inherit from the family of Ya'qub. And due to the importance of having many children, our Prophet ﷺ encouraged us to marry fertile women: «تَزَوَّجُوا الْوَدُودَ الْوَلُودَ» “Marry the one who is loving and fertile . So, what is it that holds you back, O servants of Allah, from having many children? Do you fear that their provision will be limited? Or do you find their expenses burdensome? Do you not know that children are a blessing? And that no one is blessed with children except that their provision comes with them. Allah Almighty said:  ﴿نَحْنُ نَرْزُقُهُمْ وَإِيَّاكُمْ﴾ We provide for them and for you. And as He, glorified is He, said:  ﴿وَمَنْ أَصْدَقُ مِنَ اللَّهِ قِيلًا﴾ And who is more truthful than Allah in statement? Look, O servants of Allah, at your forefathers, how they placed their trust in their Lord and thought well of their Provider. They had many offspring, despite their few resources and straightened living conditions. And so, Allah blessed their offspring. ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ﴾. O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you. I say these words of mine and I seek forgiveness from Allah for myself and for you, so seek His forgiveness.   The Second Khutbah: All praise is due to Allah, besides whom there is no other god. May prayers and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, after whom there is no other prophet. To proceed: O believers, having many offspring is a strength for your homeland, an honour for your society, a provision for you in your old age, and a source of pride for your Prophet in your Hereafter. How joyful is the one who has many children, and how great is his delight in them when he is old: Among them is one who comforts him with conversation. Among them is one who supports him with his wealth. And among them is one who honours him with his knowledge and character, his success and excellence, and his status and position. And how blessed is a home that brings together grandparents, spouses, and grandchildren, inheriting values and cooperating in the burdens of life. Thus, Allah blesses them in their provisions and their families. Our wise leadership has designated the year 2026 as the Year of the Family, in appreciation of its importance, belief in its great role, and a commitment to supporting it, so that it may be as our Lord described it: ﴿مِيثَاقًا غَلِيظًا﴾ a solemn covenant. Let us strengthen the bonds within our families and let us have many children. Let us raise them upon faith in their Lord, preservation of their acts of worship, adherence to their values, excellence in their manners, and a commitment to their identity. Let us instil in them the love and service of their homeland, obedience to its leadership, and a sense of responsibility towards it, so they may continue the journey of building and the path of giving. O Allah, bestow Your prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, the Seal of the Messengers, and upon his family, companions, and followers. And O Allah, be pleased with Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali, and with all of the noblest companions. O Allah, the President of our nation has given great care and attention to our families, for our present and our future, so that we may be happy in our lives. Make us loyal to his pledge, obedient to his command, and steadfast in fulfilling his rights. O Allah, grant happiness to our families, fill our lives with affection, and bless us with good offspring who adhere to their religion, their beautiful morals, are proud of their homeland, and are distinguished by their excellence. O Allah, bless our children, make them a source of joy and comfort to us, and grant them success in their studies, their work, and all affairs of their lives. O Allah, O You who said, and Your word is the truth: ﴿يَهَبُ لِمَنْ يَشَاءُ إِنَاثًا وَيَهَبُ لِمَنْ يَشَاءُ الذُّكُورَ * أَوْ يُزَوِّجُهُمْ ذُكْرَانًا وَإِنَاثًا وَيَجْعَلُ مَنْ يَشَاءُ عَقِيمًا﴾ He grants female [children] to whom He wills, and He grants male [children] to whom He wills. Or He diversifies them, males and females, and He makes whom He wills barren. O Most Vast in Grace and Blessings, O Most Generous in Giving, O You in whose Hand are the treasures of the earth and the heavens, O You who blessed Zakariyya with a child beyond expectation, bless those who are deprived of offspring. O Allah, guide them to the means of their treatment, bring joy to their hearts, increase their progeny, and grant them ﴿مِنْ لَدُنْكَ ذُرِّيَّةً طَيِّبَةً إِنَّكَ سَمِيعُ الدُّعَاءِ﴾. From Yourself a good offspring. Indeed, You are the Hearer of supplication. O Allah, make us believers in You, worshippers of You, attentive to our families, and dutiful to our parents. And have mercy upon them (our parents) as they raised us when we were young, O Most Merciful of the merciful. O Allah, protect the nation of the UAE with Your protection, attend to it with Your care, and surround it with Your providence, O Lord of the Worlds. O Allah, protect the President, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, and clothe him in the garments of righteousness and wisdom. Grant success to him, his deputies, his brothers, the Rulers of the Emirates, and his trusted Crown Prince, in all that You love and are pleased with. O Allah, have mercy on Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Rashid, and all the Sheikhs of the Emirates who have passed into Your mercy. Admit them, by Your grace, into Your spacious gardens, and cover the martyrs of the nation with Your mercy and forgiveness. O Allah, have mercy on the Muslim men and women, those who are alive and those who have passed away. O Allah, O Most Vast in Mercy, O Most Great in Grace, grant us rain (Ghayth) and do not make us among those who despair. O Allah, send us relief (rain). O Allah, send us relief. O Allah, send us relief. O Allah, we seek Your forgiveness, indeed You are All-Forgiving. So, send down rain upon us in abundance.  O Allah, grant us relieving rain, wholesome and beneficial, with which You revive the land, show mercy to the people, and make it a source of strength and sustenance for a time. O Servants of Allah: Remember Allah, the Great, the Majestic, and He will remember you. Thank Him for His blessings, and He will grant you more. And establish the prayer.