137 - Advocating goodness

1. The Prophet (peace be upon him) stresses the importance of advocating the faith, calling on people to believe in God, explaining the rules of the divine faith. He tells us of the great reward such advocacy earns. Whoever advocates any aspect of goodness, even a minor one, earns the same reward as everyone who follows his example, adopting that aspect of goodness, without diminishing their reward in any way. 

Such advocacy is not limited to verbal explanation; it may be in a practical form. When a Muslim performs some recommended sunnah, and others emulate his practice, he earns the reward of his own action in addition to a reward similar to that of anyone who follows his example.

2. The Prophet also warns against leading people astray. Whoever advocates disbelief or encourages a deviant or sinful practice, by word or deed, incurs the burden of his own error in addition to the burden of everyone who follows his error. Everyone who follows his example will continue to bear the burden of his own error.

The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: ‘Whenever someone is wrongfully killed, the first son of Adam bears a share of this sinful action [1]for being the first who started murder’. 

The message of this hadith is confirmed by another hadith which quotes the Prophet (peace be upon him): ‘Whoever starts a good practice in Islam shall earn its reward and a reward similar to that of whoever follows his example, without diminishing their reward in anyway. And whoever starts a bad practice in Islam shall bear its burden and a burden similar to that of whoever follows his example, [2]without diminishing their burdens in any way’.

1. Whoever wants to increase his credit of good deeds should call on people to believe in God. This will bring that person a reward similar to the reward God will grant to those who heed his call and follow him.

2. Advocates of Islam are people who earn the reward of continuous acts of charity which do not cease at their death. They continue to earn them more reward. Everyone should try to have continuous good deeds and ensure their bad deeds are ended.

3. Try to revive some of the recommended practices, i.e., sunnah, which have been neglected by large numbers of Muslims. Reviving such a sunnah earns God’s pleasure, the Prophet’s love, and a reward similar to that of those who practise it.

4. Disseminating Islamic knowledge is one of the most important ways of Islamic advocacy. It is through such dissemination that people learn the rules of their faith, fulfil their duties and refrain from what is forbidden. 

5. Beware of continuous wrong deeds. Many are those whose bad deeds continue to be recorded by the angels after their deaths. These are the ones who advocate error, sinful deeds and even disbelief, and are followed by others. 

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