Maintain familial ties to win Allah’s pleasure

People should keep strong ties with their family members to seek God’s pleasure, worshippers will be told.

In many instances, the Quran and the Prophet Mohammed stressed the need to keep close relations with one’s family.

“But kindred by blood are closer to one another [in terms of duties and rights] in the Book of Allah,” the sermon quotes from the Quran.

“That is to say, they are closer to one another as regards maintaining family ties, being benevolent to one another, being compassionate to one another and honouring one another.”

When God speaks of relatives, he means all relatives, including brothers and sisters, grandparents, paternal and maternal uncles and aunts and all their descendants.

In fact, God chose the name for blood relations “rahim” in Arabic, from one of His name “Al Raheem”, which means the Merciful.

“Maintaining good relations with next of kin is among the greatest of devotional deeds that draw one closer to Allah and the strongest of religious obligations,” the sermon says.

People of intellect were also described in the Quran as people who kept good relations with their families.

“Only the people of sound intellect and profound understanding will remember and take heed, those who fulfil the promise to Allah, and do not violate the covenant, and those who join (in terms of relations) that which Allah has commanded to be joined.” (Quran 13:19-21)

“Therefore, O Worshippers of Allah, you should keep and maintain good relations with your next of kin, because therein lies that which is pleasing to your Lord and Cherisher, and good and wholesome for you in both your present life and your afterlife,” the sermon says.

Moreover, one should be proactive to keep the relations strong with his relatives, even if they did him harm.

The sermon cites an incident in the life of the Prophet Mohammed when a companion said: “O Messenger of Allah. I have blood relatives whose relations I maintain while they sever them, whose faults I pardon while they wrong me, and whom I treat with kindness and benevolence while they treat me with cruelty and malevolence, am I to reciprocate them, that is, treat them in kind the way they treat me?”

The Prophet replied: “No, instead be gracious and act with benevolence, and maintain good relations with them.

“The one who maintains ties of kinship is not the one who reciprocates. The one who maintains ties of kinship is the one who, when his relatives cut him off, maintains ties of kinship [with them].”