THE NEW YEAR OF ISLAM


All praises be to Allah, the God who shows us the crescent in every month. The people who see it consider as the sign of a new month. I bear witness that there is no God but Allah, no partner with Him. I also bear witness that Muhammad is the messenger of Allah. May peace be always on the noblest people, namely prophet Muhammad (PBUH). He was sent as a messenger of Allah to all mankind either black, red or white-colored people. May peace be also on his family and his companions. Amma Ba’du.
Allah said in His noble and sacred book,
“It is He who made the sun a shining thing and the moon as a light and measured out its (their) stages, that You might know the number of years and the reckoning. Allâh did not create This but In truth. He explains the Ayât (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.) In detail for people who have knowledge.” (Yunus: 5)
Dear brothers and sisters who are honored by Allah,
Every nation has its own year to be proud of. Every new year is always celebrated happily with many kinds of big celebrations. Each religion also has its own year to be used as a direction in religion-related life. And in this case, the Muslims have the year of Hijriah. That is the new year of Islam to be proud of by all Muslims. The year of Hijriah is used by the Muslims since the authority of Khalifah Umar bin Khatab (may Allah bless him). This second Khalifah (the leader of Muslims) often called as Amirul Mukminin instructed to use the year of Hijriah as the starting point of the time-count in all Muslims regions. Since then, the year of Hijriah was widely used as the guidance to arrange the calendar of the Muslims’ activities, either in relation to governmental, educational, or other important matters as well as the history of Islam.
Dear brothers and sisters who are honored by Allah SWT,
The year of Hijriah has close relation with the event of Hijriah by the messenger of Allah and his companions. Hijriah means the emigration of the messenger of Allah and his companions from city of Makkah to Madinah. This event was named Fajrul Islam by historian which means the starting time of the free and broad propagation of Islam by the Muslims. In the new city, the prophet and his companions built a Muslim community and country, Madinah. Then, it became the centre of the propagation of Islam. From this city, the light of Islam brightened the world. Of course, there were many sacrifices during Hijriah, but all were aimed at preserving their Islam believe. The Muslims at that time believed that the event of Hijriah had significant role in the development of Islam. Therefore, the companions of the prophet decided the year of Hijriah as the name of the year of Islam. By the name, it is expected that the next generation of the Muslims always remember the importance of Hijrah and take worth lessons from this event.
Dear brothers and sisters in belief and religion,
Before making a decision on the calendar of Islam, our ascendants had thought and contemplated for a long time about what kind of event in Islam life was the most important and impressing. One by one, the events that had been undergrounded by the Muslims was carefully considered. Finally, they found out that the Hijrah of the messenger of Allah was the most important event in the life of Islam. Since then, the Hijrah of the messenger was made as the beginning of Islam calendar and the new year of Islam. Based on this new year of Islam, the Muslims could arrange the calendar of Islam such as the historical events like the birth of the prophet and the beginning of the revelation. They could also understand that the most important event in Islam life is the Hijrah. As the result, every time the Muslims celebrated the new year. They would remember the sacrifices of the companions of the messenger and their Jihad in propagating Islam. They would also understand that the Muslims could not live individually. They have to live collectively for the sake of Islam. They would also understand that the year of Hijriah is the symbol to unify the Muslim and the symbol of the spreading of Islam.
Dear brothers and Sisters in belief and religion,
On this good occasion, I would like to remind you on an important thing. If the others celebrated their new years with a big indulgence and pleasure. We celebrate our new year with love, endearment, and brotherhood spirit. What we should do in conformity with what had been done by the prophet and his companions when they arrived in Madinah.
Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, be afraid of Allah. Protect this Islam year and keep in mind the names of the months. Use the year of Hijriah in your daily life. The companions of the messenger had decided the year of Hijriah as the year of Islam in order that you use it in your daily life. More importantly, the year of Hijriah is also used to distinguish who is the Muslims and who is the infidel. The messenger of Allah explained,
Whoever resembles a certain group, then he belongs to the group

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