Dear Brothers and Sisters!

Allah (swt), by virtue of His name Al-Khaliq, created the universe perfectly out of nothing. In this universe, whose extent and bounds we are incapable of discovering, He made the world in the most beautiful way for His servants. He entrusted its cultivation and renewal to the children of Prophet Adam, whom He appointed as His caliph on earth, that is, to us humans. This situation is expressed in the Qur’an with the verse: “We offered the trust to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, but they refused to bear it and were afraid of it; however, man undertook to bear it.”^[1] Allah (swt) commanded us to nurture love and compassion for our surroundings and to protect and care for them with a sense of responsibility. Just as it should be in all areas of our lives, He advised us to avoid wastefulness, exploitation and greed in the use of natural resources.

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

Allah (swt) has commanded us to protect the environment. We have exploited the environment by irresponsibly taking advantage of it. Underground and surface resources were used recklessly. It is mentioned in the Quran, “Corruption has appeared on land and sea because of what people’s own hands have wrought, so He may let them taste part of (the consequences of) what they have done that perhaps they will return (to righteousness).”^[2] This verse has come true; due to our irresponsible actions towards nature and the environment, the balance of nature has been disrupted, leading to environmental disasters. Climate change has occurred, fertile lands have been submerged by floods, the air we breathe has been polluted, storms and cyclones have started claiming lives and we are faced with the threat of melting polar ice caps.

Dear Jama’ah!

As a result of the reckless and unconscious pollution of nature and the environment, according to a report published by the World Health Organisation, environmental pollution causes the death of an average of one and a half million children under the age of five each year. It is stated that a quarter of deaths in children under the age of five worldwide are due to environmental factors such as air pollution, contaminated water and inadequate sanitation conditions. Mankind will undoubtedly benefit from this world, develop it and make impassable roads passable. However, while doing so, they must refrain from waste and destruction. They should even strive as much as possible for the repair and improvement of nature. Our esteemed Prophet’s hadith, “If the Day of Judgment erupts while one of you has a sapling in his hand, if he can plant it before it happens, let him do so immediately”^[3] encourages us in this regard.

Dear Brothers and Sisters!

Our religion not only encourages the protection of the environment but also requires Muslim individuals to be its protectors. Rasulullah (saw) also said, “Faith has over seventy branches, or over sixty branches. The most excellent of these is the declaration that there is no god but Allah, and the humblest of them is the removal of what is injurious from the path.”^[4] Therefore, a person should avoid anything that might disturb others. Instead of exploiting nature, they should aim to appreciate its value. Polluting our environment is unfitting of human ethics. It is disrespectful both to ourselves and to the society we live in. Understanding that others will be discomforted by the places we pollute and that the beauty of nature will be spoiled, and believing that carelessly discarding waste that nature cannot decompose is a moral burden, is a condition of being a believer and attaining perfection.

May Allah (swt) grant us the awareness to protect our environment with this consciousness. Ameen!

^[1] Surah Al-Ahzab, 33:72

^[2] Surah Ar-Rum, 30:41

^[3] Ahmed, III, 191, 183

^[4] Müslim, İman, 58

Khutba – The Environment is Entrusted to Us