Maintaining kinship ties is a means of increasing sustenance in this world and bringing blessings to one's life, today's Friday sermon said.
Today's Friday sermon, delivered on the theme of “The importance of strengthening family ties”, said people commonly lament the daily decline in moral standards in society, the severing of bonds that should exist within families, and the breakdown and fragmentation of families, while calling for efforts to address these problems.
However, it said one of the main reasons for declining moral standards in society was the way children are brought up and the education they receive.
The sermon said every child is shaped in different ways by the education and upbringing they receive and the way they are cared for and raised. It said parents, caregivers and guardians must therefore teach young children not only about religion, but also to obey and care for their parents and strengthen ties with close relatives. It also said children must be told who their relatives are and taught whom they are related to by blood.
Noting that kinship ties are the most important of the family bonds that Islam commands people to maintain, the sermon warned that severing ties with close relatives was dangerous and counted among the major sins.
The meaning of a hadith of the noble Prophet on this matter is:
“The one who severs kinship ties will not enter Paradise.”
The sermon said family bonds could be strengthened by raising children properly, and that this required those responsible for their upbringing to be equipped for the task. It also said the noble Messenger had explained the responsibilities of spouses within a family, and that their foremost responsibility was to safeguard their children's rights.
The sermon noted that education alone could not make children virtuous, capable people who maintain kinship ties, and said they must also receive proper upbringing. Beyond meeting all their material needs, those raising children must offer them guidance and work to instil respect for Islamic manners and the rulings of Sharia.
The sermon said these efforts would yield the most desirable results when parents set a good example for their children, and that Islam instructs parents to teach their children good manners from an early age. It also said parents had a duty to encourage respect for religious obligations.
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