The Morality Carried from the Mosque to Life
· Halil ETYEMEZ
What changes in our lives when we leave the mosque? Does our shopping become more honest, our word more reliable, our treatment of employees fairer? Do we approach our responsibilities with greater accountability?
What changes in our lives when we leave the mosque? Does our shopping become more honest, our word more reliable, our treatment of employees fairer? Do we approach our responsibilities with greater accountability?
The week of October 1-7, Mosques and Religious Officials Week, is a valuable occasion to reflect on the place of our mosques in our lives with these questions. Because the peace the mosque awakens in our hearts should have a corresponding reflection in our behavior.
In our civilization, the mosque is a center of direction within life. Its trace is present in children's first memories, neighborhood gatherings, the joy of holidays, and the sorrow of funerals. People standing shoulder to shoulder in the same row remember their responsibilities towards each other. The brotherhood established in the rows deepens as it transforms into solidarity in life.
In the mosque, ranks, titles, and wealth are left behind. Individuals turn towards the realization of their servitude alongside other people. This realization must continue in the workplace, institution, street, and family.
Looking out for the rights of the person we pray next to at work, giving them the due compensation for their labor on time, and listening to their troubles are among the responsibilities that standing in the same row imposes on us.
Today, more than ever, we need sensitivity towards lawful earnings, a moral way of life, a will that protects rights, and respect for hard work. We must consider with what labor, what relationships, and what earnings the morsel on our table is obtained. Sensitivity to lawful earnings should guide our trade, our working lives, and our approach to the rights of others.
In our understanding of civilization, duties and positions are trusts bestowed upon individuals to serve the nation. Every authority carries a responsibility to be accountable.
It is a fact that people evaluate justice based on how they are treated. They look at whether they are listened to, whether their labor is recognized, and whether their rights are protected.
For this reason, the consciousness of trust (emanet) must be visible in our daily decisions. Considering merit in an appointment, evaluating an application with fairness, using public resources with care, and maintaining justice among employees are concrete manifestations of this consciousness.
The value of a position is measured by the good it brings to people's lives.
Our religious officials are precious guides who connect the moral responsibilities of our faith with life. The truths they articulate in the mihrab, minbar, and pulpit find their reflection in their relationships with people, their compassion, and their trustworthy demeanor.
Our imam, who patiently listens to a child's question, understands a young person's search, and visits a lonely elder, teaches the values he speaks of by living them. Thus, the bond established with the mosque transforms into a relationship of trust that accompanies a person's life.
It is also our collective duty to protect the labor, working conditions, and professional dignity of our religious officials who carry this great responsibility. I find the efforts of Diyanet-Sen in this regard valuable for strengthening an understanding that considers both the rights of labor and the morality of service.
Keeping our mosques at the center of life requires us to carry the values we remember there into our daily relationships. The attention and responsibility gained from worship must become visible as truthfulness in our speech, sensitivity to lawful earnings in our income, loyalty in our duties, and compassion in our behavior.
On the occasion of Mosques and Religious Officials Week, I remember all our imams who nurture our hearts with gratitude, and those who have passed to eternity with mercy.
May the light of our mosques find life in the honesty of our markets, the justice in our institutions, the lawful morsel on our tables, and the compassion we show each other.
May you forgive my shortcomings.
May you be entrusted to God.