Updated 29 October 2008

12 October 2008

Maulana Saheb, Respected Elders, Brothers and Sisters

Salaam Alaykum

I would like to begin by congratulating the Senior Citizens Group of Milton Keynes for hosting this event today, to remember our 12th Imam, Al Hujjat, Al Qaim (A.S.) and to discuss our duties towards Him.

It is always wonderful to see the excellent work done by the seniors of this community, who have built strong foundations for us. From Jamaats, to Regional Federations and to The World Federation. At all levels, you the seniors, have built not only great physical structures like our mosques and Imambarghas but a great community. You have passed onto us a great deal of spiritual understanding and a strong community bond. For this we are eternally grateful.

Let us note the words of our Prophet, Prophet Mohammed (S.A.W.W), who said: ‘Whoever does not respect elders, does not belong to my nation.’ In addition, to mark the importance of the elderly and for our grandparents, The World Federation has dedicated the 10 Shawaal, every year, as being Grandparents Day. It is one the same day, as the day when our Imam, entered into Ghaybat-e-Kubra.

My talk to you today has two aims: firstly to explain the fundamental purpose of The World Federation and secondly to update you on some of the more recent activities, it has currently undertaken.

The World Federation has a number of different objectives including to provide leadership to our international Khoja Community, to relieve poverty, to promote the education of Momineen and to instil Tableegh on a continuous basis.

But why does this work occur? What is the purpose or the reason behind it?

Well, the vision of The World Federation is to ‘achieve the pleasure of Allah swt by developing vibrant and spiritual communities that serve humanity.’ The underlying purpose behind all of this, and behind the work of all our community institutions – be it The World Federation, Regional Federations around the world or of our Jamaats, is to help prepare for the re-appearance of our 12th Imam, Imam Al Mahdi (A.S.) After all, without the hope of his re-appearance, who else would help bring justice and peace in this world?

On a day like today, dedicated to discussing the Fazila our Imam, let us think through what we can do to prepare for him, and to help him. This is the underlying purpose of our community institutions, that we work together to create a strong, Islamically principled, educated and uplifted community ready to help His cause.

With this in mind, The World Federation’s emphasis is on promoting the Shia-Ithna Asheri faith throughout the world, to relive poverty and to build the human capital of our community through education and capacity building. In order to make sure these objectives are reached, the Secretariat has five departments: Education, Islamic Education, Family Affairs, Health and Relief & Economic Development. In addition, the organisation operates the Zainabiya Child Sponsorship Scheme which has made a real difference in the lives of thousands of children.

The department that I want to concentrate on most today is the Relief & Economic Development Department which is focussed on uplifting members of our community and the Shia faith out of the cycle of poverty. The World Federation carries out a number of campaigns to help aide the deserving. This includes the annual Ramadhan Relief Fund, the Hadithe Kisa Blanket Drive, the Al Qa’im Sponsor our Seniors scheme, various Housing projects, water & sanitation projects and economic upliftment initiatives. In addition, the department leads the response to natural disasters. In the last year alone, with the help of the community, we have been able to help Momineen to recover from cyclones in Madagascar and Myanmar, landslides in Gujarat and the Kenya Post Election Crisis. At this moment in time, we are working, with your support, to help the people of Parachinar, which is in Northern Pakistan. They are suffering from persecution of the anti-Shia Afghan forces, their men are being killed and there is no one for to look after their widows, orphans and seniors. This is our duty to the 12th Imam, to look after our fellow Shias, to support each other in this period of Intizar and to help uplift them in His name.

Imam Jaffer As-Sadiq (A.S.) has said: ‘Each and everyone of you must prepare for the advent of Al Qaim, even if it be as little as an arrow, because when Allah knows that the person has this intention, then Allah will give him a longer life.’

Preparing for our 12th Imam, is not only an activity for Relief, it is there for all our departments. One of the most significant achievements, for the Islamic Education department, has been the establishment and success of the Islamic Institute of Postgraduate Studies, which is now in its second year. The vision of the programme is to create fully rounded, community conscious Aalims who can help serve our community. The programme is now in its second year and has alhamdullilah been successful, so far. InshAllah they too, once they have graduated, will work hard to serve our Imam.
 
With achievements come challenges and opportunities. In 2007, The World Federation gained consultative status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. This in itself brings a number of opportunities for us to serve our 12th Imam. Our challenge is to use this to advocate the principles of the Shia-Ithna Asheri faith, to influence other NGOs and international institutions and possibly funding opportunities. This is a significant opportunity and one we need to fully grasp.

Another challenge we have here in Europe is to maintain the unity of our community despite the breakdown of social fabric around us and the problems associated with rising costs of living. This has, impacted on our elderly and many of them may live in difficult circumstances. The World Federation, in partnership with The Council of European Jamaats, will soon be launching a project to assess the needs of the elderly in Europe. InshAllah with the support of the Jamaats here, we can assess the social and economic circumstances of our seniors and look at what is needed to help them.

Let us end by remembering our Marhumeen, in particular Marhum Mulla Asgher who founded and led the World Federation for so many years, let us recite a Sura Fateha for him, all our past leaders who have worked for this community and all our Marhumeen. Al Fateha.

Wassalaamun Alaykum

Shan-E-Abbas Hassam
Assistant Secretary General
Relief & Economic Development
The World Federation of KSIMC