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Newsletter for September 2016

 

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Jesus on Ethics Pieces of Advice from the ‘Word of God’

By Hasnain Walji

 

 

Self Training

It was said to Jesus, “Who trained you?” He said, “No one trained me. I saw the ugliness of ignorance and, so, I avoided it.”

The Apostles met with Jesus and said to him, “O teacher of the good! Guide us!” He said to them, “Verily Moses the interlocutor of God, commanded you not to swear by God, the Blessed and Exalted, falsely, and I command you not to swear by God falsely or truly.” They said, “O Spirit of God! Guide us more!” Then he said, “Verily Moses, the prophet of God, commanded you not to commit adultery, and I command you not to talk to yourselves about adultery, let alone to commit adultery. Verily, one who talks to himself about adultery, is like one who sets fire to a room that is decorated so the smoke damages the decor, even though the room is not burnt.”

Have a Good Regard for Others

It is reported that Jesus passed by a carcass with his disciples. Then the disciples said, “How putrid the smell of this dog is!” Then Jesus said, “How intense is the whiteness of his teeth!”

Whom to Associate With

The Apostles said to Jesus, “O Spirit of God! With whom should we keep company?” He said, “He the sight of whom reminds you of God, the speech of whom increases your knowledge, and the works of whom make you desirous of the other world.”

Knowing the Prophet

Jesus the son of Mary used to spend some time with the disciples and advise them, and he used to say, “He does not know me, who knows not his soul, and he who does not know the soul between his two sides, does not know the soul between my two sides. And he who knows his soul which is between his sides, he knows me. And he who knows me, knows He who sent me.”

Moral Traits

“He who often becomes upset, his body becomes sick; he whose character is bad, his self becomes his torment; he who often talks, often stumbles; he who often lies, loses his worth; he who quarrels with men, loses his manliness.”

 “That which is not loved by you for someone to do to you, do not do that to others; if someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him your left cheek also.”

 “O Children of Israel! Do not be excessive in eating, for those who are excessive in eating are excessive in sleeping; those who are excessive in sleeping are deficient in praying; of those who are deficient in praying, it is written that they are negligent.”

 “Mind your tongue to reform your heart, be satisfied with your house, beware of pretentiousness and excess, be ashamed before your Lord, cry over your mistakes, and escape from people as you would run from the lion or viper, [for] they were medicine but today, they have become illness. Then, encounter God when you will.”

The Life of the World

“Who would build a house on the waves of the sea? This world is that house, so you should not take it as a dwelling.”

 “The love of this world and the next cannot be aligned in the heart of a believer, like water and fire in a single vessel.”

 “When one of you sits in his house, he should have clothes on. Verily, God has allotted modesty for you, just as He has allotted your sustenance.”

 “If you are my lovers and my brothers, you must accustom yourself to the enmity and hatred of the people, otherwise you will not be my brothers. I teach you this that you may learn it; I do not teach you so that you may become proud. Verily, you will not achieve that which you desire unless you give up that which you desire, and by enduring patiently that which you detest, and guard your gaze, for it plants lust in the heart, and it is sufficient to tempt him. Happy are they who see that which they desire with their eyes, but who commit no disobedience in their hearts. How far is that which is in the past, and how near is that which is to come. Woe to those who have been deluded when what they loathe approaches them, and what they love abandons them, and there comes that which they were promised. Woe to those whose efforts are for the sake of this world, and whose works are mistaken. How he will be disgraced before his Lord! Moreover, do not speak much for aught but the remembrance of God. Those who speak much about aught but God harden their hearts, but they do not know it. Do not look at the faults of others over much [the phrase used here indicates spying], but look after the purity of your own selves, for you are enslaved servants. How much water flows in a mountain without its becoming soft? And how much wisdom are you taught without your hearts becoming soft? You are bad servants, and you are not pious servants. You are not nobly free. Indeed, you are like unto the oleander, all who see it wonder at its flower, but when they eat from it they die. So, peace be unto you.”

 “This world and the next are rivals. When you satisfy one of them you irritate the other; when you irritate one of them you satisfy the other.”

 “In truth I say to you, just as one who is sick looks at food and finds no pleasure in it due to the severity of the pain, the masters of this world find no pleasure in worship and do not find the sweetness of it, for what they find is the sweetness of this world. In truth I say to you, just as an animal which is not captured and tamed becomes hardened and its character is changed, so too when hearts are not softened by the remembrance of death and the effort of worship they become hard and tough, and in truth I say to you, if a skin is not torn, it may become a vessel for honey, just as hearts, if they are not torn by desires, or fouled by greed, or hardened by blessings, may become vessels for wisdom.”

 “Do not take the world as a master, for it will take you as its servants. Keep your treasure with One who will not squander it. The owners of the treasures of this world fear for its ruin, but he who owns the treasure of God does not fear for its ruin.”

Jesus said to the disciples, “Be satisfied with a little of the world, while your religion is safe, likewise the people of this world are satisfied with a little of the religion, while their world is safe; love God by being far from them, and make God satisfied by being angry with them.” The disciples said, “O spirit of God, so with whom should we keep company?” He said, “He the sight of whom reminds you of God, his speech increases your knowledge and his action makes you desirous of the other world.”

Conduct with Others

“O Children of Israel! Do not speak with the ignorant of wisdom, for otherwise you do injustice with it, and do not keep it from its folk, for otherwise you do injustice to them, and do not help the unjust with his injustice, for otherwise your virtue becomes void. Affairs are three: the affair whose righteousness is clear to you, so follow it; the affair whose error is clear to you, so avoid it; and the affair about which there are differences, so return it to God, the Almighty and Glorious.”

A man said to Jesus the son of Mary, “O good teacher, indicate to me a work by which I may enter the Garden.” Then he said to him, “Beware of God secretly and openly, and do good to your parents.”

Lowering the Gaze

“Beware of looking at what is prohibited, for it is the seed of lust and plant of depravity.”

Entering into Paradise

“In truth I say to you, the folds of heaven are empty of the rich; the entering of a camel through the eye of a needle is easier than the entering of a rich man into heaven.”

A Prayer of Jesus

Among the supplications narrated from Jesus, the son of Mary, is: “O God! You are the Deity of all who are in heaven and the Deity of all on the earth. There is no Deity in them other than You, and You are the All-wise for all in heaven and the All-wise for all on the earth. There is no All-wise in them other than You. And you are the King of all in heaven and all on the earth. There is no King in them other than You. Your power in heaven is like Your power on the earth. And Your sovereignty in heaven is like Your sovereignty on the earth. I ask you by Your All-generous Name and Your radiant face and Your eternal kingdom, do such and such for me.”

It is reported that a man complained to Jesus about his debts. Jesus said to him, “Say: ‘O God, Who takes away grief, removes sadness, disposes of sorrow, and answers the prayers of the needy! O Merciful of this world and the other world and the Compassionate of them! You are Merciful to me and Merciful to all things! So, be Merciful to me, with a mercy that will make me needless of the mercy of others than You, and by that mercy let my debts be paid.’”

 

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