In the opening of his Fiqh course in the A’ezam Mosque in Qom, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi said: “the Prophet of Islam (may Allah bless him and his descendants) said: “a person who learns some knowledge or science with which to revive Islam, his rank will be only one level lower than the divine Prophets in the Heaven””.
He continued: “this tradition teaches us a lot of points; it tells us that sometimes Islam itself is threatened and when the permanence of Islam is in danger, the religious scholars have to rise up and protect Islam and save it with their knowledge”.
Stating that today, Islam is in danger both from the inside and the outside, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi stated: “in what era in the past had Islam been threatened like today, with so many TV and satellite channels, media, and cyberspaces propagating against it? There are currently thousands of media and websites which propagate against Islam day and night, and in situations like this we also have responsibilities that we have to carry out”.
His eminence stated: “Islam has the potential to be permanent and live on at all times by promoting its teachings, but it also needs some protectors, missionaries and preachers who are able to revive it at all times”.
Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi, then, said: “today the whole Islam, including the basic principles of the religion and its branches as well as the ethical values, is under attack by the enemies, and in situations like this the religious authorities and scholars and all those who are able to promote the religion have to go on missions to do their best to revive and protect the religion”.
His eminence, then, added: “some say that, considering the massive amount of enemy propaganda, their attempts would be futile, but we believe that such attempts are effective to one degree or the other and the Islamic traditions have also emphasized the fact that when innovations are made in the religion, it is obligatory for the religious authorities and scholars to use their knowledge to promote the true teachings of the religion and so to protect it”.
His eminence noted: “of course we believe that today there are a lot of souls in the world seeking the truth and ready to receive Islam and its rich teachings, and even if this were not the case, we would still have to break the silence and answer the doubts cast about Islam”.
Warning against the deviations that might be made in the mourning ceremonies held for Imam Hussein’s (‘a) martyrdom, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi said: “some false innovations have infiltrated the mourning ceremonies that are held for Imam Hussein’s (‘a) martyrdom; therefore, to eliminate these false innovations, the original and traditional form of the mourning ceremonies has to be preserved”.
Referring to the magnificence of the mourning processions that were held for Imam Hussein’s (‘a) martyrdom on Arba’een, in another part of his speech, Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi called these processions unparalleled and unique and noted: “The mourners came to the holy city of Karbala from Najaf and the other regions on foot to mourn for Imam Hussein’s martyrdom and this has turned the mourning ceremonies in to an amazingly huge gathering, which is a tradition that has to be preserved”.
Grand Ayatolla Makarem Shirazi stated: “we have to be careful not to let anyone undermine this magnificence with their false innovations and sinister plots, for, the mourning ceremonies that are held for Imam Hussein’s (as) martyrdom are a great treasure that can be very beneficial; we are proud of this treasure and we believe that this invaluable treasure must be guarded and protected”.
