His Eminence, Sayyed Ali Fadlallah, delivered the two Friday prayer sermons at the Imamain Al-Hassanain Mosque, Shawal 20, 1446H/ April 18, 2025. Several prominent religious scholars, dignitaries and hundreds of believers attended the Jumu’a prayer. Following is summary of his sermons

The first sermon

Bringing Joy: The Key to Goodness in This Life and Salvation in the Hereafter

Allah, the Most Exalted, says in His Glorious Book :

 

 

 

{“O mankind, there has come to you a counsel from your Lord, and a healing for what is in the breasts, and a guidance and mercy for the believers. Say, ‘In the bounty of Allah and in His mercy — in that let them rejoice; it is better than what they accumulate.”}

— [Surat Yunus, 57-58]. Truthful is Allah, the Most Exalted.

Allah, the Most Exalted, wants His believing servants to spread joy wherever they are—to plant it on faces, to embed it in hearts. They should never ignore those burdened by the difficulties of life and its pains. Instead, they should be the kind hand that reaches out to ease and support, that strengthens others’ resolve, lifts their spirits, relieves their burdens, brings them comfort, and revives in them a sense of hope and tranquility.

 

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The Deeds Most Beloved to God

There are many prophetic narrations about this, including: 

Among the most beloved deeds to Alah is bringing joy to the heart of a believer—relieving them of a distress, paying off a debt for them, or feeding them in hunger.

 

God has made such actions a means to safety on the Day of Judgment.

Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (a.s.) said: 

 “When God resurrects a believer from ther grave, a figure will come before them. Whenever the believer sees a terrifying scene on the Day of Judgment, the figure will say: ‘Do not be afraid, do not grieve.’ The believer will ask: ‘Who are you?’ The figure will reply: ‘I am the joy you brought to your fellow believer’s heart.’”

 

This applies to your children, your spouse, orphans, the poor, those in debt… when you solve their problems, ease their hardships, resolve their disputes, or simply lift their spirits.

 

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The Road to Paradise

 

The Path to Paradise

It is narrated from Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.), referring to one of the many paths to Paradise: 

Allah, the Exalted, revealed to David (a.s.): Verily, a servant may come to Me on the Day of Judgment with a single good deed, and I will grant him authority over Paradise because of it”—that is, Paradise will be at their disposal, and he may move within it as he pleases.

 

David asked:

“O Lord, and what is that good deed?”

Allah said:

“He brings joy to My believing servant—even if with just a date (fruit).”

So David said:

“It is indeed the right of anyone who knows You to never lose hope in You.”

 And in this life, the reward is also immense. The Prophet (p.) said: 

By the One whose hearing encompasses all sounds: no one places joy in another’s heart without God creating for him, from that joy, a subtle mercy. When a calamity befalls him, that mercy rushes to him like water flows downhill, driving away the misfortune just as stray camels are driven away

 

Imam al-Sadiq (a.s.) said: 

 

‘Whoever relieves a distress from a believer, God will relieve seventy distresses from them in this world and in the Hereafter. Whoever eases the difficulty of a struggling believer, God will ease their needs in this life and the next. And God is always in the aid of the believer as long as the believer is helping his/her brother.”

 

So, the joy you bring to others will come back to you. Through it, you deflect harm from yourself and your loved ones.

 

Because of the importance of this noble behavior, Prophet Muhammad (p.) said: 

Whoever brings joy to a believer has brought joy to me. Whoever brings joy to me has brought joy to God. And whoever brings joy to God, God will admit into His Paradise.”

 

 

A Story from Imam Musa al-Kazim (a.s.)

 

A man approached Imam al-Kazim during Hajj and said: “The one in charge of us is among your followers. Please write me a note to help lift my distress and ease my needs.” 

The Imam (a.s.) wrote him a letter in which he said: 

“Know that beneath the Throne of God is a shade that no one resides in except one who has done a favor for his brothers / sisters, relieved them of a distress, or brought joy to their heart. This man is your brother. Peace.”

 

The man said: “When I returned from Hajj, I visited the governor, gave him the letter, and he kissed it, placed it on his head, and granted my request.” 

The following year, he met the Imam again and told him what happened. While he was speaking, the Imam’s face lit up with joy. The man asked, “My master, did this bring you happiness?” 

The Imam replied: 

“By God, yes. It made me happy. It made the Commander of the Faithful happy. By God, it made my grandfather the Messenger of God happy. And by God, it made God Himself happy”

 

 

Forms of Bringing Joy 

There are many ways to bring joy to a believer’s heart—such as smiling at them, visiting them, giving them gifts, helping them and fulfilling their needs, congratulating them in their happy times, standing by them in their sorrow, relieving them of distress and worry, visiting them when they are sick, checking on their conditions. It also comes through kind words and sincere advice.

 

And it’s not limited to the living only—we can bring joy to the hearts of the deceased as well, when we fulfill duties on their behalf or perform good deeds in their name and for their intentions. This is what we read every day during the month of Ramadan in the daily supplication: 

“O Allah, bring joy to the inhabitants of the graves.”

The Greatest Happiness

What’s especially touching is when a person takes the initiative to bring joy to others without being asked, and not out of obligation or duty. That can do more than just relieve someone’s burden—it can truly bring happiness to their hearts.

 

It is a happiness unlike any other, felt by those who bring joy to others with sincerity, whose hearts are pure, radiant, and transparent—hearts that radiate security, peace, and comfort to those around them.

 

One of the most profound forms of joy is guiding someone to the path of their own happiness—the path that leads to God’s pleasure and His eternal Paradise. That is the real joy to which Allah has called us, as mentioned in the verse: 

“O people! There has come to you an admonition from your Lord, and a healing for what is in the breasts, and guidance and mercy for the believers. Say, ‘In the bounty of Allah and in His mercy—in that let them rejoice. It is better than what they accumulate.'”

(Qur’an, 10:57–58)

 

And as Imam Ali (a.s) said: 

“A person is delighted by achieving what was never meant to miss them, and saddened by missing what was never meant to be theirs. So let your joy be in what you’ve sent ahead (for the Hereafter), and your sorrow for what you’ve left behind. Let your concern be for what lies after death.”

 

Let us strive to be among those whose hearts are like the hearts of prophets, the truthful, and the martyrs—those who spent and exhausted their lives to bring joy to people by guiding them to God’s path, which brings them peace in this world and happiness in the next.

 

Generous Souls 

Dear beloved ones: In the midst of all the tensions and crises we face—economically, socially, politically, and in terms of security—we are in dire need of those kind and giving souls that plant seeds of hope and optimism in life.

 

Life is built and thrives through such people—not through those who spread despair, pessimism, and anxiety. So let no one withhold joy: not a husband from his wife, nor a wife from her husband, children from their parents, parents from their children, merchants from their customers, managers from their employees, teachers from their students, doctors from their patients…

 

Let’s spread it in our mosques, clubs, and all our spaces—so we can rise above our suffering. Without this, our frustration, despair, and decline will only deepen.

Joy for All People

The joy that God has called us to bring is not limited to those who share our religion, sect, opinion, or political position. It is for all people. Let us always remember the words of the Prophet (p.):”All people are God’s dependents, and the most beloved among them to God are those most beneficial to His dependents. Whoever brings joy to a household…”\

 

And it was Imam Ali (a.s.) who said: 

“Mingle with people in a way that if you die, they weep for you, and if you live, they long for you. Be among the people like the bee among the birds.”

 

May Allah make us among those who bring joy to others—not for any worldly gain, but out of love to ease the burdens of others and revive their spirits. Surely, He is the Answerer of prayers.

 

Second Sermon

Worshippers of Allah, I advise you and myself with what the Commander of the Faithful advised his companions: 

“I enjoin you, O people, to fear Allah and to frequently praise Him for His blessings upon you—His grace upon you and His trials among you. How often has He favored you with a blessing and enveloped you in His mercy! You have sinned against Him, yet He covered you. You exposed yourselves to His punishment, yet He gave you respite!

 

I urge you to remember death and to reduce your heedlessness of it. How can you be heedless of something that does not overlook you, or be greedy for someone who will not delay your end!

 

Suffice as a lesson are those among the dead you have seen—carried to their graves without being riders, and lowered into them without being descenders. It’s as if they never populated the world, and as if the Hereafter had always been their home. They abandoned what they once inhabited and settled in what they once feared. They became busy with what they had left behind.”

 

So race—may Allah have mercy on you—toward the homes you have been ordered to build, the homes you’ve been encouraged to seek and invited to inhabit. Complete the blessings of Allah upon you by remaining patient in obeying Him and avoiding disobedience to Him.

Dear loved ones; this is the will left to us by the Commander of the Faithful—let us uphold it, so we may become more aware and responsible, and so the temptations of this world don’t deceive us. Let’s not forget our final destination, the place we will inevitably reach. Through this, we express our love and loyalty to him, and thus, we’ll be ready to face even the toughest of challenges.

 

Pressures on Lebanon 

We begin with Lebanon, where Zionist attacks continue daily on border villages in an attempt to prevent displaced citizens from returning. These attacks have extended beyond the border and have established new military positions, while assassinations target citizens in their own villages and during their travel. Drones and sonic booms are violating Lebanese airspace—including Beirut and its suburbs.

 

It’s now clear that these aggressions are part of mounting pressure on Lebanon to force it into submitting to the enemy’s conditions—or to subdue it entirely.

 

We reiterate our call to the Lebanese state: stopping the aggression must be a top priority. The state must harness all its efforts, activate its diplomacy and relations, and use its strengths to confront what’s happening—not yielding to the pressures or allowing the enemy to tamper with the country’s sovereignty. Otherwise, the aggression will become normalized, as though nothing is happening.

 

At the same time, we urge all Lebanese—across sects and political affiliations—to freeze their internal disputes and stand united against the Zionist enemy. We must not let internal divisions help an enemy that has never valued this land or its people.

 

The real problem in this country has never been the resistance’s weapons, which exist to defend the entire homeland—not a sect or a party. These arms are not meant for internal conflict, but to protect Lebanon from the enemy’s ambitions, which we continue to see today through its occupation and aggression. The Israeli defense minister even stated that the occupation in Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza would continue indefinitely.

 

We don’t reject discussion around the resistance’s arms, but we reject that such discourse be dictated by the enemy for its own security. It should come from national interest—securing Lebanon’s defense and stability, once the enemy withdraws from all Lebanese land, releases prisoners, and ends its daily assaults by air, land, and sea.

 

Dialogue remains the best path to resolve this issue and address concerns about the resistance’s weapons—away from provocations. We commend the President’s call for dialogue, which reflects a desire to remove this matter from the tug-of-war of political and sectarian conflict.

 

 

Municipal Elections

We now move to the municipal elections, which we hope will be a key milestone in restoring citizens’ trust in their country. It should signal to the world that Lebanon is recovering and striving to rise again, despite everything.

 

We support the official insistence on holding the elections on time, including in border villages. We urge that these elections be a gateway to reform and better municipal performance—by choosing qualified, experienced, and honest candidates, away from sectarian and factional interests that have plagued the country.

 

Municipal elections should be about internal development and competition over the best projects—not about political muscle or dividing communities. Now more than ever, Lebanon needs unity and cohesion.

 

 

The Massacres in Gaza

We come now to Gaza, where the Zionist aggression continues with massacres targeting both people and infrastructure—aimed at forcing Palestinians to leave their land, willingly or by force. This is happening alongside assaults in the West Bank and settler incursions into Al-Aqsa Mosque, while the world remains silent—except for protests and marches that receive little response.

 

While we salute the steadfastness and patience of the Palestinian people—who hold firm to their rights and strength—we join the calls urging the Arab and Muslim worlds, and all the free people globally, to stand by this people and defend them. Silence is no longer an option.

 

 

The Aggression on Yemen

Finally, we call for an end to the aggression on the Yemeni people and the destruction of their infrastructure, as a punishment merely for standing by the oppressed Palestinian people. We urge all Arab and Muslim countries not to allow this Muslim land to be violated, for if it is allowed now, any Islamic and Arab land may be next. Let us not be like the one who said, “I was eaten the day the white bull was eaten.”

 

 

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