Friday Sermon was delivered by Hadhrat Khalifatul Massih V, Mirza Masroor Ahmad (aba) at the International Center, Mississauga,

Canada at the occasion of Jalsa Salana Canada 2012 After the recitation of Surah Al Fatihah, Huzoor (aba) began the sermon by expre ssing his gratitude to Allah Almighty for enabling Jamaat Ahmadiyya Canada to ho ld Jalsa Salana. These Jalsas are a source of receiving many blessings in the li fe of an Ahmadi Muslim, because it is an auspicious occasion held solely for the masses to congregate for religious purposes, where individuals are enabled to r emember Allah, to be in the company of those who remember Allah, and to gain His favours. All these reasons indeed become a source of blessings from Allah Almig hty. The Holy Prophet (saw) has also stated that participants in such occasions and gatherings which are held to gain nearness of Allah become heirs to the favo urs of Allah Almighty and take them towards Paradise. He (saw) said: Strive to w alk in the gardens of Paradise. When the companions asked him to elaborate on th is concept, Hadhrat Muhammad (saw) said that congregations held to remember Alla h are such gardens indeed. The objectives of these Jalsas are in reality to remember Allah and to strive in progressing towards the Love of Allah, with focus and attention towards prayers and supplications and to educate oneself even further about how to gain nearnes s to Allah. Similarly, we must also pay special attention towards fulfilling our obligations to our fellow human beings, again, to the end of gaining the pleasu re of Allah Almighty. Then, this focus on prayers and obligations and worship wi ll lead us towards the gardens of Paradise. In fact, fulfilling the obligations towards our fellow human beings has two aspects: one is that the person who is f ulfilling the obligations reaps the reward, and the other is that the person who se obligations are being fulfilled also acknowledges the blessings of these spir itual conventions due to which his rights are being awarded. This should be the ultimate picture of such blessed gatherings where gratitude of Allah, mutual rel ationships and excellences in worship can flourish and progress. Fortunate among st us are those who come to the Jalsa with this spirit and intention and impleme nt these practices and as a result, they unlock the gates of Paradise not only f or themselves but also enable others to walk in these gardens. One pious action leads to many such pious actions, which gather the rewards from Allah Almighty f or all those individuals who initiated the pious actions. Our Allah is a Loving Allah who rewards righteous deeds hundred and thousands of folds. Therefore, every individual should strive towards seeking this Love for our Loving God. The inauguration of Jalsas by the Promised Messiah (as) has give n us the opportunity to achieve this goal: to roam among the gardens of Paradise . Thus, fortunate are those who shall gain the rewards and blessings of Allah Al mighty by attaining the true purpose of these conventions. Each and every partic ipant of the Jalsa Salana, men, women, young and old, must all strive towards th is end. The Promised Messiah (as) felt a great deal of pain towards the members of his J amaat, and used to pray with anguish for them in these words: I pray until I exh ale my final breath that may Allah Almighty purify the hearts of the members of my Jamaat and that may He extend the hand of His Mercy so that their hearts turn towards Him and that may He eliminate all malice and evil from their hearts and may He fill their hearts with love and purity. I have firm faith that my prayer will be accepted, and God will not let my prayers go wasted. I also pray that i f there is an individual in this Jamaat who does not have the intention of gaini ng nearness to Allah, then he should be cut asunder from it and in exchange, a p ious soul should replace him, whose heart is tender and is inclined towards the Divine. These are words that reflect the condition of the heart of the Promised Messiah (as) and should render the heart of his true followers empathetic and compel the

m to turn towards Astaghfar and Tauba, and incline them to bow down before God a sking for forgiveness and mercy. These words should make them realize about thei r obligations and duties towards their fellow human beings. Therefore, during th ese days, each and every one of us should turn to Tauba, Astaghfar, remembrance of Allah and durood. May Allah Almighty safeguard our faith, in fact, may He inc rease our faith and enable us to progress in our Taqwa. May our Astaghfar be pur e and wholesome. May our prayers and worship become genuinely devoted and faithf ul. May the purpose of our duties towards our fellow human beings be truly to ga in the pleasure of Allah Almighty. The Promised Messiah (as) states: Unless and until our prostrations are filled w ith complete devotion, our supplications shall bear no fruit. Just like the meat and blood of sacrifices does not reach God Almighty, only Taqwa reaches God, si milarly, physical prostrations are devoid of any reward unless our hearts are fi lled with Taqwa. The inclination of the heart means that one must fully obey the commandments of God, the bowing of the heart means that one should submit to Hi s will, and the prostration of the heart means that one should abandon his own w ill to gain the pleasure of God Almighty. This is the desire of the Promised Messiah (as) to see his followers established on the path of Taqwa, and for this he prayed fervently and profoundly. May Alla h enable us to achieve this status. Let us hope that our worldly inclinations do not become an impediment in the path of this religious revolution that was the purpose of the advent of the Promised Messiah (as). In order to gain the pleasur e of Allah Almighty and to become the recipients of the blessings of the prayers of the Promised Messiah (as), each and every Ahmadi should renew his oath with a new energy and vigour that he shall make every effort to increase in his stand ards of attaining Taqwa. The Holy Quran directs the believers towards the path t o attain the excellent state of Taqwa in many different places. Taqwa means that every true Ahmadi Muslim must make every possible effort to sta y away from sin and immorality, therefore Allah states that worship performed in its absolute essence will safeguard you from all evil. Let it be clear that wor ship in its true essence inculcates the fear of Allah in a person s heart, but this fear is due to the love a true worshipper and a true Believer feels for Allah Al mighty which leads him to gaining the pleasure of Allah Almighty, which is the u ltimate purpose of creation itself. Allah Almighty states that I have not created m an and jinn, but that they may worship me. Huzoor (aba) said that the self-created objectives of life are most futile, as t hey conceal the purpose of creation as stated by Allah. Worldly objectives and d esires are all that is left in the life of people who follow these self-created objectives. In actuality, the purpose as stated in the Quran is the recognition of and devotion to and worship of Allah. Man has no control over his birth and h is death; only God has control over this. Similarly, God is the One Who has set forth the purpose of man s life which is stated above. This is the standard every Ah madi should strive to attain. These days, the Western countries have invented many ways to attain worldly plea sures which lead to nothing but debauchery and immorality, which is in turn disp layed to the whole world. This debauchery is labelled as fun and pleasure. These are people who do not understand and do not have the eyes and the hearts to see the truth and the purpose God has set forth for them. They pay no heed to God s com mandments, and are following their carnal instincts, which makes them worse than animals, let alone human beings. They have gone astray and follow their worldly desires. The Promised Messiah (as) says that these people have forgotten God and His comm andments, and are trying to seek and establish their own purpose and objectives in life. The final abode of these people is Hell.

Huzoor (aba) elaborated that the Mercy of Allah is All-encompassing, but many pe ople do not benefit from God s Mercy and drown themselves in worldly activities to t he extent that they perish spiritually. The way to a tragic ending is when man d oes not follow the commandments of God, and does not worship Him the way He must be worshipped. Man has involved himself in vain and debauched activities. Porno graphic videos are available freely such that man has turned himself into an ani mal by watching these. Huzoor (aba) said that sometimes he receives complaints t hat young or middle-aged Ahmadis are also involved in watching such videos or a little less but certainly futile movies. These activities lead to the destructio n of family unit and divorces ensue. Huzoor (aba) admonished all Jamaat members to be fearful of Allah Almighty who has made it clear that such people who have gone astray shall be Hell-bound. The Promised Messiah (as) has also explained th at if you wish to stay in my Jamaat, then you must abandon these futile and pers onal desires otherwise, stay away from Jamaat. Huzoor (aba) said that such peopl e are generally distant from Jamaat and do not participate in Jalsas, however, i f they do attend or if they listen to these instructions, then they should try t o rectify themselves, or they should separate themselves from the Jamaat before Jamaat takes any action against such individuals. Huzoor (aba) addressed the youth as well, saying that sometimes, they are not fa miliar with the rules of Jamaat or cannot distinguish between right and wrong. T herefore, they must also refrain from developing friendships with such individua ls who are involved in debauchery and immoral acts, which can be addictive once started. The Promised Messiah (as) says that God says that many men were created to become the fuel for Hell; however, this Hell was created by the hands of the se people themselves. They are invited to Paradise with clean and pure hearts, b ut they do not pay heed. Many think they are very smart and try to establish the ir own path to Paradise , but they reach nowhere except Hell. For such people, this wor ld will also be Hellish and their final destination will also be Hell. The Promised Messiah (as) also stated that do not think that these worldly luxur ies and relationships will be the source of contentment to your heart. Not at al l. The contentment and peace of the heart does not come from worldly and materia l objects; it can only come when a person annihilates himself in the love of All ah. The thirst for worldly objects cannot be quenched, in fact it only increases infinitely, such that people who pursue these will eventually perish. This fire is also like the fire of Hell, which does not let a person rest, but on the con trary creates this ravenous appetite for more and more till they succumb to thei r desires. Therefore, my friends, pay heed to these instructions. This fire that burns the heart and transforms it into darkness, like that of coal, that all-co nsuming fire is this love for the material world. Huzoor (aba) said that a true believer must have the intention of gaining the pl easure of Allah in his every action, and crush the idols within his heart that i ncline him towards worldly desires. Only then can a Muslim become a Momin (true believer). Thus, during these days of Jalsa, God has given us the opportunity to make amendments, so each and every one of us should focus on his or her own con dition and try to improve it, no matter how big or small the imperfections are. Sometimes it is the small wrongdoings that take a person to bigger evils. Remain busy in the remembrance of Allah. Gain nearness of Allah by performing Astaghfa r and Durood. Cleanse your hearts of hidden idols. Be grateful to Allah, which w ill inculcate the love of Allah in your hearts. The worldly favours that have been bestowed upon you in this country, try to mak e them the source of gaining Divine favours. God Almighty has said that your Taq wa will be the source of your respect, not your money or your worldly status. Go d says that the best among you is the one who is best in Taqwa. Many a strife th at arise between members of Jamaat will resolve if we put these commandments int o practice.

The Promised Messiah (as) says that prevention from evil is the best way to prot ect oneself from that evil. Allah Almighty will reward us for the smallest of ou r actions that are undertaken in order to gain His pleasure. The highest in stat ure is not one who has attained worldly luxuries, but one who has gained in righ teousness. He also says that never cast an inferior glance on those brothers who are underprivileged. Do not consider yourself superior over others due to wealt h or caste. According to Allah Almighty, the only one who is superior is the one who is Mutaqqi (righteous). He added that salvation is not dependent on one s natio n, nor on wealth, but Allah Almighty looks at your actions. At another place, the Promised Messiah (as) has warned in strong words saying th at in the eyes of Allah Almighty, the only respectable person is the one who is righteous. God will save only the righteous. This is a delicate stance and a per son who is righteous cannot be at the same place as a person who is impure. Alla h Almighty will save the righteous and destroy the malicious. Only God knows who is righteous, therefore one must be fearfully aware of this fact. Fortunate is the one who is righteous and unfortunate is the cursed one. These sayings of the Promised Messiah (as) should suffice to spiritually revive an Ahmadi Muslim. The only way to protect oneself from evil is to make sure that his or her actions and words are one and the same so that he or she is enumerat ed amongst those who have attained salvation. The Promised Messiah (as) has enum erated three ways of attaining this salvation. The first is to perform good and righteous deeds, second is that every step you take should be towards righteousn ess (follow the model of the Holy Prophet (saw) whose actions were nothing but t he Quran, hence the underlying message is to turn towards the Holy Quran), third is to beautify your actions by submitting completely to the Will of Allah Almig htyand obedience of the Holy Prophet (saw). The Promised Messiah (as) said that the destiny of this Jamaat is nothing but success. Thus, fortunate are those who understand these fundamental concepts. Huzoor (aba) said that many members of the Jamaat are indeed set upon these righ teous ways, and it is obvious through their attitudes towards other members of t he Jamaat. However there is room for much progress. May Allah Almighty enable ea ch and every one of us to understand and implement these pearls of golden advice into our lives and may we become the recipients of the blessings that have been promised by God Almighty to the righteous, which is nothing but the reward of g oodness. The Promised Messiah (as) states one must abandon the ways of debaucher y, immorality, jealousy, malice, pride, vanity and all other evils and remember that only the pious will attain success. Huzoor (aba) said that the environment that is created during the Jalsa provides us with a unique opportunity for us to ensure that we take the steps in the dir ection of safeguarding ourselves from all types of immoralities and evil inclina tions and it also gives us the opportunity to partake in righteous acts that lea d us to the pleasure of God and His favours. Congregational and communal efforts in the way of Allah, rather than individual efforts, will also incur the increa sed blessings of Divine favours. We shall become the witnesses of the fulfilment of those promises that were granted to the Promised Messiah (as), such as the v ictory will be bestowed on God s Prophet. If we wish to savour the scenes of this vi ctory, then every Ahmadi must strive in progress of their spiritual conditions. The Promised Messiah (as) says that it must be remembered that the righteous are informed of their reward within their lives. He said that in the initial period s, the Messengers of Allah met with disasters, one after the other, but the resu lts of these difficulties and trials were nothing but success and eventual victo ry. He also foretold the progress of Jamaat in these words: I receive glad tidin gs about the success of the Jamaat, such that my grief and worries are taken awa y from me and these glad tidings strengthen my faith. I can already smell the fr agrance of final victory in the favour of Jamaat.

Huzoor (aba) re-emphasized that this progress and victory has already been desti ned for the Jamaat. We must therefore raise our standards of righteousness so th at we can be the witness of these successes. Every Ahmadi Muslim should benefit during the days of Jalsa and the upcoming month of Ramadan, and ameliorate thems elves by making every humanly effort possible. May Allah enable each and every o ne of us to do so and enable each one of us to gather the blessings of this ausp icious occasion. May we be the heirs of the prayers intended by the Promised Mes siah (as) in favour of the participants of Jalsa Salana. Listen to the speeches quietly and the attendance should remain constant during all sessions and implem ent the instructions given during the educational and spiritual discourses that are presented throughout this Jalsa. Participants should cooperate with the orga nizers, and the duty holders must also discharge their duties with full responsi bility. All participants and duty holders should remain aware of their surroundi ngs at all times. May Allah Almighty enable all of you to do so. May God Almight y assist all of you in gathering the blessings of the Jalsa.