Lack of observance is no excuse for deserting Da‘wah
10-11-2007 | IslamWeb
Question:
Does being nonobservant to the Islamic teachings prevent one from calling others to Allaah? If the answer is yes; would this be a pretext for stopping Da‘wah? If you think I should still call to Allaah despite my shortcomings, what about the lack of a good role model the lack of which is considered one of the stumbling blocks for Da‘wah?
Answer:
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and messenger.
Calling to Allaah The Almighty is considered the task of the prophets, may Allaah exalt their mention. Thus, the one who shoulders this responsibility should have certain qualities that would qualify him for this mission and make his mission an exceptional one.
The most important qualities one should possess are:
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Acting according to the knowledge one possesses.
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Being righteous in conduct in order to set a good example for others.
However, this does not mean that not being righteous can be a pretext for not doing Da‘wah, because both Da‘wah and righteousness are obligatory. Lacking one of the two obligations does not justify abandoning the other. Moreover, Da‘wah, if not accompanied by righteousness, it would be incomplete. This is because setting a good example has many advantages such as:
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Having a rapid positive impact on the addressed people.
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Easily convincing the addressed because they see a practical role model.
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Making people confident that the preaching they hear is practical and doable.