The National Chief Imam of Al Habibiyah Islamic Society, Fuad Adeyemi, has admonished men to join hands with their spouses in raising children who will grow up to show love and empathy to humanity.
Adeyemi, who stated this at the Annual Women Ramadan Lecture organised by Al Habibiyah Women’s Forum tagged “By Women for Women,” advised men to find time in their busy schedules for the training and upbringing of their children and to nurture them in a godly way.
“Men should always come in to give women total support at all times. For example, it is expected that it’s the women who would be in charge of the children when men go out to source for the family.
“Inasmuch as men do that, the husband too should also contribute to the training and upbringing of the children. Men can also help with house chores. It’s not that it is their responsibility, but when the children see that, they see togetherness and love in their parents, which is very important.
“We all know that the entire world is now challenged. Everybody is thinking of material things. The woman in the house is competing with the husband because of the situation we’ve found ourselves in. Everybody wants to work, everyone wants to make money and at the end of the day, nobody thinks about the welfare, the interest, and the future of the children anymore. Hence the need for this kind of lecture and understanding among ourselves.”
The guest speaker, who is also the Deputy National Amirah, Women in Da’wah, Hajiya Ramah Musa Sani, who spoke on the topic “Connecting Children with Allah: The Responsibility of Muslim Parents,” said parents, especially mothers, play a lot of roles in what a child becomes in the future through what they say and eat during pregnancy, while emphasising the need to teach the children how to give and have empathy for the less privileged.
“Actually, we all know that we are created for a purpose. Allah has created us to worship Him, and the best way to do it is to do what is right and avoid what is bad. And as parents, Allah has given us so many responsibilities and we say that connection to Allah should start before giving birth to the child, even during pregnancy.
“Let’s even start before you get married. You’ve to choose a pious spouse that will help you in this journey of parenthood. And when you’re pregnant, you’ve to watch what you eat and say because it has a lot of impact on the children. That is why if you see a child from a quarrelsome family, he grows to become unstable and not be able to contribute to the growth of society. But when you have loving parents and grow up to be a loving person, we all know what that means.
“Also, what we hear impacts the child (during pregnancy). People who listen to Quran recitation during pregnancy make it easier for their children to memorise and understand the Quran, and also in whatever is being taught. But if the opposite is the case, the child will go with whatever he’s being fed with.
“It’s also good to instill in the children the fear of Allah first and the love of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Let them know that they need to be beneficial to themselves and to humanity. They should be made to understand the Deen (the religion) and to learn to be independent and knowledgeable because you cannot give what you don’t have. And we say, as a mother, ‘It is do as I do, not do as I say.’Â So you have to be a role model and a living example for your child.
“What you know is not good, don’t do it to the child and teach them to do what you’re also doing. Don’t tell a child to do something and you’re doing the opposite. Show the children the act of giving and generosity, especially during this Ramadan. Let them learn the act of giving right from their immediate family and to society at large,” Hajiya Musa Sani said.
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