Gentleness with servants is a proof to religious consciousness and human advancement

Mass media always reveals the problems of servants which is known to many as: "the problem of maids."

Mass media so often talks about the assaults which maids do against family members or assaults against themselves because of their family problems, health or psychological problems, or because of ill-treatment of their masters.

I will not speak about these mentioned problems in the following lines because the society discussed them so long and restored their painful stories and unfair situations. This news always showed up the negative aspects of this working class and illustrated our need and frequent demand for them.

What is really awful is that way which some families treat their maids, starting from calling them maids, passing by depriving them of getting out with family members in a desert tour or a beach tour, and ending up to despising them making them feel alienation and humiliation, not to mention the cases of aggression.

Moreover, the matter may increase to deprive them of their human rights, such as their right of leading an honorable life, particularly after they had left their families and may be their children to come and serve people, earn their pennies, and face the angered life.

There are some families who realized how honorable those women are and knew that those women are just workers who did not leave their countries and families to be humiliated in foreign countries.

These families understood the real values of Islam and knew for sure how did the Prophet (peace be upon him) treat his servants. He said: "They are your brethren whom are under your custody, so feed them of what you eat and clothe them from what you wear, and do not burden them of works that they cannot fulfill. However, if you burden them of hard work, you should help them."

A Muslim is commanded to treat his Muslim brothers and sisters well; they are even commanded to treat non-Muslims nicely because they did not come to the country except by a contract and Muslims always keep their promises.

Moreover, we have been commanded to be a model example to others and to reflect the real image of Islam not to misrepresent Islam by:

burdening them with hard work, depriving them of rest and sleep at night, delaying their dues, putting them in troubles with their families, humiliating them or leaving them alone while the whole family is gathered in a park or a garden.

Many of those maids need benevolence and good treatment by increasing their religious understanding, moral side, giving them useful matters, and making them feel safe and secure inside the family.

We should treat them well, call them by their names or nicknames, not to humiliate them by any word, and defending them at need.

We need to show our families in a humane image because those maids live inside our families, so it is important to show a good image to them and to give them a good image for our societies: in streets, markets, airports, and others. However, they should know Islam from its real basis which is the family.

So, be lenient to maids because Allah is lenient and loves lenience in all matters as the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) told us.