The Responsibility for Faith Education

What is meant by faith education is to link the child, from when he starts to realize the principles of faith, and teach him the pillars of Islam, and the foundations of Shari'ah. By the principles of faith we mean belief in Allah, His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, the Last Day and Divine predestination. By the pillars of Islam we mean, witness to Allah's Oneness without partner and that Muhammad (Peace be upon him) is the messenger, fasting, Zakah (alms-giving) and pilgrimage to whoever can afford it. And by the foundations of Shari’ah we mean all that is related to Islam, as creed, worship, manners and rulings.

So the educator must inculcate such concepts of faith and Islamic teachings into the child's soul, and the Prophet (Peace be upon him) recommended instilling the principles of faith and pillars of Islam into the child's mind during his early years of his life. Among the Prophet's instructions and recommendations are:

1. His commandment to make the utterance “La Ilaha Illa Allah” the first thing a child hears:

Al-Hakim related that Ibn Abbas said that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:

"Make 'La llaha Illa Allah' the first word that commence your children's life."

The rationale behind this is making the word of Oneness the first thing a child hear, the first word his tongue utters, and the first word he comprehends.

2. Introducing him to the rulings of what is lawful and unlawful:

This is in order that he may grow up observing Allah's commandments, keeping himself away from whatever He forbade, and get closely bound to the rulings of Shari’ah.

3. Commanding him to worship at the age of seven:

Abu! Dawood and Al-Hakim related that Ibn 'Amr Ibn AI-'As said that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said: “Command your children to pray at the age of seven, and beat them for not praying at the age of ten, and separate between them (males and females) in beds.”

In analogy to prayer, they must be trained to fast some days if they can endure fasting, and make pilgrimage with their father if he can afford it, in order that the child may learn the rulings of worship at an early stage of his life and become familiar with performing it.

4. Teaching him to love Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him), and his family, and reciting the Noble Qur'an:

At-Tabarani related that Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) said that the Prophet (Peace be upon him) said:

"Habituate your children to entertain three traits: Loving your Prophet, loving his family and relatives, and reciting the Qur'an, Surely the bearers of the Qur'an are in the shadow of Allah's Throne on a day where there is no shadow but His, together with Allah's Messengers and beloved ones."

Related to this is teaching the children the battles of the Prophet (Peace be upon him)  and the history of the Prophet's companions, Muslim leaders, and the great decisive battles, in order that they may follow the model of their ancestors, and obtain a close affinity with our Noble Islamic history, Here are some of what Muslim educators said about the necessity of teaching children how to recite the Qur'an, to know about the battles of the Prophet, and the great deeds of our ancestors and heroes.

Sa'd Ibn Abi Waqqas said: "We used to teach our children about the battles of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) as we teach them a Surah from the Qur'an."

Imam AI-Ghazali recommended in his book, “Ihya 'Ulum Ed Deen”, teaching the child the Noble Qur'an, the sayings of benignant people, the tales of the pure-hearted people, and some religious rulings.

Ibn Khuldun pointed in his Muqaddimah (Introduction), to the importance of teaching the Qur'an to children and making them memorize it, and he made clear that teaching the Qur'an is the basis of education in all curricula throughout various Islamic countries.

How important it is for parents to teach their children, early in their lives, the principles of faith, the pillars of Islam, and the rulings of Shari'ah, and accustom them to loving Allah's Messenger (Peace be upon him) his family and relatives, his companions, the leaders and conquerors, as well as reciting the Qur'an.

It is obvious to the scholars of education and ethics, that a child is born with the religion of oneness and belief in Allah, So, if he entertains a discrete education at home, a righteous social setting, a faithful environment, he will grow up with an unequivocal faith, noble manners, and righteous education, The Noble Qur'an has confirmed this fact, as Allah says,

"Allah’s Fitrah (i.e. Allah’s Islamic Monotheism) with which He has created mankind....” (Surah Ar-Rum: 30)

And AI-Bukhari related that Abu Hurairah said that Allah's Messenger said: "No child is born but having the faith of Islam, but its parents turn than into a Jew, Christian, or Magan,"

Scholars of education and ethics proved this fact, and it is sufficient in this respect to quote Imam Al-Ghazali as saying: “The young boy is a trust in the hold of his parents, and his pure heart is a precious jewel. So if he is habituated and taught the good, he will entertain it, and will be happy with it in this world and in the Hereafter. And if he is habituated to the evil, and is neglected as animals are neglected, he will experience misery and will be destroyed. Protecting him can only be achieved by educating him, and teaching him the good manners.”

From this presentation of innate nature and its effects, we realize that if a child is brought up in a perverse house, and is taught in a mischievous environment, and mixed with a corrupt group, he no doubt, will turn away from faith to atheism, and from Islam to infidelity.

So long as educators in general, and parents in particular, are responsible for raising the child on the bases of faith, and inculcating Islam into his soul, we must know the limits of this responsibility, and the dimensions of this duty. The limits of this responsibility are represented as follows:

I. Guiding them to believe in Allah, His undefiable Might, and His wonderful creativity through contemplating the creation of the heavens and the earth during their age of discretion. It is preferable to proceed with them from contemplating the concrete matters to abstract ones and from the part to the whole, until they approach the issue of faith with full conviction, evidence, and proof. When a child absorbs, from the very beginning, the unequivocal issues of faith, and stable evidences of the oneness of Allah, no  destructive tool cannot strike his lively heart, nor can evil advocates have any influence on his faithful mind, due to unshaking belief, well-established certitude, and full conviction he has acquired.

2. Inculcating into their souls the spirit of submission, piety and servitude to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. This can be achieved by focusing their attention on the undefiable might and the dominion which is great in every sense, in the sprouting plant, the growing tree, the aromatic beautifully coloured flower, myriads of wonderful creatures with magnificent formations.

The heart cannot help but submit to the magnificence of Allah (Glorified and Exalted be He). What can the soul do but feel the piety towards Allah and experience the pleasure of submission and sweetness of servitude to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. Among the means of strengthening submission and establishing piety is to train the child, during the age of awareness, to submit in his prayer and during listening to the Qur’an.

3. Developing in them the spirit of remembering Allah left in all their conduct and circumstances. This can be achieved by training the child to know that Allah sees him and knows his secrets and what he harbours, and He knows the treacherous look of the eyes and whatever the breast conceal. The educator must train the child to remember Allah in what he does and teach him to be sincere to Allah, the Lord of the worlds, in all his utterances and deeds, and teach him that Allah does not accept any deed from him, unless he does it only for His Sake. The educator also has to train the child to remember Allah when he thinks, that is, by training him to make reckoning with himself, and train him to observe Allah when he feels so, so that he may attain the rank of Ihsan (right action or goodness) and sincerity to worship Allah as though you are seeing him, and while you do not see him, He truly sees you.

We conclude, from what has been mentioned above, that the responsibility of faith education is Important and serious, as it is the source of all virtue and the origin of perfection. It is the main basis for entering a child into the domain of faith and Islam.

The parent and educator should not refrain from seizing any chance to provide the child with the proof of the existence of Allah, and with guidance that consolidates belief and strengthens faith. This way of seizing the chance of providing advice is the way of the first educator, Muhammad (Peace be upon him) Here we present to you, dear reader, this example of guidance and style or the Prophet.

At-Tirmidhi related that Ibn Abbas said. ‘One day I was riding behind the Prophet (Peace be upon him) and he said to me: "O young man, I shall teach you some words: Be mindful of Allah and Allah will protect you. Be mindful of Allah and you will find Him in front of you, If you ask, ask of Allah, if you seek help, seek help from Allah. Know that if the nation were to gather together to benefit you with anything, it would benefit you only with something that Allah has already prescribed for you, and if they gather together to harm you with anything, they would harm you only with something that Allah had already prescribed for you. The pens have been lifted and the pages have dried. "If they band together to cause you injury they will never do you any harm except what Allah has prescribed for you. The quills (Decrees) are suspended, and the scrolls are folded. (Destiny is decided).”’

In another account, other than that by At-Tirmidhi we have:

"Observe your obligations towards Allah, you will find Him facing you; try to acknowledge Allah's Favors when in prosperity, He acknowledges you in adversity; and know that what you miss cannot indeed be your lot; and what becomes your lot will not indeed miss you. Learn also that victory comes through endurance, and relief comes with distress and that with hardship comes affluence."