Hawzah News Agency (Qom, Iran) - In his Friday prayer sermon delivered to a large and fervent crowd of believers at the Holy Shrine of Lady Fatimah al-Ma'sumah in Qom on Eid al-Fitr [the Feast of Breaking the Fast], Ayatollah Sayyed Mohammad Sa'idi issued a general invitation to the believers present at the congregational prayers to have piety, stated, "Fasting is not just devoted to the religion of Islam but Eid al-Fitr is one of the specialties of Islam."
Muslims from across the world, including in Iran, celebrated Eid al-Fitr on Friday, by participating in the occasion's special congregational prayers. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadhan, the Islamic holy month of fasting.
The custodian of the Holy Shrine of Lady Fatimah al-Ma'sumah emphasized that none of the heavenly religions have had a festival at the end of a month where the believers are considered as the "guests of God" and added, "The believers must pay attention to the fact that on Eid al-Fitr, spending money which is always accompanied with the intention of charity, insures ones faith for a year of servitude."
Ayatollah Sa'idi described Zakat al-Fitr, a charity given to the poor at the end of the fasting in the holy month of Ramadhan, as bringing one closer to God and said, “In his description of Eid al-Fitr, the Commander of the Faithful [Imam Ali] states: ‘Oh God! Have mercy upon us and forgive us for our negligence and misdeeds for You are great and magnanimous. This is the day that God has placed it for you Muslims an Eid and made you worthy and deserving of this Eid. So always remember God so that God will remember you. Call on Him so He will answer you. On this day blessed day, pay your Zakat al-Fitr as this is the tradition of your prophet and it is obligatory on you from the Lord."
In his second sermon, the representative of the Supreme Leader in Qom referred to the withdrawal of the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and said, "The pattern of confrontation of the believers with the enemies has been described in the Holy Quran as: 'Muhammad, the Apostle of God, and those who are with him are hard against the faithless and merciful amongst themselves [48:29]."'
He added, ''In opposition to the enemies and to protect [Islamic] unity, the believers must prevent the enemies from creating division and bipolarity in society to the extent that stubbornly confronting the enemies and the promotion of affection and friendship between the believers is a model of confrontation between the friends and the enemies from the point of view of the Holy Quran."
Ayatollah Sa’idi said, "The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution [Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei] has always invited the officials and people to stubbornly oppose the enemies.”
His Eminence referred to the importance of establishing a culture of simple and comprehensive table spreads and meals during the month of Ramadhan and added, "Adhering to simple and prevalent table spreads is one of the issues emphasised by the Supreme Leader that the people must pay serious attention to."