Flowers for the Women Wearing Veils - Volume I — Page 138
! ! 138 Address to the Lajna in a Fr i day Sermon Delivered by Ha z ra t Mirza Bashir - ud - D in Mahmud Ahmad, Khalifat - ul - Masih II ra February 2, 1923 ! Equality in Matters o f Religion After recitation of Tashahhud, Ta‘awwuz , and Surah Al - Fatihah , Haz rat Khalifa t - ul - Masih II ra stated: Just as Europeans, Americans, Africans, and Asians are all equal in worldly matters , and just as it is enjoined to treat people of every color, lang u age, race, and national origin equally by the same token, men and women are considered equal in religious matters. In other words, j ust as religious injunctions are ordained for men, they are also ordained for women. Surah Al - Fatihah is the root of the Holy Qur ’ an and is the summ ation of the Qur’an. Where Allah Almighty has taught the prayer within it, it has been done with great wisdom. W here the subject matter of progress and advancement has been discussed within it, it has been done in such a manner that both men and women have been encompassed. The rule s of Arabic language dictate that when the nation is addressed, the masculine gender is used , but women are included within the term. However, in the Surah Al - Fatihah , the words are such that they equally address and include both men and women , for example, it states : n tَ ۡﺴ َﺘ ِﻌ ُۡني ِا َّﻳ ﺎ َك َو َﻧ ۡﻌ ُﺒ ُﺪ ِا َّﻳ ﺎ َك “ Thee alone do we worship and Thee alone do we implore for help. ” (Holy Qur’ān , Ch. 1 : V. 5) These phrases of Surah Al - Fatihah are such that both men and women can utter them, and they depict the equality of both genders. Another great acumen is that both men and women are included according to accepted usage. In other words, the lone male