Today’s Friday sermon called upon parents to pay special attention to familiarizing young children with prayer and instilling love for mosques in their hearts. In this sermon prepared by the Islamic Ministry on the topic “Familiarizing Young Children with Mosques,” it was reminded that the main purpose of sending humans to this world is to worship Allah, and that this is most perfectly achieved through establishing the five obligatory prayers.

As explained in the sermon, prayer is the pillar of religion. And on the Day of Judgment, the first thing that will be examined among a servant’s deeds is prayer. Therefore, the sermon stated that teaching this noble act of worship to children, who are a great blessing given by Allah, and making them people who are committed to prayer, is an obligation upon parents. It was also explained through evidence from the Hadith of the Prophet (ﷺ) that if this matter is neglected, worldly and afterlife success will be lost, and parents will bear responsibility for this.

Furthermore, the sermon highlighted that the foundation for encouraging children toward prayer is choosing a righteous mother, and that the Prophet (ﷺ) gave guidance to marry a religious woman. At the same time, parents were also advised to frequently make supplication asking that their children become righteous people who establish prayer. In this regard, the sermon cited the example of the supplication made by Prophet Ibrahim (AS) asking that his descendants be made people who establish prayer.

Concluding the sermon, it was reminded that the reward for praying in congregation is 27 times greater than praying alone at home, and emphasis was placed on taking children to the mosque and familiarizing them with mosques. The sermon ended with a supplication asking that our children become people who are committed to prayer and connected to mosques.