Answer
Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
Muslims are strongly recommended to help their fellow Muslims and to guide those who have gone astray to return to the path of Allah the Almighty.
Answering your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states,
I congratulate you for your keen desire to see that your father and brother follow Islam. While we must never lose our zeal in this regard, it is equally important for us to keep in mind a few rules related to imparting the message of Islam in order to be effective:
1- While it is our duty to convey the truth, it is Allah Alone Who guides people. Since we are not appointed as guardians over people, after having conveyed the message, we must leave the rest to Allah.
2- It is important that we exercise wisdom in conveying the message. When Allah sent Prophets Musa and Haroon to Pharaoh, He admonished them saying, “Go, both of you to Pharaoh, for he has indeed transgressed all bounds. Speak to him with gentle words, that perhaps he may take warning, or fear (Allah).” (Taha :43-44) Remember, your father and brother are certainly not worse than Pharaoh; neither are you better than Prophets Musa and Haroon (peace and blessings be upon them).
3- Try to use indirect methods. Try to give them a good book on Islam such as one of the following: Maududi’s Towards Understanding Islam; Dr. Hammudah Abdul Ati’s Islam in Focus, Abdul Wahid’s Islam: A Way of Life.
4- Never lose your patience with them. Be there for them to help them in all worldly matters; set an example for them in the way you relate to them. After all, Islam was spread to many parts of the world through the excellent examples of those who bore the message.
5- Perhaps you should think of more creative ways of approaching or conveying the message to them. Can you think of someone wiser and more knowledgeable whose services can be used in this regard? Could you propose to take them to motivational speakers or lecturers who could exert more influence on them than you could imagine?
6- Finally, pray to Allah to guide your father and brother to the straight path. You may offer any supplications in your own language that you choose. The following was said by the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him),
“Allaahumma ihdi qawmee innahum laa ya`lamoon (O Allah, guide my people, for certainly they don’t know the truth).”
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.