The Ummah Grows in Numbers, and the Need for the Khilafah to Establish the Deen is a Vital Issue

I noticed an increase in short videos being shared on social media, of people taking the Shahada and becoming Muslim. That caught my interest. It set me off on a research journey to find out how many people, especially in the Western World, are becoming Muslim. It is difficult to collect exact figures, but Ramadan 2023 saw the conversion of some celebrities. The celebrities included Charvarius Ward, an NFL footballer for the San Francisco 49ers, award winning Nigerian actress Mercy Aigbe, popular Ugandan rapper and teen prodigy Felista di Superstar and Australian UFC fighter Jack Matthews, and Amber Leibrock, an American MMA female fighter, to name a few. YouTube personality Obayd Fox converted in 2022, but visited Mecca this year and shared his video for us all to see. In addition to the famous, there are the others, such as police officers in the UK, and many more people across the Western world, whose Shahada videos and journey to Islam are being shared through social media.

The spew of media reports from different countries such as America, Australia, France, Britain, discussing the rise of reversions to Islam in their countries indicate that even without exact numbers, it seems to be high enough that the media in these countries have sat up and are taking notice. According to crestresearch.uk, “In European countries, converts generally make up between one and five per cent of the Muslim population, but in the United States, the figure rises to nearly 25 per cent.”

There has been research conducted by organisations such as The Pew-Templeton Global Religious Futures project in 2021, which stated that by the end of this century, Muslims will be the largest religious group. We have, in 2023 surpassed 2 billion. This is being attributed to the high birth rate amongst Muslims, but we can see that reverts to Islam are a blessed addition to our numbers. The growing Ummah was from the glad tidings of the Holy Prophet (saw). The Messenger of Allah (saw) said,

أَنَا أَكْثَرُ الأَنْبِيَاءِ تَبَعًا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَأَنَا أَوَّلُ مَنْ يَقْرَعُ بَابَ الْجَنَّةِ»‏» “Amongst the Prophets, I would have the largest following on the Day of Resurrection, and I would be the first to knock at the door of Paradise.” [Muslim] The reversion stories are heartwarming. Whilst Islam forbids forcible conversion, the carrying of the Dawah to Islam is a highly rewarded action. Many reverts single out a single Muslim mentor, or a specific Muslim community, whose influence led them to accept Islam. May Allah (swt) reward these good actions. Sahl ibn Sa’d reported: The Prophet (saw) said to Ali (ra),

«انْفُذْ عَلَى رِسْلِكَ حَتَّى تَنْزِلَ بِسَاحَتِهِمْ، ثُمَّ ادْعُهُمْ إِلَى الإِسْلاَمِ، وَأَخْبِرْهُمْ بِمَا يَجِبُ عَلَيْهِمْ، فَوَاللَّهِ لأَنْ يَهْدِيَ اللَّهُ بِكَ رَجُلاً خَيْرٌ لَكَ مِنْ أَنْ يَكُونَ لَكَ حُمْرُ النَّعَمِ»

“Go to them patiently and calmly till you enter the land. Then, invite them to Islam, and inform them what is enjoined upon them, for, by Allah, if Allah gives guidance to somebody through you, it is better for you than possessing red camels.” [Bukhari]

The growth of the Ummah is motivating for us all. We see how standing for the Haqq (Truth) can lead to people completely changing themselves and their lives. Even Muslims who are born into the Deen, must come to a point where they accept their Deen consciously and with conviction. Both of us, the ones born into Islam, and the reverts to Islam, must reject secularism. It is not possible for us to follow all the laws of Islam, under a secular system, which doesn’t implement Islam!

Secular societies mean that people are becoming Muslim in spite of only seeing a part of the Deen. This is because the Deen is the Haqq and it answers the key questions we have about life. They can see the failure of the secular system. However, let us compare the present rate of reversion, to the rate of reversion during the time of the Khilafah (Caliphate) State. At that time, whole communities came into the Deen, as people were able to see the beauty of Islam in its entirety, established in society by a state. The spiritual connection to Allah (swt) was constantly strengthened by the atmosphere in the Khilafah. That atmosphere was generated through the implementation of the Islamic laws in their entirety. The implemented laws related to every sphere of life, political, social and economic. The Islamic State built a society that doesn’t exist in the world today. It is one that solved human problems in accordance with their nature and brought peace and justice.

However, we are living in secular societies. This means we face an exponentially growing set of problems. Discussing with Muslims across the world reveals that everyone is facing similar personal, social and economic problems, and everyone is looking for a solution. Muslims are grouping together to support each other, to share knowledge and expertise, and we are strong in numbers! However, our problems will persist, even while we apply our Islamic concepts to help us be patient and work hard to resolve issues. This is because the vital issue is missing.

The Khilafah State, which is a fard (obligation) on the Islamic Ummah has not been re-established in the world. This means that the Deen of Islam has not been established. The Ummah is growing mashAllah, and this is an amazing resource for us. We can work together, and fulfil the obligations that Allah (swt) has obliged on us, which if ignored leave us sinful. It has been narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira that the Messenger of Allah (saw) said,

«وَمَنْ مَاتَ وَلَيْسَ فِي عُنُقِهِ بَيْعَةٌ مَاتَ مِيتَةً جَاهِلِيَّةً» “Whosoever dies without having a bai’ah (pledge to the Khaleefah) on his neck, he dies the death of Jaahiliyyah.” [Muslim]

We cannot ignore that without the Khilafah state, we are not actually physically unified, as one state, with one army, one state treasury and one Khaleefah. There is no way for us to live our lives in every sphere according to our Deen. The need to reestablish the State is indeed a vital issue for us all, for success in this life and the Akhirah. Allah (swt) said,

[وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنْكُمْ وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ كَمَا اسْتَخْلَفَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ دِينَهُمُ الَّذِي ارْتَضَىٰ لَهُمْ وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ خَوْفِهِمْ أَمْنًا ۚ يَعْبُدُونَنِي لَا يُشْرِكُونَ بِي شَيْئًا ۚ وَمَنْ كَفَرَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ]

“Allah has promised those who have believed among you and done righteous deeds that He will surely grant them succession [to authority] upon the earth just as He granted it to those before them and that He will surely establish for them [therein] their Deen which He has preferred for them and that He will surely substitute for them, after their fear, security, [for] they worship Me, not associating anything with Me. But whoever disbelieves after that - then those are the defiantly disobedient.” [TMQ Surah An Nur 24:55].

Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Fatima Iqbal