Beginning:

Salaam my dear friends! I congratulate all of you on this very very great and special Eid! I am sure that by now all of you should know what is so special about today, and I don’t have to repeat it. I just want to say that today is a great day, and it’s a day of happiness and joy for all the creatures on this earth and not just humans or those who know the Imam of Our Time (AS). How lucky are we that before the return of the Imam of Our Time, -who is the best creature of God during our time and is the savior of us humans and the mankind from badness-we know him, love him, and, Insha’Allah are among those who pray and do their best for his return. This way, Insha’Allah we can have a role in achieving the best days that this earth will see. It’s a great feeling, when you can have such a great role on this earth by simply doing good things, and praying for the return of the Imam of Our Time (AS). Alright, I again congratulate all of you on this great day, and I hope that today we have lots of fun, learn new facts, and increase our love and kindness toward our master, and kindest father.

Alright my dears, before we officially start our program, let’s brighten our hearts in the name of God and in His remembrance, by reciting a few ayahs from the Holy Quran, which is the word of God with us. Let’s all not forget that it’s this Holy Qur’an and the Imams which show us the right way in life and show us how to become closer to dear God, and let’s all make sure that we do not neglect this Holy Book, and every day try to read a few ayahs from the Quran and become familiar with its meaning. Today I would like to read for you ayah’s 8 and 9 of Surah as-Saf.

My dears, these two ayahs are quite interesting. In ayah 8 or the first ayah that I read for you all, God points out a truth which is always occurring. God says that the disbelievers are those who extinguish the light and guidance of God with their mouths. Just like the way we blow out a candle with our mouths. They think that, they can easily lie, be specious, and plan to do something to extinguish the light of the guidance of God, and distract people from the right path. However, God will make his light complete, meaning that He will shine the light of His guidance on all the people of the world, even if the disbelievers dislike this and try their best to stop this from happening.

Then, from the second ayah we understand that disbelievers and polytheist try to deviate people, extinguish the light of the guidance of God, and distance people from the religion of Islam-which is the last and the most complete religion. However, God is the Greatest and He will not allow the situation always to remain like this, but rather it will come a day when God will make the religion of Islam dominate over all the other religions that exist on this earth. Do you all know why? Who can guess? What is exactly wrong with other religions? Didn’t other religions come from God? Yes, because overtime, previous religions changed and forgot the truth. Also, some of the religions and the life styles that exists out there, are not even sent from God, but rather some people made it up.

Now, who knows when all of this will happen?

Yes, that is right the day when “Baghiat-Allah” returns, and with the help of so many people around the world who will come to assist him, and make the right way of living a Godly life, dominate over this world. In Surah, al-Hud, there is an Ayah that says:

Clip:

https://youtube/qiyee8sTv6k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQ2dUXfaoMw&t=38s

Story: After the Birth of the Light

Well my dears, I am sure most of you are familiar with the story of the birth of the Imam of Our Time (AS) and I shouldn’t repeat it for you all. That beautiful story that happened to his mother, lady Narjis Khatoon (AS), and she had to go from the city of Rome to Samara. Now I want to tell you all a few stories about what happened to our Imam after his birth. The birth of the Imam of Our Time was kept a secret. Meaning that due to God’s will, no signs of pregnancy was visible even until the night of his birth, and even close relatives didn’t know that lady Narjis khatoon was going to be a mother. This was because the rulers of that time were the enemies of our Imam and because they became aware that the last Imam who is the child of Imam Hassan al-Askari, was going to get rid of oppressors; they wanted to do anything possible, so the last Imam of Shia’s was not born. That is why they were even controlling Imam Askari, our eleventh Imam, the father of the Imam of Our Time in a war zone. But just as God has said in the Quran, even if the disbelievers do not wish for this, God will spread goodness and beauty on this earth. That is why even though the house of Imam Hassan was under control at all times, the Imam of Our Time (AS) was born on the 15^th of Sha’baan, meaning the middle of the month of Sha’baan.

It’s interesting to know that this feature of Imam Mahdi, meaning his strange birth was like the birth of Prophet Musa [Moses] and again no signs of pregnancy was visible on his mother and no one knew that his mother had a baby in her stomach and God saved him from Firaun in a miraculous way.

I am sure you guys are curious to know what exactly happens after the secret birth of the Imam of Our Time, with all the enemies who wanted to kill him, so he would not fill this world with justice and beauty. And just how people got to know him and understand that he is the Imam after Imam Hassan al-Askari and not someone else? Well if you want to know more, pay close attention!

The Signs of the Imam:

Abu Adyan says: “I was a servant of Imam of Al-Askari (AS) and carried his letters to different cities. During the time that the Imam was ill, he called me over and gave me few letters that he had written destined for the city of Madayn and said “Go to Madayn. Your journey will last for fifteen days. On the fifteenth day, you will return to Samarra (which the house of Imam Hassan (AS) was in this city). Here, you will hear wails and cries from my house. That is when I will no longer be among you.” After showing my grief and sadness regarding this event I asked: “Master! In such a case, who will be the Imam after you?’ Imam Hasan al-Askari (a.s.) responded, “One who will ask you about the replies to my letters will be the Imam after me.” I told him: “can you please provide me other signs?” He said, “whoever leads my funeral prayer will be my successor.” I said: “what else?” the Imam replied: “whoever informs you about what is in your bag, will be your Imam.”

Abu Adyan says that he was embarrassed to further ask the Imam what bag he is talking about. So, then I took the letter to Madayn and gave it to the people of Madayn, and I took back their responses; and all this time I was mourning for Imam. On the other hand, I was sure of what Imam said and on the other hand I was praying for such thing to not happen and the Imam would stay among us.  And On the 15th day, just as Imam Hasan al-Askari (a.s.) had predicted, I entered Samarra. Loud voices of wailing and crying echoed from the luminous house of the pure Imam. I saw Ja’far, the brother of Imam Hasan al-Askari (a.s.), standing on the door and receiving condolences for the death of his brother and as well as receiving congratulations for his Imamate. I went near him and offered my condolences and congratulated him. He did not ask me anything. Afterwards a person came out of the house and said to Ja’far: “Your brother has been covered with kafan. Come and lead his funeral prayers.” (my dears, you all know when someone dies, after washing and performing the ghusl and covering their body with kafan, someone must lead a funeral prayer called the namaz of “Meyet”. Regarding the Imams, the next Imam after them, could perform this prayer for the body of the previous Imam. That is why, it was very important who lead this prayer on the honorable body of Imam Hassan al-Askari; because it showed who will be the next Imam.) Ja’far went ahead to lead the prayers and the Shia’s also followed him.  As I entered the garden of the house of Imam, I saw his honorable and luminous body covered with kafan and it was placed in a coffin. When, Ja’far was about to start his prayer, as he was about to announce the Takbeer a handsome and beautiful young boy came out of the house. He caught hold of Ja’far’s robe and pushed him aside, saying, “Uncle! Move aside, as I have to lead the funeral prayers of my father.”

Ja’far withdrew in a corner and his face went colorless. The child went ahead to recite the prayers on his father’s body and buried him next to his father, Imam Hadi (AS)’s grave. Thereafter, the beautiful child looked at me and said, “give me the replies of the letters.” I handed the letters to him and said to myself, “two signs that which Imam Hassan al-Askari told me were right and one sign is left. I came out and people were asking Ja’far who this boy was, and he was saying: “By Allah I had never seen him and I don’t know who he is.”

At that moment, a few people from the city of Qom arrived and asked about the conditions of Imam Hassan al-Askari (AS). When they found out that about his death, they became very sad and then asked: “who is the Imam after him?” people pointed toward Ja’far. So, they went closer to him and offered him condolences and congratulated him and then said: “we have brought a few letters and a bit of money, now tell us who are the letters from and how much money do we have; so, we can give it to you.” Ja’far stood up from his place and said: “they expect me to know the unseen.” (as you all know to show that the Imams are the righteous ones, God had given them the power to know the unseen, and so this way people would understand the Imam is the righteous one.)

 At that moment, the servant from the Imam of the Time (AS) came over and said: “The letters of so and so are in your possession. You also have a bag containing a thousand dinars of which, only ten dinars are covered with real gold.” They gave the letters and money to this servant saying: “whoever has sent you over to get these letters and the money, he is the Imam of the Time.” Then at that moment I understood that Imam Hassan al-Askari (AS) was referring to this bag.

I am “Baghiat-Allah” [the remainder of Allah on this earth]!

Ahmad the son of Ishagh said: “I went to Imam Hassan al-Askari (AS) and wanted to talk to him about his successor. His Eminence proceeded without asking any questions and said: “O’ Ahmad! God has not left the earth without a divine proof since the creation of Adam (AS) and would and would not leave it without a Divine Proof till the Day of Judgment. Through the Divine Proof tragedies are repelled from the inhabitants of the Earth, rain falls, and the blessings of God is given.” With respect, I said: “O’ the child of Rasuallah! Who is your successor?” He went inside the house, and upon his shoulders sat a three-year-old boy, whose face seemed to be like the radiant moon and said: “O Ahmad! If you were not having a special and exalted position before Allah and the Proof of Allah, I would not have shown this son of mine to you. His name is the same as the of the Messenger of Allah (SAWA). He would fill the earth with justice and equity, as it would be filled with injustice and oppression. By Allah, he will be hidden from the eyes, and during the time of his absence no one shall be safe from destruction but the one who recognizes him as their Imam and pray for his reappearance.”

Ahmad said: I told Imam al-Askari: “is there any sign so that it may satisfy my heart?” Just then the boy, started speaking eloquently in Arabic and said: “I am Baghiat-allah [ the remainder of God on this earth], the one who shall revenge from the enemies of God.”

By the will of God, Imam Mahdi (AS) became hidden from our eyes, and by the will of God he will reappear again during a designated time. Many long and long years has passed since the time he has hidden from our eyes [gheibat], however he still has not yet reappeared.

My dears, let us all promise to ourselves on this day, the birth of our dear Imam, to do one good deed every day to make the heart of our dear Imam happy, and pray for the return of our beloved Imam.

Play: When He Comes…

Scene: House-Mother is busy reading; the door opens, and Sarah enters in her school uniform and a backpack on her shoulder

Mother (lifts her head up and smiles at Sarah): Salaam my dear, how are you!

Sarah (her head is lowered and is deep in thoughts and answers in a low voice): Salaam my dear mom! Thank you, I hope you are doing well too.

Mother: my dear go and change your clothes, and wash your face and hands so we can eat lunch (pauses for a moment and looks at Sarah’s face) what happened my dear? You are deep in thought. Did something happen at school today?

Sarah (while putting her backpack down): no mom, nothing has happened. I was just thinking about what my teacher said today.

Mother: what was she talking about?

Sarah (sits on a chair): my teacher was talking about the displaced children in Lebanon. Children who have lost all their belongings and their parents due to the attack of some tyrant and cruel people to their houses. I felt sad, and I wished someone could stop these tyrant, and cruel people.

Mother: I understand my dear! I also feel sad for all these children who lose all their belongings, and parents in war.

Sarah: Mom can’t all these wars and oppressions end? Can’t someone out there stop all these oppressors and cruel people?

Mother: My dear, it is the duty of us humans to support the oppressed as much as we can and fight against the oppressors. But the real victory will happen when our 12^th Imam, Imam Mahdi returns. That is when peace and tranquility will exist everywhere.

Sarah (looks at her mom with excitement): mom, you never talked about the return of Imam Mahdi with me. I really like to know what will happened when he returns? How will his return even occur?

Mother (smiles): sure, my dear, I will tell you. When the time for the return of the promised Mahdi comes; meaning when God allows him to return. He will head to the city of Makkah

Sarah: Hmm I understand now. So, because so many people of the world are thirsty for peace and goodness, they will come and support the Imam of Our Time. And everyone under the leadership of the Imam of Our Time (AS) will go and fight against bad and evil people. How interesting 😊 (mother will smile as well).

Sarah: well, when will the Imam of Our Time return? Can we do something, so he can return sooner?

Mother (smiles and kindly pads Sarah’s head): My dear, God only knows of its time. But for sure we can do something so God can make the return of our Imam to happen sooner!

Sarah (excited): like what mom???

Mother: like, we can try to be better people. Help each other more. Be truthful, do not bully each other, perform our religious duties better, never forget to pray for the return and the health of our hidden Imam, and always wait for his return. Pay attention to this fact that the Imam of Our Time, is more than anyone else is waiting for God’s permission; and God will give this permission only when our Imam has enough followers to support him, so he can win against the enemies and not be martyred (die). In fact, by performing good deeds, and praying from the bottom of our hearts we can show God that we are really thirsty and truly await the return of the Imam of Our Time (AS), and when he comes we will not leave him alone.

Sarah: hmm that is why you are saying we should do good things, and perform our religious duties better. You say this, so we could be one of the followers of the Imam of Our Time (AS) and make his return sooner. Hmm, now I get it! (and then proudly says :)From today onwards, I will also try to be the way that the Imam of Our Time likes me to be. And help in making the return of my Imam sooner. So not only can we stop waiting, but he can stop as well.

Mother: Great my dear you brought up a very good point. The Imam of Our Time is very sad, because he doesn’t have that many companions and that is why to protect him God does not give him the permission to reappear. So, he prays that people soon become ready for his return. You know, because long times ago, God sent many prophets, but people didn’t believe in them. For example, Prophet Nuh (i.e. Noah) (AS), for 1000 years he spread the message of worshiping God and how to be good people; but only a few people believed in him. That is why, now since it’s the time for God’s last representative on this earth, He wants people to really have the intention of being good. Meaning that, the time comes when everyone is tired of oppression and badness, and they only ask God for His help, and understand that besides God, no one else can solve their problems. That is why, it would be a great idea for us to try to be good, and give the rest of the people the message that with our good actions we can show God that we are eager for the return of the savior of humanity.

Mother (raises her hands up in the sky and says): اللهم عَجِّل لِوَلیِّکَ الفَرَج و اجعَلنا مِن اَعوانِه و اَنصارِه.

[allahuma ajal le walike al-faraj, wa aj-alna men a’aavanehi wa ansareh]

Mother to Sarah: it means: O God make the return of our Imam sooner and allow us to be one of his companions.

Sarah: Amen!

Prezi: Becoming Familiar with the History of Reappearance

Prezi Link: https://prezi.com/wdipn9gv-dlg/emam-mahdi/

Slide 2:

A time will come, that insecurity, war, and chaos is going to rule on earth, and people don’t know what to do from extreme poverty. Many kids and elders will die from weird diseases and doctors don’t have any cure for them. Everyone is looking for a solution and way to be saved!

Slide 5:

Finally, with God’s permission that day comes. The assigned day, that day that was promised. The best day of the world. The day of reappearance of the savior of mankind, meaning the day of the return of the savior of mankind and all the people of the world. A voice will be heard from the sky. The voice of Gabrielle who says: O people, it is your leader Mahdi, he is the one that will fill this world with justice just as it has been filled with injustice and oppression.

Slide 8:

Then immediately he will start talking about his lonely grandfather Imam Hussain (AS) and he will say: I am from the offspring of Hussain [peace be upon him], the person who was martyred unjustly, with thirsty lips between the two rivers.

Slide 10:

But so many people around the world who were waiting for this grand day, from all around the world will quickly go to where Imam is to assist him, be in his presence and fill their hearts with goodness, beauty and have a role in making this world a beautiful place.

My dears, even people who used to do bad things, upon hearing the voice of our beloved Imam will believe in him, ask God for forgiveness, and will go to assist our Imam. And I can tell you that many people around the world will gather around the Imam, so all together besides the Imam of Our Time with the help of God they can end badness on this earth.

Slide 12:

something that has been missing for years and has been hidden from the eyes of the people. Everyone would go to the city of Medina to visit [for ziyarat] the Last Prophet of Islam (SAWA), however they wouldn’t know where the grave of his only daughter lady Fatimah al-Zahra was (sa)?

All these centuries, her followers, and Shia’s would go to Medina, and would leave the city without being able to visit the grave of that honorable lady and read a ziyarat [dua] for her. But now the promised day has arrived! Mahdi the son of Fatemeh [Peace be Upon Her] know where the grave of her mother is located.

And so, the Imam will show people the hidden grave of his mother, so everyone is able to go to the ziyarat of the best women on earth, and cry for the oppressions that happened to her, as well as to celebrate the return of her child besides her grave.

Slide 14:

Now the time has come that the Imam of Our Time (AS) choses a location for his government. Meaning to go to a place to live, and from there to control the world. In your opinions what country will the Imam of Our Time (AS) chooses to go? What city? China? Holland? UK? Algeria? Canada? Iran? Or Saudi Arabia?

Imam Mahdi (AS) will go to the country of Iraq, the city of Kufa. That same city that his grandfather Amir Al-Mu’minin (AS) ruled for 5 years, and established justice! He will establish his government and rule in the city of Kufa. People from all around the world will come to see him in the city of Kufa. How lucky is the city of Kufa!

Slide 17:

An old lady with a bag of gold can go from this part of the world to the other part without anyone caring. In short, my dears, that day, is a day that everyone is dreaming about. A day that everyone wants to be alive, and see the day that badness no longer exists on this earth and only goodness exists.

Poem:

[Ya mahdi, ajal mahdi,

ya mhdi, We await you ow 12^th imam

Ya mahdi, ajal mahdi

ya mahdi, Savior of all mankind]x2

Proof of Allah

The guided one,

The chosen one,

Beloved one

We sing your praise

And pray to Allah,

To hasten your uprising

[Ya mahdi, ajal mahdi,

ya mhdi, We await you ow 12^th imam

Ya mahdi, ajal mahdi

ya mahdi, Savior of all mankind]x2

The light of Allah

You are our master

The only hope

Of this darkness

We search for you

And we lose our way

The eyes are blind

The heart grows high

We raise our hands

For the true guide

I beg of you

Remove the veil

Dividing us

There is a crave

For that day when

 We will see,

 Your glowing face

[Ya mahdi, ajal mahdi,

ya mhdi, We await you ow 12^th imam

Ya mahdi, ajal mahdi

ya Mahdi, Savior of all mankind]x2

On the 15th day of Sha’aban

On the 15th of Sha’aban;
another flower has bloomed.
In Muhammad’s garden,
another spring has come.

The holder of Ali’s Dhulfiqar;
has opened eyes today.
The holder of Musa’s stalk;
has blessed this day.

The sparkling light of moon,
The joy of Haider has come,
The avenger of Hussain’s blood,
The Son of Zahra has come.

Today none shall be deprived;
for the Imam of his time has come.
Felicitations O’ lovers . . .
For Askari’s son has come.

Group Activity: Writing a Letter to the Imam and Finding its Owner

• Pass out pieces of paper to the participants

My dears, please use the piece of paper I just handed out, and write a few sentences for the Imam of Our Time, just like a letter. Then, at the end of the letter write- from your daughter/son, and write out a few characteristics of yourself.

For example, from your daughter whose first name starts with the letter “m”, has brown hair, white skin, is tall, energetic, reads lots of books, or any other characteristics that comes to your mind. Then after you are done writing out your letter, fold it in half and put it in this bowl. We will mix it up, and I will ask one by one to come up and grab a letter from the bowl with closed eyes. Then, you must read the letter out loud and guess who the letter might belong to.

Story: Becoming Familiar with the Ka’ba

My dears I believe that all of you know where Ka’ba the house of God is located? Correct? Which one of you knows? Yes, that is right, Kaaba is a structure located inside of Masjid of al-haram in the city of Mecca in the country of Saudi Arabia. Ka’ba is the holiest place in the religion of Islam. Now, do you all know why the name of the House of God is named Ka’ba? I can give you guys a hint and that is, it has to do something with its shape and how its structured. The name Ka’ba is referring to the four corners of this building. Which in Arabic they call this shape: “Moke’ab” [cube]. In the Quran, it has been mentioned that the structure of Ka’ba has was built by one of the messengers of God Ibrahim and his son Ismail. But, the Holy Ka’ba was built the first time, by our grandfather Prophet Adam (AS), but then it got destroyed and was built again by Prophet Ibrahim. I am sure many of you knew all the things I just told you. But the information that I will tell you from now, might be new and more interesting for you.

First, which one of you know why they call Kaaba, the House of God? God doesn’t have a house! (wait for kid’s response). Yes, God is not like us humans or any other person, that is why He doesn’t have a house. The reason why we say: “the House of God”, is because this House was built for worshipping God. Just like the mosques (masjids) which are also the House of God. Kaaba is the best place to worship God, and everyone face the Kaaba to worship God and to pray, even from different countries. That is why they say that Kaaba is the: “Qibla for all Muslims”.

Does anyone of you know what I mean when I say “the arkan” of Kaaba? What are they referring to when they say the “rokn” of Kaaba? And what are the names of the “arkan” of the Kaaba? (Now, the mentor may display the picture of the Ka’ba that has been provided at the end of this file. Or even print out the picture and allow the kids to have the picture in front of them so they can better understand what the mentor is trying to say.)

To every four corners of the Kaaba, they say rokn. And the Kaaba has been built on four rokn [corners].

One the best things to do in the Masjid al-Haram, is doing tawaf (circling) around the House of God. Tawaf means that we go by Hajar al-aswad, and from there start to circle around the house of God 7 times, in His remembrance. Oh, and it’s no important what our distance is from Ka’ba while performing the tawaf; however, it’s better that we perform our tawaf between the Maqam of Ibrahim [station of Ibrahim] and the Ka’ba, and our distance from the Ka’ba is no more than this. Well now you might ask what is the maqam of Ibrahim?

Maqam Ibrahim is referred to a large stone block on which Prophet Ibrahim (AS) stood while building the walls of the Ka’baa. This stone block was obviously closer to the Ka’ba during the time of the Prophet, and some Muslims changed its place by accident. By anyways, now it is still there and is placed near the Ka’baa, inside a glass enclosure with a golden lock. If you look inside, you will see a black stone with width and length of about 40 cm, and an imprint of Prophet Ibrahim’s feet is seen on it. This place is holy, and those who perform Hajj, after performing their wajib (required) tawaf, they must pray 2 rak’aat (units) of Salah of tawaf behind the station of Ibrahim.

According to the verses of Quran, the Maqam of Ibrahim is an important and Holy place in the Holy Quran we read:

«وَ اتَّخِذُوا مِن مَقامِ إِبراهِیمَ مُصَلَّی»

“and take the place where Ibrahim stood, as your place of prayer”

In between the Rokn of Iraqi and Rokn of ashShami, there is a place with a round platform with a height of about 1 ½ meters long. They call this place “Hejr-e-Ismaeel”, and it’s a very important place where praying and making Dua’a is very recommended and has lots of rewards. The golden gutter that is on top of the Ka’baa is also above this place.

The door of the Ka’baa is near and before Hajar al-aswad. And this was a description of the House of God, which has been on this earth since the time humans have existed. and people have come besides the House of God from all parts of the world to perform ziyarat and worship God. May God give us all the opportunity to visit the Kab’aa both before the return of the Imam of Our Time and especially during the time of his return; and, be among his companions, helpers, and assistants.

Also, let me not forget to say that the Imam of Our Time (AS) will reappear somewhere between the Maqam of Ibrahim and the Ka’ba. And it is at that place that he will call out saying “ana baghiat-allah” [I am the remainder of God], and God will make his voice heard by all his supporters around the world, so they can join the Imam.

Take Home Activity:

The story of lady Narjis Khatoon (PBUH) and the birth of the Imam of Our Time [may our souls be his ransom] is given at the end of this file. Please print the story, and hand it out to the participants. In the hopes of educating kids about the culture of holding ceremonies for the birth anniversary of the Imam of Our Time (PBUH), ask the kids to manage a small ceremony at their house and help them in this effort by mentioning a few ideas to them.

My dears, a very good and valuable thing that one can do, which has lots of rewards and can have great affects in our lives is to celebrate the 15^th of Sha’baan, the birth of the Imam of Our Time (AS) among our family members. A program and celebration that can be planned by you guys, and even its programs to be run by you. You can make invitation cards for your family members. You can plan to have something for refreshments and snacks; and plan to start your celebration by reciting the Holy Quran, play an animation or a video, then you can read a story, and have a game like play pantomime or any other game that you might think of, and end your program by reciting dua al-faraj. I will promise all of you, that this will be one the greatest experiences for you and for your families. Plus, all of you will have so much fun. But above all you will make our beloved Imam of the Time (AS) so happy, and gain lots of rewards. For this purpose, we have written for you a story about the birth of the Imam of Our Time and will give you all this story to help you to have a great celebration at home. Right now, you may plan this, and choose a date for your celebration. It is totally fine if this year, you plan to have your celebration a bit later. In return, from next year you can plan your celebration in advance, and plan it during the first few days of the month of Sha’baan.

End: Conclusion/Reciting Dua al-Faraj

Alright, my dear friends! I again want to congratulate all of you on this great Eid! I hope that you have all enjoyed today’s celebration. Now, tell me how do you all feel about the Imam of Our Time (AS)? [wait for the kids to respond]

That is great! Great job! You have all learned good things from today’s celebration. By learning all these new facts in our celebration today, you have made the Imam of Our Time (AS) happy, and he will for sure pray for all of you. Today, you learned lots of new facts about the time when the Imam of Our Time (As) will return, and what events will happen at that time. Also, our beloved Imam, with the help of people, and God given power, he will spread happiness across the world, and will destroy all those tyrant people who are the enemies of good people, and will help the oppressed. With his return, the religion of Islam will become dear to everyone, and the disbelievers will no longer be able to make fun of the Muslims or bother them. When our Imam returns, the world will be filled with justice and goodness, and oppression, injustice, illness, and pain will end. Moreover, most people on this earth who believe in other religions; that day, they will start believing in the Imam of Our Time (AS), and therefore all of our hearts will become united! This is great and very exciting!

Today, we also learned more about the childhood of the Imam of Our Time (AJ), and learned that he was born under a very tough situation; and the rulers of that time wanted to kill him. That is why, Imam Hassan Al-Askari (Alaiha salaam) hid him, and God also concealed him with His power. At the same time though, Imam Hassan al-Askari showed his child to some of his Shia’s, so everyone would see that Imam Mahdi was born and Imam Askari has a successor. Imam Hassan al-Askari did this so no one would doubt that he doesn’t have a successor after himself.

Thank God, that today’s program was able to make our hearts closer to our beloved Imam and allowed us to know him better. Now, more than ever before, we know how the world will be when the Imam of Our Time returns. And by learning these new facts, it made us realize to pray for his return more often, and we are proud that we have such a lovely Imam, believe in him, love him and pray for him. This way, we can also have a role in making this world a beautiful place. Now let’s all stand up, and raise our hands toward the sky, and ask God to make the Imam of Our Time (AS) to return sooner, and rule on this earth for a very long time, and for us to also be able to live alongside our Imam, and benefit from his blissful presence, kindness and actions.

• Reciting Dua al-Faraj while facing the Qibla, and standing up out of love and respect for his Eminence.
• http://film.tebyan.net/film/151746
• https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0cXoTGnP1jk26

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Tranlation of Dua al-Faraj

{In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful

O’ God, send your blessing upon Muhammad and the Household

of Muhammad

O’ God, at this moment and every moment

Be a guardian, a protector, a leader, a helper

a proof, and an eye for Your representative &; proof, Mahdi son of Al-

Hassan,

Your blessings be upon him and his ancestors

guard him as long as he lives on this earth as a ruler

benefit him and bless him with everything You and this earth has to Offer}