|
Moral Collapse
In our day, a great danger threatens the
world's social fabric. Just as a virus kills
the human body, this danger - the degradation
of those moral values that help maintain
a healthy society - brings about a subtle
social collapse.
From the hadiths of our Prophet (may God
bless him and grant him peace), we understand
that social degeneration will prevail in
the End Times. One hadith tells us that
people will engage openly in prostitution:
Homosexuality, prostitution, premarital
and extramarital sex, sexual misdemeanors,
pornography, sexual harassment, and the
increase of sex-related illnesses are important
indications of the collapse of moral values.
These remain continual matters of public
concern. Some people are not aware of this
growing danger and so mistakenly consider
it as normal. But, statistics show that
with every passing day, this danger is spreading
unperceived.
The
proportion of sex-related illnesses is an
important indication of the problems facing
humanity. According to World Health Organization
(WHO), sex-related diseases form one of
the largest segments of illnesses. These
reports show that of an estimated 333 million
new cases of sexually transmitted diseases
occur in the world every year.34 In addition, AIDS continues to be the most
serious problem. WHO statistics indicate
that AIDS has killed 18.8 million people
since the beginning of the epidemic in the
early 1980s.35 The WHO report for 2000 sums up the situation
succinctly: "AIDS is unique in its devastating
impact on the social, economic and demographic
underpinnings of development."36
Among the most frightening developments
is the spread of homosexuality. In some
countries, homosexuals can legally marry,
enjoy its social benefits, and form associations
and organizations. Around the world, their
activities show their opposition to religious
faith and their antagonism to religious
values. This is a characteristic of our
age, for such things have never happened
before since the time of the Prophet (may
God bless him and grant him peace).
The audacity of today's homosexuals makes
one think of what happened to Lot's people,
who were noted for their homosexuality.
As the Qur'an says, when they flamboyantly
rejected Lot's (pbuh) invitation to the
right path, God destroyed the city and its
people by a great disaster. As a reminder,
the remains of this perverse society still
lie beneath the water of Lut's Lake (the
Dead Sea).
It is clear that the hadiths describing
the moral degeneration of the End Times
are coming true today. This once again reminds
us that, by God's Will, Prophet Jesus' (pbuh)
return to this world is very close.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
34.
"Young People and Sexually Transmitted Diseases,"
WHO Fact Sheet No. 186 (December 1997). 
35. WHO, "Report on the Global HIV/ AIDS
Epidemic," June 2000. Online at: www.unaids.org/
epidemic_update/report/Epi_report.htm#aids.
36. Ibid.
|
