About the Author:
Sheikh Muhammad Lutfi Al-Sabbagh (1930-2017) was a scholar of Hadith and rhetoric. He earned a doctorate in the rhetoric of the Prophetic Hadith and worked as a professor at King Saud University for 35 years, participating in scientific award committees. He authored numerous works on Quranic and Hadith sciences and Islamic preaching and delivered lessons and lectures in several countries.

Dr. Muhammad Lutfi Al-Sabbagh begins his book The Muslim Family and Challenges, which is based on a lecture he delivered in Doha at the invitation of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, by highlighting the painful reality that Muslims face. He describes how the forces of disbelief and misguidance conspire to drive Muslims out of their faith and homelands. Dr. Al-Sabbagh reviews various forms of aggression against Muslims, starting with the crimes of the Jews in Palestine—including displacement, killing, and attacks on sacred sites—to the persecution, killing, and systematic displacement of Muslims in Kosovo. He argues that these actions aim to empty Muslim lands and force Muslims into non-Muslim countries, exposing future generations to Christianization. All this happens because Muslims have distanced themselves from their religion.

Dr. Al-Sabbagh focuses on the issue of the Muslim family as the cornerstone of the Muslim Ummah. He asserts that the family is the vessel that preserves noble values and high morals, and nothing threatens a nation more than the destruction of its family unit. Islam, therefore, placed great emphasis on the family, dedicating precise rulings in the Quran and Sunnah that cover all its aspects, including marriage, breastfeeding, upbringing, inheritance, and divorce.

He stresses that throughout history, the Muslim family has been a stronghold of Islamic values, instilling the creed of monotheism, worship, and Islamic ethics in its children. This, in turn, reinforced the identity of the Muslim Ummah. He points out that the struggle between truth and falsehood has been ongoing since ancient times, with Islam’s enemies attempting to destroy the religion through various means—from the Crusades and Mongol invasions to colonialism and modern conspiracies aimed at dismantling the Muslim family. However, despite their efforts, they continue to fail. Allah says, “But they plan, and Allah plans. And Allah is the best of planners.” (Al-Anfal: 30)

Dr. Al-Sabbagh explains that these adversaries realized that destroying the family is the key to dismantling the Muslim Ummah. They have employed modern technology, entertainment, and media to spread Western values and misleading concepts, aiming to weaken the Islamic identity. One of their most dangerous actions was abolishing the Islamic Caliphate, which shook the Islamic identity of both individuals and societies. They also imposed laws that contradict Islamic family principles and promoted alternative ideologies such as nationalism, socialism, and capitalism. Additionally, they used media and art to undermine Islamic values, leading to the dominance of materialism and desires over many people.

He then highlights the major external challenges facing the Muslim family, foremost among them being the elimination of Islamic governance and its replacement with foreign laws. This resulted in the loss of Islamic identity in governance systems and widespread corruption in Muslim societies. European colonialism also played a role in spreading moral decay and immodesty. Christian women in the Levant used to wear hijab, but they abandoned it under the influence of colonialists, and some Muslims followed suit.

Another significant challenge is the Crusader-Zionist alliance against Islam. Despite their historical enmity, they have united against Islam, working to corrupt the morals of Muslim men and women and to weaken the Muslim family from within. Colonialists in the Levant, Algeria, Egypt, Palestine, and other lands facilitated the spread of prostitution, using Jews and Christians as tools to introduce immorality into Muslim societies.

Modern colonialism has taken a more cunning approach by supporting Christian minorities within Muslim societies and providing them with platforms to propagate destructive ideas. These include attacks on polygamy and divorce, as well as the promotion of mixed foreign education, which produced generations of Muslims who renounced Islam, attacked it, and became mentally enslaved to Western ideologies.

These intellectual assaults led to the emergence of movements that promote immorality disguised under art and liberation. They challenge Islamic family laws, falsely claiming that Islam oppresses women. However, Islam has never wronged women; rather, it has honored them as mothers, wives, and daughters, and the Prophet ﷺ instructed kindness towards them.

Dr. Al-Sabbagh also sheds light on the economic challenges facing Muslim families in the Islamic world. Harsh economic conditions have become a primary factor in family breakdown, delayed marriages, and the rise of celibacy. Dictatorial and socialist regimes have led to the decline of the middle class, pushing many into poverty. The cost of establishing a family has skyrocketed, making it difficult for young men to afford marriage, resulting in widespread spinsterhood and moral corruption.

Among the most dangerous challenges exploited by colonial powers is the idea of birth control. They promoted it in Muslim lands under the pretext of poverty alleviation, while Islam opposes this notion, emphasizing that Allah is the Provider. Western intellectuals recognized Islam as a threat to their civilization, so they devised plans to weaken Muslims by reducing their numbers, controlling their wealth, and strategically positioning their agents within Muslim societies. Numerous conferences and initiatives were organized, exploiting the economic difficulties faced by Muslim nations, while Western countries encouraged their own populations to increase their birth rates to strengthen their dominance.

One of the most devastating challenges facing Muslim societies is the spread of desires and temptations. Human nature is inclined toward them, and one of the most dangerous temptations used to corrupt the Muslim family is the trial of women. The Prophet ﷺ warned of its severity, saying: “I have not left behind me a trial more injurious to men than women.” He also encouraged marriage as a means of maintaining chastity and protection from corruption: “Young man, those of you who can support a wife should marry, for it keeps you from looking at strange women and preserves you from immorality; but those who cannot should devote themselves to fasting, for it is a means of suppressing sexual desire.”

However, Islam’s enemies have sought to obstruct marriage through numerous obstacles. The media has exacerbated the problem by promoting immodesty, mixed-gender interactions, and lowly entertainment. Scholars and intellectuals have warned of this moral decline for a long time. Al-Rafi’i, for instance, opposed imitating Europe’s corrupt moral system and criticized the mixing of young men and women in universities, viewing it as a scheme to corrupt the morals of the Ummah’s youth. Such moral deviations can eventually lead to ideological and doctrinal deviations, where individuals start perceiving religion as a barrier to their desires.

Additionally, the love of children is an innate human instinct. In the past, people viewed having many children as a source of strength and support. However, Islam’s enemies have distorted this natural inclination by instilling fear of poverty and hardship. This has led some to abandon their children, much like in the pre-Islamic era. Islam prohibits such practices, as Allah says, “And do not kill your children for fear of poverty. We provide for them and for you. Indeed, their killing is a great sin.” (Al-Isra: 31)

Another destructive desire is the love of status and power, which can corrupt one’s religion. Some people make religious compromises to attain worldly positions. A leader may be pressured into allowing his wife to abandon hijab or engage in mixed gatherings to secure a high-ranking job.

Dr. Al-Sabbagh also discusses intellectual invasions that have destabilized the Muslim family structure. The leadership role of men has been undermined, and women have been misled into believing that obedience to their husbands is a form of humiliation. This has led to family disintegration and the misguidance of children. Media and television dramas have played a role in promoting prohibited behaviors, to the extent that some women now reject hijab and deny what is known in religion by necessity.

The author then shifts to internal challenges within the Muslim family, arguing that Muslims often focus on external threats while ignoring their own shortcomings. When Muslims suffered defeat at the Battle of Uhud, Allah revealed, “Say, it is from yourselves.” (Aal Imran: 165) This ayah emphasizes that many of the crises facing Muslims stem from their own shortcomings, not just the conspiracies of their enemies.

Among the most significant internal challenges facing the Muslim family is ignorance of religion. Colonialism and non-Islamic rulers contributed to spreading this ignorance, along with the prevalence of Sufi ideas that distanced Muslims from reality. This led to a misunderstanding of certain beliefs, such as the doctrine of divine decree and predestination, causing some Muslims to accept oppression and backwardness without striving for change. Additionally, scholars and parents failed in their duty to educate future generations, leaving young people vulnerable to corrupt media and educational curricula that do not properly teach religion. As a result of this ignorance, another challenge emerged: distancing from religion, which led some to adopt strange ideas, such as the desire to control birth rates out of fear of poverty. It also weakened self-discipline and a sense of responsibility due to a lack of faith in the Hereafter.

Another issue is the replacement of Islamic ethics with pre-Islamic customs and social traditions in matters like marriage and inheritance, affecting family stability. Harmful customs with no basis in Sharia, such as forbidding a prospective groom from seeing his fiancée before marriage, have led to failed marriages that either end in divorce or result in a life of misery.

Dr. Al-Sabbagh also discusses the erosion of the Islamic personality in both men and women. There is no longer a clear distinction between a Muslim and a non-Muslim in terms of morality and behavior, making it difficult to differentiate between them except by name, sect, or nationality.

Muslims have also been influenced by non-Muslims, imitating them in dress, lifestyle, historical narratives, customs, and principles. The Prophet ﷺ warned against this, saying: “You will follow the wrong ways, of your predecessors so completely and literally that if they should go into the hole of a mastigure, you too will go there.” We said, “O Allah's Messenger (ﷺ)! Do you mean the Jews and the Christians?” He replied, “Whom else?” (Meaning, of course, the Jews and the Christians.) Islam’s enemies have succeeded in persuading some Muslims to abandon their faith, promoting the idea of adopting Europe's secular experience, which has had dangerous consequences on the Muslim family.

Furthermore, the sense of responsibility has weakened, and a spirit of carelessness has taken hold among some Muslims. Parents are responsible for protecting their children from negative influences, especially given the failure of schools and media to provide proper guidance. A deep sense of responsibility can bring about fundamental changes in the reality of the Muslim family.

Another widespread issue is the continuous engagement of the father in work, making him unable to spend time with or guide his family. This problematic situation also affects working women who leave their homes all day, entrusting their children to maids who may lack Islamic morals and values, leading to family disintegration and the loss of proper upbringing.

Dr. Al-Sabbagh also addresses the failure of parents to consider the future, as some underestimate the importance of raising their children, thinking they are too young to be given attention. However, children are fully aware of their surroundings and may play significant roles in the future. Proper upbringing begins from an early age, and some studies suggest that even a fetus in the womb perceives certain external stimuli.

He also criticizes some men for abandoning their leadership role in the family, which Allah has ordained. This leads to disorder in family management. He clarifies that male guardianship is not about diminishing the status of women but is rather an organizational principle ensuring the home functions properly, with the man responsible for making major decisions in consultation with his family. He warns against men completely relinquishing their authority at home, becoming submissive to their wives’ demands, which disrupts family roles and weakens the household structure.

Islamic scholars and movements have also failed in preparing righteous women. Since the past century, doors to corruption have been opened to women, while doors to goodness and righteousness have been closed. This has distanced them from authentic Islamic culture, which was once transmitted through the family and society. As educational curricula changed and were influenced by external forces, women became vulnerable to intellectual deviation and estrangement from their faith. Modern influences, such as television, cinema, and the press, have played a significant role in this shift.

Although reform efforts have been made to protect young men from this moral decline, women have not received the same attention, making them an easy target for misleading and corrupting influences. Hence, there is an urgent need to focus on the Muslim woman—whether as a mother, wife, sister, or daughter—by intensifying Islamic outreach among women and holding special lessons and lectures in mosques to strengthen their intellectual and moral foundation according to Islamic teachings.

The final challenge Dr. Al-Sabbagh discusses is the dominance of materialism over many people, where financial considerations take precedence over the welfare of faith and family life. This has led to numerous marital conflicts and the rising costs of marriage due to excessive dowries and unnecessary extravagances. Consequently, marriages have been delayed, birth rates have declined, and the stability of the Muslim family has become increasingly threatened.