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:
1- The purpose of Friday khutbah (sermon) is to remind the Muslims about their responsibilities and to motivate them to stop evil and promote good in their lives, families and in the community.
2- The Friday khutbah informs the Muslims about the condition of the Ummah and the world.
Dealing with the question in point, the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR) issues the following Fatwa:
The Friday khutbah (sermon) is a reminder, a call, a guidance and a means of education. Through the Friday khutbah, Muslims bcome aware of the conditions of the Muslim communities around the globe by focusing on their current affairs.
We learn from Prophet Muhammad’s tradition that whenever he delivered the Friday khutbah, his eyes would become red, his voice rose, with intense emotion as one giving a warning against the enemy.
Such a spellbinding way of delivering the Friday khutbah related to the fact that the overwhelming motive was to remind the Muslims.
Hence, we read in some traditions that Prophet Muhammad used to read Surat Qaf in the Friday khutbah, which by itself, is a reminder and a warning.
However, we should note that Prophet Muhammad used not to prolong the khutbah so as not to bore the listeners.
Prophet Muhammad said, “Shortening the sermon and prolonging the prayer is a sign of the man’s knowledge.” (Muslim)
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.