A word from the Shaykh regarding the hadith: (Islam began as a stranger...), and the strangeness of the religion in non-Islamic lands.

The Shaykh : ... This is a very important matter, and it is the fundamental issue in these days. It is not about the "strangeness" (ghurba) in the sense of being in foreign lands, which we were discussing before the brother arrived, because I was in the process of speaking about his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): So Islam is a stranger in the lands of the Arabs, from which Islam originated and from which it spread to the lands of the non-Arabs, and through them the non-Arabs found guidance. If Islam is a stranger in the lands of the Arabs, then it will be even more of a stranger in the lands of the non-Arabs. This is what was witnessed in Afghanistan; there, people were rushing to defend an Islamic creed in general, meaning in the jihad in the path of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. As for Bosnia and Herzegovina, you do not hear such talk with focus, nor do you find a sense for it. The strangeness there is much, much more severe. If some groups, or some organizations, or some individuals go in the path of calling to Allah the Blessed and Exalted, following the methodology of the Book and the Sunnah and what the righteous predecessors were upon, then this is the obligatory duty today. This is the obligatory duty today. As for jihad, the blood that will be shed there will be wasted without any significant benefit, because the situation there, as you may have touched upon the reality, or as I said earlier, is that they are surrounded by disbelieving states, unlike the situation in Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, there was a very wide, open gateway for Muslims from the entire Islamic world, and therefore the aid there was strong and very strong. Perhaps that was one of the reasons the Afghans came close to reaping the fruit, had it not been for the division and suffering that was placed among them, and their efforts, unfortunately, at least up to today, have gone down the wind without any significant benefit. As for the situation in Bosnia and Herzegovina, it is a drop in the ocean of disbelief and misguidance. If there were a Muslim state that cared about the affairs of Muslims wherever they are and whoever they are, it might have been reluctant to perform the obligatory jihad, knowing that it cannot engage in jihad in this ocean of disbelief and misguidance. And the Security Council, or the United Nations, is against Muslims in all the lands of the world. This is if there were a state that cared about the affairs of Muslims, but unfortunately, the states today, if any of them care about any aspect of the affairs of Muslims, it is material: the economy, society, and empty appearances. As for caring about establishing the correct creed and Islamic morals, this is a matter that no state cares about at all. Therefore, I see that throwing oneself into destruction is for some people to go there under the claim of jihad in the path of Allah. No banner will be raised there for jihad in the path of Allah. But jihad in the path of Allah in the broader sense exists everywhere and at all times, and it is also calling to Allah the Blessed and Exalted. So I ask myself: Is this feasible for everyone who wants to go there to call these people to Islam? Is the door open, or are there also obstacles there?