Is it prescribed for the khateeb to say “Aqoolu qawli haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say these words of mine andI ask Allah for forgiveness)?

At the end of the Friday khutbah the khateeb says, "Aqoolu qawli
haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say these words of mine and I ask Allah
for forgiveness). Is there any basis for this in Islam? Is there
anything wrong with that? We prayed in one of the mosques and at the
end of the khutbah the khateeb said, "I say these words of mine andI
ask Allah for forgiveness for me and you and for all the Muslims."
When the prayer was over, one of the congregation of the mosque
objected to that and said: "This is an innovation that is said inthe
khutbah." Then he said: "It is not only your words, you quoted
Qur'aanic verses and hadeeths, and the wordsof the Salaf, so how could
you say that these are your words?".
Praise be to Allaah.
There is nothing wrong with the khateeb saying at the end of his
speech, "Aqoolu haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say this and I ask Allah
for forgiveness)" or "Aqooluqawli haadha wa astaghfir-Allaah (I say
these words of mine andI ask Allah for forgiveness)", whether this is
the first or second Friday khutbah or any other kind of speech. These
are words that arenarrated from the Prophet (blessings and peace of
Allah be upon him) and from the khateebs among his Companions (may
Allah be pleased with them).
Ibn Hibbaan (3828) narrated from Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with
him) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) gave
a speech on the day of the conquest of Makkah. He praised and
glorified Allah then he said: "To proceed: O people, Allah has taken
away from you the pridein ancestry of Jaahiliyyah. O people, people
are of two types, the righteous and pious one who is dear to his Lord
and the wretched evildoer who is worthless before his Lord." Then he
recited the verse (interpretationof the meaning): "O mankind! We have
created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and
tribes, that you may know one another. Verily, the most honourable of
you with Allaah is that (believer) who has At-Taqwa [i.e. he is one of
the Muttaqoon (the pious. See V.2:2)]. Verily, Allaah is All-Knowing,
All-Aware" [al-Hujuraat 49:13]. Then he said: "Aqoolu haadha wa
astaghfir-Allaah (I say this and I ask Allah for forgiveness)."
This hadeeth was classedas saheeh by Shu'ayb al-Arna'oot in his
Tahqeeq, and by al-Albaani in al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, 2803. The
biographers narrated that Thaabit ibn Qays ibnShammaas, the khateeb of
the Ansaar (may Allah be pleased with him) said it in the presence
ofthe Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). Ibn Ishaaq
said in the report of the delegation of Banu Tameem and their boasting
in front of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah upon him): The
Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah upon him)said to
Thaabit ibn Qays ibn al-Shammaas, the brother of Banu al-Haarith ibn
al-Khazraj:Get up and answer the man's speech. Thaabit got up and
said: Praise be to Allah Who created the heavens and the earth and
established Hisrule therein, and His knowledge encompassesHis Throne;
nothing exists but by His bounty. By His power He made uskings and
chose the bestof His creation as a Messenger, who is the most
honourable in lineage, the most sincerein speech, and the noblest in
ancestry, and sent down to him His Book and entrusted him (to guide)
His creation. He was Allah's choice from among the worlds. Then He
summoned mento believe in him, and the emigrants (Muhaajireen) from
his people and his kinsmen believed in Allah's Messenger; the most
honourable of men in lineage, the highest in dignity, and the best in
deeds. The first of creation to answer and respond to Allah when the
Messenger called them were ourselves. Weare Allah's helpers and the
assistants of His Messenger, and we will fight men until they believe
in Allah. He who believes in Allah and His Messenger has protectedhis
life and property from us; and he who disbelieves we will fight for
the sake of Allah unceasingly and killing him will be a small matter
to us. These are my words and I seek Allah's forgiveness for myself
and the believers,both men and women. Peace be upon you.
End quote from al-Seerah al-Nabawiyyahby Ibn Hishaam, 2/562; al-Seerah
by Ibn Katheer, 4/79.
These words were also narrated from Abu Bakr, 'Umar and 'Ali (may
Allahbe pleased with them) intheir khutbahs, and some contemporary
scholars use them in their khutbahs such as Shaykh Ibn 'Uthaymeen (may
Allah have mercy on him).
As for the objection to the khateeb mentioning things that are not his
own words, such as verses, hadeeths and reports, this objection is not
valid, because what these words refer to is everything that the
khateeb said in his khutbah, even the verses, hadeeths and reports
that the khateeb quoted.
The point is that saying these words is permissible and there is
nothing wrong with it, and there is no justification for objecting to
it.
We ask Allah to help us to understand His religion properly.
And Allah knows best.

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