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The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Family Ties
Author : Dr. Ahmad Al-Harasees
Date Added : 10-01-2023

The Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Family Ties

 

 

All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds; may His peace and blessings be upon Prophet Mohammad, his family and noble companions.

Allah The Almighty Says {What means}: "Be sure we shall test you with something of fear and hunger, some loss in goods or lives or the fruits (of your toil), but give glad tidings to those who patiently persevere," {Al-Baqarah/155}.

In light of this global pandemic and the spatiotemporal frame of the social reality in Jordan, two trends can be observed:

First: The positive trend.  Creating opportunity from the very womb of affliction and positive changes in the visible and clear patterns of behavior in society as a whole or in the family. Both sociologists and specialists in social and family relations must consider these changes, work on the change management process, strengthen the positives and build on them.

There are several examples on this; some of which are: abstaining from what is called "Conspicuous consumption", investing in new positive patterns in the family system and building on them in the future; particularly since the pandemic has given a bigger chance for interdependence and solidarity within the family itself. In addition, the family system and solidarity among its members must be worked on in the future. This can be achieved through paying more attention to solidarity and love compared to rights and duties. In this regard, Allah Says  {What means}: " And among His Signs is this, that He created for you mates from among yourselves, that ye may dwell in tranquility with them, and He has put love and mercy between your (hearts): verily in that are Signs for those who reflect." {Ar-rum/21}.

Many aspects of excessive extravagance related to happy as well as sad occasions have changed. This is in addition to terminating extravagance and ostentation, and burdening the family with issues concerning society`s security.

Hence societal effort through the society as a whole, governmental or voluntary, emphasized these positives via media, cultural platforms, and the fatwas-based on divine guidance and Prophetic traditions-issued by the Iftaa` Department in this regard. In fact, several Friday sermons addressing this pandemic were delivered prior to the comprehensive ban. Their theme was the higher objectives of Sharia; namely preserving life and the importance of prevention as it is better than cure. Then a fatwa was issued regarding the permissibility of praying Friday and congregational prayers at home during the time of the pandemic was an act of new Ijtihad.* The latter took the common good into consideration by laying emphasis on preserving life as one of the higher objectives of Sharia. Moreover, many fatwas were issued concerning social distancing, spacing among prayer performers, wearing masks, instructions of attending Friday and congregational prayers, and washing the person who died due to COVID-19. This is in addition to many fatwas and Sharia guidance, which had a significant effect in raising people`s awareness, not questioning the instructions issued about this pandemic within the frames of Ijtihad conducted on the higher objectives of Sharia.

Second: The negative impact of the pandemic. On top of this is the financial status of many families relying on daily income, which led to family problems and divorce cases caused by poverty, destitution, and inability to secure the basic needs of the family.

I refer here to the need to study the poll published by the Center for Strategic Studies of the University of Jordan on "COVID-19 and Domestic Violence." It showed results and indicators that needed careful consideration. However, some results were positive, must be focused on, built on, and encouraged. One of these is society`s rejection to the idea that it is the right of the husband to be violent against his wife. The percentage in favor of this idea was 99%, 85% recognized wife`s household responsibilities, 66% tried to find solutions for their children problems, and 80% was the percentage of parent-child communication, in addition to many other positive aspects.

In conclusion, this pandemic has shown many positive as well as negative aspects in society. It is the duty of the professionals of this field to study further this case, build on the positives within the society change management, and reduce the negative aspects through awareness raising.

We ask Allah The Exalted to protect Jordan and its people, and end this scourge. All perfect praise be to Allah The Lord of The Worlds.

 

 

* Ijtihad is an Islamic legal term referring to independent reasoning by an expert in Islamic law, or the thorough exertion of a jurist's mental faculty in finding a solution to a legal question. It is contrasted with taqlid.

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on preparing food for someone who is not fasting in Ramadan?

It is forbidden to prepare food for someone who is breaking their fast without a valid excuse in Ramadan.
Doing so would be assisting in sin, and assisting in sin is itself a sin.
Allah says {what means}: "but help ye not one another in sin and rancour" [Al-Mai`dah/2]

A man led the people in prayer as imam, and at the end of the prayer he performed a prostration of forgetfulness (*sujūd al-sahw*) because he had omitted a short *sūrah* after al-Fātiḥah. What is the ruling on his prayer and that of those praying behind him?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
According to the Shāfiʿī school, it is sunnah to recite a sūrah after al-Fātiḥah in the prayer. One who omits it has a valid prayer, and no prostration of forgetfulness (sujūd al-sahw) is prescribed for omitting it. If someone performs sujūd al-sahw for its omission while knowing the ruling and remembering it, his prayer is invalidated. But one who is ignorant of the ruling, or who did so out of forgetfulness, his prayer is not invalidated, because this is among the matters that are obscure to people, and ignorance of it is not restricted to those who recently entered Islam.
Shaykh al-Islām al-Shams al-Ramlī said in Nihāyat al-Muḥtāj ilā Sharḥ al-Minhāj (Vol.2/p.70): “The remaining sunnahs are not compensated for by prostration, such as the remembrances (adhkār) of bowing and prostration, that is, the opening supplication (duʿāʾ al-iftitāḥ) and the sūrah, in accordance with the base rule, because they are not of the same nature as what has been reported [as compensable]. If one prostrates for any of them deliberately, his prayer is invalidated, unless he is excused due to ignorance. As for the objection raised that the ignorant person does not know that sujūd al-sahw is prescribed, and whoever knows it knows its place, this is refuted by denying such a necessary connection, for the ignorant person may hear only that sujūd al-sahw is prescribed before the salām, and so assume that it applies to every sunnah and is not restricted to its prescribed place.”
This is among the matters that are obscure, in which the mukallaf is excused for ignorance, as stated by al-Shabrāmallisī in his Ḥāshiyah ʿalā Nihāyat al-Muḥtāj (Vol.2/p.70).
However, if the imam prostrates, and the follower (maʾmūm) presumes that his imam’s prostration is for a reason for which one does not prostrate, it is not permissible to follow him in it, so long as the follower knows the ruling.
Accordingly, the prayer of one who did not recite a sūrah after al-Fātiḥah is valid, and sujūd al-sahw is not prescribed for it. Whoever prostrates out of ignorance or forgetfulness, his prayer is valid, because this is among the issues hidden from the general public. But whoever prostrates while knowing the ruling and remembering it, his prayer is invalidated. And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on compensating the patient in case of medical error on the part of the treating physician?

 
All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
The foundational principle is that every mistake issued by a physician that causes harm to another due to his negligence or lack of expertise obligates him to guarantee liability and compensate the harmed party. The Sharia maxim, in this regard, states: "The direct actor is liable."
 
Ibn Qudamah (may Allah have mercy on him) says: "As for if he was skilled but his hand committed an error—such as exceeding the proper limit of incision, cutting in an incorrect site, cutting with an instrument that inflicts excessive pain, or cutting at an unsuitable time—he is liable, because it is destruction (Itlaf) whose liability does not differ between intent and mistake, thus resembling the destruction of property; and because it is a prohibited act, so he guarantees liability for its secondary effects." [Al-Mughni].
 
However, if the physician performed what was necessary in the most complete manner and took all measures of care and caution, but complications occurred that could not be avoided according to specialists, then no liability rests upon him.
 
Shaykh al-Islam Imam al-Nawawi (may Allah have mercy on him) says: "The cupper and the circumciser bear no liability if they have not been negligent, and likewise the veterinarian if he bleeds an animal and it perishes." [Rawdat al-Talibin].
 
Al-Khattabi (may Allah have mercy on him) said: "I know of no disagreement that if the practitioner transgresses and the patient perishes, he is liable. Anyone who undertakes knowledge or practice he does not know is a transgressor; so if perishing arises from his action, he is liable for the blood-money (Diyah) while capital retaliation (Qisas) is dropped from him, because he did not act independently without the patient's permission. And the physician’s offense in the view of the generality of jurists is borne by his agnates ('Aqilah*)."* [Ma'alim al-Sunan].
 
If negligence or transgression is established against the physician, it is necessary to compensate the patient or seek forgiveness from him. And Allah Almighty knows best.

 Should a person who doesn’t offer Tasbeehb (saying Subhaana Rabbiya Al-‘Atheem during Rukoo`, and saying Subhaana Rabbiya Al-A‘laa during Sujood) during Rukoo` and Sujood perform As-Sahw Sujood (prostration of forgetfulness)?

He/ she doesn`t have to perform Sujood As-Sahw, whether he/she didn`t offer Tasbeeh during Rukoo` and Sujood either intentionally ,or unintentionally, provided that the attentiveness of the heart wasn`t undermined since it is a pillar in both.

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