Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(142): "Ruling on Paying Zakah to Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans"

Date Added : 27-10-2015

Resolution No.(142): "Ruling on Paying Zakah to Al-Aman Fund for the Future of Orphans"

Date: 7/5/1431 AH, corresponding to 22/4/2010 AD.

Praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds; and may his peace and blessings be upon Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

During its fourth session held on the above given date, the Board reviewed the questions asked by Al-Aman Fund for the Future of the Orphans regarding the ruling of Sharia on paying obligatory and voluntary charities to the Fund, which covers the expenses of the university education of these orphans, and are they considered from the continuous charity?

After extensive study and deliberation, the Board decided what follows:

Zakah is to be given only to one of the eight categories specified in the Holy Quran who are the ones eligible to receive the due Zakah. Whereas, Allah, The Most Exalted, Says (what means): "Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer the (funds); for those whose hearts have been (recently) reconciled (to Truth); for those in bondage and in debt; in the cause of God; and for the wayfarer: (thus is it) ordained by God, and God is full of knowledge and wisdom." {At-Tawbah/60}. This verse indicates that it is permissible to give Zakah to poor orphan Muslims.

However, it isn`t permissible to give it to the person who possesses property or earns sufficient living. This is indicated by what the Prophet (PBUH) said to Moa`d when he sent him to Yemen: "You will go to the people of the Scripture. So, when you reach there, invite them to testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah, and that Muhammad is His Apostle. In addition, if they obey you in that, tell them that Allah has enjoined on them five prayers in each day and night. And if they obey you in that tell them that Allah has made it obligatory on them to pay the Zakat which will be taken from the rich among them and given to the poor among them. (Bukhari & Moslim).

As regards voluntary charity, it is permissible to give it to the poor as well as others.

 According to Muslim scholars, continuous charity takes the rules of a Waqf (endowment).We pray that Allah, The Almighty, Accepts covering the expenses of poor students` education as a continuous charity whose benefit would last forever. And Allah Knows Best.

 

Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, Grand Mufti of Jordan, Dr. Abdulkareem al-Khasawneh

Vice Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, 

                                                             Dr. Ahmad Hilayel

   Dr. Yahia al-Botoosh/ Member

    Sheikh Sa`eid Hijjawi/ Member

                 Dr. Mohammad Khair al-Eesa/ Member

                                                             Judge Sari Atieh/ Member

        Dr. Abdurahamn Ibbdah/ Member

   Dr. Mohammad Okla/ Member

          Dr. Abdunnasir Abulbasal/ Member

 

Decision Number [ Previous | Next ]


Summarized Fatawaa

Do pregnant and breastfeeding women have to fast?

Pregnant and breastfeeding women are required to fast. However, if fasting causes them harm or unusual hardship, they may break their fast but must make up for the missed days later.
If they break their fast solely out of fear for the fetus or the child, then they must both make up the fast and give fidyah (feeding a needy person for each missed day), as the benefit of breaking the fast was only for the child.

What is the ruling on seeking forgiveness between the two Friday sermons?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
It is permissible to seek forgiveness (Istighfar) between the two Friday sermons (Khutbatayn), and it does not invalidate the Friday prayer (Salat al-Jumu'ah). Furthermore, it is not disliked (Makruh) to speak before the sermon, after it, or between the two sermons. Likewise, it is not disliked for one who enters during the sermon to speak if there is a need for it, provided he has not yet taken a place and settled into it. And Allah the Exalted knows best.

Is it permissible to divide a single Sa‘ of Zakat al-Fitr—or its equivalent value in cash—among more than one poor person?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
Zakat al-Fitr is estimated at one Sa‘ per person, but the number of people to whom this Sa‘ can be given has not been specified. For this reason, it is permissible to distribute a single Sa‘ among more than one poor person. And Allah the Exalted knows best.

Is it permissible to agree with a butcher to purchase the meat of an animal after it has been slaughtered — for instance, by buying the meat of a sheep at a price determined by the weight of its meat following slaughter, at a fixed rate per kilogram? And what is the ruling if the animal is being purchased with the intention of it being an uḍḥiyyah (sacrificial offering)?

 
 
 
 
 

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
It is not permissible to sell livestock in the manner of pricing each kilogram of meat after slaughter at a fixed rate, because the meat within the animal prior to slaughter is unseen and unknown. This leads to jahālah (ignorance of the subject matter) and gharar (contractual uncertainty), both of which are among the invalidating factors in sales transactions.
However, it is permissible for the buyer to issue a promise to purchase the meat of the animal after slaughter at a specified price per kilogram, with the actual sale being concluded at the time of weighing the meat — at which point both the quantity of the goods and the total price become known. There is no Sharī'ah objection to this arrangement.
The jurists have stipulated that for a sale to be valid, both countervalues must be present and observable. Al-Khaṭīb al-Shirbīnī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states:
"It is valid to sell a heap of grain whose total measure is unknown to both contracting parties at a rate of one sā' per dirham. This sale is valid because the subject of sale is present and observable, and ignorance of the total price is not harmful since it is known in detail — and uncertainty is thereby lifted."— [Mughnī al-Muḥtāj, Vol.2/P.355]
As for the uḍḥiyyah, the 'aqīqah, and vowed blood sacrifices (al-dam al-mandhūr) — full ownership of the animal must be established prior to slaughter. It is not valid for such animals to be slaughtered while still in the ownership of the butcher. Rather, the animal must be purchased alive and then slaughtered with the intention of uḍḥiyyah or the like. And Allah Almighty knows best.