Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(74): “Cursing Allah The Exalted Turns a Person into a Disbeliever“

Date Added : 28-10-2015

 

Resolution No.(74): “Cursing Allah The Exalted Turns a Person into an Apostate“

Date: 1/3/1425 AH, corresponding to 21/4/2004 AD.

 

The Board received the following question:

What is the ruling on living with a husband who curses Allah on regular basis whenever he gets mad, but once he regains calm, he seeks the forgiveness of Allah. However, when he is told that what he had done turned him into a disbeliever, he rejects that and confirms his belief in Allah and that he never intended to get out of the fold of Islam?

Answer: All success is due to Allah.

Cursing Allah The Exalted is a major sin that turns a person into a disbeliever, whether he was joking, serious or mocking, for Allah Says {what means}: “If thou dost question them, they declare (with emphasis): "We were only talking idly and in play." Say: "Was it at God, and His Signs, and His Apostle that ye were mocking?" {At-Tawbah/65}. And this opinion is unanimously agreed upon by the four Muslim jurists; therefore, this person must seek Allah`s forgiveness, make repentance, and return to the fold of Islam.

Moreover, Allah The Exalted Accepts the repentance of such persons for He Says {what means}: “Say to the Unbelievers, if (now) they desist (from Unbelief), their past would be forgiven them; but if they persist, the punishment of those before them is already (a matter of warning for them).” {Al-Anfaal/38}. Allah`s Apostle also says: “I have been ordered (by Allah) to fight against the people until they testify that none has the right to be worshipped but Allah and that Muhammad is Allah's Apostle, and offer the prayers perfectly and give the obligatory charity, so if they perform that, then they save their lives and property from me except for Islamic laws and then their reckoning (accounts) will be done by Allah." {Bukhari&Muslim}. And this is the opinion of the Hanafite and the Shafite jurists.

This person becomes separated from his wife once her Iddah (waiting period) ends before he makes repentance to Allah The exalted and returns to the fold of Islam. However, if he returns to his wife before the end of her Iddah, she becomes lawful to him, and this is in accordance with the Shafite School of Jurisprudence.

We advise this husband to fear Allah and remember Him constantly since He Says {what means}: "Those who believe, and whose hearts find satisfaction in the remembrance of God: for without doubt in the remembrance of God do hearts find satisfaction.” {Ar-Ra`d/28}. It is also imperative that he completely stops cursing Allah The Exalted, makes sincere repentance, and be honestly determined not to commit this sin again for fear that his heart may get stained with the ill that he had done and be sealed by Allah as such, for those whom Allah misguides, none can guide. Allah Says {what means}: “O ye who believe! Turn to God with sincere repentance: In the hope that your Lord will remove from you your ills and admit you to Gardens beneath which Rivers flow, - the Day that God will not permit to be humiliated the Prophet and those who believe with him. Their Light will run forward before them and by their right hands, while they say, "Our Lord! Perfect our Light for us, and grant us Forgiveness: for Thou hast power over all things." {At-Tahreem/8}. And Allah Knows Best.

 

Chairman of the Iftaa` Board,

        Chief Justice, Izzaldeen At-Tamimi

Dr. Ahmad Hilayel

Dr. Yousef Ghyzaan    

Dr. Abdulsalam Al-Abbadi             

Dr. Wasif Abdulwahaab          

Sheikh Saeid Hijjawi     

Dr. Mohammad Abu Yahia               

Sheikh Nai`em Mujahid           

                                                             Sheikh Abdulkareem Al-Khasawneh                              

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Summarized Fatawaa

 
Are the mother's maternal and paternal uncles, and the father's maternal and paternal uncles, considered among the unmarriageable kin (Maharim)?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
A mother’s maternal uncle and her paternal uncle, as well as a father’s maternal uncle and his paternal uncle, are all considered among the unmarriageable kin (Maharim). And Allah the Exalted knows best.

I work overtime after regular working hours and may become occupied with my phone or the work computer for personal matters — what is the ruling on this?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is obligatory upon an employee to abide by the instructions and regulations governing overtime hours, and equally obligatory to uphold honesty and avoid all forms of deception and dishonesty. Allah the Almighty says {what means}: "O you who have believed, be mindful of Allah and be with the truthful." [Al-Tawbah/ 119]
Whoever is assigned to work overtime must be present at his workplace — even if he has no specific tasks to carry out at that time. In such a case, he should strive as best he can to spend that time in a manner that benefits the institution he works for. If there is genuinely no work for him to do, there is no objection to occupying his time with something beneficial — such as reciting the Holy Qurʾān, reading, or listening to educational lessons — provided he has already completed all the responsibilities assigned to him.
If, however, he does have work to complete, he must spend that time fulfilling it. He may attend to phone calls or other personal matters to the extent that is customarily acceptable, as long as this does not result in delaying or postponing his work. If he delays his work on account of personal preoccupations, the wages he received for that wasted time are not lawfully his to keep, and he is obliged to return the equivalent amount to the institution by whatever means available to him. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on following the actions of the imam in prayer and how this following is achieved?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The follower (ma'mum) is required to follow his imam in the actions of the prayer. This "following" (mutaba'ah) means that the follower performs each action of the prayer after the imam has begun it but before he has finished it. For example, the follower bows (in ruku') after the imam has reached the position of bowing, then rises after the imam has risen. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "The imam is only appointed to be followed, so when he says the takbir, say the takbir; and when he bows, then bow; and when he prostrates, then prostrate" (agreed upon, i.e., reported by both al-Bukhari and Muslim).
It is stated in Mughni al-Muhtaj (1/505): "Among the conditions of valid congregational prayer (iqtida') is following the imam in the actions of the prayer... meaning that following the imam is obligatory in the physical actions of the prayer, not in its verbal utterances... Complete following (kamal al-mutaba'ah) is achieved when the follower's beginning of an action comes after the imam's beginning of that same action, while the follower's beginning of the action precedes the imam's completion of it" — end of quote, with slight paraphrasing.
And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

My father has debts and asked me to repay them years ago, and I promised him I would do so upon his death — is it permissible for me to go back on my promise given that I am unable to repay them, especially since he refuses to contribute to repayment on the grounds that the debt has become my responsibility by virtue of my promise?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
The established principle is that a father's debt is to be repaid from his own wealth, if he possesses sufficient means. As for the promise made by the son to repay it on his father's behalf, fulfilling such a promise is strongly recommended, and breaking it is considerably disliked. Shaykh al-Islām Imām al-Nawawī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "Fulfilling a promise is emphatically recommended, and breaking it is severely disliked. The evidences for this from the Qurʾān and the Sunnah are well known." [Rawḍat al-Ṭālibīn,Vol. 2/P.278] Shaykh al-Islām Imām Zakariyyā al-Anṣārī, may Allah have mercy upon him, further states: "The reason fulfilling a promise is not obligatory and breaking it is not forbidden is that a promise is in the nature of a gift, and a gift does not become binding except upon receipt." [Asnā al-Maṭālib fī Sharḥ Rawḍ al-Ṭālib,Vol. 2/P.487]
Given that the son does not possess the financial means to fulfil his promise to his father, breaking this promise falls beyond his capacity — and Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear. Since the father himself possesses sufficient wealth to settle his own debt, repayment must be made from his own funds. Should he pass away before doing so, the debt is to be settled from his estate. And Allah the Almighty knows best.