عربي
Home


Resolutions of Iftaa' Board


Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(227): "Ruling on Praying Jumu`ah in More than One Mosque in the Same Town"

Date Added : 28-11-2016

Resolution No.(227) by the Board of Iftaa`, Research and Islamic Studies.

"The Ruling on Praying Jumu`ah in more than one Mosque in the Same Town"

Date: (23/Shawal/1437 AH), corresponding to (28/7/2016 AD).

 

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

On the above date, the Board reviewed the question sent from the Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs and Holy Places, and it reads as follows:

What is the ruling on praying Jumu`ah in more than one mosque in the same town?

After deliberations, the Board decided the following:

Jumu`ah was called as such because it brings people together in one place. Until recently, Jumu`ah was held in the big Jaami` mosque (i.e. the main or central mosque of a town, city or village). When Muslims became numerous and mosques could no longer accommodate them, praying Jumu`ah in more than one mosque has become a necessity. However, holding it in more mosques than what is actually needed is a matter of disagreement amongst the Muslim scholars. For example, the majority of the Shafii, Maliki and Hanabali scholars have considered holding  Jumu`ah in more than one mosque in the same town for no valid reason unlawful. Doing this is lawful if the Jaami mosque is too small to accommodate the number of the people who pray in it or the town has expanded to a level where it is difficult for all its residents to pray in one mosque.

Pointing out the conditions for the validity of the Jumu`ah prayer, Al-Khateeb Ash-Shirbini (May Allah have mercy on him) said: " ………..Third: It shouldn`t be preceded by another Jumu`ah nor coincide with one, unless the town was too expanded and it became difficult for its residents to pray in one mosque. In this case, it is lawful for them to pray Jumu`ah in more than one mosque as much as actually needed." {Moghni Al-Mohtajj}.

Sheikh Miarah, a Maliki scholar, stated: "The apparent view of the Maliki scholars is that they unanimously agree that it is unlawful to pray Jumu`ah in two mosques in a small town. Their disagreement pertains to the big town……their  famous opinion is that it is unlawful. However, people, in my time, consider it lawful because it is difficult for the residents of a big town to pray in one mosque." {Ad-Dur Al-Thameen, pp.363}.

Al-Imam Al-Mardawi (May Allah have mercy on him), a Hanbali scholar, stated: "It is unlawful to hold Friday or Jumu`a prayer in two mosques if there is no necessity for doing so, and this is the approved opinion of our Madhab (school of thought) as well as our fellow scholars. In a narration after Imam Ahmad Bin Hanbal: It is generally lawful, but this opinion is his (Ahmad`s). Al-Qadhi adopted the opinion of Imam Ahmad if there was a need to hold Friday prayer in more than one mosque. Need here means: the mosque is small, far or sedition is likely." {Al-Insaf, vol.2/pp.400}.

Moreover, the Hanafi scholars have two opinions in this regard. Their approved opinion is that it is lawful to hold Friday prayer in two mosques or more, even if there was no necessity, as is the opinion of Al-Imam Abo Hanifah and Mohammad Al-Hasan (May Allah have mercy on both of them).

Al-Imam Al-Sarkhasi (May Allah have mercy on him) stated: "Narrations have differed as regards holding the Friday prayer in two mosques in the same town. The more correct opinion of Abo Hanifah and Mohammad Bin Al-Hasan (May Allah have mercy on them both) is that it is lawful. However, there are two narrations after Abo Yousef: one says it is lawful and the other says it is not." {Al-Mabsoot, vol.2/pp.121}.

Ibn Abdeen stated: "It is lawful to hold the Friday prayer in many mosques according to the Hanafi school of thought, and its approved opinion…so as to ward off harm (sedition, the mosque is far or small) because obligating people to pray the Friday prayer in one mosque means forcing most of them to come from far places, and there is no Sharia-approved evidence that holding Friday prayer in more than one mosque is unlawful." {Ad-Dur al-Mokhtar ala Radd al-Mohtar}.

In conclusion, if it is possible for all the people of the same town to pray in one mosque safely, then this is more prudent because it goes in line with the spirit and the purposes of Sharia as far as uniting Muslims is concerned.

However, if that isn`t possible because the mosque is small or far or the town is too expanded or it was hard for people to come to that mosque, then praying Jumu`ah or Friday prayer in more than one mosque is lawful so long as it is done according to the actual need.

All in all, praying Jumu`ah in different mosques is valid and avails the praying person. And Allah Knows Best.

 

Chairman of Ifta` Board, Sheikh Abdulkareem Al-Khasawneh

Vice Chairman of Ifta` Board, Prof. Ahmad Hilayel

Dr. Wa`el Arabiat, Member

Dr. Yahia Botoosh/ Member

Sheikh Sa`eed Hijjawi/ Member

Prof. Abdulnaser AbulBasal/ Member

Pro. Abdullah Fawaz/ Member

Judge Khaled Al-Woraikat/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Khai Al-Esa/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Youis Al-Zou`bi

Dr. Mohammad Khai Al-Esa/ Member

 

 

Decision Number [ Previous | Next ]


Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling of Islamic Law regarding one who purchases a sacrificial animal (uḍḥiyah) and it then develops a defect before slaughter?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
If a defect that invalidates the sacrifice (uḍḥiyah) arises after its purchase — for example, if one purchased a sound, defect-free animal, and it then developed a limp, blindness in one eye, or a similar defect before slaughter — it does not fulfill the requirement of a valid uḍḥiyah, according to the Shāfi'ī school.
It is stated in Asnā al-Maṭālib fī Sharḥ Rawḍ al-Ṭālib (Vol.1/P.535): "Even if the limp develops [in the animal] while the knife is upon it, it still does not fulfill the requirement, because it is lame at the moment of slaughter — this is analogous to a case where a sheep's leg breaks and one hastens to slaughter it [in that condition]."
The Ḥanbalī school, however, held that if the one offering the sacrifice purchased the animal while it was sound and defect-free, and a defect then befell it afterward, the sacrifice remains valid and there is no obligation to replace it.
It is stated in Masā'il al-Imām Aḥmad, one of the Ḥanbalī reference works (Vol.8/P.4021): "I said: If a person purchases the sacrificial animal while it is sound, and it is then afflicted with illness, blindness in one eye, or a broken limb [before slaughter]? He [Imam Aḥmad] said: It is said that it still fulfills the requirement. Isḥāq said likewise, because he purchased it while sound, and the defect befell it only afterward, so it remains sufficient on his behalf." [End of quote]
Accordingly, a sheep afflicted with a defect that invalidates the sacrifice does not fulfill the requirement of a valid uḍḥiyah — whether the defect arose after purchase or during the slaughter itself — according to the Shāfi'ī school. However, there is no objection to following the Ḥanbalī position on this matter [as a valid alternative]. And Allah, the Most High, knows best.

Is it permissible to offer an absentee funeral prayer?

Yes, it is permissible to offer an absentee funeral prayer.

What is the ruling on attending relatives` parties held in public halls, or hotels since if we don`t, we will be subjected to their admonition?

If such parties involve mixing between men and women, or forbidden acts such as listening to songs with sinful lyrics, then attending them is forbidden from the view point of Sharia since people`s admonition is nothing compared to Allah`s, The Almighty`s, wrath.

What is the ruling on storing the meat of sacrificial animals and distributing it throughout the year?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
It is disliked (makruh) to store or preserve the meat of sacrificial animals (udhiyah), whether for a short or long period, provided that the sacrifice is slaughtered within its prescribed lawful time, while also taking care to prevent the meat from spoiling. And Allah Almighty knows best.

See More