The husband of her sister who abandons prayer, and whenever she advises him he mocks her, so what is obligatory for her sister to do, and what should she do with him to reform him?
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Question:
My sister’s husband abandons prayer. He is educated and knows the difference between right and wrong, but whenever I advise him, he mocks my words and argues with falsehood. So I started giving him tapes and religious lectures on encouragement and warning, and I gave him the book *Riyad al-Salihin* for him to read from, and I also support him. Every time I visited, and every time I visited him, I found a lot of dust on the book, and it is here. His wife came, and he and my sister visited him here in the Kingdom. She is, praise be to Allah, observant of the five daily prayers, and she also wakes him up for the Fajr prayer and prays, but he curses her and swears at her when she wakes him. When I learned of this situation, I started asking about this issue. I turned to you; guide us on how I should act and how my sister should act. May Allah reward you with good. And how should I act so that I may be a cause of his reform? May Allah grant you success.
Answer:
May Allah reward you with good for this concern for religious matters and the affairs of your sister. If the intention is that this man does not pray with the congregation, but rather prays at home, then this has become obligatory for him, but it does not affect the permissibility of your sister remaining with him; because he is considered a sinner, but as long as he prays, even if at home, he is a Muslim, and there is nothing wrong with her remaining with him.
As for the case where the intention is that he will never pray, neither in the mosque nor in the house, and he abandons the prayer deliberately, then he is a disbeliever if, along with abandoning the prayer, he does not believe in its obligation and considers it a matter that is not obligatory, but rather a custom and tradition. In this case, he is a disbeliever by the consensus of the Muslims, and it is not permissible for a Muslim woman to remain with him, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted: "So do not return them to the disbelievers"[Al-Mumtahanah 60:10], and due to the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Baqarah 2:221] "Have you been pleased with this?" If he denies the obligation of the prayer and does not consider it a matter, then his marriage is invalid, and a Muslim woman should not be left with him; rather, they must be separated. As for the case where he believes in the obligation of the prayer and acknowledges it as a pillar of Islam, but he abandons it out of laziness and negligence, then there is a difference of opinion among the scholars, and the correct view is that he is also a disbeliever, the kind of disbelief that expels one from the religion, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted regarding [At-Tawbah 9:5]. And due to His saying about the people of the Fire: [Al-Muddaththir 74:42-46] "On the Day of Judgment." And due to the saying of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): "Between the servant and disbelief and becoming a disbeliever is the abandonment of the prayer." He (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Sunan Ibn Majah 1079Sahih (Darussalam) and other evidence.
It is correct that, even if his presence causes harm, and based on this, it is not permissible for the poor woman to remain in the protection of a disbeliever. But you must refer to the Shari'ah court to look into this issue. If he accepts, if he accepts that she follows him and divorces him, or even if she does not go to the court, this is something that must be done. Offer him to divorce her, even for compensation, to free her from him, i.e., from this nonsense. She should refuse to submit herself to him, she should refuse to submit herself to him until he turns to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).
My sister’s husband abandons prayer. He is educated and knows the difference between right and wrong, but whenever I advise him, he mocks my words and argues with falsehood. So I started giving him tapes and religious lectures on encouragement and warning, and I gave him the book *Riyad al-Salihin* for him to read from, and I also support him. Every time I visited, and every time I visited him, I found a lot of dust on the book, and it is here. His wife came, and he and my sister visited him here in the Kingdom. She is, praise be to Allah, observant of the five daily prayers, and she also wakes him up for the Fajr prayer and prays, but he curses her and swears at her when she wakes him. When I learned of this situation, I started asking about this issue. I turned to you; guide us on how I should act and how my sister should act. May Allah reward you with good. And how should I act so that I may be a cause of his reform? May Allah grant you success.
Answer:
May Allah reward you with good for this concern for religious matters and the affairs of your sister. If the intention is that this man does not pray with the congregation, but rather prays at home, then this has become obligatory for him, but it does not affect the permissibility of your sister remaining with him; because he is considered a sinner, but as long as he prays, even if at home, he is a Muslim, and there is nothing wrong with her remaining with him.
As for the case where the intention is that he will never pray, neither in the mosque nor in the house, and he abandons the prayer deliberately, then he is a disbeliever if, along with abandoning the prayer, he does not believe in its obligation and considers it a matter that is not obligatory, but rather a custom and tradition. In this case, he is a disbeliever by the consensus of the Muslims, and it is not permissible for a Muslim woman to remain with him, due to the saying of Allah the Exalted: "So do not return them to the disbelievers"
And if you know them to be believers, then do not return them to the disbelievers; they are not lawful [wives] for them, nor are they lawful [husbands] for them
فَإِنْ عَلِمْتُمُوهُنَّ مُؤْمِنَاتٍ فَلَا تَرْجِعُوهُنَّ إِلَى الْكُفَّارِ لَا هُنَّ حِلٌّ لَّهُمْ وَلَا هُمْ يَحِلُّونَ لَهُنَّAnd do not marry polytheistic men [to your women] until they believe. And a believing slave is better than a polytheist, even
وَلَا تُنكِحُوا الْمُشْرِكِينَ حَتَّىٰ يُؤْمِنُوا وَلَعَبْدٌ مُّؤْمِنٌ خَيْرٌ مِّن مُّشْرِكٍ وَلَوْBut if they should repent, establish prayer, and give zakah, let them [go] on their way
فَإِن تَابُوا وَأَقَامُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَوُا الزَّكَاةَ فَخَلُّوا سَبِيلَهُمْ(42) [And asking them], "What put you into Saqar?" (43) They will say, "We were not of those who prayed, (44) Nor did we used to feed the poor. (45) And we used to enter into vain discourse with those who engaged [in it], (46) And we used to deny
مَا سَلَكَكُمْ فِي سَقَرَ قَالُوا لَمْ نَكُ مِنَ الْمُصَلِّينَ وَلَمْ نَكُ نُطْعِمُ الْمِسْكِينَ وَكُنَّا نَخُوضُ مَعَ الْخَائِضِينَ وَكُنَّا نُكَذِّبُThe covenant that distinguishes between us and them is prayer
العهد الذي بيننا وبينهم الصلاة.It is correct that, even if his presence causes harm, and based on this, it is not permissible for the poor woman to remain in the protection of a disbeliever. But you must refer to the Shari'ah court to look into this issue. If he accepts, if he accepts that she follows him and divorces him, or even if she does not go to the court, this is something that must be done. Offer him to divorce her, even for compensation, to free her from him, i.e., from this nonsense. She should refuse to submit herself to him, she should refuse to submit herself to him until he turns to Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He).
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، زوج أخته تارك للصلاة وكلما نصحه يستهزئ فماذا يجب على أخته وماذا يفعل معه لكي يصلحه؟ الشيخ الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.