A man married to two women who have borne him children, but neither of whom prays, and he has advised them; what is obligatory for him regarding them?
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The questioner : He says: I am married to two women, and each of them has given me sons and daughters, but neither of them prays. As for fasting, they do fast, but they refuse to perform the prayer, even after I taught them and made it clear to them that it is obligatory and not permissible to leave it except for legitimate religious excuses in the case of women. But to no avail. So what is obligatory for me regarding them?
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for you to separate from them, because their leaving of the prayer is a cause of disbelief that expels one from the religion. Thus, they become disbelievers by leaving the prayer, and a disbelieving woman is not lawful for a believer. Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Mumtahanah 60:10] And He said: [Al-Baqarah 2:221] And He said: [Al-Mumtahanah 60:10] They have no right to the custody of their children. So you should take them out of your house, and their children should remain with you. They have no right to their custody, because a disbeliever has no authority over a Muslim. And I say to them, perhaps they will hear: your fasting in Ramadan is not accepted, and you have nothing from it but fatigue and hardship. That is because no good deed is accepted from a disbeliever. Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Furqan 25:23] And He said: [Al-An'am 6:88] And He, Glorified and Exalted is He, said: [At-Tawbah 9:54] If their expenditures, which benefit others, are not accepted, how much less are the private acts of worship that do not extend beyond the one who performs them.
The conclusion is that the marriage of these two women to you has been annulled, unless they repent to Allah and return to Islam and pray. If they return and pray, they are your wives; otherwise, take them out of your house and keep your children with you. We ask Allah for guidance and success for us and for them to what He loves and is pleased with.
The questioner : The question, or this is a letter from Sister A.M.Q. from Sudan, which contains two questions. She says in her first question:
The Shaykh : It is obligatory for you to separate from them, because their leaving of the prayer is a cause of disbelief that expels one from the religion. Thus, they become disbelievers by leaving the prayer, and a disbelieving woman is not lawful for a believer. Allah the Exalted said:
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
فإن علمتموهن مؤمنات فلا ترجعوهن إلى الكفار لا هن حل لهم ولا هم يحلون لهنAnd do not marry polytheistic women until they believe. And a believing slave woman is better than a polytheist, even though she might please you.
ولا تنكحوا المشركات حتى يؤمن ولأمة مؤمنة خير من مشركة ولو أعجبتكمAnd hold not to marriage bonds with disbelieving women
ولا تُمسكوا بعصم الكوافرAnd We will regard what they have done of deeds and make them as dust dispersed.
وقدمنا إلى ما عملوا من عمل فجعلناه هباءً منثوراًBut if they had associated others with Allah, then worthless for them would be whatever they were doing.
ولو أشركوا لحبط عنهم ما كانوا يعملونAnd what prevents their expenditures from being accepted from them but that they have disbelieved in Allah and in His Messenger
وما منعهم أن تقبل منهم نفقاتهم إلا أنهم كفروا بالله وبرسولهThe conclusion is that the marriage of these two women to you has been annulled, unless they repent to Allah and return to Islam and pray. If they return and pray, they are your wives; otherwise, take them out of your house and keep your children with you. We ask Allah for guidance and success for us and for them to what He loves and is pleased with.
The questioner : The question, or this is a letter from Sister A.M.Q. from Sudan, which contains two questions. She says in her first question: