Translating the sermon from Arabic into the language understood by some of the attendees for the sake of benefit
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Fatwa number ( 20575 )
Q: We are in an Islamic center in a European country where we hold the Friday prayer and congregational prayer in our mosque. About 100 Muslim brothers who do not understand Arabic attend, and they make up approximately one-fifth of the worshippers, while the rest are Arabs. Since our preachers do not master the foreign language of the country and pronounce it awkwardly, we have decided to appoint a person for the benefit of who provides simultaneous translation during the sermon. This translation is transmitted to the non-Arab worshippers via a device that the person places on his ear, through which he receives the meaning of the sermon in his own language. Do you consider this action permissible, and does it realize a legitimate religious benefit without being considered a form of religious innovation? Also, is such an action considered, in the Shari'ah, to be the idle talk that is prohibited for the translator, who is one of the attending worshippers, or not? And is it the same for the listener using the device, especially since he may move it occasionally? And is there any blame on us if we see that the disturbance caused to the other Arab worshippers by some sounds leaking from the device is eliminated?
by designating a place in the back of the mosque for the non-Arabs who use these devices (which are wireless), which may result in their being deprived of the front rows? We request your information at the earliest time you can, as this matter recurs every Friday.
A: There is nothing wrong with translating the sermon from Arabic into the language understood by some of the attendees for the sake of benefit, provided that it is done in a way that does not disturb the attendees. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q: We are in an Islamic center in a European country where we hold the Friday prayer and congregational prayer in our mosque. About 100 Muslim brothers who do not understand Arabic attend, and they make up approximately one-fifth of the worshippers, while the rest are Arabs. Since our preachers do not master the foreign language of the country and pronounce it awkwardly, we have decided to appoint a person for the benefit of who provides simultaneous translation during the sermon. This translation is transmitted to the non-Arab worshippers via a device that the person places on his ear, through which he receives the meaning of the sermon in his own language. Do you consider this action permissible, and does it realize a legitimate religious benefit without being considered a form of religious innovation? Also, is such an action considered, in the Shari'ah, to be the idle talk that is prohibited for the translator, who is one of the attending worshippers, or not? And is it the same for the listener using the device, especially since he may move it occasionally? And is there any blame on us if we see that the disturbance caused to the other Arab worshippers by some sounds leaking from the device is eliminated?
by designating a place in the back of the mosque for the non-Arabs who use these devices (which are wireless), which may result in their being deprived of the front rows? We request your information at the earliest time you can, as this matter recurs every Friday.
A: There is nothing wrong with translating the sermon from Arabic into the language understood by some of the attendees for the sake of benefit, provided that it is done in a way that does not disturb the attendees. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.