Is congregational prayer obligatory or a recommended practice?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
The second question asks: Is maintaining prayer in congregation obligatory, a recommended practice, a collective obligation, or an individual obligation?
Answer:
Prayer in congregation is an individual obligation for men, according to the correct view, just like the Friday prayer. Some people said it is a collective obligation, and some said it is a recommended practice, but these are two weak positions. The correct view is that it is obligatory for individuals, for accountable men; they must pray in congregation in the mosques, in the houses of Allah the Exalted, based on many pieces of evidence. Among them is the saying of the Exalted:[Al-Baqarah 2:43] He repeated the command "bow down," which indicates that the intended meaning is to pray with the people, Mighty and Majestic. [An-Nisa 4:102] Thus, congregation is obligatory in times of fear, so it is even more obligatory in times of safety. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said:
And since it is established in Muslim that Abu Hurayrah narrated that a blind man said: "O Messenger of Allah, I have no guide to lead me to the mosque. Is there a dispensation for me to pray in my house?" He said: "Do you hear the call to prayer?" He said: "Yes." He said: "Then answer it." If a blind man who lives far away and has no guide to lead him is required to answer, then a healthy person is even more so. And if he intended to burn the houses of those who lag behind, this indicates that their lagging behind is invalid and wrong, and they deserve punishment for it. It is reported from him (peace be upon him) that he said: "If not for the fact that my community is weak, I would have burned their houses." This is the correct view. Yes, we ask Allah to guide the Muslims. In reality, lagging behind in congregation is a calamity that has befallen a large number of people, and it may happen to those who are attributed to knowledge. And these calamities must be guarded against, for the scholars and students of knowledge are role models. It is obligatory for them to fear Allah and to hasten to what Allah has made obligatory, so that their students, neighbors, and others follow their example.
The second question asks: Is maintaining prayer in congregation obligatory, a recommended practice, a collective obligation, or an individual obligation?
Answer:
Prayer in congregation is an individual obligation for men, according to the correct view, just like the Friday prayer. Some people said it is a collective obligation, and some said it is a recommended practice, but these are two weak positions. The correct view is that it is obligatory for individuals, for accountable men; they must pray in congregation in the mosques, in the houses of Allah the Exalted, based on many pieces of evidence. Among them is the saying of the Exalted:
And establish prayer and give zakah and bow with those who bow [in worship and obedience].
وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَارْكَعُوا مَعَ الرَّاكِعِينَAnd when you are among them and lead them in prayer, let a group of them stand [in prayer] with you and let them carry their arms. And when
وَإِذَا كُنتَ فِيهِمْ فَأَقَمْتَ لَهُمُ الصَّلَاةَ فَلْتَقُمْ طَائِفَةٌ مِّنْهُم مَّعَكَ وَلْيَأْخُذُوا أَسْلِحَتَهُمْ فَإِذَا(peace and blessings be upon him) said: "Whoever hears the call to prayer and does not come, there is no prayer for him except
صلى الله عليه وسلم من سمع النداء ولم يأت فلا صلاة إلاAnd since it is established in Muslim that Abu Hurayrah narrated that a blind man said: "O Messenger of Allah, I have no guide to lead me to the mosque. Is there a dispensation for me to pray in my house?" He said: "Do you hear the call to prayer?" He said: "Yes." He said: "Then answer it." If a blind man who lives far away and has no guide to lead him is required to answer, then a healthy person is even more so. And if he intended to burn the houses of those who lag behind, this indicates that their lagging behind is invalid and wrong, and they deserve punishment for it. It is reported from him (peace be upon him) that he said: "If not for the fact that my community is weak, I would have burned their houses." This is the correct view. Yes, we ask Allah to guide the Muslims. In reality, lagging behind in congregation is a calamity that has befallen a large number of people, and it may happen to those who are attributed to knowledge. And these calamities must be guarded against, for the scholars and students of knowledge are role models. It is obligatory for them to fear Allah and to hasten to what Allah has made obligatory, so that their students, neighbors, and others follow their example.
Source
قناة «فضيلة الشيخ ابن باز Alsheikh Binbaz»، حكم صلاة الجماعة واجبة أم سنة؟ الشيخ ابن باز — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.