The Ruling on Congregational Prayer in the Mosque
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
We ask Your Eminence the Shaykh for permission to return to the brothers participating with us, the brothers at the Banu Sa'idan Mosque, and after that, the brothers in Britain. Please, Shaykh 'Abdullah. This questioner asks, saying: Is congregational prayer in the mosque obligatory, or is it a recommended practice (sunnah) and a recommended act (mustahabb)? If one prays in congregation at his home, does he incur sin?
Answer:
Congregational prayer in the mosque is an obligatory duty (fard). The one who neglects it without a valid excuse is described as a hypocrite, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described him. He said:Sunan Ibn Majah 797Sahih (Darussalam), said 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him).
And I have seen us, and none would neglect it except a known hypocrite whose hypocrisy is well-known. Is the one who leaves a recommended practice (sunnah) or a recommended act (mustahabb) described as a hypocrite? No. Only the one who leaves an obligatory duty is described as a hypocrite. This indicates that congregational prayer in the mosque is obligatory. It is not permissible for people to isolate themselves and pray in congregation in their homes, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) intended to burn down the homes of those who neglect congregational prayer with fire. He did not ask whether they were praying in congregation in their homes or not; he intended to burn their homes with fire, even though many of them could pray in congregation in their homes. But it is not permissible for them to leave the mosque, leave the Muslims, and isolate themselves in their homes. This is a well-known matter. Yes.
We ask Your Eminence the Shaykh for permission to return to the brothers participating with us, the brothers at the Banu Sa'idan Mosque, and after that, the brothers in Britain. Please, Shaykh 'Abdullah. This questioner asks, saying: Is congregational prayer in the mosque obligatory, or is it a recommended practice (sunnah) and a recommended act (mustahabb)? If one prays in congregation at his home, does he incur sin?
Answer:
Congregational prayer in the mosque is an obligatory duty (fard). The one who neglects it without a valid excuse is described as a hypocrite, as the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) described him. He said:
The most burdensome prayers for the hypocrites are the 'Isha' prayer and the Fajr prayer
أَثْقَلَ الصَّلاَةِ عَلَى الْمُنَافِقِينَ صَلاَةُ الْعِشَاءِ وَصَلاَةُ الْفَجْرِAnd I have seen us, and none would neglect it except a known hypocrite whose hypocrisy is well-known. Is the one who leaves a recommended practice (sunnah) or a recommended act (mustahabb) described as a hypocrite? No. Only the one who leaves an obligatory duty is described as a hypocrite. This indicates that congregational prayer in the mosque is obligatory. It is not permissible for people to isolate themselves and pray in congregation in their homes, because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) intended to burn down the homes of those who neglect congregational prayer with fire. He did not ask whether they were praying in congregation in their homes or not; he intended to burn their homes with fire, even though many of them could pray in congregation in their homes. But it is not permissible for them to leave the mosque, leave the Muslims, and isolate themselves in their homes. This is a well-known matter. Yes.
Source
وجوب صلاة الجماعة — alfawzan.live
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.