The ruling on a boy leading the prayer

The questioner : A wife of my son’s wife once asked me about this over the phone. She said her son wants to lead her in prayer, and he is seven years old. He is a son of my son, and he is seven and a half years old, or one of my son’s sons.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : I told her, “Let him lead.” They said, “We are behind him.” I said to him, “What is the problem with him being behind? Did I not tell you he has not reached seven years of age?” She said to him, “He is seven years and eight months old.” And so, her son, listen, he said to me, “How can you tell me to pray?” I said to him, “Do you not hear the prayer? When he prayed, the men were tall and broad-shouldered, because he was the most memorized. He said to me, ‘Is this the most memorized? His mother is the most memorized.’ I said to him, ‘Well, the one who will make the men stand in front of him to pray, and the women behind, so I told her, ‘Pray and rely on Allah.’ So she went. I wanted to ask you…”