The Ruling on Obeying One’s Parents in Divorcing One’s Wife

Question:
May Allah reward you with good. A man is angry with his son and his two daughters, and they said, “We will not be pleased with you until you divorce your first wife.” Is it permissible for another Muslim, who is far away, to lie to the parents, either in writing or verbally, that he has divorced her to please them?

Answer:
That is not permissible. If she deserves to be divorced, he divorces her. If she is good and upright, he is not required to do so. Obedience is only in what is right, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said. If she is harming them and making things difficult for them by doing evil or the like, he should obey his parents in this. But if she is a righteous woman and they are hostile toward her because they themselves are not righteous, he does not obey them. Obedience is only in what is right, even if it is the father or the mother, or even the ruler, up to the ruler. Obedience is only in what is right.