Multiple Friday Prayers in One City
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Fatwa No. ( 2212 )
Q: There has been a disagreement among the scholars regarding the issue of multiple Friday congregations in Bahrain .
There are four mosques in the city of Manama where the prayer is performed, but some of these mosques are too narrow to accommodate their congregations, so many people pray in the scorching sun, on the roads, and on the rooftops. What is your esteemed ruling on the permissibility and prohibition of multiple congregations, and are there any authentic texts prohibiting multiple congregations? Knowing that in many Islamic countries, multiple congregations have been permitted without severe necessity and are practiced, and since your fatwa is the accepted reference in Islamic legal rulings, we submit this question, hoping that you will clarify the ruling you adopt.
A: It is established that during the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), there was no mosque in Madinah where the Friday prayer was performed except for one, which was al-Masjid al-Nabawi . The Muslims would come to it for the Friday prayer from the outskirts and suburbs of Madinah , such as al-'Ulaya. This situation continued during the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them). This is practical evidence from him (peace and blessings be upon him) of the intention to gather the Muslims for the Friday prayer in one city under one imam, indicating the unity of leadership, gathering of hearts, reconciliation of souls, increase in mutual acquaintance, and affirmation of the meanings of brotherhood. If multiple congregations in one city without a valid Islamic justification had been permissible, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would have ordered his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to each pray Friday in their own mosque in the outskirts of Madinah; for he (peace and blessings be upon him) never had a choice between two matters except that he chose the easier one, as long as it was not
a sin. If it was a sin, he was the farthest person from it. In this, there is facilitation for his Ummah and relief for them, and acting in accordance with the generality of the saying of Allah the Exalted:[Al-Baqarah 2:185] and the generality of His saying: [An-Nisa 4:28] Since He did not order them to have multiple congregations, nor did He permit it to them, that indicates his (peace and blessings be upon him) intention to unify the Friday prayer in one city and gather them under one imam therein, for the wisdom in that has been mentioned above. However, if the mosques where the Friday prayer is performed in the city of Manama become too narrow for those who pray Friday there, to the extent that many of them pray in the intense heat of the sun, on the roads, and on the rooftops, then there is no harm in performing the Friday prayer in other mosques in addition to the four mosques where it is currently performed, according to what is required by necessity, to facilitate for the people, remove hardship from them, and act in accordance with the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Hajj 22:78] and His saying: [Al-Baqarah 2:185] and the generality of the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): Sunan an-Nasa'i 5034Sahih (Darussalam)
and his saying: For this reason, when the Muslims increased after the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs and the mosques became crowded with those who prayed Friday in them, they prayed Friday in more than one mosque in the same city, acting in accordance with the evidence of facilitation and the removal of hardship, and we have in them a good example. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his Companions.
Q: There has been a disagreement among the scholars regarding the issue of multiple Friday congregations in Bahrain .
There are four mosques in the city of Manama where the prayer is performed, but some of these mosques are too narrow to accommodate their congregations, so many people pray in the scorching sun, on the roads, and on the rooftops. What is your esteemed ruling on the permissibility and prohibition of multiple congregations, and are there any authentic texts prohibiting multiple congregations? Knowing that in many Islamic countries, multiple congregations have been permitted without severe necessity and are practiced, and since your fatwa is the accepted reference in Islamic legal rulings, we submit this question, hoping that you will clarify the ruling you adopt.
A: It is established that during the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), there was no mosque in Madinah where the Friday prayer was performed except for one, which was al-Masjid al-Nabawi . The Muslims would come to it for the Friday prayer from the outskirts and suburbs of Madinah , such as al-'Ulaya. This situation continued during the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs (may Allah be pleased with them). This is practical evidence from him (peace and blessings be upon him) of the intention to gather the Muslims for the Friday prayer in one city under one imam, indicating the unity of leadership, gathering of hearts, reconciliation of souls, increase in mutual acquaintance, and affirmation of the meanings of brotherhood. If multiple congregations in one city without a valid Islamic justification had been permissible, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would have ordered his Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) to each pray Friday in their own mosque in the outskirts of Madinah; for he (peace and blessings be upon him) never had a choice between two matters except that he chose the easier one, as long as it was not
a sin. If it was a sin, he was the farthest person from it. In this, there is facilitation for his Ummah and relief for them, and acting in accordance with the generality of the saying of Allah the Exalted:
Allah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship
يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلاَ يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَAnd Allah wants to lighten for you [your difficulties]; and mankind was created weak.
يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ أَنْ يُخَفِّفَ عَنْكُمْ وَخُلِقَ الْإِنْسَانُ ضَعِيفًاand has not placed upon you in the religion any difficulty
وَمَا جَعَلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ مِنْ حَرَجٍAllah intends for you ease and does not intend for you hardship
يُرِيدُ اللَّهُ بِكُمُ الْيُسْرَ وَلاَ يُرِيدُ بِكُمُ الْعُسْرَIndeed, this religion is easy, and no one will ever overburden himself in religion, except that it will overcome him.
إن هذا الدين يسر، ولن يشاد الدين أحد إلا غلبهand his saying:
Make things easy and do not make them difficult.
يسروا ولا تعسروا
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.