Advice for the imams of mosques who are negligent in leading the prayer and praying with the people
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Question:
We have a call from 'Arar, from the brother Hamud. Yes. Peace be upon you. And upon you be peace. May Allah keep you safe, O Shaykh. May Allah keep you safe. First, we praise Allah for the safety of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and we hope that Allah will prolong for him the blessing of health and well-being. We praise Allah for that, and we ask Him to increase him in health, well-being, and a long life in goodness. O Lord, please go ahead, Hamud. Your question, Honorable Shaykh: I would like to offer advice to some of the imams of the mosques, may Allah guide them. There are many, or at least some, of the imams of the mosques who are not careful to maintain the prayers. There is a great shortcoming in maintaining the prayer, and they are considered a role model for the congregation of the mosque. Thank you, Hamud.
Answer:
My brother, this is a trust that Allah has placed upon them. Either they fulfill it as required, leading the worshippers, being gentle with them, and not being late for them, or they leave the imamate to someone else. It is not permissible for him to exploit the mosque, take his salary, and stay in his home without fulfilling the obligation. This is forbidden for them. So they should fear Allah the Mighty and Majestic, and fulfill the trust they have taken on.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he was afflicted with an illness or an excuse that required him to be absent from leading the people in prayer, would order someone to pray with the people. He would say, "Order Abu Bakr to lead the people in prayer." He did not leave the people. So if an imam is afflicted with an excuse, he appoints someone to lead the prayer in his place from among those who are trustworthy and in a position of trust. He does not leave the people like this, taking the mosque's salary, staying in his home, and leaving the obligation upon him. This is forbidden for him. It is not permissible for the congregation of the mosque to remain silent about it. Rather, they must advise him. If he corrects himself, well and good; otherwise, they report him to the authority responsible for the mosques so that he may be replaced by someone else. Yes.
We have a call from 'Arar, from the brother Hamud. Yes. Peace be upon you. And upon you be peace. May Allah keep you safe, O Shaykh. May Allah keep you safe. First, we praise Allah for the safety of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, and we hope that Allah will prolong for him the blessing of health and well-being. We praise Allah for that, and we ask Him to increase him in health, well-being, and a long life in goodness. O Lord, please go ahead, Hamud. Your question, Honorable Shaykh: I would like to offer advice to some of the imams of the mosques, may Allah guide them. There are many, or at least some, of the imams of the mosques who are not careful to maintain the prayers. There is a great shortcoming in maintaining the prayer, and they are considered a role model for the congregation of the mosque. Thank you, Hamud.
Answer:
My brother, this is a trust that Allah has placed upon them. Either they fulfill it as required, leading the worshippers, being gentle with them, and not being late for them, or they leave the imamate to someone else. It is not permissible for him to exploit the mosque, take his salary, and stay in his home without fulfilling the obligation. This is forbidden for them. So they should fear Allah the Mighty and Majestic, and fulfill the trust they have taken on.
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he was afflicted with an illness or an excuse that required him to be absent from leading the people in prayer, would order someone to pray with the people. He would say, "Order Abu Bakr to lead the people in prayer." He did not leave the people. So if an imam is afflicted with an excuse, he appoints someone to lead the prayer in his place from among those who are trustworthy and in a position of trust. He does not leave the people like this, taking the mosque's salary, staying in his home, and leaving the obligation upon him. This is forbidden for him. It is not permissible for the congregation of the mosque to remain silent about it. Rather, they must advise him. If he corrects himself, well and good; otherwise, they report him to the authority responsible for the mosques so that he may be replaced by someone else. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، نصيحة لأئمة المساجد المتهاونين بالإمامة والصلاة بالناس - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.