Is it permissible to take a wage for teaching the Qur'an?

The questioner : Taking a wage for teaching children the Qur'an and its sciences and memorizing it. You mentioned evidence for this matter; if you could complete it, may Allah reward you with good. The evidence, and in addition to the question, there is the Society for the Revival of Heritage. We intend to invite benefactors to support the salaries of Qur'an memorizers outside Kuwait. We appoint and say, for example, "Sponsor a memorizer or teacher of the Qur'an for twenty dinars monthly." Then we invite or contact Islamic associations abroad, and we specify this matter to them, and they in turn contract with the memorizers or teachers. Is there any disagreement regarding this matter?

The Shaykh : I do not think there is any problem with this matter from the Sharia'ah perspective, even though this obligation is among the duties of the state. But unfortunately, Islamic states today, or to be more precise, most Islamic states, do not give this aspect the attention it deserves. If some individuals among the Muslims undertake this, it is a collective obligation (fard kifayah) that they discharge from the necks of the Ummah. They are to be thanked for it, and they will have the best reward from Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He). So I say that if some individuals among the Muslims undertake this work, it is a noble deed by which they discharge an obligation from the state. And collecting donations in this regard falls under the category of the saying of Allah the Exalted: . But the truth that should be discussed and to which the attention of Muslim individuals should be drawn, especially those who will be assigned these salaries, is that they should make their work sincere for Allah, so that we may be free from the problem of taking a wage. Because of the frequent repetition of such questions—whether it is permissible to take a wage for teaching the Qur'an, leading people in prayer, calling to prayer, and the like—