When a person arrives at the mosque and the imam has already said the takbir for the prayer, and he catches up with him for the last rak'ah, does he count as having caught up with the congregation with that rak'ah or not?

The questioner : When a person arrives at the mosque and the imam has already said the takbir for the prayer, and he catches up with him for the last rak'ah, does he count as having caught up with the congregation with that rak'ah or not? Because I have heard that there is no prayer for one who does not recite the opening chapter of the Qur'an, so does he have to repeat that rak'ah along with the previous ones? I ask for your guidance.

The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. The answer to this question is that the one who catches up with the bowing in the last rak'ah of the prayer is considered to have caught up with the prayer, based on the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): But the virtue of the congregation, which is twenty-seven degrees, is attained by the one who catches up with the last rak'ah with the imam. Catching up with the bowing results in catching up with the rak'ah. The evidence for this is what is established in "Sahih al-Bukhari" that Abu Bakrah (may Allah be pleased with him) entered the mosque while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was bowing, so he hurried and bowed before entering the row, fearing that the rak'ah would be missed. When the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) finished his prayer, he asked who had done that, and Abu Bakrah said: "I did". He said to him: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did not order him to make up this rak'ah. If making it up had been obligatory, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) would have ordered him to do so. And if he had ordered him to do so, it would have been transmitted to us. Since it was not transmitted to us, we know that he did not order him to make it up. And since he did not order him to make it up, we know that making it up is not obligatory. And since making it up is not obligatory, we know that he caught up with it. This is also what reason dictates, for the recitation of the opening chapter is only obligatory while standing. This person who caught up with the imam while he was bowing is exempt from standing because following the imam is obligatory. So when standing is exempted, what is obligatory in it is also exempted, which is the opening chapter. This does not contradict the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): because this second one is general and this one is specific. And on this basis, the generality of his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): is restricted by such a situation, meaning it is restricted to the case of the one who joins late if he catches up with the imam while he is bowing, or if he catches up with him while he is standing but is unable to recite the opening chapter and fears that the rak'ah will be missed.
And on this basis, we say to the one who catches up with the imam while he is bowing in the last rak'ah: You have caught up with the prayer of the congregation, and you have caught up with the rak'ah whose bowing you caught up with the imam in. But here is an issue that requires detail, which is that when a person catches up with the imam while he is bowing, he must say the takbir of intention while standing, then bow. And when he bows, he is not free from certain situations. The first situation: He knows that he caught up with the imam in the bowing before the imam raised his head from the bowing, and in this case, he has caught up with the rak'ah. The second situation: He knows that the imam rose from the bowing before he reached the bowing, and in this case, he has missed the rak'ah.
The third situation: He is convinced that he caught up with the imam in the bowing. In this case, he acts according to his conviction and is considered to have caught up with the rak'ah, but he performs the prostration for forgetfulness if he missed anything of the prayer, and his prostration is after the salam, as indicated by the hadith of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him).
The fourth situation: He is convinced that he did not catch up with the imam while he was bowing. In this case, he acts according to his conviction and does not count this rak'ah, and he must perform the prostration for forgetfulness after the salam.
The fifth situation: He is doubtful and hesitant, not convinced that he caught up with the imam in the bowing, nor that the imam raised his head before he caught up with him in the bowing. He is doubtful and hesitant, not preferring one over the other. In this case, he disregards the rak'ah, because the one who is doubtful acts according to certainty. He disregards the rak'ah and performs the prostration for forgetfulness when he completes what is required of him before the salam.
These are the five situations for the one who catches up with the imam while he is bowing. We summarize them as follows: If he knows that he did not catch up with the imam in the bowing, then the rak'ah has been missed.
If he knows that he caught up with him in the bowing, then he has caught up with the rak'ah.
If he is convinced that he did not catch up with the imam, he disregards this rak'ah, but he performs the prostration after the salam if...
The fourth: If he is convinced that he caught up with the imam, he acts according to his conviction. But if he missed anything of the prayer, he performs the prostration for forgetfulness after completing it. And if he did not miss anything, the imam bears it for him.
The fifth situation: If he is doubtful. In this situation, he disregards the rak'ah and performs the prostration before the salam if...

The questioner : May Allah bless you.