Clarification of the Issue of Taking a Wage for Religious Duties

The questioner : You mentioned, our Shaykh, in what you stated, that giving, gifts, and the *ju'alah* (reward) allocated to the mujahid, for example, in the path of Allah, or to the student of knowledge, or to others among those who perform a deed seeking nothing but the face of Allah the Exalted and Mighty, this is permissible. But you know that in this time we are living in, the state of the community has taken the path of organization, regulation, and arrangement, such that it has become difficult for the student of knowledge to work as an imam, or a teacher of the Qur'an, or a preacher, or similar matters, issues, or works for which no wage is taken, or for which originally no wage is taken. These duties have been taken over by what is known as the Endowments Department, the Ministry of Endowments, and the like. Sometimes some individuals take the place of the ministry so that thisThe student : student of knowledge can devote himself to the imamate, preaching, guidance, or delivering sermons. So what is the ruling on this break from such work?

The Shaykh : And the teacher is added to this as well.

The questioner : Yes, that is correct.

The Shaykh : But I answered this matter in the details of my previous speech.

The questioner : But it was not clear.

The Shaykh : And I said that what the mu'adhdhin, or the imam, or the teacher takes, he does not take it with the intention of a wage as is the case in ordinary matters, but rather he takes it as a salary, a job, a *ju'alah*, and so on. To confirm this matter, the greatest imamate, which is the caliphate, the first caliph after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) was, as you know, Abu Bakr al-Siddiq. And Abu Bakr was engaged in trade to provide for his family. So when this greatest imamate was tied to him, he turned away from his work by which he used to earn the sustenance of his family. Therefore, they allocated for him a specific amount every day from the sacrificial animals and something else. So it was not until a few days had passed of his caliphate that it began to seem to Abu Bakr that what was allocated for him was not sufficient for him and his family. Therefore, he requested an increase. But this increase was not requested as a wage for performing the greatest duty, which is the greatest imamate, but rather so that he could be able to support himself and his family. So the previous statement does not contradict the organization that the professor spoke about. The only thing is that the one who took the money, whether he was a teacher or a student, both of them devoted themselves to knowledge. The difference is in the intention, not in the work. The arrangement and organization that was from before is something that exists today. This does not contradict the Muslim making his intention sincere for Allah the Exalted and Mighty, so that the teacher, the imam, and the preacher do not take what they take with the intention of a wage for their worship, otherwise they would invalidate their intention. Rather, they take it as a salary. And I have said in some gatherings when we discussed this specific issue that it was part of the plan of 'Umar ibn al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) to allocate a salary for every Muslim, even the newborn, to allocate for him a salary. This salary was not because he performs a work and carries out a worship, but rather to enrich the Muslims and to free them to attend to the affairs of their religion and the like. This occurred, as history mentions, during the caliphate of 'Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz (may Allah be pleased with him). So this *ju'alah*, even if it is for nothing, is a *ju'alah*. If it is for something, let it be a *ju'alah* and let it be taken in this sense, and not taken in the sense of a wage that a person deserves. If 'Umar allocated, for example, a salary for every newborn, for what? For nothing. So it is possible that an old man, for example, could allocate a *ju'alah* for nothing, taking it for nothing. If he allocated a *ju'alah* for those who used to strive in the path of Allah before, and they are now in their country, safe and secure, then this is also a *ju'alah*. So do not take these salaries and these *ju'alah* under the name of a wage for the man performing one of these acts of worship. So there is no contradiction between organizing these matters, whose origin is worship, and our saying that let these salaries be taken not as a wage by intention, but as a wage of salary, or compensation, or something similar.

The questioner : This reminds me of a very strange matter, which exists in our life today, and especially in the ministries or departments that carry out religious duties. Of course, this concept does not exist in the original system that these departments handle. Rather, the existing system states that the preacher, or the imam, or the khatib takes a compensation for his work. This means this is completely clear. And therefore, this reminds me of a funny story, which is also repeated, that an imam in one of the mosques was given a leave for a week or ten days, and his house was in the mosque precinct. The imamate of this imam was taken over by the mu'adhdhin, or rather another man who was appointed in his place. So the imam did not go out to prayer. So when that man was asked, he said, "I am on leave." So the leave, therefore, covers the leave from the imamate, prayer, and performing this worship and the obligatory duty.

The Shaykh : This means that the imams of the mosques assume themselves to be like other state employees, like the one who repairs state cars, for example. If he repaired a car for a member of the community and took a wage for it, and he was in his place, for example, then he has the right to take a wage for it. And the state employees for such material works take wages for them. But the imams of the mosques and the preachers of the mosques, their duty is more noble than the duties of other state employees. It is not like the one who takes, for example, a salary to teach people their religion, to lead them in their prayers, to call them to prayer to determine the times of their prayers, and so on. This employee is not like the employee, for example, in the tax office or in the customs, or something similar. They are not equal at all. So this one takes a compensation for performing a worship, this worship, as it came in the example, he must perform it, he must pray in the mosque with the Muslim congregation. But when he took the leave, and the leave in the custom of the state system exempts him from performing the duty, he took it as if it were an ordinary job, so he did not go out to prayer. From here, we can infer a very serious issue, and there are many examples that support this example, that some imams of the mosques have come to consider themselves like any employee in the state. He does not feel at all that he is performing an obedience and worship for Allah the Exalted and Mighty, and that this one who is performing or worshipping with this worship, if he were not given a single cent for performing this worship, he should still rise to it. But if he does not rise to it except for what? The salary. So he takes a wage, and with this wage he invalidates his work, as you heard in the hadith of the three who the Fire will blaze up on the Day of Resurrection.