What is the ruling on accepting an invitation to a wedding feast, and what should a person do if he is invited to a feast that requires travel and hardship, and what is your opinion on utilizing these occasions to remind people of some of the etiquettes of celebrations and the like?
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The questioner : He says: What is the ruling on accepting an invitation to a wedding feast? And what should I do if I am invited to a feast that requires difficult travel on my part? And what is your opinion on utilizing these occasions to remind people of some of the etiquettes of celebrations and the like?
The Shaykh : Yes, as for an invitation that requires travel to accept, a person is not obligated to travel for it, due to the hardship and waste of time involved in travel, and the benefit for the host is slight, except for what is between very close relatives, where the bond may be lost if one does not attend. However, if there is no harm to the person in accepting the invitation, and there is no evil in the place, and the host specifically called him, saying, "So-and-so, come," and he knows that the invitation is genuine and not merely a social courtesy, then it is obligatory to accept the invitation, and whoever does not accept has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger.
As for the cards that are distributed, it is not obligatory to accept them unless the host insists on you, because many people distribute invitation cards merely to inform that they have a marriage, and they do not care whether you attend or not. But if he repeats the invitation by phone or in person, then it is obligatory for you to accept the invitation, but with the conditions we mentioned.
That there is no evil in the house. If there is evil in it, then if the invitee is able to change it, he must attend to accept the invitation and to change the evil. And if he is not able to change it, then it is not permissible for him to attend.
The Shaykh : Yes, as for an invitation that requires travel to accept, a person is not obligated to travel for it, due to the hardship and waste of time involved in travel, and the benefit for the host is slight, except for what is between very close relatives, where the bond may be lost if one does not attend. However, if there is no harm to the person in accepting the invitation, and there is no evil in the place, and the host specifically called him, saying, "So-and-so, come," and he knows that the invitation is genuine and not merely a social courtesy, then it is obligatory to accept the invitation, and whoever does not accept has disobeyed Allah and His Messenger.
As for the cards that are distributed, it is not obligatory to accept them unless the host insists on you, because many people distribute invitation cards merely to inform that they have a marriage, and they do not care whether you attend or not. But if he repeats the invitation by phone or in person, then it is obligatory for you to accept the invitation, but with the conditions we mentioned.
That there is no evil in the house. If there is evil in it, then if the invitee is able to change it, he must attend to accept the invitation and to change the evil. And if he is not able to change it, then it is not permissible for him to attend.