If the mosque is far away and only four or fewer people pray the Fajr prayer in it, which is more important: praying in this mosque or gathering in my home with my family?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : ... the Fajr prayer ... except the mu'adhdhin sometimes ... I pray with my wife ...
The Shaykh : You say: "The mosque is far away." So if you do not go, are you excused? You just say that word and cover it up.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : How far is it, or how close?
The questioner : It is far.
The Shaykh : What does it matter to me whether it is far or close? Do you consider yourself excused or not? It might not be far, but there is mud, and that is a valid excuse.
The questioner : ... If it were close and there were no one but the mu'adhdhin, I would go and pray with him.
The Shaykh : No, you go to the mosque. Do you see how you are twisting it ... If it is far, it becomes close. Be clear in your questions, people, because this logical sequence has no basis. Rather, a person's duty is to address his reality. So your reality is either that your attendance inside the mosque is obligatory or it is not. If it is not obligatory, it is better for you to pray at home with your family, three or four people, than to go and pray with just the mu'adhdhin. But if going to the mosque is obligatory, even if you are alone, it is better for you to increase the congregation than to leave him to pray alone. So in that case, as we mentioned earlier.
The Shaykh : You say: "The mosque is far away." So if you do not go, are you excused? You just say that word and cover it up.
The questioner : ...
The Shaykh : How far is it, or how close?
The questioner : It is far.
The Shaykh : What does it matter to me whether it is far or close? Do you consider yourself excused or not? It might not be far, but there is mud, and that is a valid excuse.
The questioner : ... If it were close and there were no one but the mu'adhdhin, I would go and pray with him.
The Shaykh : No, you go to the mosque. Do you see how you are twisting it ... If it is far, it becomes close. Be clear in your questions, people, because this logical sequence has no basis. Rather, a person's duty is to address his reality. So your reality is either that your attendance inside the mosque is obligatory or it is not. If it is not obligatory, it is better for you to pray at home with your family, three or four people, than to go and pray with just the mu'adhdhin. But if going to the mosque is obligatory, even if you are alone, it is better for you to increase the congregation than to leave him to pray alone. So in that case, as we mentioned earlier.
Source
www.al-albany.com
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.