Is it permissible to combine the 'Asr prayer with the Friday prayer?
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The questioner : Your Eminence, is it permissible to combine 'Asr with Friday?
The Shaykh : What?
The questioner : Friday, Friday.
The Shaykh : Is it permissible to combine 'Asr with Friday, or?
The questioner : Friday with 'Asr.
The Shaykh : Friday with 'Asr, and not 'Asr with Friday?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : That which contradicts [the ruling], it is not permissible to combine 'Asr with Friday, nor Friday with 'Asr, even if one is traveling. Why? Because combining is only between Dhuhr and 'Asr, and Friday is not Dhuhr. Rather, there are more than twenty differences between Friday and Dhuhr. The hadiths reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding combining are only between what? Dhuhr and 'Asr, or Maghrib and 'Isha'. Therefore, it is not permissible to combine 'Asr and Friday, neither by advancing nor by delaying, even if one is traveling.
Now, if a knowledgeable person were to say: If a traveler intends to pray Dhuhr behind the imam who is praying Friday, does he combine 'Asr with it? We say: Yes, he combines 'Asr with it, but he is a poor soul, for he has missed the reward of Friday. And the reward of Friday is equal to the reward of combining, or rather, it is much greater than it. For Friday has a great reward. The Jews and Christians strayed from it, and this Ummah was guided to it, praise be to Allah. The Jews have Saturday as their day of gathering, and the Christians have Sunday as their day of gathering, which is contrary to the original principle. But Allah the Exalted guided this Ummah, praise be to Allah, so their day of gathering became Friday.
The Shaykh : What?
The questioner : Friday, Friday.
The Shaykh : Is it permissible to combine 'Asr with Friday, or?
The questioner : Friday with 'Asr.
The Shaykh : Friday with 'Asr, and not 'Asr with Friday?
The student: ...
The Shaykh : That which contradicts [the ruling], it is not permissible to combine 'Asr with Friday, nor Friday with 'Asr, even if one is traveling. Why? Because combining is only between Dhuhr and 'Asr, and Friday is not Dhuhr. Rather, there are more than twenty differences between Friday and Dhuhr. The hadiths reported from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) regarding combining are only between what? Dhuhr and 'Asr, or Maghrib and 'Isha'. Therefore, it is not permissible to combine 'Asr and Friday, neither by advancing nor by delaying, even if one is traveling.
Now, if a knowledgeable person were to say: If a traveler intends to pray Dhuhr behind the imam who is praying Friday, does he combine 'Asr with it? We say: Yes, he combines 'Asr with it, but he is a poor soul, for he has missed the reward of Friday. And the reward of Friday is equal to the reward of combining, or rather, it is much greater than it. For Friday has a great reward. The Jews and Christians strayed from it, and this Ummah was guided to it, praise be to Allah. The Jews have Saturday as their day of gathering, and the Christians have Sunday as their day of gathering, which is contrary to the original principle. But Allah the Exalted guided this Ummah, praise be to Allah, so their day of gathering became Friday.