Is it permissible for the poor and those like them to ask for alms inside the mosque?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : He says:The questioner : Your Eminence, is it permissible for the poor and those like them to ask for alms inside the mosque?
The Shaykh : Asking for alms
The questioner : Asking for alms inside the mosque
The Shaykh : Yes. First: it is not permissible to ask people for alms... it is not permissible to ask people for alms except in cases of dire necessity. In cases of dire necessity, if a person is compelled, let him ask. But without dire necessity, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us that a man will keep asking people until he comes on the Day of Resurrection with no piece of flesh on his face, may Allah protect us from that. He will be raised on the Day of Resurrection with the bones of his face exposed before the people, because he is the one who caused this for himself by asking. Then, asking in the mosque, even if a person is compelled, if it necessitates occupying the people and distracting them from the remembrance of Allah, then that is not permissible and is prohibited. And even more so, and more severe, is what we see of them today, going around the people in their rows while the imam is delivering the sermon, asking people. This is also not permissible, because it is not permissible for a person to speak while the imam is delivering the sermon on Friday, except with the imam if it is for a pressing need. But with anyone other than the imam, it is not permissible.
Therefore, we say in this issue that speaking on Friday while the imam is delivering the sermon is forbidden. And if a person speaks on Friday while the imam is delivering the sermon, even if it is to forbid what is wrong, he loses the reward of Friday, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):Sunan Ibn Majah 1110Sahih (Darussalam) Unless the person is speaking with the preacher regarding a public benefit or a pressing need, in which case there is nothing wrong with it. A public benefit is, for example, telling the preacher that the sound of the loudspeaker is weak; this is a public benefit. A pressing need is like what the man did when he entered upon the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) while he was delivering the sermon on Friday, and he asked the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) to ask Allah the Exalted for rain, and he did so. But with anyone other than the imam, speaking is not permissible.
Now, if a person greets you while the imam is delivering the sermon, do you return the greeting? The answer is: No. I do not return the greeting, but I indicate to him with my hand that this is not a place for greetings.
If a person greets you between the two sermons, do you return the greeting? Yes. I return the greeting, because the imam is not delivering the sermon at that moment, so there is nothing wrong with it.
The Shaykh : Asking for alms
The questioner : Asking for alms inside the mosque
The Shaykh : Yes. First: it is not permissible to ask people for alms... it is not permissible to ask people for alms except in cases of dire necessity. In cases of dire necessity, if a person is compelled, let him ask. But without dire necessity, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) informed us that a man will keep asking people until he comes on the Day of Resurrection with no piece of flesh on his face, may Allah protect us from that. He will be raised on the Day of Resurrection with the bones of his face exposed before the people, because he is the one who caused this for himself by asking. Then, asking in the mosque, even if a person is compelled, if it necessitates occupying the people and distracting them from the remembrance of Allah, then that is not permissible and is prohibited. And even more so, and more severe, is what we see of them today, going around the people in their rows while the imam is delivering the sermon, asking people. This is also not permissible, because it is not permissible for a person to speak while the imam is delivering the sermon on Friday, except with the imam if it is for a pressing need. But with anyone other than the imam, it is not permissible.
Therefore, we say in this issue that speaking on Friday while the imam is delivering the sermon is forbidden. And if a person speaks on Friday while the imam is delivering the sermon, even if it is to forbid what is wrong, he loses the reward of Friday, due to the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
If you say to your companions: ‘Be quiet’ on a Friday while the Imam is delivering the sermon, you have engaged in Laghw (idle talk or behaviour).
إذا قلت لصاحبك أنصت يوم الجمعة والإمام يخطب فقد لغوت ومن لغا فلا جمعة لهNow, if a person greets you while the imam is delivering the sermon, do you return the greeting? The answer is: No. I do not return the greeting, but I indicate to him with my hand that this is not a place for greetings.
If a person greets you between the two sermons, do you return the greeting? Yes. I return the greeting, because the imam is not delivering the sermon at that moment, so there is nothing wrong with it.