What is better: building mosques given their abundance, or building a house for the imam or the mu'adhdhin?
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The Shaykh : Yes
The questioner : Your Eminence, we now see a large number of mosques; there are many mosques now, praise be to Allah.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah.
The questioner : But in some mosques, there are no houses for the mu'adhdhin and the imam. Which is better: putting money into the construction of other mosques, or into these houses?
The Shaykh : No, the better option is to put the money into the construction of other mosques. For example, if a person has one million riyals and spends seven hundred thousand on this mosque, leaving him with three hundred thousand, and he asks whether it is better to put it in another mosque or to build a house or two for the imam and the mu'adhdhin, we say the better option is to put it in other mosques. Especially if you are an agent, meaning you were given money to build mosques, it is not permissible for you to spend it on building houses for the imam and the mu'adhdhin, because you are an agent.
The questioner : Even if it is for a need.
The Shaykh : Absolutely not. There is no need. The mosque will function whether the imam and the mu'adhdhin have houses or not. It is true that it facilitates the presence of the imam and the mu'adhdhin, but it is not a need. Yes.
The questioner : Your Eminence, we now see a large number of mosques; there are many mosques now, praise be to Allah.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah.
The questioner : But in some mosques, there are no houses for the mu'adhdhin and the imam. Which is better: putting money into the construction of other mosques, or into these houses?
The Shaykh : No, the better option is to put the money into the construction of other mosques. For example, if a person has one million riyals and spends seven hundred thousand on this mosque, leaving him with three hundred thousand, and he asks whether it is better to put it in another mosque or to build a house or two for the imam and the mu'adhdhin, we say the better option is to put it in other mosques. Especially if you are an agent, meaning you were given money to build mosques, it is not permissible for you to spend it on building houses for the imam and the mu'adhdhin, because you are an agent.
The questioner : Even if it is for a need.
The Shaykh : Absolutely not. There is no need. The mosque will function whether the imam and the mu'adhdhin have houses or not. It is true that it facilitates the presence of the imam and the mu'adhdhin, but it is not a need. Yes.