What is required of the khatib
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
He asks and says: What are the necessary conditions for the khatib, and is the sermon valid if the khatib is unmarried, provided there is no one else in the town?
Answer:
The conditions for the khatib are that he must possess knowledge and insight, or he must deliver the sermon from a trustworthy book that the scholars and people of insight have compiled, and he delivers it to the people from it, provided his voice is audible to them, or through a loudspeaker, and he must be upright. As for one who is known for sins, he should not be appointed as khatib; rather, people of uprightness, goodness, and virtue should be appointed.
The point is: if the khatib is a Muslim, his prayer is valid, and his sermon is valid, provided its purpose is achieved, namely admonishing the people and reminding them, either from his own knowledge as a scholar, or from a book that achieves the purpose from what has been written on Friday sermons; there is no harm in that. It is incumbent upon the authorities to appoint only people of virtue, uprightness, and rectitude. However, if it happens that he is a sinner and he leads the people in prayer, his prayer is valid according to the correct view, as long as he is a Muslim, for sin does not invalidate his prayer, nor the prayer of those behind him, whether in Jumu'ah or congregation. But it is prescribed for the authorities, and it is obligatory upon them, to be careful in this matter and to strive to appoint the best of people, and not to appoint anyone to the affairs of the Muslims, neither in leading prayer, nor in the adhan, nor in the khutbah, except one who is known for goodness, rectitude, and qualification for the khutbah, because he has knowledge and insight, and for leading prayer, because he has virtue and insight, and is suitable for leading prayer.
And so it is with the adhan; because he must have trustworthiness, uprightness, and a good voice. So the authorities choose for these matters, for these positions, one who is qualified for them. And if they know that this man is not suitable for this position, either because of a defect in his tongue that makes him unsuitable to be a khatib, or because he is known for sins, or for religious innovation, then he should not be appointed.
And so the imam is not appointed if he is known for sins. The best of them and their most virtuous are appointed over the Muslims, and one who is suitable for leading prayer due to his good recitation, his uprightness in himself, and his being qualified for prayer in his tranquility and his fulfilling the rights of prayer. And so the khatib is qualified for that by being good at delivering the sermon, and because he has knowledge and virtue, or because he delivers the sermon from a well-known, reliable book compiled by the known scholars and people of insight who are known for rectitude. Yes.
The presenter : May Allah reward you with good.
He asks and says: What are the necessary conditions for the khatib, and is the sermon valid if the khatib is unmarried, provided there is no one else in the town?
Answer:
The conditions for the khatib are that he must possess knowledge and insight, or he must deliver the sermon from a trustworthy book that the scholars and people of insight have compiled, and he delivers it to the people from it, provided his voice is audible to them, or through a loudspeaker, and he must be upright. As for one who is known for sins, he should not be appointed as khatib; rather, people of uprightness, goodness, and virtue should be appointed.
The point is: if the khatib is a Muslim, his prayer is valid, and his sermon is valid, provided its purpose is achieved, namely admonishing the people and reminding them, either from his own knowledge as a scholar, or from a book that achieves the purpose from what has been written on Friday sermons; there is no harm in that. It is incumbent upon the authorities to appoint only people of virtue, uprightness, and rectitude. However, if it happens that he is a sinner and he leads the people in prayer, his prayer is valid according to the correct view, as long as he is a Muslim, for sin does not invalidate his prayer, nor the prayer of those behind him, whether in Jumu'ah or congregation. But it is prescribed for the authorities, and it is obligatory upon them, to be careful in this matter and to strive to appoint the best of people, and not to appoint anyone to the affairs of the Muslims, neither in leading prayer, nor in the adhan, nor in the khutbah, except one who is known for goodness, rectitude, and qualification for the khutbah, because he has knowledge and insight, and for leading prayer, because he has virtue and insight, and is suitable for leading prayer.
And so it is with the adhan; because he must have trustworthiness, uprightness, and a good voice. So the authorities choose for these matters, for these positions, one who is qualified for them. And if they know that this man is not suitable for this position, either because of a defect in his tongue that makes him unsuitable to be a khatib, or because he is known for sins, or for religious innovation, then he should not be appointed.
And so the imam is not appointed if he is known for sins. The best of them and their most virtuous are appointed over the Muslims, and one who is suitable for leading prayer due to his good recitation, his uprightness in himself, and his being qualified for prayer in his tranquility and his fulfilling the rights of prayer. And so the khatib is qualified for that by being good at delivering the sermon, and because he has knowledge and virtue, or because he delivers the sermon from a well-known, reliable book compiled by the known scholars and people of insight who are known for rectitude. Yes.
The presenter : May Allah reward you with good.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.