Catching the virtue of the congregation by catching the final tashahhud

A listener (F. H.) from Dammam sent a message containing a collection of questions. In one of them, he says: If I catch up to the congregational prayer while they are in the final tashahhud, have I thereby caught the virtue of the congregational prayer, or is it obligatory for me to wait for some of the late-arriving worshippers so that we pray in congregation and complete the virtue of the congregational prayer for us? Please inform us, may Allah reward you with good.
Answer: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said in the authentic hadith: His statement: encompasses whoever catches it, whoever catches the imam in the tashahhud. However, one does not catch the congregation except with a rak'ah, due to his statement (peace and blessings be upon him): So it is caught with a rak'ah of the congregation. But if one is excused and is sometimes delayed, he has the virtue of the congregation even if he did not catch it entirely. If he is delayed for a legitimate religious excuse, such as a person needing to relieve himself when he intended to go to the mosque, and he is overcome by the need to urinate or defecate, so he is delayed for that reason, or other legitimate religious excuses, then he has the virtue of the congregation. But one does not catch the congregation without an excuse by catching the tashahhud, but rather with a rak'ah or more. And if they are a group and they pray alone, there is no harm. And if they enter with the imam in the tashahhud, there is no harm; the matter is broad. If they enter with him, due to the generality of his statement: then there is no harm. And if they pray alone, because the only part of the prayer remaining is the tashahhud, there is no blame, if Allah wills. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good. Is the virtue of the congregation necessarily with a rak'ah?
The Shaykh: Yes.