The ruling on the marriage contract if the husband and wife do not pray

Question:
The first message in this episode is from listener (A. A. Q.) from Dammam. Our brother has several questions. In his first question, he asks:
If a man marries while he does not pray, and neither he nor the wife prays, and after a long time Allah guides them to prayer and religious matters, and at the time of the contract it was discovered that he was in a state of major ritual impurity and did not perform the full ritual bath at the time of the contract, but rather conducted the contract while in that state, is the contract valid, or what do you advise regarding what was mentioned?
May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow his guidance. As for what follows:
If the man and the woman do not pray at the time of the contract, the contract is valid; because they are equal in abandoning prayer, and in disbelief according to those who declare them disbelievers for that, and in the absence of disbelief. So the marriage is valid. The correct view is that abandoning prayer is major shirk (associating partners with Allah), may Allah protect us from that, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And he did not say: "on the condition that they deny its obligation," but rather he (peace and blessings be upon him) stated it generally, which indicates that whoever abandons prayer is a disbeliever, even if he acknowledges its obligation. From this is his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): which Muslim recorded in his Sahih. But since they are equal and do not pray, the contract between them is valid, like if two Christians, two Jews, or two polytheists marry; because they are equal in the absence of religion.
As for if one of them prays and the other does not pray at the time of the contract, then it is obligatory to renew the contract after the one who did not pray has prayed and repented to Allah . On the correct view, based on the opinion that abandoning prayer is major shirk (associating partners with Allah), the contract is renewed with a new mahr (bridal gift), two just witnesses, and through the wali (guardian). So four people are present for the contract: the wali, the husband, and the two witnesses. The contract is renewed with a mahr and two just witnesses after Allah has accepted the repentance of the one of them who did not pray, and praise be to Allah, as a precaution and to avoid the disagreement of the scholars who declared the one who abandons prayer a disbeliever, and their saying is more correct based on the apparent evidence of the Shari'ah.
As for his marrying while not in a state of ritual purity, this does not harm the contract. Likewise, if the woman was menstruating at the time of the contract, or in post-natal bleeding, it does not harm, provided she is not in the waiting period ('iddah). For example, if a virgin is contracted while menstruating, or a woman who has completed her waiting period is contracted while menstruating, that does not harm. It is not a condition of the contract that the man be in a state of ritual purity or that the woman be in a state of ritual purity. So if the contract is completed and the man is in a state of major ritual impurity, or the woman is in a state of major ritual impurity, or menstruating, or in post-natal bleeding, the contract is valid. Purity is not a condition of it, as long as she is not in the waiting period. Yes.

The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.