The Ruling on Coexisting with a Husband Who Abandons Prayer and Uncovering the Face Before a Disbelieving Woman

Her second question: She says: My aunt’s husband abandons prayer, even though he performed Hajj to the House of Allah. My aunt mentioned to him what she heard from the program regarding the ruling on one who abandons prayer out of negligence, that he becomes a disbeliever whose disbelief takes him out of the religion, but he continued to abandon prayer, and she remained silent about it. Is it forbidden for her to coexist with him? And is it permissible for a woman who abandons prayer to uncover her face before her, considering that she is a disbeliever by abandoning prayer and has exited the religion of Islam? Please inform us about these issues, may Allah guide you?
Answer: There is no doubt that the one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever, even if he does not deny its obligation, according to the most correct of the scholars’ opinions; for what is established from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: And the woman is the same in the legal ruling; because the legal principle is that the rulings that are established for men are for women, and vice versa; because all are accountable, and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent to all, and thus his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): So the one who does not pray, his wife should not remain with him while she is a Muslim; she should not remain with him, but rather she must separate from him and prevent him from having contact with her until he repents, so that Allah may accept his repentance.
And likewise, the woman who abandons prayer, her Muslim husband should not remain with her, but rather he should avoid her until she repents; if she repents, otherwise he should separate from her, and Allah will replace her with something better for him; because Allah the Exalted says: [Al-Talaq: 2-3] And He says the Exalted: [Al-Talaq: 4] And this is one of the great calamities; abandoning prayer is one of the great calamities.
So it is obligatory upon all Muslims to beware of that and to advise one another in that, and to boycott the one who abandons prayer, and not to accept his invitation, and not to greet him, and not to return his greeting, and not to invite him to a wedding feast or anything else, but rather he must be boycotted like a leper camel; he is not to be approached or visited except for calling to Allah; if it is for calling to Allah, he is invited and advised, and there is no harm in that.
As for removing the head covering before a disbelieving woman, there is no harm in that according to the correct opinion, whether she is one who abandons prayer, or a Jew, or a Christian, or a polytheist; there is no blame on the Muslim woman to be seen by the disbeliever and not to veil herself from her; this is the correct and the sound of the scholars’ opinions that veiling is only from the non-mahram man, but not from the woman; as for the saying of Allah the Exalted: [An-Nur: 31] The meaning is: the women of the children of Adam, so the woman does not veil herself from her according to the correct opinion, but rather she veils herself from the non-mahram man who is not a mahram, and as for the woman, she is of the same kind as the woman, and even if she is a disbeliever, there is no blame on the Muslim woman not to veil herself from her; because the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not order his wives to veil themselves from the Jewish women who were in Madinah, nor from others of the polytheists, and we do not know that any of the wives of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) or his daughters veiled themselves from a disbelieving woman.
And it is established in the two Sahihs from Asma’ bint Abi Bakr (may Allah be pleased with them both) that her mother came to her in Madinah at the time of the truce between the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) and the people of Makkah, and she was a disbeliever; she came seeking support and assistance from her daughter, so Asma’ sought permission from the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) to maintain ties with her, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: And he did not order her to veil herself from her mother because she was a disbeliever, and the issues in this regard are many, all indicating that it is not obligatory upon the Muslim woman to veil herself from the disbelieving woman, and success is from Allah. Yes.
The presenter: May Allah reward you with good.