/* */

PDA

View Full Version : Can we visit temples and churches??



mehnaz
06-04-2008, 05:20 AM
Asslamaoalaikum,

i was just wondering if its right or "allowed" to go to temples and churches..not to worship ocourse,but as a part of a tourist visit??or just to see what its like inside??or maybe ur frend whos a non muslim is getting married in one of those places...

Walekumassalam!
Reply

Login/Register to hide ads. Scroll down for more posts
Al-Zaara
06-04-2008, 06:09 AM
Selam aleykum we rahmetallahu,

This has been discussed a few times on here, if memory serves me right.
I've come across several rulings, but I guess you prefer the ones from IslamQA as the majority here?

I will nonetheless post a few, I don't know your madhab so it may be a bit tricky and if you don't follow a madhab you can always ask your local Imaam if it is possible. Some even prefer not to read online-fatawa. Everyone has valid points.. But here it goes:


Question:

Are Muslims are allowed to enter a Church? My mother recently re-married in a registry office and had a blessing in a Church. My husband is a Muslim and was not sure if he was allowed to go in. He ended up not going into the Church as he feared some sort of recrimination, even though he was not asked to take part in prayer. I have researched this but to no avail and would like some clarification for us both. I really look forward to your reply.

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

It all depends on the intention and purpose of your visit. If you are entering the Church for the purpose of worship or receiving blessings or confessing your sins or beseeching favors from other than Allah, then you are wrong. If, on the contrary, it is not for any of the above reasons, and you simply went there to observe how the Christians conduct their services and familiarize yourself with their ways or for purpose of outreaching, dialogue, cooperation in virtuous acts, etc. then there is nothing wrong with it.

In such cases, it may even be highly recommended, depending on the nature of your visit and the circumstances. We know that the Caliph `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him), while in Jerusalem, was taken around in the ancient Church by the patriarch, but he refused to pray inside; when asked about it he said, "I am afraid, if I were to do so, Muslims might later claim it as a musalla!"

To conclude, I can say that there is nothing wrong for Muslims in visiting Churches or Synagogues or temples if the purpose is other than worship or religious reasons.

May Allah help us all to remain steadfast on the straight path and guide our steps-aameen.


SOURCE


Question:

As-Salamu `alaykum. My cousin has a wedding next month and she has invited me and my husband to her wedding. Is it permissible for us to take part in the wedding? She is a Christian and will get married in church. Jazakum Allah khayran.


Answer:

Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear questioner, we would like to thank you for the great confidence you place in us, and we implore Allah Almighty to help us serve His cause and render our work for His Sake.
As far as Islamic Shari`ah is concerned, a Muslim is allowed to attend the wedding of his/her non-Muslim relative, held in a church so long as this attendance does not involve participating in any haram (prohibited) action.
In his response to your question, Sheikh Ibrahim Salih Al-Husaini, Mufti of Nigeria, states:

Almighty Allah says in the Qur’an: (Allah forbiddeth you not those who warred not against you on account of religion and drove you not out from your homes, that ye should show them kindness and deal justly with them. Lo ! Allah loveth the just dealers.) (Al-Mumtahanah: 8)
This verse, and many others in the Qur’an, lay down the main basics in dealing with non-Muslims. Tolerance and respect are among the main principles that govern the relation of Muslims with the People of the Book (Jews and Christians). It goes without saying that the People of the Book are permitted to attend Muslims’ weddings that are held in mosques in case there is a relation of kinship between them and the Muslim bride or groom, such as the case when the bride or the groom has a non-Muslim father or relative.

During the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) the Christians of Najran came to the Prophet as envoys, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) welcomed them in his mosque and they stayed there for a while.

Based on this, we can say that a Muslim is allowed to attend the wedding of his/her non-Muslim relative, held in a church so long as this attendance does not involve participating in any haram action. This means that a Muslim is not allowed to repeat the hymns said by the priest or other non-Muslims, for that goes against the main precepts of Islam. It is to be stressed also that a Muslim woman is to abide by the code of dress established for a Muslim woman. She is to cover all her body except her face and hands. Moreover, a Muslim should not eat or drink anything haram and should avoid any mixed gatherings that place his sense of religious commitment at stake.

SOURCE


Question:

Is it permissible to go into churches for the purpose of da’wah, or just to look around?
There are many churches here. Is it permissible to go into them to hold discussions with the priests there? Is it permissible to go in just to look at them and see what the people do there?

Answer:

Praise be to Allaah.

It is permissible for scholars and knowledgeable people to enter churches in order to call the people there to Islam. But we should not enter them just to look around, because there is no benefit in doing so, and there is the fear that the Muslim may be influenced by them, especially if he is ignorant about his own religion and cannot refute the confusion that they will direct towards him.

From Fataawaa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah, 13/257


SOURCE

Question:

What is the ruling on a Muslim entering a church to listen to a lecture that is being given there?.

Answer:

Praise be to Allaah.

Entering churches for meetings and to listen to lectures is not free of a number of haraam things, some of which have been discussed in the answer to question no. 82836.
The scholars differed concerning the ruling on a Muslim entering a church in the first place. There are a number of opinions:

1-
That it is haraam. This is the view of the Hanafis and Shaafa’is, but the Shaafa’is limit the prohibition to churches in which there are images, as it says in Tuhfat al-Muhtaaj (2/424), Nihaayat al-Muhtaaj (2/63) and Haashiyata Qalyoobi wa ‘Umayrah ‘ala Sharh al-Muhalla (4/236).
The Hanafis regard it as haraam in all cases, and they gave as their reason the fact that they are abodes of the devils, as the Hanafi Ibn Nujaym said in al-Bahr al-Raa’iq (7/364) and in Haashiyat Ibn ‘Aabideen (2/43).

2-
That it is makrooh. This is the view of the Hanbalis, but some of them limited this to churches in which there are images. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in al-Fataawa al-Kubra (5/327): The view which most of our companions hold is that it is makrooh to enter churches in which there are images, and this is the correct view concerning which there can be no doubt. End quote.

See: al-Furoo’ (5/308), al-Adaab al-Shar’iyyah (3/415) and al-Insaaf (1/496).

They quoted the following as evidence:

(i)
It was narrated from Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allaah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) saw images in the Ka’bah and he did not enter until he had ordered that they be erased. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (3352).

(ii)
It was narrated that Ibn ‘Umar (may Allaah be pleased with him) said: Jibreel promised to come to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) but he was late and the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) grew concerned. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) went out and saw him, and he told him of his concern and he said to him: “We [angels] do not enter a house in which there is an image or a dog.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (5960).

(iii)
It was narrated that Aslam the freed slave of ‘Umar said: When ‘Umar went to Syria, one of the leaders of the Christians made food for him and called him. ‘Umar said: We will not enter your churches because of the images that are in them – meaning the statues. Narrated by ‘Abd al-Razzaaq in al-Musannaf (1/411 and 10/398).

3 – The third view is that it is permissible to enter churches in general. This is the view of the Hanbalis, as it says in al-Mughni (8/113) and al-Insaaf (1/496).

It is also the view of Ibn Hazm al-Zaahiri as it says in al-Muhalla (1/400).
They quoted the following as evidence:

(i)
What was narrated about the conditions stipulated by ‘Umar to the people of the Book to expand their churches and monasteries so that the Muslims could enter them to spend the night or pass through them.
Al-Mughni (8/113).

(ii)
Ibn ‘Aa’idh narrated in Futooh al-Shaam that when ‘Umar came to Syria, the Christians made food for him and called him, and he said: Where is it? They said: In the church, and he refused to go. He said to ‘Ali: Take the people to eat lunch. So ‘Ali took the people and entered the church, and he and the people ate lunch, and ‘Ali looked at the images and said: What would be wrong if the Ameer al-Mu’mineen entered this place?
Al-Mughni (8/113).

By studying the evidence quoted above, it does not seem that there is any clear evidence that it is haraam to enter churches. The fact that there are images and statues in them or any other place does not mean that it is haraam to enter it. The sin is on the makers of the images and those who make the statues; the one who enters a place where those statues are should advise and explain, but he does not have to leave that place.

Ibn Qudaamah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said:
With regard to entering a house in which there is an image, it is not haraam. Rather it is permissible to refuse an invitation because of it as a rebuke to the host and to show that he has lost respect because of his introducing something evil into his house. The one who sees it in the host’s house does not have to leave, according to the apparent meaning of Ahmad’s words. He said, according to the report of al-Fadl: If he sees an image on the curtain that he did not see when he entered, that is less serious than if it was on the wall. It was said: If he did not see it until the food was placed before them, should he leave? He said: Do not make things too difficult for us; but if he sees it he should rebuke them and tell them not to do that. End quote.
Al-Mughni (8/113)

But at least it is makrooh to enter churches unnecessarily, because the fact that the angels and the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) did not enter the house in which there were images indicates that it is makrooh.

Moreover this being makrooh may reach the level of being haraam if entering the church will lead to any bad consequences such as if it means approving of the Christians’ shirk and their claim that Allaah has a wife and son, exalted be Allaah far above that. Or if entering the church is a sign of taking the Christians as friends and loving them, and so on.
It says in Fataawa al-Lajnah al-Daa’imah (2/115):
If your going to the church is just to show tolerance and lenience, then it is not permissible, but if it is done to call them to Islam and create opportunities for you to do so, and you will not be taking part in their worship and you are not afraid that you may be influenced by their beliefs or customs, then it is permissible. End quote.

See also the answer to question no. 11232.
And Allaah knows best.

SOURCE
Reply

Hey there! Looks like you're enjoying the discussion, but you're not signed up for an account.

When you create an account, you can participate in the discussions and share your thoughts. You also get notifications, here and via email, whenever new posts are made. And you can like posts and make new friends.
Sign Up

Similar Threads

  1. Replies: 18
    Last Post: 11-27-2009, 10:07 PM
  2. Replies: 41
    Last Post: 09-24-2006, 04:14 PM
  3. Replies: 17
    Last Post: 09-23-2006, 11:47 AM
  4. Replies: 26
    Last Post: 09-07-2006, 08:56 PM
British Wholesales - Certified Wholesale Linen & Towels | Holiday in the Maldives

IslamicBoard

Experience a richer experience on our mobile app!