*CAN A MOSQUE (MASJID) ACCEPT STOLEN
OR LOOTED MONEY FOR THE UPKEEP?*
ASSEMBLED
BY MALLAM ABBA ABANA, KUBWA, ABUJA, NIGERIA
http://variousislamicdawadocuments.blogspot.com
emails:gonidamgamiri@yahoo.com;
abba.abana@gmail.com
(WHATSAPP +2348186961697)
THURSDAY 12TH RABIYUL AWWAL
1439 AH- 30TH NOVEMBER 2017 CE
Bismillah
Walhamdulillah Was Salaatu Was Salaam 'ala Rasulillah. As-Salaam Alaikum
Wa-Rahmatullahi Wa-Barakatuhu
Praise be
to Allaah; we seek His help and His forgiveness. We seek refuge with Allaah
from the evil of our own souls and from our bad deeds. Whomsoever Allaah guides
will never be led astray, and whomsoever Allaah leaves astray, no one can
guide. I bear witness that there is no god but Allaah, and I bear witness
that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.
Question.
A mosque or Masjid sometimes built by known people who
directly benefited from looted funds from Government or armed robber who had
stolen from people now giving Millions of Naira to the masjid Committee to
build Masjid. Indirectly the man wanted to give charity and/or use the Masjid
as a way of future campaign or likely to give-up his sinful way of life.
He had stolen this money from Government treasury
(Federal or State or Local Government).
Now, brothers in Islam wanted to know what to do with
the money paid by ex-Governor or Politician towards building Allah’s House i.e.
masjid?
May Allah Almighty reward you for your help?
Possible Answers.
Wa `alaykum as-salamu wa rahmatullahi
wa barakatuh.
All praise and thanks are due to
Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
It should be known that stealing, robbery, and gambling
are totally forbidden in Islam. So, every Muslim must refrain from that in
order not to expose himself to Allah’s anger
As for your question, the stolen money should not be
spent on mosques, Islamic centers, etc. Rather, it can be spent on public
services or general benefits of the society.
In his response to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty,
a senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto,
Ontario, Canada, states,
"A person who has stolen money from such sources
must get rid of it immediately; he cannot use it to benefit himself, his
family, or his dependents, nor it can be given to mosques or Islamic centers
for their use. Rather, it must be given away in entirety to a public charity or
hospital, or to refugees, etc.
It is equally important for him to repent of his sins,
and the repentance is not complete, unless he gives away all the ill-gotten
money. He also needs to fulfill the requisites of repentance. Repentance proper
entails the following steps:
1. Feeling deep remorse for the sin he or she has
committed.
2. Refraining from it and all of its associations and
leads altogether.
3. Resolving never to do it again.
4. And finally, following it up by doing as many good
deeds as he or she can and leading a righteous life.
Hadith:
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,
"A body nurtured by ill-gotten income is a worthy fuel of
hell-fire." Allah says, {O mankind! Partake of what is lawful and
good on earth, and follow not Satan's footsteps: for, verily, he is your open
foe.} (Holy Quran Chapter Al-Baqarah 2: 168)
{O Messengers! Partake of the good
and pure things of the earth, and do righteous deeds: verily, I have full
knowledge of all that you do.}
(Hoy Quran Chapter Al-Mu’minun 23: 51)
Can a Mosque
Committee Accept Stolen Money for upkeep and maintenance of Masjid?
The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said,
"Allah is Pure, and He accepts only that which is pure." (Muslim
from Abu Hurayrah) In order to illustrate this point, the Prophet (peace and
blessings be upon him) mentioned the case of a person who appears in the
holy sites, in a disheveled state due to long journey, and supplicates, calling
out to Allah, "Lord! Lord!" However, how would Allah answer his
prayer when his entire body is nurtured by that which is haram, his food
is from haram and his clothes are from haram and he is entirely
nurtured by haram!" (Muslim from Abu Hurayrah)
In conclusion, it is important to give away the
entire amount in charity for the causes mentioned above.
I pray to Allah to make us all content with that which
He has declared as lawful, and pure for us."
2.0 Can I Pay My
Bank Interest to a Mosque?
Question.
In Nigerian banking systems, interests from such institutions
are either known or unknown unless you specify type of savings or fixed
deposits. Bank usually pay with certain percentages of interests accrued, can I
pay my bank's interest to needy Muslims or to my local masjid for their
operating fund?
Possible Answer.
Mosques are related to devotional affairs like worship,
so they should be financed through lawful (halal) ways. Hence, it is not
permissible for you to pay the interest of your money to the mosque.
Responding to your question, Dr. Monzer Kahf, a
prominent Muslim economist and counselor, stated, "Earned interest
(according to Shari`ah it is not really earned) should be given to the
poor and needy and the like of objectives that serve the community at large.
In conclusion, I would not suggest giving it for
operating expenses of the mosque unless it is specifically used for the
bathroom areas and their like, not Can I Pay My Bank Interest to a Mosque for
anything related to the prayers area because it is more respected than being
financed from haram.
Allah Almighty knows
best. 