Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(320): "Entitlement to Financial Benefits of Solidarity Funds is Subject to Related Instructions"

Date Added : 17-01-2023

 

Resolution No.(320), By The Board of Iftaa', Researches and Islamic Studies:

"Entitlement to Financial Benefits of Solidarity Funds is Subject to Related Instructions"

Date: (21 Jumada al-Ula, 1444 AH), corresponding to (15/12/2022 AD).

 

Praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

 

In its fifteenth meeting held on the above date, the Board of Iftaa` reviewed the letter No.(11367/1444) sent from the Jordanian Constructions Contractors Association. It stated the following:

We would like to inform you that our late colleague Mr.X passed away on 4 June 2022. Under the Social Solidarity Fund System, testamentary heirs are entitled to financial benefits. However, when the beneficiaries went to collect these benefits from the SSF, they were told that there was a discrepancy between the inheritance deed and the will of the deceased in the application form of the SSF at the JCCA. In that form, the deceased stated that the financial benefits go to his wife and children while in the inheritance deed it is stated that he had a second wife and that the date of the will was earlier than the date of the second marriage. In light of this, what is the legal and Islamic ruling on the entitlement of the second wife to any financial benefits from the SSF at the JCCA?

After deliberations, the Board decided the following:

Islamic Solidarity Funds are based on contributions and cooperation amongst a group of people who agree on paying specific sums of money as a gift to the fund in return for agreed upon sums in case of affliction befalling any of them (subscribers) such as death, and such an act is recommended in Sharia. Almighty Allah Says  in the Holy Quran (What means): “Help ye one another in righteousness and piety, but help ye not one another in sin and rancor.“ {Al-Maida/2}. Here, the money of the SSF isn`t privately owned. Rather, it belongs to all the subscribers and the contract between them is not a contract of debt; rather, it is a commutative contract. This means that entitlement to the financial benefits depends on the system of the Fund itself and doesn`t undergo the rulings of Sharia on inheritance and bequests because these benefits aren`t part of the deceased`s estate, but a gift from the Fund to the beneficiaries. 

 

As understood from the contract of the SSF in light of the above question, the beneficiaries, in case of the subscriber`s death, are his wife and children. The general rule is that "Wife and children" apply to those who are wives and those who are children of the subscriber since the first wife may pass away during the lifetime of her husband (Subscriber) without having given birth to any children. Moreover, he may marry a second wife and she may give birth to children, and he may have both wives. Therefore, financial benefits go to the wives and the children, regardless of being a first or a second wife, because the criterion in (the construction of) contracts is intentions and meanings and not words and form. Rather, the word "Wife" in the application form of the SSF includes the second wife, so she is eligible to receive her share of the Fund`s payments. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.

 

Grand Mufti of Jordan, Sheikh Abdulkareem Al-Khasawneh

Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalayleh/ Member

Prof. Mahmoud Al-Sartawi/ Member

Sheikh Sa`eid Hijjawi/ Member

Prof. Amjad Rasheed/ Member

Prof. Adam Nooh Al-Qhodah/ Member

Dr. Jameel Khatatbeh/ Member

Dr. Ahmad Al-Hasanat/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Younes al-Zou`bi/ Member

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on storing the meat of sacrificial animals and distributing it throughout the year?

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
It is disliked (makruh) to store or preserve the meat of sacrificial animals (udhiyah), whether for a short or long period, provided that the sacrifice is slaughtered within its prescribed lawful time, while also taking care to prevent the meat from spoiling. And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on a young man and a young woman having a love relation for the purpose of getting married?

It is forbidden for a man and a woman to have any kind of relation whether for marriage, or not because it leads to committing sin. Such relations include: private meetings, mixing, gazing, and seclusion (Khulwa). Accordingly, one who is sincere in his intentions should go to the woman`s guardian and ask for her hand in marriage.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on wudu (ablution) when there is an adhesive substance on the hand that is difficult to remove?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The general principle is: if what is applied to the limbs of wudu' (ablution) does not form a barrier substance preventing water from reaching the skin, then the wudu' is valid despite its presence. However, if these substances prevent water from reaching the skin, the wudu' is not valid with their presence, and they must be removed so that water reaches the hair or skin without any barrier.
Shaykh al-Islam, the Imam an-Nawawi, may Allah have mercy on him, says: "If there is wax, dough, henna, or similar substances on some of his limbs [of wudu'], and this prevents water from reaching any part of the limb, then his purification (tahara) is not valid — regardless of whether the amount is much or little. But if there remains on the hand or elsewhere only the trace and color of the henna, without its substance [i.e., the physical residue itself], or the trace of a liquid oil such that the water touches the skin of the limb and flows over it, though it does not remain [as a barrier] — then his purification is valid." [Al-Majmu' , Vol.1/P.529]. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

What is the ruling on giving Zakat al-Fitr in cash?

The default ruling is that Zakat al-Fitr should be given as the staple food of the land. In Jordan, for example, the staple food is wheat or rice, and the amount of Zakat al-Fitr is 2,500 grams per person. It is easy to give this amount of rice to the poor and needy, and this is the correct ruling according to all Islamic schools of thought.
However, Hanafi scholars have permitted giving Zakat al-Fitr as monetary value, considering it more beneficial for the poor and easier for the giver.