Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(121),(8/2008): “Proposed Amendments to the Draft Bill of Licensing and Regulating Artificial Insemination Centers“

Date Added : 02-11-2015

 

Resolution No.(121),(8/2008): “Proposed Amendments to the Draft Bill of Licensing and Regulating Artificial Insemination Centers“

Date: 29/11/1429 AH, corresponding to 27/11/2008 AD.

 

All perfect praise be to Allah The Lord of The Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

On the above date, the Board reviewed the letter of the Director of the Awqaf Funds Development Foundation, No.5/5/3/321, 19/2/2007 AH, 12/1/1429 AD, whereby he asked the Iftaa` Board to clarify the ruling of Sharia regarding the draft bill of licensing and regulating Artificial Insemination centers.

 

After thorough researching and deliberating, the Board made the following remarks:

 

First: Article (10), paragraph (1) which pertains to the regulations to be adhered to by the licensed center in accordance to the provisions of this law, and reads: “Technology aiding in giving birth is the only means for giving birth after having established that natural conception is impossible, for at least one year, unless there is a pre-diagnosis indicating that the woman is barren, then the couple don`t wait for that period.“ The Board recommends deleting this paragraph since it isn`t permissible to provide technical aid for giving birth in case it has been established that both spouses, or one of them is sterile. Islamic Sharia forbids confirming sterility makes giving birth without the interference of a third party impossible, and any external interference in such situation.

 

The draft bill of birth giving aiding technologies for the year 2007, article (13), paragraph (D) states: 

As regards medical technologies, the following is banned:

 

D- Aiding in giving birth in case sterility of either spouses or one of them was established.

 

Second: Article (14), paragraph (2), which pertains to the preservation of embryos and sperms, states: “ The preservation of embryos for no more than five years, and sperms for no more than ten years for future birth giving in favor of both spouses and in accordance with the regulations and decisions pertaining to this law.“

The Board views that these periods are long and recommends limiting them to the time when the fertilization process succeeds and a healthy baby is born. Thus, this paragraph should be as follows: “The mingled sperms, or embryos shall be preserved through a written request submitted by the concerned husband, as regards the sperms, and both spouses as regards the embryos until the fertilization process succeeds and a healthy baby is born as a result. Extra sperms and embryos are left unattended until they perish." And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.

 

Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, The Grand Mufti O Jordan, Dr. Nooh Salman

Vice-Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, Dr. Ahmad Hilayel

                    Sheikh Abdulkareem Khasawneh

 Sheikh Sa`eid Hijjawi

               Dr. Mohammad Khair Al-Esaa

                                                                   Judge Sari Attieh

       Dr. Abdulrahaman Ibdah

   Dr. Mohammad Oklah

               Dr. Abdulnassir Abu al-Bassal

Executive Secretary of the Iftaa` Board, Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalayleh

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

How is the niṣāb (minimum threshold) of gold calculated when one owns gold of multiple different karats?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Zakāh is obligatory on cash and on gold designated for saving or for trade, provided the total reaches the niṣāb (minimum threshold liable for Zakah), and a full ḥawl (lunar year) has elapsed over it. The niṣāb is (85) grams of 24-karat gold; for 21-karat gold, the niṣāb equals (97) grams; and for 18-karat gold, it equals (113) grams.
If one owns gold of multiple different karats, the person paying zakāh should calculate the monetary value of all the gold he owns, combining these values together to determine whether the total reaches the niṣāb. He then pays zakāh on this combined monetary value, once the total reaches the niṣāb. The relied-upon position is to calculate the zakāh based on the buying price [i.e., the price the gold merchant would pay the owner to purchase the gold from him] on the day the zakāh obligation is due. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

I bought an apartment, and I am saving money to pay the remaining balance of its price — is zakāh obligatory on this money?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Zakāh is obligatory on all saved/hoarded wealth. Once the total wealth reaches the niṣāb (minimum threshold liable for zakah— equivalent to the value of 85 grams of pure 24-karat gold) and a full ḥawl (lunar year) has elapsed over it, zakāh becomes obligatory at a rate of (2.5%) — even if the wealth is earmarked for basic future needs, and even if the wealth's owner is in debt. Debt does not prevent the obligation of zakāh, nor is it deducted when calculating the zakāh due, based on the general and unrestricted wording of all the Qur'anic verses commanding zakāh, which draw no distinction between someone in debt and anyone else.
It is stated in ‘Umdat as-Sālik, from the books of the Shāfi‘ī school: "If someone possesses exactly the niṣāb, and owes an equivalent amount in debt, zakāh remains obligatory on what is in his possession, and the debt does not prevent this obligation" — meaning, the obligation of zakāh on what is presently in his possession.
The ḥawl (annual cycle) recognized for zakāh, as well as for the other sharī‘ah obligations that Allah, the Exalted, has imposed upon Muslims, is the Hijrī (lunar) year. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

What is the ruling on performing voluntary (nafl) prayer during the time of istiwā' (the sun's zenith) on the day of Jumu‘ah (Friday), and is this ruling specific to someone who has come to the mosque to perform the Jumu‘ah prayer?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is permissible to perform voluntary (nafl) prayer during the time of istiwā' (the sun's zenith, i.e., its highest point before noon) on the day of Jumu‘ah (Friday) — whether for someone who is attending the Friday prayer or someone who is not, and whether they are among the people obligated to attend it or not.
It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vol.1/P.310): "The more correct position (al-aṣaḥḥ) is that prayer is permissible during this time without restriction — regardless of whether the person will be attending the Jumu‘ah prayer or not." And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

I vowed to give a specific charity if a certain matter came to pass — what is the ruling on giving that charity before the matter is realised?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Fulfilling a vow (nadhr) is obligatory, in accordance with the word of Allah the Almighty: "And let them fulfil their vows." [Al-Ḥajj/ 29] And the saying of our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: "Whoever vows to obey Allah, let him obey Him; and whoever vows to disobey Him, let him not disobey Him." (Reported by al-Bukhārī.)
The Shāfiʿī scholars distinguished between a financial vow (nadhr mālī) and a bodily vow (nadhr badanī). They permitted the fulfilment of a financial vow to be brought forward — before the stipulated condition is met — but did not permit the same for a bodily vow, which may only be fulfilled after the condition has actually been realised.
Shaykh al-Islām Imām Zakariyyā al-Anṣārī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "It is permissible to bring forward the fulfilment of a financial vow before the condition stipulated in it is met — such as saying: 'If I am healed, I vow to free a slave' or 'to give such-and-such in charity' — just as it is permissible to pay zakāh in advance. This is unlike a bodily vow, such as fasting." [Asnā al-Maṭālib, vol. 4/P.246]
Imām al-Bājūrī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "Like expiation other than fasting, a financial vow — such as saying: 'If Allah heals my sick one, I vow to free a slave for the sake of Allah,' or 'If Allah heals my sick one, I vow to free a slave on the Friday following the recovery' — it is permissible to bring it forward before the recovery in the first case, and before the Friday following the recovery in the second case." [Ḥāshiyat al-Bājūrī ʿalā Sharḥ Ibn Qāsim, Vol.2/P.596] And Allah the Almighty knows best.