3h ago
Jumu'ah problem
Assalamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, Sheikh.
I am a university student from Central Asia studying in Europe. I need a ruling on whether I am excused from attending Jumu'ah prayer due to two major risks:
Family threat: My parents oppose my religious practices beyond 5 daily prayers and fasting and fully fund my studies. If my father finds out I go to the mosque (through sudden phone calls which I cannot easily lie about, or through acquaintances seeing me there), he will force me to drop out and return home. There, I will most likely not be able to practise religion on the needed level in any visible future.
State persecution: A law enforcement officer from my home country warned me that informants monitor mosques abroad and report young men from our region to security services. I already have a prior legal penalty at home just for having religious materials on my phone. If I am flagged again, I face an almost certain heavy fine or prison sentence upon returning home.
Given the severe risk of imprisonment and losing the ability to practice Islam altogether if forced back home, do I have a valid excuse to pray Dhuhr privately in my room instead of attending Jumu'ah until I graduate and become financially and legally independent?
JazakAllahu khayran.
Pending