Raising Christian Children?

September 4, 2010

752

Question

There is a brother I know who is married to a Christian woman. They have three daughters who are being raised Christian against the wishes of the father. What is the ruling for this according to Islamic law?

What are the consequences for the father and the daughters if this is the case, and is divorce prescribed? I must tell you that in this country the mother almost always gets the children so there would still be a great amount of anti-Islamic sentiment and influence from the mother and her family. The mother has sworn that they (the daughters) would be Christian even if it means the destruction of her family. The father feels hopeless as his wife refuses to even consider conversion.

Answered by: Mufti Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf

In the name of Allah the Inspirer of truth

This is a very unfortunate situation and obviously many mistakes have been made. The following should be considered.

1. Repent sincerely to Allah for having allowed oneself in such a position. This is the reason why it has been considered strongly disliked to marry the women of the Book, even though there is permissibly. However, one must never forget that Allah is All-forgiving and All-powerful. Do not lose heart in Allah for everything is in His control.

2. There should be no more children with this wife. It would be permissible in this condition to employ certain means of contraception to ensure this.

3. It seems that divorce will only aggravate the matter further. Hence, that should be avoided. Instead remain married to her and attempt in every way possible to bring her over to Islam, or at least change her mind about the future of the children.

May Allah transform the situation to the better.

Wassalam
Mufti Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf

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Dr. Mufti Abdur-Rahman ibn Yusuf

Dr. Shaykh Abdur-Rahman ibn Yusuf Mangera is a British Muslim scholar educated in both the Islamic and Western traditions. He memorised the Qur’an by heart and graduated from the Darul Uloom seminary Bury, UK, and later earned a specialised licence to issue fatwa (legal responses) at Mazahir ‘Ulum Saharanpur, India. He earned his BA from the University of Johannesburg and completed his MA and PhD in Islamic Studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. He holds an honorary fellowship at The Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Amman, Jordan. Shaykh Abdur-Rahman has the unique experience of serving as an imam in Muslim communities on both sides of the Atlantic, eight years in Southern California and over five in the great city of London—and his continued work as an international speaker and lecturer enables him to address and offer pertinent advice on current challenges that face Muslims in the West. He is the founder of Whitethread Institute, a post-graduate insititute for Islamic scholars. He is an avid traveller and continues to teach hadith and work on scholarly publications through White Thread Press (www.whitethreadpress.com). Many of his lectures are available on www.zamzamacademy.com and his courses through Rayyan Institute (www.rayyaninstitute.com).