After the Muslim Council of Britain and the British Board of Scholars and Imams called for Muslim communities across the United Kingdom to suspend all “congregational activities,” most mosques in the country closed their doors.
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| Regents Park Mosque in London. |
However, not
all Muslim leaders seemed to follow the advice. A fatwa by several British
Muslim scholars called for mosques to remain open. “Masjids in the United Kingdom
should remain open for congregational salah [prayers] until and unless the
government places a total restriction on religious places,” a fatwa by Deobandi
scholar Yusuf Shabbir said.
Shabbir’s
fatwa was approved by Mufti Shabbir Ahmed of Darul Uloom Blackburn and Mufti
Muhammad Tahir of Darul Uloom Bury.
“Those
diagnosed with coronavirus or with its symptoms should perform salah [prayers]
at home. Similarly, those with underlying health conditions, particularly the
elderly, are excused from attending the masjid,” the fatwa said.
“We are
aware of the advice of some organisations in relation to over 60s not attending
masjids. However, over 60s should not be discouraged from attending the masjid
if they do not have any underlying health conditions.
“It is recognised
that there are mixed views in relation to masjids remaining open. These
decisions are not taken lightly, and everyone recognises the severity of the
pandemic. Those who wish to attend the Masjids should not be belittled or
prevented from doing so,” the fatwa concluded.
The edict
was issued March 17, one day before the British government ordered the closure
of schools and universities and said this year’s academic exams would not take
place in June as scheduled.
On the same
day, the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) — the largest umbrella group of Muslim
associations and mosques in the United Kingdom — said it supported mosque
closures to protect the community from coronavirus.
“We all have
a public duty to protect one another from harm and it is evident the most
effective way to do this now is to avoid social contact as much as possible.
This includes all walks of life, whether social, work or the mosque,” said MCB
Secretary-General Harun Khan.
“Whether it
be at the mosques (particularly Friday prayers) that draw crowds, including the
elderly, vulnerable and those at high risk, weddings, social events or simple
day-to-day activities, it is imperative that this extraordinary step is taken
to ensure the safety and wellbeing of our communities and our country as a
whole,” he said.
A statement
from the British Islamic Medical Association called on mosques to close over
coronavirus fears.
“We must
emphasise our strong concern that mosques and madrassahs… can contribute to
significant viral transmission in our population,” the statement said. “We do
not want our community to panic and act rashly, especially in our duty to Allah
and his houses of worship and are aware of the comfort and security our
community institutions and mosques offer us in times like these.
“But we must
stress that it is unsafe and harmful to continue business as usual, or even
with significant adjustments that some institutions have made to date.”
The
statement concluded that continued congregational activity represented a major
risk to Muslim communities, “especially our elders and those most vulnerable”
and called on mosques to act.
Although
most closed their doors, some remained open, raising questions among some
people.
“I am not
praying jummah (Friday) or other prayers in the mosque due to the spread of the
coronavirus,” said Noor Dahri, director of the Islamic Theology of
Counterterrorism think-tank.
“Mosques
should be closed immediately for all prayers but imams are not taking the issue
seriously. They are playing a blame game that other mosques are open so why
should they close.” – Arab Weekly
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