- Dina Mustafa
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The statements of Dr. Ahmed Karima, Professor of Comparative Jurisprudence at Al-Azhar University, regarding the marriage of an expatriate with a second woman in Islam, the controversy and a wave of anger across social networking sites in Egypt. What are the details of the story?
What did Karima say?
Karima said in a television interview, “The first wife must help the husband marry a second wife, if he wants to pardon himself so that he does not commit an immorality,” he said.
He also clarified that “the first wife’s permission before marrying the second is not mentioned in Islamic law.”
Polygamy Permit Details
The BBC has tried to clarify the matter from d. Ahmed Karima, who confirmed in exclusive statements to the BBC that “the media in the third world is a hasty media, as it did not understand the statements he made,” as he put it.
Karima told the BBC: “Firstly, I did not discuss polygamy at all, “there is no desire or fear”, but I was asked during an interview on Egyptian television what if a husband traveled to a scientific or diplomatic mission for several years. He communicated with his wife and needed to marry a second woman, so I answered if he marries, and I suggest to the first wife not to object, even if it is the first and it is better that he travel to her every 4 months. They asked once more and if circumstances prevented? “Marry as many women as you like, two or three or four.”
Karima blamed what he called “women’s organizations with special orientations and draft anti-religious laws” and for being behind the attack on his statements.
– BBC: Why did you state that it is permissible not to inform the first wife of the second marriage?
generousBecause there is no text in Islamic law that obliges the husband to seek the wife’s permission before the second marriage, or to notify or inform her.
He added, “Who would abolish what God has permitted, but they want to abolish Islamic marriage and promote civil marriage?”
– BBC: Do you think that these statements are in the interest of the stability of families and relations between husbands and wives?
generous: “And if the woman is deficient, does she cancel what God has permitted in the Qur’an? We cancel what the Prophet did of polygamy and the companions? Is abandonment of religion the solution now?”
– BBC: But the concerns here that these statements are used in popular The second marriage or even the third?
generous: “And what is the problem with that? I mean, which is better, the female partner or the female friend?”
– BBC: I didn’t understand, there must be a girlfriend or analyte?
generous: “Yes, of course. Today in America and Europe you have more girlfriends than girlfriends. They want to spread immorality in Muslim countries.”
– BBC: What regarding the feelings of the wife and her rights?
generous: “Shari’a and the law in Egypt has drawn a way for her, such as the wife of the imprisoned and the wife of the captive, to ask for divorce following 4 months, which is the maximum period for the husband’s absence from his wife. And of course it is a right that is neither an obligation nor an obligation. To marry someone else” (following divorce).
– BBC: if Hto The solution is to marry another woman who is asking for a divorce?
generous: Islam is characterized by purity and chastity, but some people want to circumvent and imitate others and imitate others. In Egypt, for example, a woman wants the husband to be “disabled” in front of her and she falls short in her duties, but she does not want him to marry another..
– BBC: And if you are not guilty?
generous: “Oh, my lady, the Shafi’is and the Hanbalis said that if a woman fulfills her duties, then it is better to limit oneself to one. But because I have seen many models that fall short of her husbands, and therefore they have the right to marry the second woman. The principle in Islam is that it permitted pluralism and did not prohibit it like other religions.”
– BBC: What is your comment on the statements of Dr. Come onMenna Naseer، Professor of Philosophy and Creed at Al-Azhar University، that “The wives of the Prophet were greatly affected by polygamy“؟
generous: “These are false statements. Dr. Amna specializes in philosophy and has nothing to do with Islamic jurisprudence, and she has previous statements that I reject and object to completely and in detail, and I will not respond to them.”
– BBC: Did you limit the man’s marriage to the second in case he was an expatriate only?
generous: “Not me, but this is one of the constants of Islam in the Qur’an and Sunnah. Which is better: to marry a second wife or commit an obscene act, what should the husband who has not seen his wife for four and five years do?”
– BBC: So you only identified a second marriage in one case?
generous: “No! In all cases, Islam has “permitted polygamy.” We are not a Catholic Christian. We are talking today regarding the small population of the Gulf. Why should they marry and have children? Why does a Palestinian not remarry in order to have more children? He rejected what God permitted and permitted – we cannot accuse Islam that polygamy has evils.
“Voice of Al-Azhar” replies
Dr. Ahmed Al-Tayeb had confirmed that “a Muslim is not free to marry his first wife, as this is a license restricted by restrictions and conditions.”
He added: “Those who say that the origin in Islam is polygamy are mistaken, and the issue witnesses injustice to women and children in many cases.”
He stressed that “pluralism is one of the things that has witnessed a distortion of the correct understanding of the Holy Qur’an and the Sunnah of the Prophet,” adding that “there is no legislation or system that has stopped and taken care of the issue of women’s oppression just as the Qur’an has stopped and just as Islamic law has stopped. Those who say that the origin of marriage is polygamy are mistaken, and on my responsibility The original in the Holy Qur’an is: “If you fear that you will not be equal, then one.”
The Sheikh of Al-Azhar called on Muslims to re-read the verse in which the issue of polygamy was mentioned in full, and to consider what preceded it and what followed, stressing that “polygamy is a right for the husband, but it is a “restricted right”.
He pointed out that “the license needs a reason, and if the reason is not, the license is invalidated. Polygamy is conditional on justice, and if there is none, it is forbidden, and that justice is not left to experience, but by mere fear of unfairness or harm, polygamy is prohibited. The Qur’an says: “If you fear that you will not be fair, then one.” “.
He stressed that “he does not talk regarding the prohibition or prohibition of polygamy, nor does he call for legislation that abolishes a legitimate right, but he rejects the abuse of the legitimate right and deviating from it.”
Second marriage rules
In exclusive statements to the BBC, Dr. Abbas Shoman, supervisor of the Fatwa Committee at Al-Azhar Al-Sharif: “The second marriage is proven in the Qur’an, but this legal marriage must be understood in its correct framework, although the second and third marriages are also permissible, but most people’s conditions do not suit them, and they are not allowed to marry another woman in Our contemporary time, for a husband who suffers in fulfilling the rights of one wife, how can he marry a second, third, or fourth woman?
He added: “Polygamy in women is permissible yes, and no one can refuse it, but we have to correct the culture of the people in it, as it is not permissible without controls. It is permissible with strict controls, the most important of which is to achieve justice between wives, and this is difficult to achieve in light of the circumstances that suffer.” Including societies now. For most men, if they can achieve financial justice, they will not be able to do physical, mental or psychological justice. The issue is not a matter of money, but it is a question of achieving justice in all its branches.
Schumann considered that “whoever cannot achieve this justice is not allowed to marry the second or the third, because it will oppress the first and the second, and therefore the treatment is not by rejecting polygamy and not by calling for it because it is contained in the Qur’an, but by conveying the correct meaning, and this is conditional in the verse, so achieving Justice is difficult and unattainable for many men.”
– BBC: But there are those who rely on the verse that showsh Polygamy in The Quran، What’s your opinion?
Schumann: Understanding this verse in its correct context relaxes men and comforts women, and saves us from sterile arguments that will not end, and the demand to prevent or open the door, both of which are incorrect and do not agree with the purposes of the Sharia.
– BBC: why is it spinning We always talk regarding preventing a man from committing immoral acts, and we do not ask him to pardon himself؟ Why don’t we look? to me bitter feelingsae?
Schumann:“I mean, if we talk regarding the expatriate, why did he not take his wife with him while traveling?”
– BBC: AndAssuming that he left it due to certain circumstances?
Schumann: “Then he must return to her, and one of his duties is to return to her, for she is as he needs her and she needs him, and therefore, he has no absolute right even to travel without the consent of his wife from the beginning.”
– BBC: What is the impact of these statements on the stability of society?
Schumann: “These statements are not within the framework of legal rulings, and there is nothing wrong with them within the framework of the call. Imposing it or inviting women to it and responding to this are all matters of da’wah, and therefore calmer than the fear of women is not imposed on the woman, and she has the right to reject it, but it is not imposed on her as a legal ruling, and she has the right to ask for divorce.
He added: “There are many cases in which polygamy is permissible. Wars, in which there are many women and few men, may allow polygamy, as long as there is the ability to have polygamy. In another poor country with economic crises, narrowness of life, psychological and health pressures, in this case It is not permissible, because at that time the achievement of justice in this case is missing. In other cases it is forbidden for a person, if the husband is not able to fulfill the rights of one wife, this is forbidden from marriage in the first place, because it will oppress her.”
– BBC: What do you think of the opinion that calls for the wife to help her husband in chastity and not to commit immorality?
Schumann: “It is a matter of advocacy and not of legal rulings. It is a directive and nothing more, it is a non-obligatory ruling. But just as he calls on the wife to help the husband, he must also address his speech to the husband to relieve his wife’s suffering. Just as he needs a wife, she is also a human and needs her husband, so If he travels alone, he should not travel for a long time, to the extent that the Companions specified that the period of a man’s absence from his home should not exceed 4 months, and following that he must return to his wife and preferably accompany her with him if possible.
He added: “So there is a cure, but the solution is not to let her suffer and marry someone else. It is to solve the man’s problem and not the woman’s problem. Therefore, the solutions must be equal, and differ according to people’s conditions, and discussed in a calm community dialogue.”
– BBC: What is the effect of these statements on Wife’s feelings؟
Schumann: “If the statements are understood as individual directives and not as legal rulings, then this is what is required. They are individual directives and nothing more, and they should not be adhered to. They may result in harm if they are misunderstood in society. Whoever understands them as a legal ruling, destroys societies and may result in A great harm, because the man will consider it as one of his rights, travel away from his wife and then marry whomever he wants from the women and the number he wants at a time when he does not meet the needs of his wife.This speech should not be in this way, but I do not comment on anyone, and this is my frank opinion from during my specialization.
– BBC: What regarding the fact that the first wife should not be informed of the second marriage?
Schumann: “This is also one of the issues that is being treated wrongly. It is true that the Sharia does not say that the wife should be informed, but the Sharia does not state the prohibition of informing the wife of the second marriage, so why do we cite one case and reject the other?”
He added: But it is not appropriate for a man to hide the matter of his second marriage from his first wife, as long as he considers it one of his rights, so it must be public, so why should he hide it and not talk regarding it from the beginning with his first wife? If he wants to marry once more, he must allow (his first wife) Thus, if she refuses, this is her right, and he must abide by what was agreed upon with her. Either he should marry her and abide by this condition, or he should not marry her from the beginning.”
He concluded: “Whoever wants to marry (with another) and is able to do so, must inform his (first) wife that she will either stay with him or let her go.
Reactions on social media
Ahmed Karima’s statements provoked strong reactions on social media, between those who reject the idea of a second marriage and those who see it as a reason to destroy the family, and supporters of this trend, considering that the second marriage is legalized by Islam, jurisprudence and the Sunnah.
The team that supported Karima believes that “the second marriage is permissible and there is no doubt regarding its sanctity.”
Some agreed with his opinion, stressing that it is “a science, not a point of view.”
While a large number of tweeters expressed their anger, stressing that a generous call for wives to help their husbands remarry is a great injustice and unfairness to women.
Heba Kamal asked: “The wife may help the husband with the costs of life, but how can she help him to marry another?”
Another mocked the fatwa, calling for “respect for her feelings as a human being.”