Not praying in masjid when imam is a government paid employee?

Question

I noticed that my relatives (living in Dubai) do not pray at the masjid, even when it is only at a 2-minute walk from their home. They offer all their prayers at home, including the Jumma salah.

Their reason is that the imam is a paid employee of the government. They mentioned that some fatwas state that "Getting paid on offering prayer and other things like teaching the Quran is haram". My relatives told me that Prophet Muhammad (SAW), Abu Bakar (RA) or any other companions of Prophet Muhammad (SAW) did not accept wages to lead prayers.

I asked them that if they go to Hajj, they will not offer prayers behind the Kaaba Imam since he is getting paid by the government. They replied that yes they will not.

So my question is that, are these people doing the right thing by not praying behind a government paid imam?

Answer 1

First of all the prayer in congregation and in a mosque is considered by some scholars as a fard (mandatory) for each man who can follow the call of the prayer and isn't hindered by a disease to go and join it. So if you are living 2 min away from the mosque and have no physical prevention, you should go and pray at a mosque (See for example this hadith from sahih Muslim about praying at a mosque is following the sunah while praying a prayer at home is not, and this hadith about the blind man who asked whether he can pray at home from sahih Muslim). So from this point of view this people are sinning if they don't attend any congregation at the mosque even if they live only 2 min away from it, and don't have any health reasons not to attend them.
And at least (assuming this isn't fard/farz) they will miss a lot of tawab by missing congregation prayers.

Getting payed for leading a prayer is considered as not allowed by some scholars (see for example this fatwa in Arabic) and allowed by others (see for example this fatwa).

Note that when it comes to details the difference between both fatwas is marginal: One would say that getting paid from the people who pray behind the imam isn't allowed, while getting paid from the government or bait al mal is allowed, while the other states that as far as the imam doesn't ask the people to pay him it's allowed to collect money for him or him being paid from the government/ministry/official pay desk (bait al mal) etc..
So the major difference is if the imam asks for a payment (this would be considered as not allowed) not if he "has been employed" to lead the prayers and paid!

Even if this was not asked there are also imams who have some deputy imam they pay half their earnings to lead congregation instead of them this is also considered as not allowed, as such an imam seems to do commerce with his "position". I just read about it here.

And Allah knows best!

Answer 2

my opinion is that- whether the imam get's paid or not his duties are still to perform his prayers and lead . the true imam's does not care about money and would still do his duties towards Allah and teach people. some imam's pray for the sake of getting paid to feed their families, there's nothing as doing free these days in our modern society ( an example). our duty is not about other people's concern or knowing if he get's paid or not. our duty is to go to mosque and perform our duties of prayers and unite together for the sake of Allah and Deen. “The people who will receive the greatest reward for prayer are those who walk the furthest distance to come and pray, then those who walk the next furthest.” Narrated by Muslim, 662.

Whoever purifies himself in his house then walks to one of the houses of Allaah in order to perform one of the duties enjoined by Allaah, for every two steps he takes, one will erase a sin and the other will raise him one degree in status.”

i hope this helps Inshallah Fathima

Answer 3

Of course, paying for the imam of the Muslims is wrong. And if the imam getting paid by the government,it should be for teaching the religious orders or tradition. In any case this is relevant to the imam and it does not renounce his condition of Imam.

Answer 4

Religion Islam distinctly prohibited worship and made appreciations and to remain grateful to Allah as a compulsory.
Logic – Sura Ikhlaas = Allah beyond time and space and so is the creator.
Salat is the best way to appreciate Allah rejecting worship and so it is a prime obligation. Money cannot value appreciations. Paying money to buy appreciations is not acceptable.