Woman leads Muslim prayers in UK
I guess many of you have heard about one peculiar event that recently took place in Oxford, UK. Female scholar from US, Mss Amina Wadud, has led group of women and men in Friday prayer. When I heard the news I got really intrigued, and decided to do some research in this subject as question of woman leading men in islamic sermon, has been raised many times.
This is not one time/ first time occurrence. Sister Amina Wadud has led friday’s khutba in 1994 in Cape Town’s Mosque, South Africa. In spite of criticism, she has continued to lead mixed gender congregations, most recent in 2005 in New York and Spain. One of the earliest cases of woman taking role of Imam was registered in 1995 in Johannesburg- South Africa. There are also many similar goings-on in Canada and US.
Scholars generally agree that female can lead kids or other ladies in pray. Mullahs from hanafi madhab go even further letting woman to lead mixed gender in pray during ramadan pray- Tarawih or within own household with group of relatives. This view according to Dr. Yusuf Al- Qaradawi has its source in Umm Waraqah Hadith, however is strongly rejected by great majority of Fiqh followers.
- The hadith of `Aisha and Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with them). `Abdur-Raziq (5086), Ad-Daraqutni (1/404) and Al-Bayhaqi (3/131) reported from the narration of Abu Hazim Maysarah ibn Habib from Ra’itah Al-Hanafiyyah from `A’ishah that she led women in Prayer and stood among them in an obligatory Prayer. Moreover, Ibn Abi Shaybah (2/89) reported from the chain of narrators of Ibn Abi Layla from `Ata’ that `A’ishah used to say the Adhan, the Iqamah, and lead women in Prayer while standing among them in the same row. Al-Hakim also reported the same hadith from the chain of narrators of Layth Ibn Abi Sulaim from `Ata’, and the wording of the hadith mentioned here is Al-Hakim’s.
- Furthermore, Ash-Shafi`i (315), Ibn Abi Shaybah (88/2) and `Abdur-Raziq (5082) reported from two chains of narrators that report the narration of `Ammar Ad-Dahni in which he stated that a woman from his tribe named Hujayrah narrated that Umm Salamh used to lead women in Prayer while standing among them in the same row.
- The wording of `Abdur-Raziq for the same hadith is as follows: “Umm Salamah led us (women) in the `Asr Prayer and stood among us (in the same row).”
- In addition, Al-Hafiz said in Ad-Dirayah (1/169), “Muhammad ibn Al-Husain reported from the narration of Ibrahim An-Nakh`i that `A’ishah used to lead women in Prayer during the month of Ramadan while standing among them in the same row.
- Further, `Abdur-Raziq reported (5083) from the narration of Ibrahim ibn Muhammad from Dawud ibn Al-Husain from `Ikrimah from Ibn `Abbas that the latter said, “A woman can lead women in Prayer while standing between them.”
Women have never stood in front of men, in regards to prophet (SAWS) teaching:
[Muslim]
So standing in the first row of the prayers as Imams do, and leading Jummah prayer as sister Amina Wadud did, seems to be totally unthinkable and unacceptable since friday pray isn’t obligatory for women in a first place.
As Imam As-Sindi explains following narration: ‘The saying of the Prophet 
: “…their homes are better (i.e. more rewarding) for them” means that they will receive a greater reward for praying at home than if they were to pray in the mosque. This is due to them being further from temptation by remaining at home. This becomes even more apparent and established by the fact that women have begun to adorn themselves and are leaving their homes in a manner which did not exist at the time of the Prophet . This phenomenon caused ‘Aa’ishah 
to state that women must be obliged to pray at home.”
Women since very beginning were commanded to distant themselves from men during prayer, so how can it be permissible for women to lead men in Salaat? Few fatawa however, like Dr. Khaled Abu Al- Fadl, permit women to lead a mixed gender congregation regardless of familial relationship and even recommend females for positions of Imam.
Why there is so much disagreements in this matter? Qur’an considers women and men equal in belief and in any acts in life and gives example of Queen of Sheba as righteous woman and excellent leader of a nation. Giving however woman legimity to lead mixed congregations for pray, is big innovation that hits tradition continued since times of Abraham and frankly speaking I’m not sure of its result. We must be aware that there was no woman ever chosen as prophet, and even this fact alone should give us something to think about. At the same time, what women call: equality of rights for both sexes in deen, can be also called: novelty, which is strongly condemned by Qur’an.
It is tough task to preserve tradition and modernize law according to needs of time and society with out fear of being misguided. Normally I would cite one chinese proverb:
but in the matter of Deen, I can only quote:
(…)do not follow your personal opinion, lest it diverts you from the way of GOD. Surely, those who stray off the way of GOD incur severe retribution for forgetting the Day of Reckoning.
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That’s a superb post Amina. So informative and well thought. If there ever should be female Imam, you would do the job justice
The word ‘imam’ as used in the Qurân means a source of guidance (e.g. Qurân 2:124). The meaning is not limited only to prayer. Thus, the leader should guide the people along the path of Islam. In other words, the role of the leader is to follow the teachings of Islam and to act as a role model.
(M.F. Osman, “The Contract for the Appointment of the Head of an Islamic State”, State, Politics, and Islam, ed. Mumtaz Ahmed, 1986, p. 56).
Umm Waraqa bint Abdallah, an Ansari woman who was well versed in the Qurân, was instructed by Prophet Muhammad to lead ahl dariha (ahl dariha means the people of her home where ‘dar’ means home and can refer to one’s residence, neighborhood, or village), which consisted of both men and women, in prayer. The “people of Umm Waraqa’s home” were so numerous that Prophet Muhammad appointed a muezzin for her. Umm Waraqa was one of the few to hand down the Qurân before it was written. Umm Waraqa wished to be known as a martyr so she asked Prophet Muhammad to allow her to participate in the Battle of Badr (624 A.D./ 2 A.H.) so that she could take care of the wounded; from that time on Prophet Muhammad referred to her as “the female martyr.”
(Wiebke Walther, Women in Islam, Markus Wiener Publishing, 1981, p. 111 (citing Ibn Sad, Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir, vol. 8, p. 335).
In 699 A.D. (77 A.H.) a woman named Ghazala led her male warriors in prayer in Kufa after having controlled the city for a day. Not only did she lead Muslim men in prayer, she recited the two longest chapters in the Qurân during that prayer. Thus, although the practice of women leading prayer is not commonly accepted, one cannot simply conclude that it is prohibited without first conducting honest and unbiased research.
Now what you think of that?
You made few very interesting remarks bluesky, thank you!
Prophet (SAWS) said: “The imam of a people should be the one who is the most versed in the Qurân. If they are equal in their recital, then the one who is most knowledgeable of the sunnah. If they are equal in the sunnah, then it is the one who migrated first. If they are equal in that, then it is the eldest. And one should not lead prayer in another’s house without permission.”
(As-Sayyid Sabiq, Fiqh us-Sunna, American Trust Publications, 1989, vol. 2, p. 56).
This verse doesn’t exclude women as “imams” as such, only indicates abilities one should have to lead pray. That could suggest that anyone regardless sex, that can read Qur’an, have sufficient knowledge about deen and Prophet, can be accepted by congregation.
Prophet Muhammad (SAWS), on two occasions, assigned Ibn Umm Maktum to lead prayer in Medina. On more than one occasion Muadh would pray isha with the Prophet and when he was finished he would return to his people and, with the Prophet’s permission, he would lead them in prayer. Thus, the assumption that the leader must actually lead the prayer is not necessarily valid.
(As-Sayyid Sabiq, Fiqh us-Sunna, American Trust Publications, 1989, vol. 2, p. 57).
About Ghazala, some scholars don’t accept her as a legitimate since she belonged to group of puritans- Kharijite who revolted against Ali. This however, doesn’t necessarily invalidate her actions.
Imam Zaid tore apart Amina Wadud’s whole argument. The Umm Waraqa narration is also explained – http://www.newislamicdirections.com/nid/articles/female_prayer_leadership_revisited/
Thank you B Majnun,
That’s an interesting article I do agree with.
God dignifies both men and women in their distinctiveness, not in their sameness. For that each of us should understand own duties and rights. For over 1,400 years men led people in pray and now suddenly for some of us, it seems to be so unfair, why? Imam is no higher in the eyes of God than the one who prays behind. If someone had right to be jealous I would say that would be men as only woman can be a mother and it had been said that: heaven lies at the feet of mother.
I don’t have inspiration to take everything from men just to prove that I’m equal to him, coz I know I’m not. The reason I admit it and I don’t really mind it is because I do believe in my own value and don’t think that everything that man does or has is better from what I do or have.
Each one of us was gifted in different way. Roles, responsibilities and rights have been given to all of us and I don’t want to waste my life on mimic man.
Woman doesn’t need to be Imam to shine with her knowledge. She can be great scholar, speaker, writer and no one will ever take it away from her. It has been said:
It is not for a believer, man or women, when Allah and His Messenger have decreed a matter that they should have any option in their decision. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger he has indeed strayed into a plain error) (Al-Ahzab 33: 36).
Had it been permitted for woman to take place of imam, wouldn’t Prophet Mohammed (SAWS) asked Khadijah, Aisha or Fatima to lead pray?
There is a lot to think of and it is always good to ask and research instead of being bling believer. Not everything might be clear for us, but in the same time, not everything had been hidden. Some answers are well-defined and right there to reach.