Answer
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
Skipping Friday prayer cannot be excused by psychological problems, as was unanimously agreed upon among scholars of Islam.
Responding to your question, Dr. Salah Al-Sawy, the President of the Shariah Academy and the Secretary General for the Assembly of Muslim Jurists in America, states:
Let us also remind you of the Hadith of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) in which he stated that Allah Almighty rewards every Muslim for anything harms him even a thorn prick.
So, never feel sad for what had happened to you. Rather, you should be patient and satisfied imploring Allah Almighty to abundantly reward you for it.
I ask Allah Almighty to protect you, grant you speedy recovery, and reward you highly. Allah Almighty has made this tribulation as a gift for you by opening doors of worship you wouldn’t have experienced otherwise. So, praise be to Allah Who makes it easy for His servants after any hardship.
I want to emphasize to you that Friday prayer absence cannot be excused by such types of excuses, as was unanimously agreed upon among scholars of Islam.
Other congregational prayers attendance is less strict because attending congregational prayer in times other than Friday is a controversy among scholars whether it is required or just encouraged.
But, if you can observe all congregational prayers, that should be your first priority. Observing Friday prayer should be the absolute minimum though as whoever misses 3 Fridays out of negligence, Allah will conceal his heart.
Almighty Allah knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.