Thursday | 28 March 2024 | 17 Ramadhan 1445

Fatwa Answer

Question ID: 1414 Category: Dealings and Transactions
Urgent: Deceased father money for a mosque

Assalamualaikum warathmatullahi wabarkatuh,

I pray this message finds you well. My father passed away suddenly few years back and while he was alive he had mentioned to us that he wanted to build a mosque in his mothers name. At the time of his death, the money we recieved from his work were distributed via Shariah rules. During the distribution we had kept aside some of his money to one day build a mosque in his mothers name to fulfuill his wish. We put the money in certificate of deposit (CD) which will be maturing in 2022. Recently we had a land available to buy and build a mosque in a needy area. If the CD is cashed out prematurely there would be a find of upto 20% which is a significant loss. Is it appropriate to make other arrangements of the money we had set aside from my father's to build the mosque and make the intention that due to the money being unavaible to use, we put forth our money in exchange of the CD? 

Please advise as soon as you can.

JazakAllah Khayrun.

بسم اللہ الرحمن الرحیم

الجواب وباللہ التوفیق

Since after distribution of the father's inheritance, all heirs have given money for the mosque with their consent, then it is valid to build a mosque with that money.

Because there is fear of loss in using that money at the current time, it is permissible  to make an alternative arrangement for that money to build the mosque, for which you can pay later with the deposited amount.

Note: It should be clear that if interest is given for saving money in CD account, it is not permissible to keep the money and take interest on it. Instead, it is necessary to donate the earned interest to the poor without the intention of reward.

فقط واللہ اعلم بالصواب