Wives, or punching bags?
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Question
also, re: the "Wife Beating" e-mail, I realize that you did not write that response. And I actually have no factual contention based on what other scholars have told me. What I think scholars need to keep in mind, however, is how people will use what they say. It would be unbecoming of our scholars to be so out of touch with our communities as to not realize the immense problem we have with domestic violence--how prevalent it is, how trapped women -- especially immigrant women--and their children are, and how Islam is used as a justification for it. Our community cannot be trusted with certain pieces of knowledge. With the cultural background and plain barbarism that taint the mind of an abuser, no concern for adab or "what is better" is going to stop him. He's happy to conclude that anything his wife says that makes him angry grants him full license to beat her. The implications for this are horrific. If we don't even tell people that their jum'uah prayer isn't valid unless prayed in the technical, jami' masjid, why are we fueling abusers with the ammo they need to go on unpunished????? for the former, we're told not to cause fitnah. Why does no one seem to care about the fitnah in the household? Just because we don't see it? Why isn't a woman's health and safety, not to mention a stable environment for her children, an overarching concern? Our ummah should not be trusted with what we so obviously cannot handle.
This answer was published by SunniPath and is preserved as written. Rulings can depend on circumstances; for your own situation, consult a qualified scholar.
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