The Fiqh of Punctuality ~{Details- http://aydnajimudeen.blogspot.com/}

Muslims have a reputation of always being late for everything. MST
(Muslim Standard Time) is jokingly understood to be a considerable
amount of time after the agreed upon start of an event, work, school,
or meeting. What�s the fiqhof punctuality and being late?
Answer:
Wa Alaykum Assalam wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuhu,
In the Name of Allah, Most Merciful & Compassionate
Agreeing to be somewhere at a given time is like a promise and
therefore, the Fiqh of Promises applies to it. Making a promise
without firm resolve and reasonable surety of fulfilling it is
improper, butnot sinful because of secondary issues that may arise and
prevent one from fulfilling it.
However, contractual matters such as jobs, classes, appointments,
andthe like are different. Allah says: �Oh you who believe,fulfill
your contracts�. The scholars mention that �contracts� here refers to
every form of commitment. It is obligatory (fard) to be on time if
this is the expectation. Even being a little late is at least
improper, and is unbecoming of a Muslim inour times. Undue delay is
otherwise sinful, except for slight delays that are customarily
overlooked.
The believer should uphold themselves to the most excellent of
character, for the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him
peace) said �The closest of you to me on the Day of Judgement are
those best of character�.
Shaykh Muhammad Qaylish mentions that in our times, when the Shariah
is distant from society, we are ambassadors of Islam and must act in
order to uphold a favourable impression of Islam. This entails:
1) upholding commitments with excellence 2) being easy-going without being lax.
And Allah Most High knows best.

What about Desi Standard Time? Re: The Fiqh of Punctuality ~{Details- http://aydnajimudeen.blogspot.com/}

Question:
What about Desi Standard Time? Re: The Fiqh of Punctuality
Answer:
In the Name of Allah, with blessings & peace on the Beloved of Allah,
and his folk and all lovers of Allah
Walaikum assalam,
Desi Standard Time (often referred to as PST, 'Pakistani Standard
Time') would take the same rulings as Muslim StandardTime, discussed
below, because the fiqh principle is that,
"What counts in actions is meanings and not merely forms." [Majallat
al-Ahkam al-`Adliyya]
And Allah alone grants punctuality.
Faraz Rabbani.
Wassalam.
[For those of us functionally challenged when it comes to punctuality,
it is defined by WordWeb as, "The quality or habit of adhering to an
appointed time." Some claim that being late is excused in desis
because "it is genetic." However, scientific studies do not seem to
support this, nor does the claimants' punctuality in their
professional life.]

Is There Personal Jihad In Islam?

Question:
Recently, I was in southern Italy and encountered so much sadness
along the way. There is so much Mafia and prostitution is rampant
These prostitutes are from Muslim countries such asmy country of
Albania or Morocco. They do this because they are low on money (the
Moroccan ones), or because they are forced into it through fear of
death or death of a little brother (such as the many Albanian ones).
Being anAlbanian myself, I want to know is it permissible to do
anything about this? In my heart, it seems like had this occurred
during the Prophet�s time, may peace and blessings be upon him, then
the umma, or at least a part of it, would declare war and execute the
perpetrators of this crime. I want to know if in such a case, is one
allowed to declare a jihad on these people who perpetrate this crime,
in order to liberate these poor women?
Answer:
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
Not at all, only the rightfulleader of the Muslims may declare jihad,
otherwise killing such people is only a murderous crime, even ifthey
are criminals. The jihad of the entire Muslim Community right now is
toeducate ourselves that thecrime of others is no justification for
indiscriminate violence, although we are supposedto know this basic
moral already. But Allah Almighty reminds us: {O yewho believe! Be
steadfast witnesses for Allah in equity, and let not hatred of any
people seduce you that ye deal not justly. Deal justly, that is nearer
to your duty. Observe yourduty to Allah. Lo! Allah is Informed of what
ye do} (5:8).
Your own jihad is to teach yourself and your community, particularly
secularists, to return to their traditional values by which a Muslim
daughter knows that even poverty is preferable to a sordid living and
that she has, in reality, a better choice than prostitution and crime.
Liberation is achieved with the help of Allah through education, not
mayhem.

Is The Death Penalty Proscribed In The West For A Muslim Who Abandons The Prayer?

Question:
Is there death penalty forthose Muslims who don'tpray in the other
three schools of thought and lifetime imprisonment inthe Hanafi school
of thought? How are we supposed to follow this living in the West?
What if we had an Islamic state, could we have sentenced the Muslims
who neglect their prayers to death?
Answer:
The Islamic state would apply the punishments you mentioned only in
thecase of legally-qualified sane Muslims who unequivocally refuse to
pray and consider themselves free of any such obligation, or
unequivocally express denial of any indisputably obligatory belief
(such as belief in the Qur�an) or ruling (such as the prohibition of
intoxicants),whereupon the status of apostasy (ridda) becomes
applicable to them, otherwise �only� the status of immorality (fisq),
such as a person who doesnot pray but still knows that it is
obligatory and that they one is guilty of sin in not doing so. The
precondition for sentencing is absolute certainty, which spells mercy
on the basis of the rule laid by the Prophet, upon him blessings and
peace: �Ward off the penalties (hudud) as much as you can�(*), as Ibn
Majah titled it: �through ambiguities.� Our Mother `A�isha said, �It
is preferable for the ruler to pardon mistak�enly than to punish
mistakenly.�
In an immoral society, we are supposed to rush after the immense
reward of holding fast to the priceless jewel of Religion - thank you,
our Lord, for guiding us! - because the Believer there is as the
living among the dead. If we cannot, then we must find a way out of
that society and move elsewhere for dear life, just as our Lord told
us that we shall be asked, �Was not Allah�s earth wide enough for
you?� A few bows and prostrationsand then we die and eternity begins.
Eternity. Does it compute for you toleave prayer and then losethat?
May Allah bring us out of our heedlessness and open our eyes to the
basic common sense of never abandoning prayer, which is our first and
last protection from disaster.
(*) Narrated from al-Tirmidhi and Abu Hurayra by Ibn Majah.