Dought & clear,- They committed zina and got married before they repented; do they have to do a new marriage contract?.

A young Muslim man got married three years ago to a girl who only
embraced Islam a week before the wedding, andnow they have a child and
she is six months pregnant with their second child. But before they
got married they were in a haraam relationship and they committed
immoral actions several times. Now it seems to them, after reading a
fatwa, that their marriage is invalid and that it must be annulled as
they did not repent before marriage. In fact they only repented after
marriage.
What should they do now? Do they have to annul their marriage now and
then repeat it without any need for 'iddah? Does this mean that their
children are the result of haraam andimmoral actions (are they
illegitimate)? Do they come under the ruling on zaanis (fornicators)
for the duration of their marriage? Is annulment a straightforward
procedure, or is it a lengthy process like talaaq (divorce)? Can they
be excused becauseof their ignorance? All they want to do is live a
clean married life that is pleasing to Allah, may Hebe blessed and
exalted. Please note that the girl got her period once before they got
married and the young man did not have intercourse with her after that
until after they got married; that is, he wanted to make sure that she
was not pregnant before marriage. Allah knows that they did not know
that repentance is stipulated as a conditionof marriage being valid,
otherwise they would not have hesitated to repent straightaway at that
time. What about the children, do they notdeserve some consideration
in this situation? Can they stay together for the sake of the children
only, without any sexual intimacy? I tried to find out about the
matter as much as I could so that all aspects of it would beclear,
because they found two contradictingopinions that only increased their
confusion, and they do not know which way to proceed. They do not want
to live in haraam and they hope that you can explain with detailed
evidence.
Praise be to Allah.
Firstly:
It is not permissible for the zaani (fornicator or adulterer) to marry
the zaaniyah (fornicatress oradulteress) except after repenting
because Allah,may He be exalted, says (interpretation of the meaning):
"The adulterer marries not but an adulteress or a Mushrikah and the
adulteress none marries her except an adulterer or a Muskrik. Such a
thing is forbidden to thebelievers (of Islamic Monotheism)"
[an-Noor 24:3].
Repentance is achieved by regretting (what one has done) and resolving
not to go back to the sin.This may have happenedin the case asked
about here, hence they gave up zina and wanted to live a clean life
that is pleasing to Allah, as you say, and they wanted to be on the
safe side by making sure that she was not pregnant as a result of
something haraam.
The fuqaha' differed concerning the validity of a marriage between two
who committed zina, if the marriage wasdone before they repented. The
majority are of the view that it is valid, but the Hanbalis are of the
view that it is not valid, and this is the more correct view. See
question no. 85335
What is required in that case is to repeat the marriage contract. The
matter does not require a talaaq (divorce); ratherit is a repeat of
the marriage contract, in which the woman's wali (guardian) may be her
Muslim father, brother or any other male relative on the father's
side, so long as he is Muslim. If she has no male Muslim relatives,
then the imam of the Islamic Centre may act asher guardian for the
purpose of marriage, in the presence of two Muslim witnesses.
It is not essential to tell the one who does the marriage contract of
the details of the situation; itis possible to use double entendres
and to say that they want to repeat the marriage contract because of
some uncertainty about its validity, because they got married without
a wali, or for some other appropriate reason, or because it was done
in another city or country, and so on, because the Muslim is enjoined
to conceal his faults and mistakes.
Secondly:
The children who were born under the previous marriage contract should
be attributed to the husband, because they were born in a marriage
that both spouses believed to be valid.
And Allah knows best.

Marrying a young girl does not mean..

Question
Al Salam alekum, I was in debate in Islam and therewas question
regarding the answer to the following translation of the Quran from
Al_Tabari Al-Tabari (may Allaah have mercy on him) said: The
interpretation of the verse "And those of your women as have passed
the age of monthly courses, for them the 'Iddah (prescribed period),
if you have doubt (about their periods), is three months;and for those
who have no courses [(i.e. they are still immature) their 'Iddah
(prescribed period) is three months likewise". He said: The same
applies to the 'idaah for girls who do not menstruate because they are
too young, if their husbands divorce them after consummating the
marriage with them. thatthe last comment (He said: The same applies to
the 'idaah for girls who do not menstruate because they are too young,
if their husbands divorce them after consummating the marriage with
them. ") they conclude the meaning in having `Iddah after having
intercourse with minor girl who did not reach the age of puberty. by
highlighting the words (consummating the marriage) can you explain it
please. thanks.
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify
that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad
, is His Slave and Messenger.
Giving a young girl in marriage is something permitted in Islam. We
have previously pointed that out in Fataawa 88199 and 116746 .
Praisebe to Allaah, there is no ambiguity in the opinion that Imaam
At-Tabari mentioned. That is because if the young girl is not able for
intercourse, then it is not permissible for her guardian to give her
to her husband until she becomes able for it. If herhusband divorces
her before consummating marriage with her, then there is no 'Iddah
(i.e. waiting period) and thus she is not included in that verse;
rather, she is included in the saying of Allaah The Almighty (which
means): { O You who have believed, when you marry believing women and
then divorce them beforeyou have touched them, then there is not for
you any waiting period to count concerning them. So provide for them
and give them a gracious release. }[Quran 33:49]
However, if she is able for intercourse and her husband asks for her,
and she was given to him, and he had intercourse with her and then
divorced her, then 'Iddah will be obligatory upon her.
Allaah Knows best.

How to gain self-confidence

Self-confidence is the way to success in life, whereas, falling down
under the pressure of negativity, hesitation, worryand uncertainty
about one's abilities, is the beginning of failure. Much potential was
wasted and lost because their owners did not realize the value of the
abilities that Allaah The Exalted had bestowed on them. Had they
properly utilized them, they would have achieved many things. Here are
some steps one can take to discard many of the negative ideas and
feelings in life,whether they are in thoughts, behavior, morals,
habits or words. These steps would help one relieve himself of such
thoughts and feelings, free himself of their effect and receivelife
with more self-confidence and shining hopes. These steps are:
1- With neither partiality nor exaggeration, determine the most
important negative thoughts and characteristics in your life.
2- Think of every thought or characteristic separately.
3- Try to think about every thought or characteristic in a logical and
analytical way that leads you to know its causes and its true nature.
You must know whether it is indeed a reality or a mere illusion and
fantasy.
4- If it is a mere illusion, you should free yourself from it;
otherwise, you should try to discard its causes and minimize itas much
as possible. Moreover, you should know that the more deeply-rooted the
characteristic is, the more effort and time required for it to be
discarded.
5- In moments of serenity that are free from distractions and worries,
try to connect your mindand thoughts with an important positive
situation in a focused manner. Recall all the details of that
situation with voice, image, feelings, and all the surrounding
atmosphere. When you reach the peak of mental activity, psychological
relief and cheerfulness of the heart and youfeel that you are far away
from reality, try to say 'Allaahu Akbar ' (Allaah is the Greatest),
'Subhaan Allaah' (Glory be to Allaah), and Laa ilaaha illa Allaah
(There is no god but Allaah) along with making a particular motion
with your finger. This situation, for example, could be the news of
your success, your wedding day, a night that you spent in worshipping
Allaah The Almighty,hearing good news concerning the Muslims or the
first day whenyou saw one of the two Holy Mosques.
6- Repeat this many times until this positive situation with all its
feelings as well as its psychological and emotional consequences is
automatically connected with this signal. You should try this until
you reach thestate that when you make this signal, you will
automatically findyourself transferred to this positive psychological
state, even if you did not remember the material situation that caused
it.
7- When any negative feelings or thoughts occurs to you in any
situation, you should close your eyes for a while and discard
thesethoughts. Then try to imagine that there is a notice board before
you with the word "STOP" written on it. Contemplate this word for a
while and look at it repeatedly as if you can not see anything else.
8- Go beyond this word with youreyes and try to imagine that there are
flourishing gardens, floating rivers, singing birds and a gentle
breeze behind it. Keeping your eyes closed; try to enjoy all this for
a while.
First and foremost, however, one must resort to Allaah The Almighty
because it is He who makes one laugh and weep. Hence, you have to
repent and ask for the forgiveness of Allaah The Almighty and
constantly remember Him to revive your heart.

Food & Nourishment,- It is not permissible to eat foods that are prepared by the kuffaar for their festivals.

Is it permissible for a Muslim to eat the foods that the people of the
Book or the mushrikoon prepare for their festivals or accept such
foods if they are given on the occasion of their festivals?.
Praise be to Allaah.
It is not permissible for the Muslim to eat foods that the Jews,
Christians and mushrikoon make for their festivals. It is not
permissible either for a Muslim to accept such things that are given
to them on the occasion of their festivals, because that implies
honouring them and cooperating with them in manifesting their symbols
and propagating their innovations and sharing their happiness on the
days of their festivals. That may also lead to taking their festivals
as festivals for us too, or to exchanging invitations to meals or to
give gifts on one another's festivals at the very least.This is a kind
of deviation and innovation in religion. It was proven that the
Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: "Whoever
introduces anything into this matterof ours that is not part ofit,
will have it rejected." And it is not permissible to give them
anything on the occasion of their festivals.
Al-Lajnah al-Daa'imah, 22/398.