Charities without inviting poor people have no reward: Scholars

KABUL (Pajhwok): A number of needy people in Kabul say they are humiliated, denied meal and in some cases served leftover food at benevolence events.

While religious scholars consider such charities as show-off and say such things have no reward.

Afghans at different times, for instance, after recovering from an illness, surge in harvests, problems, childbirth, etc., hold charity ceremonies in order to express gratitude to Allah (swt).

Also, when someone’s family member dies, they hold such a ceremony to obtain reward and seek forgiveness for the deceased.

Needy people: Well-off people invited to charity programs, not poor.

Maryam, a widow who is the breadwinner of her family of five, sells paper towels on streets of Kabul every day to support her family. She said that her husband died of cancer two years ago, her young son mentally ill and unable to work.

She said most of the days she had no sales and thus unable to buy food for her children.

In order to save her children from starvation, Maryam either begs or goes to charity ceremonies to give them a piece of bread.

She said: “One day, there was charity program near our house, they had cooked different kinds of food, the aroma of the food was all over the street, I went to have some food, but the owner of the house closed the gate and got me out of there…”

Also, Hazrat Wali, 13, who recently returned from Pakistan with his family, is selling plastic bag on the roads of Kabul due to economic problems. “I collect alms when there is no sale. A few days ago, I went to a charity program, but the owner of the house kicked me out and told me to get lost.”

According to Hazrat Wali, after the owner kicked him out with insults, an hour later he invited all beggars and distributed food leftover from guests to them.

Meanwhile, another widow, Delkhwa, who works or begs in people’s homes to support herself and her children, said: “I work in people’s homes so that my children don’t starve.”

She, who is the mother of three daughters and two sons, says that on days when she finds no work, she begs near a bakery or goes to houses where funerals and charity are held to get some food for her children.

She also criticized those organizing funeral ceremonies and charity and said: “One day, my children were hungry and there was a charity food program near our house, so I went there, but the owner of the house behaved very badly and gave me the leftover food and dragged me out of his house along with my children.”

Religious scholars: According to Sharia, such charities have no reward.

Mufti Shams al-Rahman Frotan, a religious scholar, told Pajhwok charity was only for the poor people. Here, the purpose of almsgiving can also be donation charity or Fard, which is Zakat.

He added that the philosophy of charity was to alleviate poverty, solve the economic problems of the poor, and fill stomachs of the poor, but at present, funerals and almsgiving ceremonies were held without inviting the poor.

He said: “During a funeral or almsgiving ceremony, rich people are always served food and unfortunately, the poor are asked to stay two hundred meters away.”

From Shari’ah point of view, none of such deeds are rewarded, none of them are useful.

According to him, charity should be conducted in a way that helps the poor people, not spending thousands of afghanis to invite only the wealthy people.

He said instead of cooking different meals, the poor should be offered one meal with respect.

Also, Dr. Noorullah Kausar, another religious scholar and member of the Afghanistan Academy of Sciences, said alms, charity and donation were worship and should be distributed to the deserving and the poor according to Sharia.

He added the poor should be invited to funerals, charity and alms in the first step and in the next step, other people and relatives should be invited.

“Unfortunately, nowadays rich people, capitalists and famous people are invited to ceremonies and the poor people are disregarded, which is not Shariah.”

Referring to a hadith of the beloved Prophet of Islam, he said: “The worst food is walima where the rich and wealthy are invited.”

“From Shari’a point of view, it is not right and it is illegal, and just a custom, it is not called Shari’a charity.”

He added: “Giving leftover food to the poor and good food to the rich is not charity or donation, but a party without any reward.”

Maulvi Mohammad Nabi Mohammadi, the general head of guidance and regulation of mosques at the Ministry of Hajj and Religious Affairs, by sharing the texts of the sermon under the title “Concept, cases and virtues of current charity”, says that “those compatriots who are facing problems should be helped and sympathized.” The imams of mosques are obliged to inform the people about such events in their Friday sermons.

sa/ma