i need advice

somewhatinspired

Junior Member
i am nearly 19 years old,
my mother converted to Islam when i was under 10 years old, my parents have been divorced since i was a baby. i am an American.
i was exposed to Islam at a very young age, and when i was around 13 i decided i wanted to be a Muslim. i took shahada, and that was about it. i have lived with my non Muslim father since i was about 8. and my step father (from india) has treated me like a piece of furniture ever since i can remember. i assume it is because i remind him of what he considers to be the past of my mother.

this is not the issue..just some background.

i grew up like any normal American... school, video games, skateboarding, organized sports. then i began playing music. when i was a little older i began smoking marijuana and tried drinking a few times....my father pretty much just let me run free like most other American parents. and my mother had in practice moved on and did the best she could to continue her new family. our relationship was horrible, i would visit her and attend jummah with my younger siblings but when my vacation was over i would fly back home and slowly lose grip on Islam. in many ways i received much more support from my father to be what i have become than from my mother supporting what i should be. but its my fault (if you can blame an 8 year old child)because i chose not to live with my stepfather who wouldn't accept me because he wasn't recognized by me as my father.

now that you have a taste of the confusion that rests in my mind ...let me present my "issue"

in high school i met a girl, her name is sam.
although in the back of my mind i knew it was haram, i began dating her.
she was a confused girl half a year older than me and i promised her the world....
you have to understand that my non Muslim father thought that i was homosexual before this because i wasn't interested in dating lots of girls and looking at *!*!*!*! magazines.

i was very naive when we met.
never the less a relationship continued. we were high school sweethearts of the loser population in my school(neither of us being very popular)

when our relationship started i was very clear about my belief in Islam(HOW IRONIC..(and immature)) and she was very interested. i look back at how stupid i was to confess my faith to someone who is strictly haram to me in the context of Islam.

we have been together for nearly four years now.
since then her family has abandoned her for being 18, graduated, and supposedly adult. she has lived with my father and i for over a year now.

she wants to be a muslim, and i want to be a better muslim, and we cant just live unmarried forever.

i have no money for college or any way to support myself on terms greater than minimum wage. and my father is beginning to get tired of us in his house.
we both pay rent.

a while back i broke in and told my mother of my girlfriend. she flipped out and wouldn't leave me alone about it untill she was convinced we were seperated. we are not separated at all.

minus my fathers small amount of support we have nobody.

i went to jummah for the first time by myself last Friday, and it was very nice.

problem being the nearest mosque is 2 cities away. it is a salafi group(i know very little about different groups within Islam...but salafi seems quite a bit strict and not very open)

i am afraid that if we try to get married, the mosque will tell us to separate. which although the relationship is haram, i think given the faith we share and the intentions we have...it would be wrong to separate..am i wrong??

my girlfriend has a scholarship of 75% tuition at any Florida college, but we cant exactly go and join an msa as boyfriend and girlfriend.

and if we were to marry,( which is what we both want)how can we afford to live on our own and hopefully go to college without any help at all.
 

AbuKhalid

Junior Member
Alhamdulillah, it seems u have realized the seriousness of the situation. If u r sincere, remember Allah is the Most Merciful. I am not a scholar, so my advise is definitely not the best, but i'll try inshaAllah.

Given the situation, where u both are living together in haraam and have done that for some time, it is very important to get some clear answers first. As you know, Islam came as guidance( to clarify) and not confuse:

- Do both of you accept the statement "There is no God worthy of woship except Allah and Muhammad is his prophet" and then believe in the Quran as the word of Allah? If yes, then u have submitted to the commands of Allah and inshaAllah faith (eeman) will increase with knowldge. In case she doesnt accept Islam, then she has to satisfy the conditions of people of the Book. Other wise, it would be haram to marry her
- I would definitely suggest a temporary "separation" as u call it, which may be a few hours to a few days, Allahu A'lam until u figure out the rest. During that time, pray salaat ul istikhaara to seek guidance in life. If there is really nowhere u can go, not even a friend, then give her your room and sleep in the living room or something.
- If both of you intend to get married afrer this, then find a wali (guardian) for her, an imaam (any muslim of good character who can lead the ceremony) and 2 witnesses (from the muslim community, whom u trust) ... so u dont need to be in a mosque for the marriage/ nikaah/ contract, if u can find Muslims from the neighborhood.
- It is important to realize that u have lived together 4 years already, and the nikaah is only performed to make the relationship halaal (accepted by Allah). So marriage is to make sure u r serious, because in Islam she has rights and u have both to struggle in life together, seeking Allah's reward.
- Allah has put our provisions for us and we do not know in what way. 4 years u have lived, and that was the way Allah has provided for you. So trust Allah, and pray salaatul Istikhaarah for guidance. So, whatever happens after that, inshaAllah will be good for you.

That was just my advice, but I hope it helped a little. Allah Knows best.

see the different fatawa from this link:
http://www.islamqa.com/index.php?ref=50508&ln=eng
 

Aapa

Mirajmom
Salaam,

Brother first of all you show great courage by asking for help. You have shown trust and faith by sharing with us. Your past experiences have made you what you are today. You have come a long way.
Although you say the masjid is two cities away...it is worth the drive. You need to be near other Muslims. They will help to ease any anxiety you may have. You need support from men.
Please keep writing to this family, there are many brothers here who will advise you. They will help to increase your knowledge.
Never, never worry about money. It comes and it goes. Marriage is far more important. You have someone you can laugh with when there is no money..and someone to spend money with when you do.
One of the benefits of marriage when you are making mininmum wage is the possibility of federal programs to assist in housing, food etc. No one should be making mininum wage..it is inhumane to pay people so little.
In my own experiences I know Allah provides in so many ways, with gentleness and more than I could dream. Believe that Allah has given you so many insights and wisdom; be grateful.
It is now time for you to put your faith into practice. Learn from our brothers.
InshaAllah, we will all pray dua for you. You have touched my heart,
you mom in Islam,
 

somewhatinspired

Junior Member
thank you all

for responses.

i don't know where you found my post as i have not been able to find it until today.

i posted the same question on a few other forums and got similar advise.

to clear a few things up i must say that my girlfriend and i live in Florida..together with my father...
and we have only been living together for 1 year.

we are both Muslim


we have decided to marry. asap. and i will be sleeping on the couch until then from this night on. i guess i didn't look at that as an option. she has no other place to sleep other than my home or a hotel. which would make me unable to afford any sort of wedding.

i am nervous that my local mosque will not take us seriously...and maybe that is dumb....but i am just nervous.

i don't know the procedures involved in marriage. if you guys could give me a link or just outline specifically what we should do to get this done correctly.

i don't even know how i would begin to present this to an imam.
should i approach him personally, or try to call him and speak to him.
will he be offended or disgusted with us?
 

MubarekMuslimah

Junior Member
Assalaamu alaikum brother

Alhamdulillah.

Do not worry about approaching an Imam. You can either go see him personally or call him. No Imam worth his iman (if you know what I mean) will be anything other than helpful and happy that the two of you have decided to marry - He should be I should think overjoyed to help you. Do not be ashamed - you dont have to tell him your life story anyway - only that the 2 of you wish to marry ASAP.

The process of Nikah ( marriage ceremony) is pretty simple. You will need witnesses and your girlfriend will need a Wali - a guardian and representative for her. This is a Muslim man usually from her family - i.e. brother or father. In the event that she does not have one, I understand she doesnt, she can have any Muslim male who will be responsible and known to her to oversee proceedings for her - she can even have the Imam fill this role. You will need to give her dowry - this is usually money or a gift but it does not have to be large or extravagent - it can be a small amount - whatever is agreeable to her and you.

I will try and find you a link from somewhere that explains everything properly about what you have to do etc.

Most of all don't worry and don't waste time - because if you are to delay you may fall into sin again ( you know what I mean I think!) as we are all human and the object of this is to make everything halal and please Allah swt.

Insha'allah all will go well.

Salaams
 

somewhatinspired

Junior Member
more than helpfull

i just attempted to contact the imam at the nearest mosque...no answer.
i intend on going to jummah prayer tomorrow. i guess the only thing i can do would be to approach him afterwards.

...i mean i know i will be happy once everything is figured out.
and his response shouldn't be any less encouraging that all of yours...but....

it just makes me nervous.

i know it shouldn't...my girlfriend is happy. because we are doing the right thing.

i am really thankful for your help.

i know a good place to ask questions.
 

Aapa

Mirajmom
Salaam,

Do not be nervous you have the prayers of all of us. We do not jest when we say we will pray. InshaAllah, all will be as it should be. You have no shame to carry...you are entering the Home of Peace and Love.
 

AbuKhalid

Junior Member
Maashaa Allah! get married tomorrow after Jum'ah brother! It seems u dont want to waste time, a very good Muslim practise, so tell the imaam that ... no need for long stories.

This is what happened to me, we (me and my wife) decided to fix the nikaah date in 1 day. It was a friday and we got married on the saturday afternoon. There was only about 10 people, and it was in a house.

If u look at the sunnah brother (concerning the prophet's marriages), Islaam has made it very easy ... but make sure that u appoint a trustworthy person for her wali, and 2 good Muslims for the witness. Maybe the imaam, inshaAllah will know more who from the community can assume those roles.

May Allah bless both of you.:shake:
 

somewhatinspired

Junior Member
again

thanks, as long as she doesn't have work and it isnt out of the imams way to arrange something (we don't have a wali, and i know no other muslims where i live)

insha Allah we will be married
 

AbuKhalid

Junior Member
advice of scholars. source:www.islamqa.com

Ruling on marrying a women when she is menstruating

Question:
Is it permissible to enter into the marriage contract with a woman when she has her monthly period?.

Answer:
Praise be to Allaah.

The basic principle concerning that is that it is permissible. There is nothing to suggest that it is not allowed in the Qur’aan, Sunnah, scholarly consensus, words of the Sahaabah or correct analogy. I do not know of any scholar who regarded that as haraam or makrooh. But some of the fuqaha’ regarded it as makrooh for a woman to have the wedding party if she is menstruating, lest her husband have intercourse with her at that time and thus fall into sin.

The common folk confuse the ruling on this matter with the ruling on divorcing a woman when she is menstruating; there is nothing in common between the two.

It is permissible to marry a woman when she is menstruating, according to consensus, and it is haraam to divorce a menstruating woman with whom one has had intercourse, according to consensus.



Shaykh Sulaymaan ibn Naasir al-‘Alwaan
 

somewhatinspired

Junior Member
good news

i had to make an appointment to even speak to the imam on the phone. but he was immediately receptive of the situation. we have an appointment for sam to make shahada today at 5:15 and he wants to speak to her directly about the situation, he said insha Allah we can marry today.
 

Izzu

Junior Member
:salam2: Dear bro somewhatinspired, God bless you. It seems He swt is on your side. Just go to the mosque and get sister Sam bound in the holy wedlock with you. May He swt make your journey safe and simple.... Amin.:wasalam:
 

Happy 2BA Muslim

Islamophilic
:salam2: Brother,

Congratulations!!!

May Allah SWT bless your marriage and grant you and your wife beautiful and pious children.

:salam2:
 

farhopes

No God but Allah
this chapter is closed.

we are now happily married.:SMILY252:

thanks for all the advice

that is really wonderful. I'm very happy for you. Tell her that she should join us.She'll be very welcomed here, and she'll learn many wonderful things about Islam and can also meet many good sisters ready to help her as much as they can:) :ma:
 

Love my islam

Junior Member
:salam2:
congratulation to you brother and our new muslim sister. May Allah bless this marriage with imaan, love, peace and pious children. Ameen.
 
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