Women in the masjid: a bare necessity

Although my perspective is uniformly American, I think it's possible--even likely--that my opinion could apply to Muslims anywhere on the globe. You see, I think that women absolutely need the masjid, and that the masjid needs women. Why don't women to go masajid?

Why not, when the Prophet saws forbid men from prohibiting women from going? That means it's prohibited to prohibit women from visiting the masjid. So maybe "forbid" and "prohibit" are words too strong, yet there is a section in Sahih Muslim on the permissibility of women attending the mosque. Here is a hadith from that section:

Abdullah b. Umar reported: I heard Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) say: Don't prevent your women from going to the mosque when they seek your permission. Bilal b. 'Abdullah said: By Allah, we shall certainly prevent them. On this'Abdullah b. Umar turned towards him and reprimanded him to harshly as I had never heard him do before. He ('Abdullah b. Umar) said: I am narrating to you that which comes from the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) and you (have the audacity) to say: By Allah, we shall certainly prevent them.

What I like about these hadith is that even then, just short generation after the Prophet saws, people already sought to interject their own opinion, especially as regards women. I love how the translator used the word "audacity" for emphasis, it's so appropriate I think. But even as much as I could cry the above hadith and other narrations even from Ibn 'Umar, there will be Muslims (both men and women) who object to women going to the mosque. Why?

Let's first address how. They say the prayer of a woman is better at home. How much better? Prayer is better on congregation. Prayer is better in the masjid. Prayer is even better in one of the three masajid, Al-Aqsa, An-Nabawi, and Al-Haram. So what I should do is move into the haram, so all my salaat can be 1) at home so they're better, 2) in the masjid so they're better, 3) in congregation so they're better, and 4) in the Haram so they're super. Rolling your eyes? Me too.

You may try, as you will, to prove that a woman's prayer in her home is somehow better, and yes, I know the hadith, but I will unabashadly stand up to anyone who tells me that a salaat in my home even comes close to a salat in the masjid. For me, it doesn't even come close.

So why is prayer for a women better at home? Is it better than the masjid? Or better than congregation? Or is it just blindly "better" than something? Of all my salaat, the ones at home are usually only a step above from a solitary prayer in a public place, like my cubicle, a classroom, stairwell, or a sporting arena. I have a problem with the hadith not because I don't believe it, but because I see how it is actually discouraging women from praying in congregation, and from praying in the masjid.

Now, for a woman who finds harship in leaving her home to pray, alhamdulillah, she has the reward in her home. It's a good thing. For a woman who feels safe in her home, alhamdulillah, she has reward for praying in her home. But for a woman who is just too lazy to go to the masjid? Ah, the reward at home? For a woman who tires of listening to a slow recitation in congregation or in the masjid, praying quickly at home... you think this is good?

You see, while men are encouraged to build the community, encouraged in fostering ties simply by going to the masjid, encouraged to participate in the community affairs and education and da'wah... what is the woman encouraged to do now? Stay home. Don't help the community. Don't seek out new sisters to share company with at the masjid. Don't go learn your deen, don't call others to your deen. Just stay home. This is troubling. Isn't it troubling?

A mother says to her daughter, "Why do you go pray at the masjid? I never prayed in the masjid. Stay home." A husband says to your wife, "Why do you go pray at the masjid? Your prayer is better at home. Stay home." I find it all absurd, why??

It's not as if a woman loses reward by praying in the masjid, does she? Or by desiring to pray in congregation? Or she desires to listen to the word of Allah recited clearly instead of merely reciting the few aayaat she knows? She loses reward? You must be joking, where's your head if you say yes?

And as much as I may be challenged on this, I think it's absolutely essential for women to go to the masjid. Absolutely essential. To start with, in this society the masjid is the center of the community--a center for networking for Muslims. Where else can you go to meet Muslims? Especially Muslims who pray, who fast, who struggle to improve their deen? Not to the shishah bar. Go to the masjid. Women need to learn their deen as much as do men. They need to participate in those same classes, they need to meet other sisters, for their own good.

They also need to go to the masjid for the good of the entire community. That's because women have something to contribute, obviously. I keep hearing about the "youth" and acommodations that need to be made for the "youth." Who best to oversee that than mothers, honestly? To raise them properly. They also need to be available in this society in particular because of how women are viewed by the public. But more importantly, when a woman shows up at the masjid to learn about Islam, who is going to tell her?

If you say or give the impression women are not welcome, I can pretty much guarantee you she is going to leave. And if she knows no other way to learn about Islam, she might never come back. Have that on your conscience.

Keeping women out of the masjid (which is done either by society's customs or religious proof to justify a custom, or else fear, or arrogance on the part of the woman thinking she is too good for the masjid) prevents the youth from integrating into a community, it prevents women from learning about the deen, and provides an environment ripe for extremism by excluding a weighty opinion in the community.

If women do not go to the masjid, you see what you see in Muslim societies today where you find men who are willing and eager to practice Islam, study Islam, teach Islam. They are devoted in their salaat, respectful of elders... these are the ones who go to the masjid regularly probably. And the men who don't? They're out smoking, drinking, flirting, missing their prayers, engaging in haraam, right? Well, when a woman is left outside of the Muslim community (which happens in effect when women are excluded from the masjid) she falls into the same traps of Shaytaan. She is out smoking, drinking, flirting, and missing prayers (forget hijab!) just like the men who don't go to the masjid.

When your women are excluded, when they are prevented from fully realizing their potential in this deen and are relegated to their homes where they refuse to stay anyway, they aren't learning the deen and they can't teach it to their children. What then do you expect society to turn into?