Temporary Closure of Mosques: Sharia Flexibility in Singapore SYNOPSIS COMMENTARY

COMMENTARY AS COVID-19 began to spread within the community, the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS) on 24 March 2020 took the unprecedented step to announce the temporary closure of all mosques in the country. [...] Upon the advice of the Fatwa Committee, MUIS also directed the suspension of the obligatory Friday prayers pending recovery from the global pandemic. [...] Singapore’s fatwa has resonated globally as other Islamic authorities and scholars similarly called for the temporary closure of mosques and suspension of Friday prayers in the face of the pandemic. [...] To date, the Fatwa Committee maintains the view that the temporary closure of mosques or the suspension of congregational prayers during the pandemic is an emergency, which required exceptional religious rulings to save lives. [...] Using the Islamic legal maxims of “emergencies permit the unlawful” and “harm must be eliminated”, the Fatwa Committee ascertained that it was therefore permissible for Muslim men to forego the obligatory Friday prayers as such large gatherings would enhance the risk of community exposure to the virus threat.