Reason behind flogging an Egyptian Physician 40 lashes in front of a mosque:

He missed a congregational prayer.

 On the 20^thof  Ramadan 1432 H., The Zulfa common court of  Zulfa Provence in Saudi Arabia, sentenced a 58 years old Egyptian Physician, head of anesthesia department at the ICU of the Zulfa general hospital, to 40 lashes, to be administered all at once in front of the mosque, for failure to participate in a congregational prayer.

To the SALAFIS we say:

Is this based on what Allah, Glory be to Him, had decreed or is it based on following Whims?

Following Allah’s commands means implementing his decrees in His book, or the Prophet’s tradition, Peace be upon him, in this matter. Since Allah’s book does not contain such a penalty for this behavior, neither does the Prophet’s tradition, then it must be based on whims.

It has been documented that there were those who fell behind in joining the congregational prayers during the Prophet’s time, and he was about to burn their dwellings, but he refrained from doing so, did not flog them or punish them in any way, for there was a hidden wisdom behind it, as a prayer should be willingly, totally and sincerely dedicated to Allah, and not for fear of punishment.

And regardless of the wisdom behind not punishing the offender, it is agreed upon, when there is an authenticated practical tradition attributed to the Prophet (Pbuh), religious inference and deduction is nullified and no longer permitted. When the Prophet (Pbuh) sent one of his companions to Yemen as a governor, he asked him how he will rule when confronted with an issue, the governor replied: according to Allah’s book, the Prophet asked, and if you could not find an answer?, he replied according to the Prophet’s tradition, the Prophet asked, and if you found no answer either? He replied, I will reason the issue out and use my own judgment. Consequently, to inference or to use one’s own opinion when there is an example left for us by the Prophet is not permissible. The Prophet’s tradition related to this issue is to strengthen the believer’s faith in Allah, to strengthen his devotion to Allah, to strengthen his reverence, his awe, his submission to God Almighty, to exemplify that congregational prayer is an expression of being rightly guided, and those who miss it for no valid reason are but hypocrites and weak in their faith. The Prophet did not punish those who lagged behind, rather he tried to cultivate and nourish their love for Allah. The Quran says: “Let them beware, those who deviate away from His commands, a calamity might befall them, or a painful retribution.”

In as much as failing to join a congregational prayer is considered a perversity, flogging the perpetrator is a worse perversion, because it is transgressing Allah’s dominion in legislating and enacting laws, it is also a perversion by not following the Prophet’s tradition. We wonder how the Salafi scholars in Egypt are reacting to this deviation from their teachers and those they emulate.

What makes it more cunning, bitterer, more painful and confirms the notions that the matter is no more than whimsical behavior, is to find out why the judge sentenced this specific physician at this particular time, considering that he has worked in Zulfa for 26 years.

 The father of said judge, a member of ( The Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice) , summoned the physician to his office, and complained to him, that his wife had a surgical procedure performed at the hospital, while her face was unveiled. He admonished him severely for uncovering the female patients’ faces during the operations. He demanded that he gives the patients the anesthetic, and to leave the operation room immediately thereafter. The Dr. explained to him the necessity of uncovering the face to insert a breathing tube in the esophagus, and the need for his presence to monitor the patient’s well being during the operation, and that it was his duty to do so and anything less than that might jeopardize the patient’s life and subject him to legal ramifications, but the judge’s father was not convinced and threatened him with retribution, producing a written statement for him to sign acknowledging that he does not participate in congregational prayers, which the Dr, refused to sign. The judge’s father was furious yelling at him: “when I order you to do something, you obediently say yes”, (The reader might find it strange and hesitant to believe that, but the Dr., swears by Allah that those were the judge’s father words).The Dr. replied, “you are not my benefactor; King Abdullah is my benefactor, besides how can you ask me to sign, knowing that I do participate in the congregational prayer, except for emergency operations, or when I am totally exhausted”, which leads to the conclusion that the real plaintiff in this case is the judge’s father and not the mosque’s Imam.

Is it clear now why Egyptians are concerned that the Salafis might assume leadership without constitutional guidelines? A human being is a human being no matter what, when or where, and the tendency for deviation is ever present, especially before the temptation of power. So, would the Salafis be understandable of the worries of the other side or group? To let this understanding be the stepping stone for bridging the gap and for rapprochement towards constitutional criterion that guarantees rights and liberties.