Q171 :I often have to force my wife to attend to her
prayers, but she still neglects to do so. Will it be right if I offer
her divorce?
A171 : If your wife rejects prayer altogether and
denies that it is an Islamic duty, then she cannot continue to be
married to you, because in this case, she will be denying a part of
Islam which is essentially known to all people. If, on the other hand,
she is simply negligent of her duty, then it is your responsibility to
remind her and to make her aware of the importance of attending
regularly to her prayers. You should not force her to pray, because
Islamic obligations cannot be discharged by force. You must not forget
that prayer is her duty as much as they are your duty. You are not
responsible for her, nor is she responsible for you. Everyone will be
accountable to Allah for his or her actions or omissions. Before you
contemplate offering her divorce, you should try to educate her in
Islamic principles and practices. Try to get her to understand how
important it is for her to lead an Islamic life. Most probably, her
negligence is due to lack of such awareness. The right approach,
therefore, is to strengthen her faith. Try to use different methods,
and netbine persuasion with a reminder of the different aspects of
Allah’s grace you and she enjoy. If you have children, you may remind
her that they need Allah’s protection and care. Like all parents, you
pray Him to take care of your children. How can she or anyone else pray
Allah to grant her wishes if she does not discharge the duties He has
imposed on her? Before offering her divorce, you should consider your
situation from all angles. This could be the last resort for you. It
may awaken her to the difficulty of her situation. It may persuade her
that you view her negligence very seriously. If you do offer her
divorce, you should know that if she acknowledges the duty of prayer,
you need not divorce her. It is only if she denies that prayer is a
duty binding on her that you cannot continue to be man and wife. In
this last case, she would not be a Muslim.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )