This Article Could be Zakat-Eligible

21 Comments

1. 

   Spirituality

   June 10, 2019 at 2:27 PM

   As Salamu Alaikum,

   Jazak Allahu Khayran for this very necessary article.

   Do you have any organizations that you recommend for zakat payment? What about Islamic Relief USA, Helping Hands for Relief and Development, Zakat Foundation of America?

   Many of these organizations have a mission of working with the poor, and also, allow one to designate their payment as ‘Zakat.’

   Reply
   • 

     Osman Umarji

     June 11, 2019 at 12:55 PM

     My advice is to seek to out an organization that gives 100% of zakat proceeds to the poor in your locality or greater region. Ask a respected scholar for specific recommendations in your area.

     Reply
     • 

       Spirituality

       June 11, 2019 at 2:20 PM

       Jazak Allahu Khayran for your response!

       Unfortunately, as you mention, ‘respected scholars’ do not seem to be trustworthy regarding this issue…

       If anyone knows of any respected institutions in the Baltimore/Washington area that gives 100% of the zakat proceeds to the poor, please let me know!

       Reply
       • 

         Ahmed Shaikh

         June 11, 2019 at 6:38 PM

         You are right. Even terms like “Scholars” in the US Muslim community are questionable and up for grabs. There is no uniform criteria for what is “respected” (and by whom). So it comes down to who you respect and why. Like Zakat organizations, there is no accrediting body for Shuyukh, Imams and such, no disciplinary process, no codes of conduct and no minimum level of qualifications. I point this out only because often we use scholars as a crutch, we go by endorsements of charismatics to substitute for our own judgment. It would be great if there were accredited Zakat distributors who followed uniform, strict audited standards.

         Some local communities have brothers and sisters that work hard though to distribute Zakat to the poor and needy. Shuyukh will not audit them, that is not what they do. Any endorsements they get are usually in the “he is a good brother” genre. I have seen Shuyukh endorse organizations, products, and services they know next to nothing about. You should do your own due diligence. You can of course also distribute Zakat yourself to the poor and needy that may be among your own family or friends, or of people that you know and trust to do this. You can also look to an organization with a master strategy on accomplishing something big with their Zakat distributions. There are large Muslim organizations that take their role as Zakat distributors seriously and want to do it with ehsan (though they do it using their own standards and not uniform standards, which don’t exist). You should make sure where you donate meets the criteria for the kind of impact you want. It would be too easy for me to say “donate to charity X.” I won’t do that. For your research, I would suggest looking at the following:

         1) Does the charity publish Zakat distribution policies?
         2) Does it claim everything it does is Zakat eligible? If so, stay away (though feel free to read and comment on their website (I’m looking at you, MuslimMatters).
         3) Does the charity have a policy on segregating Zakat funds?
         4) Does the charity have a policy of not using Zakat funds for overhead? This is not a deal killer, it may be part of having a sustainable operation and Allah expressly permits it in the Quran. But if there is an endowment that pays for overhead or if it is a small, well-run volunteer operation, bonus points.
         5) Are there independently-audited financial reports? If they do, read it or have it read by a trusted friend who likes reading these things.
         6) Read the organization’s 990, is something out of whack? Note Masajid almost never have 990s since they are not required to file them, but they should make their financials available if you are going to donate to them.
         7) Does the charity use Zakat funds only to benefit the poor and needy (that may include services)? Yes, there are other legitimate criteria, but so long as people are starving or have no access to water that won’t make them sick, c’mon.

         Reply
         • 

           Tariq al-Timimi

           June 12, 2019 at 6:41 AM

           Totally agree with you. It’s refreshing to see these issues being addressed frankly, and, with respect to your point about about “scholars” (whatever that means today–as you mention) endorsing causes and charities that they have no idea about, this displays a lack of ethical practice on their part: that endorsement is, in fact, a shahada – one that they will most certainly be asked about. It devalues the entire exercise.
         • 

           Spirituality

           June 12, 2019 at 1:05 PM

           Jazak Allahu Khayran for your very comprehensive response and guidance. It will help my process of searching for an organization to give my zakat to, Insha Allah!
       • 

         Ramy

         June 23, 2019 at 7:58 AM

         In response to the question about a local organization in the Bal-DMV area that gives strictly to the poor: see the Islamic American Zakat Foundation (IAZF) headed by Dr Imad ad-Dean Ahmad.
         https://www.iazf.org/

         IAZF sticks to the 8 categories of zakat, and can diligently provide it’s records if asked.

         Reply
     • 

       Imran

       June 17, 2019 at 3:03 PM

       Just an issue I’ve been grappling with re the “locality” clause. I am conflicted between giving zakat that will literally save the lives of poor Muslims in Africa or Yemen or Myanmar via digging wells, food staples, medical aid, etc. on the one hand, and say, cancelling some student debt for a local student in Laguna Beach, CA who has decided to obtain their Masters or PhD in Gender Studies or Psychology at USC for $75,000 a year on the other.
       In considering local preference, is there or shouldn’t there be some antecendent presumption that absolute living standards for those in “poverty” be roughly equal?

       Reply
       • 

         Osman Umarji

         June 17, 2019 at 11:28 PM

         There are numerous considerations regarding local vs global zakat giving that will inshaAllah be the subject of a future article. However, I will say that student loan debt, especially for graduate school, absolutely does not qualify for zakat. The category of people in debt is not a free for all who take loans for non-essential things like higher education, mortgages, cars, etc.

         In short, give your zakat to a local organization you trust. If you really want to give globally, give some of your zakat to a global cause through an organization that gives 100% of the proceeds to the needy.

         Reply
         • 

           Imran

           June 18, 2019 at 11:46 AM

           JazakAllah khair Sh. Osman, looking forward to the article. It is timely because literally last week at Jumah the khateeb advocated cancelling college student debt with Zakat instead of sending it abroad. It would be interesting to address what “local” means in our modern technology-driven times versus in the Prophet’s (saws) time.
2. 

   Abdallah Jadallah

   June 10, 2019 at 9:56 PM

   Great article!! This has been on my mind for a long time.

   Reply
3. 

   Tariq al-Timimi

   June 11, 2019 at 5:46 AM

   I never comment, but here I must: thank you for this piece, that tackles several of the frustrations I have recently had with this very hazy, loose take on zakah.

   The only thing I would highlight though is that, in terms of da’wah and jihad, many jurists (eminent Hanafi ones in particular) recognised their relationships as congruent: that is to say, jihad is da’wah by other means (to take a leaf out of Von Clausewitz), and vice versa.

   Reply
   • 

     Ahmed Shaikh

     June 11, 2019 at 5:54 PM

     Jazakallahu Khair. What do you think about using Zakat funds to pay for a TV series about the Sahabah? Say it is intended for dawa?

     Reply
     • 

       Tariq al-Timimi

       June 12, 2019 at 11:04 AM

       Thank you for your question and engagement. The question is difficult to answer, and before I do, I’d like to provide some pointers:

       – zakah is a ‘ibada and a pillar; it has vertical-horizontal dimensions (that is to say it is a haqq towards Allah, and towards the people – all people that is, including non-Muslims); it is reasonable for the most part (viz. we can understand its aims and purposes); and Allah has set out fairly explicitly the categories whom are eligible (which is contra the Qur’anic norm – an important point here in fact, but it’s one too long to go into here at length).

       The question then becomes: what exactly is the purpose of this TV series about the Sahabah? And – crucially – under which of the eight categories may it be subsumed? They’ll argue that it falls under fi sabil illah (small letters to distinguish it from Fi Sabil Illah – a little more on that in a moment).

       This would bring us back full-circle to asking: what is the ambit (the ‘bandwidth’) of this category. Here there are three positions essentially:

       [1] the historical, classical meaning, that itrefers to qital (definitely the stronger case, IMO – for numerous reasons that would take too long to go into);

       [2] a minority modern take, the linguistic meaning: anything done for Allah’s sake), but this is sorely lacking for many reasons – again going into it would warrant a lengthy essay, but I will raise two important points here:

       i) even those who adopt this expansive definition, they will limit its scope (anyone reading their works on this will pick up on it immediately): they explicitly state that the purpose of fi sabil illah is to establish God’s rule on earth or that which upkeeps the existence of the religion and the masses (which is what Rashid Rida says, although it went without mention!), or to ‘revive an Islamic life in all spheres’. I’ll leave it to your mind to determine how this can be seen as violating all sorts of terrorism legislation in the West (something that, alarmingly, many charities and ‘scholars’ seem oblivious too when discussing this issue).

       ii) That even if one were to accept that fi sabil illah can be used for anything that is in the wide interests of the people, we have to seriously contend with what a widespread interest here is (maslaha ‘amma) – and, furthermore, and I always recall here something al-‘Uthaymin said regarding this: that even if one were convinced that it may be used for all purposes that serve the din, I would still refuse to give a fatwa in accordance with this (because of the huge possibilities for abuse – something you alluded to in your piece and comments).

       [3] Finally we have the centrist position (which takes some slight semantical gymnastics, but we don’t need to get into that), which is to say that it IS indeed for jihad – but jihad is not qital. Here they argue that since jihad is a means, and not an end in itself, we need to ask: for what purpose was jihad legislated (they will say: to defend the din, to spread the din, and to protect life and wealth). On that basis they say that whatever fulfils those functions may be subsumed fsa. (They have other arguments too, by no means at all is this comprehensive).There are many holes in this case, however, not least is the question of indeterminacy: who is to say that this fulfils or doesn’t fulfil the purpose of fsa? Again, I raise the point I did above about the implication here with issues to do with counter-terrorism legislation. If your intention (explicit or inferred) is that it is fi sabil illah – and you accept, as they often unwittingly do, that fsa = jihad in it’s broadest remit – then you are, essentially fundraising for terrorism (even if all you’ve done is collect money for a school or orphans).

       If we go back to our point earlier however regarding zakah: if it is ma’qul al-ma’na (reasonable), then what if someone were to argue that taxes paid to our governments are tantamount to zakah (and fulfil the purposes of zakah, not all of which have to be ‘activated’ at all times)? The concern I have here really is that this very important point seems to go totally unaddressed, even though, it was entertained and discussed in the classical sources and in more recent times.

       They will say: no, it is a ‘ibada and therefore requires a specific intention. We say, let’s accept this (there is a different take as to the type of intention required, one that is more consistent with the aforementioned point): fine, give that money with the intention of zakah (in fact, my understanding is that some mechanisms of this sort are already in place in some countries) – again this opinion is there in the sources.

       They will say: but zakah is for a particular categories and purposes! We say: but you’ve already widened those to encompass pretty much anything!

       Going back to your question then, what we require – casting aside all the points of concern I raise above (and I have many others too) – are a set of constraints and limitations (if we go with fsa centrist position). Since we have no authority to tell us (or do we? Fiqh Councils? The law of the land?): this is valid and this is an invalid cause, we are left, for our own purposes with having to devise a set of parameters enshrined in the texts. Some of these may be:

       1) (The question of alternatives):

       Do we have other good, successful series on the sahabah? Yes.

       2) (The question of needs):

       Is there a need for another one? IMO: No.

       3) (The question of proportionality):

       Is this an issue that is core/central and must be addressed? IMO: No. Even if one has disparaging opinions regarding the companions, there are still more fundamental concerns and issues to deal with. Besides, one really must ask themselves to what extent raising issues about the disputes among the companions, the battles and whatever else could serve the da’wah and religion in the current climate.

       4) (The question of public interest)

       Is this an issue effecting the masses of people, or even the masses of Muslims? Is it a harmful phenomenon for humankind? IMO: No, not at all. Most people aren’t occupied with these issues at all, I’d argue.

       Therefore in order to determine (without an authority) whether something falls within the rubric of fsa: is it needed? ii) proportionate. iii) public interest. iv) alternatives.

       Perhaps a final point worth noting/repeating: most of the fatawa and opinions permitting zakah for the purposes of the expansive fsa, appear to invariably mention the existence of legitimate authorities/a recognised collective of Muslims (a jama’ah, most often one engaged in FSA proper). There’s a huge elephant in the room, therefore, and one that I never see raised, as to what extent these charities are entitled to collect and administer zakah in the first place. In fact, upon surveying an anthology of such opinions regarding expansive fsa, one would quickly come to realise that they generally mention them in the context of ‘widespread public interests of the Muslims’ or in the context of a fatwa given to a government – in other words, not charities, and not for all these spurious causes, with all due respect to the intentions of those behind them.

       Anyway, these are really little more than a few of the issues that have been on my mind lately, and I am very tempted to raise a bundle of others, but this is way too long as it is. Bottom line my respected brother Ahmed is: if I were asked, my answer would be a firm no, but they’re welcome to other sources of revenue (again with a string of conditions attached). Wallahu a’lam.

       Reply
4. 

   DI

   June 11, 2019 at 10:55 AM

   THANK YOU!

   Yet another example of Frankenstein Islam of the West that is totally out of touch with Islam of the ummah. Our community is better at creating thieves and greed than it is genuine concern for the fuqara. Islam is becoming much like affluent Christianity and affluent Judaism in the West.

   Our ulema are to blame too for creating the ‘its okay to be rich’ attitude and encouraging a prosperity gospel Islam. Endless fundraising without accountability has become a sect in itself.

   di.

   Reply
5. 

   Ahmad

   June 12, 2019 at 12:27 PM

   Mashallah excellent article. There is an organisation in the UK which campaigns for local distribution and as of last year has started to donate funds to community and leadership development type funds.
   From the looks of it a lot charities do not adequately differentiate between zakat and sadaqah, and those that do sometimes take lax opinions.
   This is in particular to fee sabeel illah and paying people from zakat money.

   I have no problem with a charity saying ‘ to administrate your donation of £x we will place a charge of y%’ and that y% to be spent as sadaqah.

   For those in the uk i contacted UWT and was satisfied with their criteria of transferring wealth to the poor (please can brothers/sisters verify this statement is accurate at the time of donating)

   Reply
   • 

     Spirituality

     June 12, 2019 at 1:03 PM

     “I have no problem with a charity saying ‘ to administrate your donation of £x we will place a charge of y%’ and that y% to be spent as sadaqah.”

     As Salamu Alaikum, I completely agree. This seems to be a win-win situation…

     Reply
6. 

   Imran

   June 17, 2019 at 2:49 PM

   Shukran for an essential article. Agree with you 100%.

   Reply
7. 

   muslims life

   July 12, 2019 at 5:43 AM

   My advice is to seek to out an organization that gives 100% of zakat proceeds to the poor in your locality or greater region. Ask a respected scholar for specific recommendations in your area.

   Reply
8. 

   Donate Your Zakat

   July 23, 2019 at 6:41 AM

   Mashallah amazing article. There is an association in the UK which battles for nearby conveyance and starting a year ago has begun to give assets to network and initiative improvement type reserves.

   Reply
9. 

   Abdulrahim

   September 30, 2021 at 5:36 AM

   A very informative article. Thank you for sharing such amazing information with us. I really appreciate your research.

   Reply