Noor wrote:

i don't see how someone brushing past you is your fault. you didn't tell the person to brush past you nor can you prevent it :s

Yes it can be prevented by not going out when the streets/bus/supermarket is busy.

Noor wrote:

i haven't come across a fatwa that says you sin if you brush past a person or accidentally touch them unintentionally and [b]anyway, you will be covered with clothing so they wouldn't be touching your flesh[/b].

That doesn’t make it ok. Physical bodily contact with the opposite sex whom you have no relation is still a sin whether your covered or revealing flesh.

Noor wrote:

some rather be jobless and avoid shaking hands and some may not see it as a big deal wa Allahu alam.

Some women are ok with being jobless, staying at home and doing the housework and looking after the kids, only going out when the husbands permit them to do so and when they do go out with their husbands they are ok with walking 3 steps behind them.

But not all women want this kind of lifestyle and if a women chooses to work with requires her to shake hands as part of the job then she should not be judged and looked down upon. Just coz she shakes hands with someone which the jobs requires her to do so doesnt give someone the righ to make the assumption mean that she doesnt consider a big deal. Surely the judging should be left to Allah (swt)who knows us best.

"MuslimBro" wrote:

Touching unrelated members of the opposite gender is only permissible in cases of where there is a need, being a doctor or police officer for example.

Shaking hands then can be classed as necessary because its part of getting the job. If it were some random Joe bloggs that wanted a hand shake then that would be different and in that case I wouldn’t offer my hand.

"MuslimBro" wrote:

If the job requires someone to do (or not to do something) and it goes against the Shariah then it means you're not allowed to work there. What's so hard to understand?

Quote:

Shaykh Abdurrahman ibn Yusuf Mangera wrote:

No body said it was easy to follow the din in the twenty-first century; whether one is in a Muslim country or the West. Didn't the Prophet Sallalahu alayhi wasallam say that a time will come when a person following his religion will be like one holding on to a cinder, and did he not say this world is a prison for a believer and a Paradise for the non-believer. One must remember that through perseverance and refraining from sin [sabr ani 'l-ma'siyah] there are great rewards to be gained, despite the apparent monetary or such losses one may have to incur in this world.

I understand it but do you. Like I said before there is no job that complies with Sharia law . Every job goes against Sharia law. Every job requires you to commit sin. So if we don’t work how are we suppose to provide for our families?

"MuslimBro" wrote:

Based on what I know, women are allowed to go out alone but they are not allowed to go against their husbands wishes. So for example, the husband says to the wife you're grounded, and she goes out alone against her husbands wishes.

If he is saying just to be a control freak then no thats not ok.

Naz - in short the principle is if you have control over the issue.

If someone brushes against you, it is not your fault (unless you are on a dance floor or something of the like). You can abstract that to a greater degree if you want to. Is there a purpose of you being there? are you on the way to a doctor? work? somewhere else?

But that can get a little complicated and have you heard the story about the red heifer?

On the other hand, to shake or not to shake someone's hand is an explicit call of judgement. You can't "accidentally" do it.

One question is whether this is a big issue (which looking at the bigger picture, it is probably not for most people) and another is justifying it.

By all means if someone thinks they cannot survive without it, they have a choice to follow the principle or not. What they cannot do then is turn around and say that the thing is right/acceptable.

On a similar (but different) topic - if someone does not carry out a fardh action - that makes them a sinner. If they deny that action is fardh, that leads to kufr. Justifying things is a dangerous road. Just accept that you(or anyone else) is/are not perfect and that you will sin from time to time for a multitude of reasons. Accept that a sin is a sin.

Naz wrote:

Like I said before there is no job that complies with Sharia law . Every job goes against Sharia law. Every job requires you to commit sin.

No it does not. Not every job. Probably not most. Air traffic controller? Warehouse security guard? customer service? web designer? architect? chemical engineer? terrorist? Not every job makes you commit sin. Those that explicitly do (e.g. bartender, loanshark etc etc) should be avoided.

we are making a mountain out of a mole hill. This is really just a question about peer pressure. (people do not feel uncomfortable not shaking hands.)

Looks like me and my kind are going to burn in the fiery pits of hell!

While i am tempted to respond back to the reply there is not point and therefore i shall refrain.

You have your way. You wont hear a peep out of me on the matter.

The Prophet asked for forgiveness over 80 times a day. I'm sure most of us know that.

He also told us to 'avoid the MAJOR sins'.

Can we put these two facts together?

What would be the result of this?

Committing minor sins and avoiding major ones?

I think it's in our best interests to avoid ALL sins, major and minor. Yes, we as humans have weaknesses and will sin. But it is [i]very[/i] important to acknowledge that the sin is a sin, and repent sincerely and ask for forgiveness.