Can I Wear a Shirt with a Cross?

Question

Is it permissible to wear the Barcelona football/soccer shirt? I love the team and support it. The only problem is that it contains a little cross related to Christians. But I don’t intend to wear it for the cross and don’t believe in it.

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

May Allah alleviate our difficulties and guide us to what pleases Him. Amin.

If the sign is visible, highlighted, and unmistakably the exact cross synonymous with Pauline Christianity, then it is not permissible to wear them.

Still, if it is not so, it may be permissible, especially if it has lost its religious connotations, i.e., if it could be mistaken for a different cross (like the first aid cross, etc.)

Imitating Specific Religious Practices and Symbols

The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) has prohibited Muslims from imitating the specific religious symbols of people of other faiths; this is especially true of those associated with shirk or association of partners with Allah. The Christian Cross is among such symbols; therefore, it is not advisable to wear such shirts if these symbols are visible.

It was narrated from Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said: “You will certainly follow the ways of those who came before you, hand span by hand span, cubit by cubit, to the extent that if they entered the hole of a lizard, you would enter it too.” We said: “O Messenger of Allah, (do you mean) the Jews and the Christians?” He said: “Who else?” [Bukhari; Muslim

‘Abd-Allah ibn ‘Umar (Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said: “Whoever imitates a people is one of them.” [Abu Dawud]

I pray this is of benefit and that Allah guides us all.
[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar Shaykh Taha Karaan.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Mawlana Yusuf Karaan, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.

He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has served as the Director of the Discover Islam Centre and Al Jeem Foundation. For the last five years till present, he has served as the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

Shaykh Irshaad has thirteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic online learning and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and has completed his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy living and fitness.