Is It Permissible to Miss the Friday Prayer Due to an Exam?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam
Question: Assalamualaykum
Is it permissible to miss the Friday prayer due to an exam at univeristy or a lecture?
Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
I pray that you are in the best of health and faith, insha’Allah.
No, it would not be permissible to miss the Friday Prayer for a lecture or meeting, for instance.
The Friday Prayer is a decisively established obligation and cannot be missed without a serious, genuine excuse.
The solution would be to prepare beforehand so that you can hold the Friday Prayer yourself with minimally three other men. Learn how to perform a basic, minimal sermon (khutba) and then perform it, followed by the prayer, in the time of Zuhr.
When things seem difficult, ask Allah for ease and facilitation. And pray the Prayer of Need (salat al-hajah) [see: How Does One Perform The Prayer Of Need (salat al-haja)?]
Allah Most High says, “And whoever is mindful of Allah, He will grant them a way out, and will provide for them in ways unimagined. And whoever places their trust in Allah, then Allah is their sufficiency. Allah’s affair will surely come to pass–and Allah has made a clear decree for everything.” [Qur’an, 65. 2-3]
And Allah alone gives success.
wassalam,
Tabraze Azam
Checked & Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.