Can a Non-Muslim Child Born out of Wedlock Establish a Relationship with a Father?


Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

 

Question

A Muslim brother had a relationship with a non-Muslim woman in the seventies. He did not know she got pregnant and had a daughter. After 45 years, that daughter, through a DNA match, found the father, a practicing Muslim now, alhamdulillah. The brother has repented for his sins and asked Allah for forgiveness in every salah. The daughter wants to establish relationships with the father now. She and her husband are strong Christians. Should the brother establish a relationship with her?
What can this brother do now to correct this situation according to the Quran and Hadith? If there is any fatwa or expiation on this type of situation.

Answer

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.

If a child is born out of wedlock, Islamically, it is not the “legal child” of the biological father. However, with human and Islamic decency, he may help and support, especially if the child is non-Muslim, maybe this can be a means for her to come closer to Islam.

The expiation is to ask forgiveness for the past actions and support the child, especially if the child wants to establish a relationship with him.

Continue repenting and work on her so she is inclined towards Islam and a means for her to see the light as she wants to establish a family relationship.

“O My servants who have transgressed against themselves [by sinning], do not despair of the mercy of Allah. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. Indeed, it is He who is the Forgiving, the Merciful.” [Quran, 39: 53]

I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction in sha Allah.

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I pray this helps with your question.

Wassalam,

[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel

Checked and approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey.

He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled into an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and Alimiyyah sciences. He then travelled to Karachi, Pakistan.

He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Qur’an, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to both children and adults onsite and online extensively in UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences.

He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His personal interest is the love of books and gardening.