Can Marriage Occur Through Text Message?
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
I’m having misgivings regarding marriage. I have read that marriage can occur over text message with a proposal being sent as a text message, but can it occur with acceptance being sent as a text message first?
My misgiving is that what if someone is talking over text to a male and says the word ‘yes’ in response to a question being asked, for example, ‘Is this okay?’ The misgiving I’m having is what if the guy makes a proposal and uses the ‘yes’ response to make a marriage happen between him and the girl? I know this is not likely possible as the girl said ‘yes’ to something else.
Can any of the ‘yes’ I have written in this question also cause marriage?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.
A marriage will not occur if one talks over the phone with a male and replies with yes. You are just having misgivings, and rest assured, remain positive, ignore the past, and look to the future.
Marriage by Text
Marriage by text message is valid if the man or woman sends a proposal, for example, I marry you, and the other reads the message audibly and accepts it audibly, in the presence of at least two male witnesses or one male witness and two female witnesses.
The nikah will only be valid if the message is read audibly or the acceptance is audible. Similarly, the physical presence of the witnesses at the time of acceptance is a must in this particular situation.
[Ibn ʿAbidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
وصورته أن يكتب إليها يخطبها فإذا بلغها الكتاب أحضرت الشهود وقرأته عليهم وقالت زوجت نفسي منه أو تقول إن فلانا كتب إلي يخطبني فاشهدوا أني زوجت نفسي منه. أما لو لم تقل بحجرتهم سوى زوجت نفسي من فلان لا ينعقد لأن سماع الشطرين شرط صحة النكاح، وبإسماعهم الكتاب أو التعبير عنه منها قد سمعوا الشطرين بخلاف ما إذا انتفيا
(رد المحتار ج-٣ ص-١٢)
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 the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the 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 interest is a love of books and gardening.
