Is the repentance of one who has repeatedly committed fornication and abandoned prayer many times accepted, if he then repents, feels remorse, and resolves not to return to such acts? And is his wife considered irrevocably divorced from him due to his repeated apostasy by abandoning prayer? And is each apostasy considered a divorce? What should he do, considering he is currently living with his wife?
Abandoning prayer and committing adultery are among the gravest sins, but Allah accepts sincere repentance that fulfills its conditions: abstaining from the sin, regretting it, resolving never to return to it, and concealing one's own misdeeds.
As for the effect of abandoning prayer on the marriage contract, the majority of scholars hold that abandoning prayer, without denying its obligation, does not expel one from the faith or invalidate the marriage. Based on the view that one who abandons prayer is a disbeliever, if he repents before the wife's waiting period () expires, some scholars believe the marriage remains valid without renewal.
Sincere repentance is accepted even if the sin is repeated. Part of sincere repentance is avoiding the causes of disobedience, occupying one's time with what is beneficial, befriending the righteous, and frequently seeking forgiveness and supplicating.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
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