How can one deal with a 14-year-old son who sometimes misses prayers, knowing that he has been taught and reminded about prayer since childhood?
Several steps can be taken with a son who is nearing puberty to encourage him to pray: First: Supplicating for his righteousness, as it is a powerful weapon, as the prophets did. Second: Talking to him about the virtue of prayer and its reward, and the punishment for abandoning it in this world and the hereafter, and that he may be considered a disbeliever by some scholars, and that he is worse than an adulterer and a thief. Third: Rewarding him for performing prayer and making him feel that this is the most important thing to you. Fourth: Paying attention to his friends and those he associates with, and keeping him away from bad companions. Fifth: Using intimidation and light, non-injurious beating if he persists in abandoning prayer, in compliance with the Prophet's ﷺ recommendation, knowing that beating is only before puberty.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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