Which is better: giving zakat to the mosque whose administration disposes of it as it sees fit, or giving it to a poor widow, despite fearing ostentation due to the brother-in-law knowing the amount, and the difficulty of delivering the amount to the widow due to the sister's circumstances? Is it permissible to give zakat to the widow if she works as a farmer and spends on her two children? Should the widow be told that the money is from "so-and-so," or should it be given to her without mentioning the source? How is the hawl (one year) for zakat calculated according to the Hijri year, and what about money whose zakat was paid before its due time to coincide with the month of Ramadan?

It is permissible to reveal obligatory charity (sadaqah), and there is no harm if the husband knows about it. One must repel thoughts of showing off (riya') because abandoning a good deed for the sake of people is itself showing off. As for the widow, the criterion is not her work but her sufficiency. It is permissible to appoint those in charge of the mosque to distribute zakat, although it is preferable to distribute it in the country where the wealth is located if its people are in need. If the sister is bedridden, she can appoint someone to distribute zakat on her behalf without mentioning her name. As for calculating zakat using Gregorian years, it can be adjusted by determining the date of possessing the zakatable amount according to the Hijri calendar. If that is difficult, one can calculate the Gregorian date of zakat disbursement, subtract 12 days from it, multiply that by the number of years of delay, and then add it to the new hawl (zakat year).