What should I do about my father who abandoned my mother while I was a fetus, then treated me badly after I traveled to him, and still invokes curses upon me and my children despite my kindness towards him, knowing that I do not love him but I fear the sin of disobeying parents?
Your father's shortcomings in providing maintenance and care are wrongdoing and a responsibility before God, due to the Prophet's saying, peace and blessings be upon him: "It is enough sin for a person to neglect those he is responsible to feed." And there is no blame upon you for not loving him; because it is a matter of the heart that you have no choice in, due to God's saying: {There is no blame upon you for that in which you made a mistake, but [only for] what your hearts intended} and the Prophet's saying, peace and blessings be upon him: "Indeed, God has forgiven my nation for mistakes, forgetfulness, and what they are forced to do." But you must be careful of mistreatment and disobedience, and maintain ties with him as is customarily possible, and if you have surplus wealth, then be good to him with it, due to God's saying: {Repel [evil] with what is best; then the one who was an enemy of you will become as though he was a devoted friend.} And there is no harm in abandoning what may cause you harm from him.
And God knows best.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/179363
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 179363
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy