What is the ruling on making up missed prayers and paying Zakat for past years, and is it possible to start anew with repentance, taking into consideration that the questioner is thirty-one years old and feels hardship?

Summary of the Fatwa: The preponderant opinion is that a person who intentionally abandons prayer and fasting is not required to make up for them. Instead, they must repent and perform many good deeds. As for Zakat, if it was abandoned along with prayer, the ruling differs based on the timing of abandoning both prayer and Zakat. The preponderant opinion is that making up for it is not obligatory if one apostatized before the completion of the hawl (one lunar year). However, if one used to pray but withheld Zakat out of stinginess, or if one prayed sometimes and abandoned it sometimes, then making up for Zakat is obligatory. The difference of opinion regarding making up for prayers is strong, and the more cautious approach is to make them up.