Introduction

Islam places a great importance on the proper care,well-being, and upbringing of children, especially those in vulnerablesituations.

Sacred Law has well-defined rules that govern thevarious situations of a child, whether he or she is an orphan [yatīm] orhas been abandoned and neglected [laqīṭ].

Prophetic Connection

Foster care of children is not only established injurisprudence but also played an active role in the life of the Prophet (peaceand blessings be upon him), who himself was raised in the house of his uncleAbu Ṭālib after the demise of his grandfather. Moreover, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) also raised Zayd(may Allah be pleased with him) like his own son.  In fact, the latter became known as Zayd ibnMuhammad (may Allah be pleased with him) until the rules regarding lineageassociation were revealed mandating that any adopted child’s lineage wouldalways be attributed to his biological parents and he would not become a maḥramby virtue of being adopted.

Encouraging Others to Foster

It has also been related in books of prophetic history [sīrah]that there was a period of time when the Quraysh suffered severe economicdifficulties, including drought and hunger, and Abu Ṭālib, the uncle of theProphet (peace and blessings be upon him), had a lot of dependents under hiscare.  Seeing this, the Prophet (peaceand blessings be upon him) went to his other uncle, ʿAbbās (may Allah bepleased with him), who was one of the richer members of Banū Hāshim, andrequested him to assist in easing the burden on Abu Ṭālib. He (peace andblessings be upon him) suggested that each of them should take one child of AbuṬālib under their care. Thereafter, they visited Abu Ṭālib together and putforward their suggestion, to which Abu Ṭālib agreed. As a result, ʿAbbās (mayAllah be pleased with him) took Jaʿfar (may Allah be pleased with him) into hiscare, while the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) took Ali (may Allahbe pleased with him) into his care.[i]

Abandoned & Neglected Children

As mentioned in the introduction, the books ofjurisprudence [fiqh] also address the case of abandoned and neglectedchildren. This shows the concern and care Islam has placed on nurturingchildren and looking after their welfare regardless of their economic or socialbackground.

For example, in the time of Umar (may Allah be pleasedwith him), a man brought a child who was abandoned [laqīṭ] to him, towhich Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) responded, “His expenditure is on us[the state].”[ii]

This established an important principle that the needsof such children are to be met by the state. So long as this child is adependent, the state would fulfill all his needs and all the child’s rightswould be preserved - none having the right to take advantage of him. Further,if the person who is fostering him voluntarily chooses to spend on the childhimself instead, it would be a highly rewardable act.

In this way, Islam has emphasized the care and concernsfor any and all children in need with a special emphasis on the most vulnerable,such as orphans and girls, whose care and proper upbringing garners a very highrank in Paradise, as evidenced by numerous hadiths of the Prophet (peace andblessings be upon him), including his statement, “Whoever takes care of two girls until they reach puberty, heand I will come like this on the Day of Resurrection” – and heheld his two fingers together.”[iii]

Fostering Older Children & Hijab

No doubt, with an increasing number of Muslimhouseholds in America, there is a growing need for foster care – for childrenwho are not able to be with their parents for the time being.  Knowing that their children are placed in aMuslim home where they will feel comfortable and at home is the at least onesolace to the biological parents as they work through the process of regainingcustody of their children.

At the same time, in situations where older boys andgirls are placed in foster care, it is important that proper safeguards are putin place so that one does not do a good deed at one end only to corrupt it atthe other. There are a number of solutions to address the issue of fosteringolder boys and girls:

1.      A number of contemporary jurists have issued guidelinesregarding joint-living arrangements where non-maḥrams are also residing.This is similar to the situation where older children are placed in a Muslimfoster care home. In such cases, if precaution is taken to avoid seclusion [khalwah]between the unrelated males and females, and the older boys are told to lowertheir gazes and limit communication to that which is necessary and the women ofthe household observe hijāb, then such temporary fostering would bepermissible due to the need, especially since the alternative could mean beingtransferred to a non-Muslim foster home.  

2.      The situation becomes more relaxed if the woman who is fosteringthe teenage boy is a much older woman [ʿajuz].

3.      Likewise, another solution would be to have, for example, oldergirls placed in homes where only single women are present (i.e. divorced,widowed, etc.). Many U.S. states allow single parents to be foster care parents,so the marital status of a potential foster parent should not be a hindrance.

4.      Another option is the placement of older boys and girls inMuslim residential care facilities. While these facilities are scarce at thepresent, they are much needed so that proper care be provided to these childrenwithout encroaching on the rules regarding interaction between unrelated malesand females.

Conclusion

To take care of children in need of temporary fostercare and provide them a comfortable, inviting home is an important part ofsocial welfare and a highly rewardable act. We hope from the Mercy of Allahthat such a foster parent’s effort and sacrifice to be there in someone’s timeof need will reap immense rewards in the Hereafter. Āmīn.