An imam’s taking a monthly stipend

Question

In the mosque of our neighbourhood there has for a long time been no formally appointed imam, while the fard prayers have been performed under the imamate of whatever suitable man is available at the time. Now the worshippers of the mosque have split into two groups. One group says that an imam should be formally appointed and given some monthly stipend.

Answer

If, even without appointing a salaried imam, the five daily prayers are performed in the mosque in congregation and are led without payment by a man fit for the imamate — even if it is not one person but several, so that sometimes one leads the prayer and sometimes another, and there is no difficulty in this — then there is no need to appoint a salaried imam.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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