The Imam’s Use of the Mosque’s Oil and the Like

Question

(1) May the mutawalli (trustee) give the prayer-leading imam, the muezzin and the like the aforementioned items, or their price, as part of their salary, which amounts to four or five rupees, or, besides the salary, simply because he considers it needed — or not? (2) Here in most mosques the imam and the like have no salary, and most imams, regarding the aforementioned things as their right, spend them in their own homes, and most of the followers in prayer (muqtadis)

Answer

(1) If there is permission for this from those who give to the mosque, then it is proper. (2) If those who give to the mosque say, “We have given these things to you; take them home and use them,” then it is proper for the imam to do so. If, apart from the giver, other followers in prayer give permission, their permission carries no weight.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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