Saying “Jumu’ah Mubarak” (Blessed Friday) is a Bid’ah (Innovation) — His Eminence, the Great Scholar Shaykh Salih Al-Fawzan (may Allah preserve him)

Introducing newly invented matters into the religion (i.e., Bid’ahs / innovations) is something the beloved Prophet ﷺ severely warned and cautioned this Ummah against in his Khutbat al-Ḥājah (The Sermon of Need). In that sermon, he ﷺ stated:

(فإنَّ خيرَ الحديثِ كتابُ اللهِ وخيرَ الهديِ هديُ محمدٍ صلَّى اللهُ عليهِ وسلَّمَ وشرَّ الأمورِ محدثاتُها وكلَّ بدعةٍ ضلالةٌ. [ورد بزيادةٍ]: وكلَّ ضلالةٍ في النارِ)

Meaning: “(Verily, the best speech is the Book of Allah. And the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad ﷺ. And the worst of affairs are the newly invented matters (into the religion). And every Bid’ah is misguidance. [And it has been reported with an addition in some narrations]: And every misguidance is in the Fire.)”

Here is the fatwa given by Shaykh Salih Al-Fawzan concerning Friday greetings.

Question

فِي كُلِّ جُمُعَةٍ يُرْسِلُ لِي أَحَدُ الزُّمَلَاءِ، يَقُولُ وَيَكْتُبُ بِالْجَوَّالِ: «جُمُعَةٌ مُبَارَكَةٌ»، «أَرْجُو أَنْ تَدْعُوا بِهَذِهِ الْأَدْعِيَةِ»، بِرِسَالَةِ جَوَّالٍ أَوْ فِي الْمُنْتَدَيَاتِ. مَا رَأْيُكُمْ فِي هَذَا يَا شَيْخُ؟

Every Friday, one of my colleagues sends me a message, saying and writing on the mobile phone: “Jumuʿah Mubārakah,” and, “I ask you to make these supplications,” whether by mobile-phone message or on internet forums. What is your view on this, Shaykh?

Shaykh Ṣāliḥ al-Fawzān (حفظه الله) replied:

هَذِهِ بِدْعَةٌ، مَا أَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ بِهَا مِنْ سُلْطَانٍ. مَا كَانَ هَذَا مَعْرُوفًا، وَلَا وَارِدًا فِي السُّنَّةِ أَنْ يُهَنِّئَ الْمُسْلِمُونَ بَعْضُهُمْ بَعْضًا بِالْجُمُعَةِ.

This is a bidʿah for which Allāh has sent down no authority. This was not known [to Salaf] , nor has it been reported in the Sunnah that the Muslims would congratulate one another on Friday.

إِنَّمَا وَرَدَ شَيْءٌ مِنْ هَذَا فِي الْعِيدِ؛ عِيدِ الْأَضْحَى وَعِيدِ الْفِطْرِ.

Something of this nature [from Salaf] has only been reported concerning the ʿĪd: ʿĪd al-Aḍḥā and ʿĪd al-Fiṭr.

فَلَمْ يَرِدْ أَنَّهُمْ يُهَنِّئُونَ بَعْضَهُمْ بَعْضًا بِالْجُمُعَةِ.

It has not been reported that they [Salaf] would congratulate one another on Friday.

وَنَشْرُ هَذَا فِي الْجَوَّالَاتِ، وَالتَّوْصِيَةُ بِنَشْرِهِ، هَذَا مِنَ الْبِدَعِ وَمِنْ تَرْوِيجِ الْبِدَعِ.

Circulating this through mobile phones and encouraging its spread is from the innovations and from promoting innovations.

نَعَمْ.

Yes.

The phrase above is a mistake made in that manner. In understanding and practicing the religion, we should follow the Ummah’s most pious, most knowledgeable, and upright Rabbani scholars. Once it is known that such a mistake contradicts the Shari’ah, Muslims must distance themselves from it.