Friday prayer in Islam

Muslims pray five times a day, often in a congregation in a mosque. While Friday is a special day for Muslims, it is not considered a day of rest or a "Sabbath".

The importance of Friday for Muslims
The word "Friday" in Arabic is al-jumu'ah, which means congregation. On Friday Muslims gather for a special congregational prayer in the early afternoon, which is required of all Muslim men. This Friday prayer is known as salaat al-jumu'ah, which can therefore mean "congregational prayer" or "Friday prayer". It replaces the dhuhr prayer at noon. Directly before this prayer, the faithful listen to a conference given by the Imam or another religious leader of the community. This lesson reminds Allah's listeners and usually directly addresses the problems facing the Muslim community at the time.

Friday prayer is one of the most strongly emphasized duties in Islam. The prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, even said that a Muslim man who loses three Friday prayers in a row, for no valid reason, strays from the right path and risks becoming disbeliever. The Prophet Muhammad also told his followers that "the five daily prayers, and from one Friday prayer to the next, serve as an expiation for any sin that has been committed among them, provided that one does not commit any serious sin."

Il Corano dice:

"O you who believe! When the call to prayer is proclaimed on Friday, hurry seriously to the remembrance of God and leave business aside. It's better for you if you knew it. "
(Quran 62: 9)
While business is "pushed aside" during prayer, there is nothing to stop worshipers from returning to work before and after prayer time. In many Muslim countries, Friday is included on the weekend only as accommodation for those people who like to spend time with their families that day. It is not forbidden to work on Friday.

Friday prayer and Muslim women
We often wonder why women are not required to participate in Friday prayers. Muslims see this as a blessing and a comfort, because Allah understands that women are often very busy in the middle of the day. It would be a burden for many women to abandon their duties and children to participate in prayers in the mosque. So although Muslim women are not required to do so, many women choose to participate and cannot be prevented from doing so; the choice is theirs.