Thursday, February 27, 2003

Adoption

Islam does not prohibit adopting orphans (yateem) or abandoned children. There is nothing wrong raising, educating, and treating an adopted child as your own. The only thing you cant do is give the adopted child rights which the Shariah reserves for your biological children. Adopting is a noteworthy act in Islam, and the adopter will be rewarded by admission to paradise. Allah loves this charitable act and there are numerous Quran revelations supporting this.

What I know is that the adopted child doesnt have the same rights as biological children in terms of inheritence, and the child's identity must remain the same. But anyhow, this doesnt mean that the adoptee parents have limits to what they can give the adopted child, they can give the child all they want in their lifetime. I know these facts because two of my relatives have adopted children (both were abandoned, one was found in a mosque).

It's a big blessing to adopt an unfortunate child who has no family, no home, no love to a place with all of that.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once said that a person who cares for an orphaned child will be in Paradise with him, and motioned to show that they would be as close as two fingers of a hand.

An orphan himself, the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) paid special attention to the care of children. He himself adopted a former slave and raised him with the same care as if he were his own son.

However, the Qur'an gives specific rules about the true relationship between a child and his/her adoptive family. The child's biological family is never hidden or taken out of the picture. The ones who care for a child are reminded that they are not that child's true "parents." The guardian/child relationship has specific rules about such things as inheritance and marriagability.