Should she travel and leave her sister who cannot take good care of herself?

Question: 260141

I am an unmarried muslim woman living in Germany.

The islamophobia is rising here. But alhamdulillah I now have a chance to live in Malaysia with my son.

There I can live my religion better in sha Allah. Here in Germany I am taking care of my 53 old muslim sister who lives alone in a flat but has contact to other muslims. She is suffering from a serious lack of independence since childhood. She oftenly behaves and thinks like a child and the matters of everyday life are a real challenge for her.

When there is no help from others my sister is sometimes able to act more or less independently but it is not so easy for me to estimate when that is the case. If I would leave her alone she will probably not be able to handle her live. She has a muslim son but the relationship between both is not the best and he himself has many problems in life. If I leave Germany one of my two muslim daughters will still be here living close to my sister but it might be a heavy burden to take care of my sister. (My other daughter lives about 100 kilometers away from my sister.) There could be a chance for my sister to live in Malaysia in the case that her son studies there. But he has (as far as I know) not done serious steps until now to study there. My non-muslim parents asked me before they died to take care of my sister. I can’t remember that I said to them: “I promise it!”. Probably I said, that they shouldn’t worry.

Is it okay for me to go to Malaysia? What do you think?

Answer

Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah and his family.

Firstly:

If someone in a non-Muslim country becomes Muslim and is able to practice his religion openly, and does not fear pressure or temptation that could make him drift away from his religion, then there is nothing wrong with him remaining there. But if he finds another country to which he can migrate, where he will be able to practice his religion openly and carry out the rituals of Islam in a better manner, then it is recommended for him to do that.

But staying in his own country may be preferable, if he can focus on calling people to Allah, may He be exalted, and spreading knowledge, especially among his family and relatives.

It is not obligatory to migrate except when two conditions are met:

i. When the Muslim is not able to practice his religion openly, or he fears pressure or temptation that could make him drift away from his religion.

ii. When he is able to migrate; if he is not able to do it, then it is not obligatory in his case.

For more information concerning that, please see the answer to question no. 47672.

Secondly:

There is nothing wrong with you going to Malaysia and living there with your son. You do not have to stay with your sister, and it does not seem to us that she really needs you, because she can take care of her own affairs, and she can seek the help of the Muslim women she knows, and your daughter can visit her from time to time.

You should keep in touch with her, ask after her and visit her whenever possible, so as to uphold the ties of kinship, as is obligatory, and so as to fulfil your parents’ request to take care of her.

We ask Allah, may He be exalted, to make what is good easily available to you wherever it is, and to bless you with the reward of upholding ties of kinship.

And Allah knows best.

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Source:

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymin Said In Al-Liqa Al-Shahri 17