Referring to the celebration of the Prophet’s birthday as proof that it is permissible to celebrate Christmas is a notion that is based on false premises, because celebrating the Prophet’s birthday is not permissible, as it is an innovation that has been introduced into the religion, and whatever is compared to an innovation (for the purpose of justifying it) is also an innovation.

It is prohibited to spread the messages that urge Muslims to gather to pray two Rak`ahs, or read Quran, or remember Allah, or offer Du`a on New Year’s Eve. It is an innovation to adhere to these acts of worship on such occasions.

If the Imam’s mistakes do not alter the meaning of Al-Fatihah, there is nothing wrong with praying behind him. But if his mistake changes the meaning, then people should not pray behind him if he does not benefit from prompting.

1- It is permissible for the supplicant to ask of his Lord by virtue of the Quran, because that comes under the heading of seeking to draw close to Allah by virtue of one of His attributes. 2- The most correct scholarly view is that it is prohibited to seek to draw close to Allah and ask of Him (Tawassul) by virtue of the Prophet. 3- Seeking to draw close to Allah by virtue of created beings comes under the heading of reprehensible innovation, and is objectionable according to what is commonly known among people and on the basis of the wording itself. 4- Seeking to draw close to Allah by virtue of the trumpet blast, and the progeny of Nuh, and the caliphate of As-Siddiq, and the courage of ‘Ali, and so on – is something that came about as a result of the supplicant’s attempt to be poetic and make things rhyme [in Arabic], without thinking about the meaning.

Fasting in Ramadan and other acts of worship are not valid unless accompanied by the proper intention and it is not prescribed to utter it out loud.