Adoption is one of the most wonderful acts that a human being who cannot have kids, or just wants to make one happier and give it a chance for a normal life, is often followed with a lot of pain.
First, before anything, there is a decision that a person or a couple has made – a conversion that is not at least a bit easy
To raise someone who is not your own flesh and blood.
After that, after that decision is made comes the long and hard process that includes endless paperwork, some educational seminars, interviews, and background checks.
People who want to adopt may find and present references, give back their family histories and bear it all – from their financial situation, assessments of whether their house is safe, and assessments of their pets.
They need to dig deeper into the past, the relationship history, and a detailed history of childhood.
Those people who enter this process are in obligation to lay down even expectations of how they would be as parents, how they would discipline the child, and so on…
This is demanding and also painful exposure of intimate feelings, and then after everything is done, comes the moment when a child wants to know where he comes from, and this is truly something that is maybe not so pleasant.
Also, there can be scrutiny that comes from the surroundings, and in some cases, depending on the region of the world, the country in question, and also religious beliefs, there are some rules that are associated with views on the matter of adoption.
Here, today we want to learn – is adopting allowed in Islamic law?
Is Adopting Haram or Halal in Islam?
This is a question that is not at all simple to answer because in Islam the adoption of a child is allowed in one case and not in another.
It is also very different from os of an adopted child among Muslims and among Americans and Europeans.
In Islam, it is even highly recommended and commendable when a child is adopted, who is abandoned and on the street, and whose origin is unknown.
But that child, who was adopted by an Islamic family, will have to respect certain rules, as well as his adoptive parents.
When that child becomes an adult, the mother will no longer be able to stay in front of him with her hair down and will have to wear a hijab.
Because that child is not related by blood to his guardian.
The same applies when it comes to a female adopted child, when she becomes of age, she will not be offered uncovered in front of her father, because she is not related to him by blood.
That child will, regardless, be entitled to one-third of the inheritance from his guardians when they die.
If a child who is given up for adoption is unable to support himself or his parents have died and there is no relative to take him over, the adoptive parents will not give their surname to that child, because that would be Haram.
If a child’s last name is known, he will keep that last name and carry it throughout his life, to know whose he was and from whom he came. because otherwise, the adoption would be Haram.
So this is not to say a real adoption, but as the Muslims call it, “Sponsorship”.
This means that they will raise, feed, educate, and take care of that child until he stands on his own feet and becomes independent to take care of himself.
Which actually means that the concept of adoption is different than in other countries.
When a child is adopted in the West or in Europe, that child receives the surname of its guardians, while in Islam the child keeps the surname of its biological parents.
In Islam, things are much more rigorous because of the very religion and customs that the people respect and strictly adhere to, and when the child becomes of age, he will have to respect certain rules of behavior as well as his “Sponsors”.
Regardless of the fact that the child has grown up with the adoptive parents, the guardian will have to dress in her house as if she were in front of a stranger.
This means that she will have to be covered, which is something that is an aggravating circumstance.
Likewise, if it is a female child who is “adopted” when she becomes of age, she will have to be covered in front of the guardian and she will have to respect that.
Therefore, we believe that due to the circumstances, these children grow up very quickly and become independent, because the community becomes unnatural and they begin to understand it quickly.
Adopting a child who has been left without parents is a great act and it is highly commendable because it is an obligation that not everyone will accept lightly.
Especially if you know me, who are the parents and ancestors of that aunt, and what kind of genes she carries.
In Islam, it is very commendable when someone takes a child from the street into his home and decides to take care of him until he grows up enough to take care of himself.
Especially since in Muslim countries, the system of adoption and assistance to adoptive parents has not been developed, as it is in the West and in Europe.
So in Islam, everything is up to the adopters or “Sponsors” as Muslims say.
It is also strictly forbidden in Islam for someone who is not of the Muslim faith to adopt a Muslim child.
Adopters, i.e. Sponsors, must be strict with the Islamic faith and not otherwise.
So when a Muslim family welcomes a child from the street into their home and decides that Fr. he is old, that is to be “Sponsored” that child is not considered a family member and does not take their last name.
But regardless of that, according to the rules, he has the right to one-third of the inheritance in the event of the death of the “Sponsor”.
Regardless of how close they became with the child while he was growing up since they are not related by blood to him, that is. that with them, they will have to follow the rules of dress and behavior as if they were living with a stranger.
Let us briefly remind you that women in public must be dressed according to the customs and rules that have been set and must be followed.
This means that a Muslim woman in public must not show any part of her body except her face and breasts.
The hair must not be visible and if she is already wearing make-up, it must be very discreet and inconspicuous.
Jewelry must not stand out and nothing that would attract the attention of other men and women.
More about adopting
In the beginning, we have said that this is not an easy process, not for anyone who is divided, the child later when he or she grows older and wants to know and meet his biological parents.
Of course, here, and we are not speaking now of the good intentions of we hope the waste majority of those who want to adopt, but we are talking bout those who are wanting to take advantage.
Cause, there are those cases, and we as a society must be very careful when it comes to it, especially when we see a lot of changes in the less privileged countries.
What is also problematic for some is that there is a waiting list for the baby and before it, they need to make a decision will they take the baby or an older child, will they take a baby with special needs, etc?
Also, there is a possibility for a biological mother to change her mind and keep the baby.
In any case, this is not just a legal, but also an emotional rollercoaster for all those who want to enter the process of adoption, which is truly a wonderful and kind act.
Conclusion
Now let’s go back to that and remember how much of a sacrifice a Muslim woman has to make when an adopted child becomes an adult, that is when he turns 18.
Of course, provided that the child is a male, a Muslim woman, regardless of the fact that the child grew up with her and considers her a mother in some way, she will have to dress at home as if she were going out in public.
This means that when he is at home, she will not have the comfort to relax and unwind in her own home.
Rules are regulations and they are there for a reason and must be followed at all costs.
If a female child is adopted, when she reaches adulthood, in the house where she grew up with her foster parents, she will have to dress as if she is going out in public, which means that she must be covered, so that she does not draw attention to herself in any way.
When she gets married and leaves at home, in front of her husband and her children, she will be able to relax and be more comfortable.
Regardless of all this, Muslim families are ready to make sacrifices and adopt and raise a child.
In the West and in Europe, the situation is much easier for adoptive parents.
An adopted child is considered a member of the family and receives the surname of its adoptive parents.
In Islam, adopting children is more like foster care.
It’s just that in the West and in Europe, foster families receive monetary compensation in a certain amount from the state, for supporting the child until he is old enough to continue on his path, while in a Muslim family, everything is up to the guardians and therefore their “sacrifice” is greater.
So, as we have seen, in Islamic law there are two ways how children are adopted.
One way is permitted and it is seen as halal, while the other one is seen as haram, meaning that it is forbidden by Islamic rule.
The first way is that a child is adopted and no one knows that he or she
is adopted and the child’s real identity is hidden. He becomes a part of the family where he or she is not born.
He is registered as a child of those parents that adopted him.
Now – this is a major sin and haram, as the Quran strictly forbids it.
The one who performs such a sin is never going to reach the heavens.
The other way this can be done, and as you can guess this way is allowed based on the Islamic rulings is – the form of adoption of a child that can or does not need to be an orphan, and the family takes care of the child.
This family takes care of the child, they are in fact guarding and bringing that child into the world and taking care of it until that child grows up and becomes autonomous.
One very important part of the story about adoption is that the real parents of the child are known, they are spoken of, and they are written in the documents that are available.
In a case that the adopted child is an orphan and his parents are not knowns, in that cases, it is not permitted to give him to any current known family or family from which he does not come.
Also, it is haram for the family of the one who has adopted that child, as this would be a way of a lie as this child does not belong to the family.
Those who have adopted must give a name to that child – and there are several ways to be done.
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