Muslimah Working As A Marriage Counselor

[ummtaalib]

Q.)As a Muslimah, would it be halal for me to work as a
marriage counselor? I feel like we need more Muslim counselors. Muslim should be
helping out other Muslims. We can’t always go to non-Muslims for certain things.
I am studying Psychology so I will be going in to family and marriage
counseling. My concern is that sometimes I will have to talk to couples. Is
there any option for me in this field? It is really my passion to help people.

 

A.) Working as a marriage counselor in order to assist Muslims
is a noble task, which will Insha Allah prove fulfilling as well as rewarding
provided it is done with sincerity, within the framework of the Shariah and for
the pleasure of Allah SWT. We advise that when embarking upon the same one
should seek advice from Ulama pertaining to one’s methodology and the advice one
imparts as there may be certain specific guidelines of Shariah that one should
not overlook.

At the same time, involvement in domestic matters and
disputes is generally the responsibility of pious family elders and Ulama.
Women, due to their soft nature could be swayed by emotion and thereby not be as
effective in such circumstances. However, for woman to offer general
encouragement and motivation is an act of goodness and reward.
 

Nevertheless, it is our observation that due to escalation in marital
problems in our community the need for pious, competent and experienced women
counsellors does arise in the initial stages of trauma and to settle emotions
etc. Women tend to relate better to females in these initial stages. Ulama are
then required to assist the matter further.

 

Hence, you should work within your home and restrict yourselves to
counselling women only. Try your best to avoid consulting with the husband and
if there is a genuine need to do so and there is no Alim or pious experienced
male to refer them to then one may do so in the presence of some mahram or at
least in the presence of the wife whilst observing the strict rules of purdah
e.g. speaking from behind a screen and not speaking in alluring tones etc.

 

One should also be aware that there is a big difference between counselling
in Islam and in other conventional forms of counselling. In Islam, obedience to
Allah and following the sunnah form the cornerstone of our advices and
counselling.

And Allah Ta'ala Knows Best

By Shafiq Jakura / M.D Mangera

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