Guidelines for Conducting Worship During Epidemic Transmission According to Islamic and Scientific Perspectives

Abstract

The Coronavirus is a large family of viruses that cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases. COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by the novel coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). The government has issued guidelines to control the spread of the virus, including matters involving activities in mosques such as the implementation of prayer rituals. Some laws and practices in the prayer rituals, issued by the mufti and religious departments, initially caused confusion among the Muslim community because such matters had never occurred in Malaysia and there was a lack of explanation by religious experts. Thus, this study is conducted to obtain views from a panel of experts on matters that can be improved and enhanced in these guidelines. This study employs the method of focus group discussions (FGD) involving 6 expert panelists from the fields of religion, science, and medicine. All expert panelists agree that the development of these guidelines is very beneficial for the community to refer to in the event of airborne virus transmission such as COVID-19 in the future. These guidelines provide justification from both Islamic and scientific perspectives to make the community more confident and comfortable in practicing them.