# Should Muslims expose the private lives of religious figures? *Private life versus abuse: report crimes, and why meet a reciter in a car park?* - URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/a6h5lye4mn8/s/39/ - Date: 2020-07-14 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (2:17:52–2:20:55) - Status: general teaching - Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6H5lYE4MN8&t=8272s - Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/a6h5lye4mn8/ **Topics:** Cults, clergy and religious abuse; Sexual ethics; Extremism, crime and justice **Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** What consenting adults do privately is their business, but abuse must be reported through proper channels; and do not meet anyone, even a famous reciter, in a car park. ## Longer summary Mufti Abu Layth says many things are feasible, but in his view what people do in their private lives is their private life, and he is not interested in a witch hunt; consensual acts between adults, right or wrong Islamically, are nobody's business. Abuse is different: if there is abuse, rape or drugging, it must be reported through the proper channels. He also advises against meeting people in private car parks, saying he met the reciter many years ago, when he was young, seemed like a lad and was a reciter with an amazing voice rather than a scholar. He asks why anyone would meet a Quran reciter, even a favourite such as Sheikh al-Sudais, in an alleyway, when there is nothing to ask a reciter except to recite. ## Sources and names cited - Abd al-Rahman al-Sudais ## Transcript (machine tier, 2:17:52–2:20:55) [2:17:14] breasts so he's saying well they started getting rough with the breasts and left bruises on them but then she I think continued to meet up with him and then she was manipulated and you see the problem is you see this is the issue that they obviously are a lot of grievances going on because this had really blown up on Twitter [2:17:52] this whole thing with Fattah and as a bystander is really difficult to say well who's telling the truth who isn't I would feel that look many things are feasible that people do unfortunately get up to stuff now I wanted to make a point here in my perspective in my perspective what people do in their private life is their private life I wouldn't personally as a person be interested in kind of these like a witch hunt for people in their private lives [2:18:30] because that is what exactly what it is it's a private life so if a person even if he was having let's say he was meeting these girls and they're doing things to me but if it's too consensual you know consenting adults doing something whether it's right or wrong from an Islamic perspective but it's nobody's business from that angle the issue is however about abuse now if there is abuse I would always say look reported it has to go through the proper channels and if there has you know people were saying there's been rapes [2:19:09] and things like this and drugging and I don't want again I don't know but they need to report these things the other thing is that look don't go to meet people in you know private car parks if you're not there to do that because look you don't look birthday from what I know I you know I've met him many years ago and obviously at that time he was very young he's just but he you know just seemed like a lad really you just seemed it seemed I don't know about now but that time he didn't really know much [2:19:47] about Islam except he was a reciter of the Quran and yet he had an amazing voice when it came to recitation but I don't think at that stage he really knew much about is like the rules or Sharia or he wasn't a scholar by any stretch now if he's an amazing reciter of the Quran like share so days let's say Sheikh sudais is one of my favorites from Saudi Arabia and I say wow I wanna meet chefs with ace and chef so they says okay meet me in this alleyway at [2:20:17] the back I would be like are you anyway alleyway yeah yeah yeah why are we meeting in an alleyway why are we meeting in it because I don't understand when you want to meet with a Quran recited what do you want to do because it's not even like okay if people might say oh he's a scholar and we're gonna I want to ask him a question what do you ask Quran recite is I don't know like what what do people ask for on recite is ## Cite Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment a6H5lYE4MN8/s/39. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/a6h5lye4mn8/s/39/ Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.