If the girl gets divorced, she becomes a victim of a new problem. It is very challenging for a divorced woman to find another partner. Apart from this, she also faces the pressure of society, which is very painful for a woman. Islam is a complete code of life. It tells us how to treat a woman with respect, no matter whether she is a daughter, mother, sister, wife, widow, or divorced woman.
Is Marrying a Divorced Woman a Sin in Islam?
Marrying a divorced woman is not a defect, but a reward. Due to the lack of a religious environment and ignorance of Islamic teachings, people consider the second marriage of a woman to be defective. Not marrying divorced women is a ritual of the age of ignorance. Before the arrival of Islam in Arabia, it was a custom people used to divorce the wife and return to her, then divorce her and then return. This was the series that kept the woman in a lot of pain because there was no limit to divorce. Islam fixed the limit of divorce and gave women a respectable position.
Benefits of Marrying a Divorced Woman in Islam
There is great importance in marrying a divorced woman because our beloved Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) also did this. Zainab Bint Jahsh (R.A), who was the wife of Zaid, when divorced, Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) married her and abolished the ugly custom of not marrying a divorced woman. That is why, people who marry divorced women, repeat this Sunnah and must get the reward on the Day of Judgment. Divorced women face many problems in every society. For example, financial problems, court, and legal complications, custody rights, the rude language of relatives, issues of non-maintenance, and return of dowry, etc. Islam gives the best solution to all of them and that is marriage.
Who is Entitled to Marry a Divorced Woman The Most?
A divorced woman has the most right over her husband. If her husband again wants to live with her, he should return before the period ends. No one else is allowed to interfere in it. It is even said in the Qur’an that if a woman is pregnant, she should inform her husband that he may accept her again for the sake of the child.
وَ الْمُطَلَّقٰتُ یَتَرَبَّصْنَ بِاَنْفُسِهِنَّ ثَلٰثَةَ قُرُوْٓءٍؕ-وَ لَا یَحِلُّ لَهُنَّ اَنْ یَّكْتُمْنَ مَا خَلَقَ اللّٰهُ فِیْۤ اَرْحَامِهِنَّ اِنْ كُنَّ یُؤْمِنَّ بِاللّٰهِ وَ الْیَوْمِ الْاٰخِرِؕ-وَ بُعُوْلَتُهُنَّ اَحَقُّ بِرَدِّهِنَّ فِیْ ذٰلِكَ اِنْ اَرَادُوْۤا اِصْلَاحًاؕ
“Divorced women must wait three monthly cycles ˹before they can re-marry˺. It is not lawful for them to conceal what Allah has created in their wombs, if they ˹truly˺ believe in Allah and the Last Day. And their husbands reserve the right to take them back within that period if they desire reconciliation. Women have rights similar to those of men equitably, although men have a degree ˹of responsibility˺ above them. And Allah is Almighty, All-Wise.” [Al-Baqara, 228]
This verse indicates that Islam prefers the husband of the divorced woman to marry. The best thing for both the husband and wife is to come together again and to save a home from breaking up. If this is not possible, then Islam gives the woman the right to marry whomever she wants.
وَاِذَا طَلَّقۡتُمُ النِّسَآءَ فَبَلَغۡنَ اَجَلَهُنَّ فَلَا تَعۡضُلُوۡهُنَّ اَنۡ يَّنۡكِحۡنَ اَزۡوَاجَهُنَّ اِذَا تَرَاضَوۡا بَيۡنَهُمۡ بِالۡمَعۡرُوۡفِ
“When you divorce women and they have completed their waiting term do not hinder them from marrying other men if they have agreed to this in a fair manner” [Al-Baqara, 232]
Conclusion
Before the advent of Islam, the status of women in society was very bad, they were treated worse than slaves. Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) gave a respectable position and status to women and ordered others to do the same. We should also obey the teachings of Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ). Look around you. If someone is a widow or a divorced woman then help her in every possible way and if possible, marry her and be her support.
