Friday prayer is a duty on all male Muslims. Those who are free, sane, attained puberty, not travelling, have no excuse to miss it. It is performed at the time of Zuhr prayer and it is invalid without a sermon (speech). 

Friday prayer

Friday prayer is obligatory to every male,  

 Al-Nawawi said: ‘This hadith makes clear that Friday prayer is obligatory to every individual (male) Muslim.’[1]

On whom it is binding

Friday prayer is a duty binding on every Muslim male who is free, sane, having attained puberty and is present in the area where he resides. This means that a person to whom any of these does not apply is exempt from Friday prayer. 

It is not binding on a person who is travelling because the Prophet (peace be upon him) did not offer Friday prayer on any of his travels. When he offered the pilgrimage, it happened that the day of attendance at Arafat was a Friday, but the Prophet did not offer Friday prayer then. He offered Thuhur and combined it with Asr. A traveller who finds himself in a town where Friday prayer is offered should offer it with the Muslim community. Moreover, if a slave, a woman, a child, an ill person or a traveller attends it, it is acceptable and replaces Thuhur prayer.

Timing

Friday prayer is offered at the same time as Thuhur prayer, i.e. just after the sun has started to move down at midday, up until the shade of any object is equal to its height.

This is what is reported to have been done by the Prophet’s Companions.[2] It was also reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to pray it before that. Some scholars say that it is permissible to pray it about half an hour before thuhur time when needed.

The sermon

Giving a sermon is a rukn of Friday prayer, and it is invalid without it, because the Prophet (peace be upon him) did it all the time, never omitting it. It is of two parts that must be completed before the prayer.[3] The Imam must praise Allah, say the testimony of Tawheed and salutation and to recite at least one ayah. 

What is recommended in respect of the sermon

It is recommended to include in the sermon, or khutbah, a supplication for the Muslim community praying to Allah to grant them what gives them a happy life in this world and in the life to come, and to pray to rulers to be God-fearing and guided towards what benefits their communities. This is following the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) practice, because ‘the Prophet (peace be upon him) used to supplicate when he gave the khutbah on Friday,

It is also recommended that one person gives both parts of the khutbah and leads the prayer, raising his voice, and standing up when giving the khutbah.

It is recommended that the imam should stand on a pulpit or at a high spot so that people could hear and see him better. He is recommended to sit down briefly between the two parts of the khutbah,

It is also recommended that both khutbahs should be short, and the second should be shorter than the first.

It is also recommended that the imam should offer the greeting of salam to the congregation when he stands on the pulpit facing them.

He is also recommended to sit on the pulpit until the adhan is completed.

What is forbidden in Friday prayer

When the imam is giving the khutbah it is forbidden for people in the congregation to talk.

It is also forbidden to walk forward, stepping over people’s shoulders as they sit to listen to the khutbah, in order to reach a place in front.

Needless to say, to do so hurts people and diverts their attention from listening to the khutbah. Only the imam may do so if he cannot otherwise reach his place. It is also reprehensible to separate two people and sit between them.

Minimum requirements

If one arrives at the mosque with the Friday prayer already in progress, he is deemed to have joined the prayer correctly if he joins completing at least the second rak'ah. He will need then to add another rak'ah after the imam has finished.

If he prays with the imam less than one rak'ah, he completes his prayer as Thuhurprayer, i.e. 4- rak'ahs.

Form

Friday prayer consists of two rak'ahs with the imam reciting the Qur’an aloud in both. The Prophet (peace be upon him) did that, and what he did is part of his Sunnah. This is universally agreed by scholars.[4]

Recommended in Friday prayer

1-It is recommended, i.e. a Sunnah, to go to the mosque early to earn great reward.

2-It is also a Sunnah that one should take a bath on Friday, as noted in the hadith quoted earlier and reported by Abu Hurayrah. In fact, everyone should be keen to take a bath on Friday, particularly if one is known to have an unpleasant smell. Some scholars consider it a duty, because of a hadith

However, the most authentic opinion is that it is highly recommended.

3-Furthermore, it is strongly recommended to wear perfume and take care of one’s cleanliness, removing whatever needs to be removed of one’s body, such as clipping one’s nails. This is more than taking a bath, as it involves removing bad smells and their causes, such as removing any hair that is recommended to be shaved, such as pubic hair, armpit hair, trimming one’s moustache. 

Though there is no authentic hadeeth recommending this, there are a lot of evidences stating that the companions and the scholars of different schools of thought recommended it.

4-It is recommended also to wear some of one’s best clothes. Ibn Umar reports: ‘Umar ibn al-Khattab saw a fine suit near the door of the mosque, and said: “Allah’s messenger, you may wish to buy this suit and wear it on Fridays and to receive delegations when they come.”’ Al-Bukhari considers this report to indicate the preferability of wearing one’s best clothes for Friday prayer. Hence, he enters it in his anthology under the heading: ‘Wearing one’s best clothes.’ Ibn Hajar said: ‘This hadith is treated as evidence supporting the idea of wearing good clothes for Friday prayer because the Prophet (peace be upon him) approved Umar’s idea of maintaining good appearance on Fridays. Moreover,

5-It is also a Sunnah to pray to Allah to grant our Prophet (peace be upon him)praise and peace on the preceding night of Friday and during the daytime,as he told us to do so.[5]

6-Another Sunnah is to recite in the Fajr prayer Surahs 33 and 76, as the Prophet (peace be upon him) frequently did so, and to recite Surah 18, during the day.

7-When one enters the mosque on Friday or any other time, he is instructed not to sit down until he has offered a prayer of two rak'ahs in greeting to the mosque,because the Prophet  (peace be upon him) ordered this.[6]

 If the imam is giving his speech, the entrant is advised to make his two rak'ahs short.

8-Another Sunnah is frequent supplication on Friday, hoping to make his supplication at the time when prayers are answered.