Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Our dear brother Ray Eusebio had converted to Islam while incarcerated. This week, he passed away suddenly. His family buried him without the final Islamic burial rites. The Janazah for our sisters and brothers in faith is a sacred communal obligation (Fard Kifayah).
After the 1:30 Jumu'ah this afternoon, the MCC congregation will perform his Janazah in absentia to fulfill the rights and duties owed to Brother Ray by our Muslim Ummah.
We ask Allah (SWT) to bless Brother Raymond's soul with His forgiveness and mercy, accept his prayers and good deeds, and make him among the people of Paradise. May Allah (SWT) give his family and friends patience and increase their Iman (faith).
Allahumma Ameen (O' Allah, hear this prayer).
- More Sheikh Abdullah: mcceastbay.org/abdullah
This prayer was delivered at the Muslim Community Center - East Bay (MCC East Bay) in Pleasanton, California on June 26, 2026.
Janazah al Ghaib (صلاة الغائب) is the absentee funeral prayer performed for a deceased Muslim whose body is not present. Its permissibility varies by Islamic school of thought: it is validated in the Shafi'i and Hanbali schools, whereas the Hanafi and Maliki schools generally require the body to be present.
Origin and Rulings:
The Sunnah Basis:
The practice is based on the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performing the funeral prayer for An-Najashi (the Negus, King of Abyssinia) when news of his passing reached Madinah.
When is it Performed?
Scholars who permit Salat al-Ghaib generally recommend it when the deceased passed away in a place where there were no Muslims to perform their funeral rites, or for prominent figures who provided widespread benefit to the Ummah (like righteous scholars or leaders). However, many jurists state that if the standard funeral prayer has already been performed over the deceased at their location, a separate absentee prayer is not required.
How It is Performed:
The prayer is conducted exactly like the standard funeral prayer (Salat al-Janazah), which has no Ruku (bowing) or Sujud (prostration). It consists of four Takbirs:
- First Takbir: Recite Surah Al-Fatihah silently.
- Second Takbir: Send prayers upon the Prophet ﷺ (similar to the Ibrahimi prayers in the final tashahhud).
- Third Takbir: Make Du'a (supplication) for the deceased. A well-known du'a is: "O Allah, forgive our living and our dead, those present and those absent..."
- Fourth Takbir: Pause for a brief moment silently or make general supplications.Conclude with one Tasleem to the right (some also do it to both sides).
More MCC East Bay:
Calendar of Events: mcceastbay.org/calendar
Weekly Updates: mcceastbay.org/newsletter
Support MCC: mcceastbay.org/sadaqa
MCC Podcast: mcceastbay.org/podcast
Facebook: facebook.com/MCCPleasanton
Instagram: instagram.com/mcceastbay
YouTube: youtube.com/@MCCEastBay/videos
Our dear brother Ray Eusebio had converted to Islam while incarcerated. This week, he passed away suddenly. His family buried him without the final Islamic burial rites. The Janazah for our sisters and brothers in faith is a sacred communal obligation (Fard Kifayah).
After the 1:30 Jumu'ah this afternoon, the MCC congregation will perform his Janazah in absentia to fulfill the rights and duties owed to Brother Ray by our Muslim Ummah.
We ask Allah (SWT) to bless Brother Raymond's soul with His forgiveness and mercy, accept his prayers and good deeds, and make him among the people of Paradise. May Allah (SWT) give his family and friends patience and increase their Iman (faith).
Allahumma Ameen (O' Allah, hear this prayer).
- More Sheikh Abdullah: mcceastbay.org/abdullah
This prayer was delivered at the Muslim Community Center - East Bay (MCC East Bay) in Pleasanton, California on June 26, 2026.
Janazah al Ghaib (صلاة الغائب) is the absentee funeral prayer performed for a deceased Muslim whose body is not present. Its permissibility varies by Islamic school of thought: it is validated in the Shafi'i and Hanbali schools, whereas the Hanafi and Maliki schools generally require the body to be present.
Origin and Rulings:
The Sunnah Basis:
The practice is based on the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ performing the funeral prayer for An-Najashi (the Negus, King of Abyssinia) when news of his passing reached Madinah.
When is it Performed?
Scholars who permit Salat al-Ghaib generally recommend it when the deceased passed away in a place where there were no Muslims to perform their funeral rites, or for prominent figures who provided widespread benefit to the Ummah (like righteous scholars or leaders). However, many jurists state that if the standard funeral prayer has already been performed over the deceased at their location, a separate absentee prayer is not required.
How It is Performed:
The prayer is conducted exactly like the standard funeral prayer (Salat al-Janazah), which has no Ruku (bowing) or Sujud (prostration). It consists of four Takbirs:
- First Takbir: Recite Surah Al-Fatihah silently.
- Second Takbir: Send prayers upon the Prophet ﷺ (similar to the Ibrahimi prayers in the final tashahhud).
- Third Takbir: Make Du'a (supplication) for the deceased. A well-known du'a is: "O Allah, forgive our living and our dead, those present and those absent..."
- Fourth Takbir: Pause for a brief moment silently or make general supplications.Conclude with one Tasleem to the right (some also do it to both sides).
More MCC East Bay:
Calendar of Events: mcceastbay.org/calendar
Weekly Updates: mcceastbay.org/newsletter
Support MCC: mcceastbay.org/sadaqa
MCC Podcast: mcceastbay.org/podcast
Facebook: facebook.com/MCCPleasanton
Instagram: instagram.com/mcceastbay
YouTube: youtube.com/@MCCEastBay/videos
