Islamic apologists argue that Islam is a Feminist Religion, citing the provision that allows a woman to stipulate a condition at the time of marriage to secure the right to divorce if the husband takes a new wife.
However, this claim faces several challenges:
Three out of four Sunni Imams of Fiqh stated that such a condition (i.e., divorcing a woman if the husband marries another wife) is invalid. They argue that no such condition is mentioned in the Quran or the entire Sunnah of Muhammad.
For further details, please refer to the following link:
https://islamqa.org/hanafi/daruliftaa/7871/placing-conditions-in-the-contract-of-marriage/
1) The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace) said: “Every condition that is not in the book of Allah is invalid.” (Sahih al-Bukhari)
2) The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him & give him peace) also said: “All the conditions agreed upon by Muslims are maintained, except a condition which permits what is prohibited or prohibits what is permitted.” (Sunan Tirmidhi)
They (the three Madhhabs out of 4) say that marrying a second wife, etc… is lawful for the husband, and to stipulate a condition that prevents him from exercising this permissible right will not permissible.
The perplexity deepens when considering that both factions rely on the SAME Singular Hadith as their source.
أَنَّ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم قَالَ " الصُّلْحُ جَائِزٌ بَيْنَ الْمُسْلِمِينَ إِلاَّ صُلْحًا حَرَّمَ حَلاَلاً أَوْ أَحَلَّ حَرَامًا وَالْمُسْلِمُونَ عَلَى شُرُوطِهِمْ إِلاَّ شَرْطًا حَرَّمَ حَلاَلاً أَوْ أَحَلَّ حَرَامًا " .
The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: "Reconciliation is allowed among the Muslims, except for reconciliation that makes the lawful unlawful, or the unlawful lawful. And the Muslims will be held to their conditions, except the conditions that make the lawful unlawful, or the unlawful lawful."
The Hadith in question, Sunan Tirmidh 1352, is ambiguous and does not directly address the issue. Despite this vagueness, both groups interpret it in 100% OPPOSITE ways.
This is a STRANGE and a HUGE 180-degree contradiction.
Moreover, pre-Islamic Arabia already gave this special right to women, and they didn't need any Allah for that, and the whole credit goes to them.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marriage_in_pre-Islamic_Arabia
Marriage by agreement (in Pre-Islamic Arabia):
The reason for intertribal marriages was to ensure the protection and possession of the children the couple would produce.[2] Women in some intertribal marriages had more freedom and retained the right to dismiss or divorce their husbands at any time.
The FAILURE of Feminist Allah to save billions of women of the last 14 centuries from Suffering
Furthermore, it is noteworthy that, by default, women are not consulted during marriage about including a condition in the contract granting them the right to divorce if their husbands take additional wives.
The absence of this default condition meant that 99.9% of Muslim women over the last 14 centuries were unaware of their right to include such a condition. Many of these women may have chosen to safeguard themselves from exploitation by asserting this right, but their ignorance resulted from the lack of a default provision in the marriage contract.
The critical question arises: If Allah, who is claimed to know the Future Unseen, was aware that an overwhelming majority of women would remain unaware of their rights, why did He not take measures to make this right clear? This could have been achieved through:
- Revealing a clear Quranic verse (or multiple verses) to unequivocally establish this women's right.
- Clearly articulating it in the Hadith of Muhammad.
- Enforcing it as a default condition in the marriage contract, analogous to seeking a woman's "consent" during marriage.
The unfortunate outcome is that due to what appears to be Allah's inability to communicate effectively, billions of Muslim women had to endure unnecessary suffering during the last 14 centuries.
In conclusion, one may contemplate whether the lack of divine intervention suggests the absence of an Allah in the heavens, and whether Muhammad was making the religion on his own and he, being human, made errors in adequately communicating religious principles.
For more details, please read Kecia Ali's book "Marriage And Slavery In Early Islam" page 72-75
WikiIslam.Net