Q: What is the position of Masjid Al-Ash'ariyya of South Philadelphia regarding the qiblah issue?

The position of Masjid al-Ash'ariyya of South Philadelphia is a codified and unified position. We accept the General Direction of Prayer (Qiblah). (See diagram below)

A: Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds. To Allah belongs the endowments, befitting perfection, and commendations. We ask Allah to raise the rank of Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, his Al (Family), and Sahabah (Companions), and to protect his nation from what he fears for it. Ameen. Thereafter:

Imam Shafi'i said, which means, "one who is distant must merely face the general direction of the Ka'ba (jihat al-Ka'ba)." This is supported by the hadith of Prophet Muhammad, sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam, "What is between the east and the west is qiblah." [Tirmidhi; Ibn Majah]

I pray this is of benefit, and that Allah guides us all. Ameen.

This is also the view of Umar ibn Al-Khattab, Ali ibn Abi Talib, Ibn al-Abbas, Ibn al-Mubarak, and Imam Abu Hanifa (Allah have mercy on them). [Nawawi, Majmu' Sharh al-Muhadhdhab]

Additionally, Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd Al-Rahman Al-Ahdal mentioned in a fatwa on the qiblah-direction: "It is not necessary to dispute the askew mosques which have prestige amongst the people who pray there. This is considering that Imam Malik opined that it is permissible to face towards (jihah) it. Imam Ghazali and others strengthened the view. It is permissible to adopt (taqlid) the view, even if after the action was done (b'ad al-'amal). [Ahdal and Muhammad, 'Umdat al-Mufti wa al-Mustafi]

This view was related from Imam Muzani (Allah have mercy on him). Because Imam Muzani related this view, some have mentioned that it is from the qawl jadid (Imam Shafi'i's final set of views). Abu al-Hasan al-Juri, the author of Murshid, preferred it (ikhtiyar). [Ahmad and al-Rif'ah, Kifayat al-Nabih]

Based on the above view, shared by most Schools of Law, it is lawful for a person to pray at your local masjid, and their prayers (in this regard) will be valid, and Allahu 'alam.

In the Hanafi, Maliki, and Hanbali schools, the criterion for facing the direction of prayer is merely that some portion of the person's face or chest is directed towards the Ka'ba.

In North America, the General Direction for the Prayer (Jihat al-Qiblah) is East.