question| It sometimes happens that when we go to mosque for prayer, someone mistakenly takes our shoes and leaves behind his own shoes, which look a lot like ours. Can we in such instances wear the shoes that resemble ours?

answer| In such cases, if you are certain that the shoes belong to the same person who took your shoes, and you know that you cannot find the person or finding him would involve inordinate hardship, you may take the shoes in question. Yet, if the value of the shoes you take is more than yours, you must pay the monetary difference in value as charity to a needy person. If, however, you are not certain that the shoes belong to the same person who took yours, it is impermissible to use them, in spite of their resemblance to your own shoes.