how Muslims should treat the unbelievers?

Name of QuestionerMaynard   – United KingdomTitleMuslims & Non-Muslims: An Inevitable Clash?Date29/Jun/2009 QuestionWhat is the difference between the world of believers and disbelievers and how Muslims should treat the unbelievers?TopicInterfaith Issues, Virtues, Islamic CreedName of CounselorShahul HameedAnswer

Salam, Maynard.

Thank you for your question.

How Islam distinguishes between Muslims and non-Muslims is based on clear injunctions given in the Noble Quran, which Muslims believe is the wordof God and the example of the Prophet Muhammad (peace and be upon him).

The Quran, and the Sunnah (the Prophet's deeds and sayings) distinguish Muslims from non-Muslims on the basis of their religious faith and practice.

As Almighty Allah (God) has appointed the human race as His ambassador (khalifah) on earth, He has given us faculties like reason, imagination and discretion. He has given us freedom too; and He sent down His Guidance to help us to abide by His laws, so that we do not go astray by misusing our freedom.

Yet all humans do not choose to follow Allah's guidance; and consequently humanity is divided into two camps: Those who follow Allah's guidance and lead a life of submission to His laws (i.e. Muslims); and those who reject Allah's guidance and follow other ways (i.e. non-Muslims).

Muslims believe that a day will come on which Almighty Allah will judge all humans as to who followed His guidance and who did not. And on that basis He would reward them or punish them in the hereafter.

Our concern in this answer is how Muslims should treat non-Muslims in this life, according to the teachings of Islam.

First, Islam teaches that all humans, being the children of Adam, are equal. There is no question of a Muslim — that is, if he or she is a real Muslim — feeling any sense of superiority over others on the basis of their race, tribe, color, nationality, or language. The Prophet said:

"All of you are from Adam, and Adam was from the earth." (Abu Dawud)

Second, in the matter of religious faith and practice, Muslims must provide non-Muslims all the freedom required for their faith and practice. Muslims are taught that no coercion should be used in the matter of religious preaching. Allah in the Noble Quran commands:

* (Al-Baqarah 2: 256)

{Say, "The truth is from your Lord": Let him who will, believe; and let him who will, reject (it): …}* (Al-Kahf18:29)

The author of the well-known book, The Preaching of Islam, Sir Thomas Arnold — a European Christian scholar — wrote about early conversions from Christianity to Islam: 

"That force was not the determining factor in these conversions may be judged from the amicable relations that existed between the Christian and the Muslim Arabs. Muhammad himself had entered into treaty with several Christian tribes, promising them his protection and guaranteeing them the free exercise of their religion and to their clergy undisturbed enjoyment of their old rights and authority". (47-48)

He goes on to say:

"From the examples given above of the toleration extended towards the Christian Arabs by the victorious Muslims of the first century of the Hijrah and continued by succeeding generations, we may surely infer that those Christian tribes that did embrace Islam did so, of their own choice and free will". (51)

In Muslim history, the  jizyah (tribute) has been a terribly misunderstood tax the non-Muslims had to pay. In fact, this was a tax in lieu of "zakah", which the Muslims had to pay, or sometimes in lieu of military service obligatory for Muslims.

Thomas Arnold wrote:

"As stated above, the jizyah was levied on the able-bodied males, in lieu of the military service they would have been called upon to perform had they been Muslim men; and it is very noticeable that when any Christian people served in the Muslim army, they were exempted from the payment of this tax. Such was the case with the tribe of Al-Jurajimah, a Christian tribe in the neighborhood of Antioch, who made peace with the Muslims, promising them to be their allies and fight on their side in battle.." (The Preaching of Islam, 62)

The Muslim belief in the Oneness of God and the oneness of the origin of the humanity provides the firmest foundation for Islam's tolerance towards other religions.

In addition, it should be emphasized that Muslims are commanded to believe that all the prophets basically preached the same message of Islam (submission to God); and that all the previous scriptures, in their original form were revelations from Allah Almighty. Naturally, Muslims have got to be tolerant towards all the religions prior to Prophet Muhammad.

It is noteworthy that Judaism rejects prophets Jesus and Muhammad (peace be upon them), and Christianity rejects Prophet Muhammad. But Muslims accept as their own prophets, not only prophets Abraham, Moses and Jesus, but also all other prophets mentioned in the scriptures of the Jews and the Christians.

Muslims also accept their scriptures — both the Old Testament and the New Testament too — as containing the word of God. Muslims are commanded not to differentiate between one prophet and another, but to respect and honor them all alike:

* (Aal `Imran 3:84)

And read the following verses addressed to Prophet Muhammad:

{To you We sent the Scripture in truth, confirming the scripture that came before it, and guarding it in safety: so judge between them by what God has revealed, and follow not their vain desires, diverging from the Truth that has come to you. To each among you have we prescribed a law and an open way. If God had so willed, He would have made you a single people, but (His plan is) to test you in what He has given you: so strive as in a race in all virtues. The goal of you all is to God; it is He that will show you the truth of the matters in which ye dispute…}* (Al-Ma’idah 5:48)

Allah also said:

{If it had been your Lord's will, they would all have believed,- all who are on earth! Will you then compel mankind, against their will, to believe?} (Yunus 10:99)

The above declaration of inter-religious harmony is a thousand years older than the American Bill of Rights.

For centuries in Muslim-majority countries, Muslims and non-Muslims have been living as neighbors in peace; except for rare and exceptional problems created by invaders or Machiavellian politicians, who might have exploited the religious sentiments of people.

Today also, Islam is often distorted and caricatured by vested interests, for their nefarious purposes; and they are certainly using all means of propaganda to spread the idea that Islam is inimical to non-Muslims. But falsehood will certainly perish and truth will prevail.

I hope this answers your question. Please keep in touch.

Salam.

I'll give the Muslims the benefit of the doubt:

They don't preach that you should go out and kill people from the other two monotheistic religions.

Rather, as dhimmi, they are supposed to be protected and allowed to continue to worship and practice their religions. Not until the Enlightenment on Europe was such an idea even conceivable.

BUT:

The fact that members of these religions were 'protected', far from means that they are equal in the eyes of Islam. 

Islam is considered a superior, pure and perfect religion by Muslims, while the two others, Christiniaty and Judaism, are distortions of the original messages. That what they practice is wrong and that both are kuffar, disbelievers and deniers of Gd's messengers.

Islam believes that non-believers, whether idolaters or Christians or Jews, are all going to 'hell'. 

These are the main problems that I have when Muslims try to jump up and down and say how tolerant it is.

I find that's an issue with many religions; practices never live up to the ideals. Human nature, I guess. 

Islam is considered a superior, pure and perfect religion by Muslims, while the two others, Christiniaty and Judaism, are distortions of the original messages. That what they practice is wrong and that both are kuffar, disbelievers and deniers of Gd's messengers.

This is sooo truth! Not all muslims, but by some , And here in englishbaby, we have that prof! Go say that Islam is not the true religion, and you'll see the big issue that they will give you, while they keep telling others that our religion is changed and that it is currupted! or saying that Christians for example nowadays are sinners… bla bla bla… so isnt this clamming superiority? guess some people are not being goof muslims!

about me, i've never treated anybody like they're like infidels or something like that. i don't think like that. I'm not God to judge someone and say he/she is going to hell someday. that's why i don't care weather ur muslim or not as long as ur nice 2 me and as long as u don't offend what i believe in and that is my religion. that's all i care about. 

Alllll Muslims, without exception, know about the Corruption of Christianity and Judaism…

Yet, they can't prove any of it…

We Jews can prove 100 percent of the descent of our prophesies and that the Torah has not been changed. 

We don't need Muslims to make silly claims about a religion that they don't understand.

Good article 

"If someone believe that another person is not taking the right way, that doesn't mean that he want to kill him or make it like him."

Not all of course. But this dangerous idea that 'you're on the wrong path, we need to save you by converting you' always ends up with violence somewhere down the line.

It isn't just Islam, the same problem exists with Christianity.

Throughout history Islam has also forcibly converted people, both Jews and Christians. The Almohad dynasty in Southern Spain once led attacks against its local Jews and Christians and forced them to convert to Islam.

"and In Quran, there are enough textes talk about the tolerance and how to deal with the believers (Christians and Jews) and give them their rights and protect them."

As well as other quotes that are not so tolerant towards them. Getting into enough of an argument with a Muslim, those quotes will quickly come up.

"this idea is totaly wrong, and have no weight in the history."

You misread what I wrote:

They DON'T preach that you should go out and kill people from the other two monotheistic religions.

"if you go in the past, you'll see that the Christians arabs and Jews lived their best period under Islamic khilapha, and they lived in peace and justice, and they worship in their holly places, and they were protected."

Jews lived better under the Muslims than under the Christians. There's no doubt about that.

But that however is comparatively. Non-Muslims were not equal to Muslims under the law of the caliphate.

They could not own weapons to defend themselves against mobs, they could not ride in horses. Synagogues and Churches could never be higher than a mosque.

Killing a non-Muslim was punished less severely than kiling a Moslem.

Jews in general lived ok up until the 20th century in Arab lands, then everything changed.

"If I believe that you go to hell or not, that doesn't mean I don't make justice with you, to prevent you from worshipping, or not to live with you."

I contrast this belief of Islam that all non-Muslims go to hell with what Judaism believes about non-Jews. The Islamic view doesn't make sense to me.

In my religion, non-Jews that believe in gd and live righteously all have a place in the world to come.

Even assuming Mohammed was a prophet from gd, which I dispute of course, why would Gd send to hell 3/4 of humanity for simply not believing in his claims, but otherwise living proper lives? I can think of many non-Muslims that live proper and very righteous lives who I cannot believe for a second will be dropped by gd after they die.

My dear Ricardo,dear it is not only the matter that what religion is true,But as per islamic version it is the religion of Ibrahim which was completed by Allah by Muhammad pbuh,so what is left.i was reading Quran and i saw in that ahl-e- Kitab(christians and juesh) are so close to islam and there are pious people in their religion and God fearers as well.Islam is religion of Humanity,Menkind but we people are destroying the consept of Islam.But one thing which you  rather no religion litrate person can deny the fact that every true book gives the message that Muhammad is prophet of God.

I'll answer this in pieces, from last to first:

The quote you've given is from the 'Book of Melachim' (Kings). That isn't apart of the Torah, the 5 books of Moses.

Nevertheless the Torah has 3 commandments concerning Amalek:

Thus the commandment straight from the Torah is to wipe out Amalek and his descendants from the earth. because they are a people that hate the Jews for no other reason than pure hatred.

When the Israelites came out of Egypt, after all the miracles gd has performed, the splitting of the sea, the ten plagues, throwing pharaoh's army into the sea, no nation dares attack the Israelites. Except one.

The Amalekites' hatred for the Israelites was so strong and irrational that they attacked, ignoring gd's protection.

For this sin, it was commanded that they should be wiped out. However the Israelite did not do this so the descendants of Amalek still live. Traditionally, Jews often refer to the people that persecute them as Amalek, like Hitler, or Chielminicki.

The Canaanites were not Amalekites, they're two different peoples.  Who are the Amalekites nowadays? Noone knows.

Here is the family tree again:

Amalek is descended from Eliphaz, who is the son of Esau.

So therefore Amalek is not descended from the Ishmaelites. So no, the Arabs are not Amalek. Nowadays it is considered that the seed of Amalek exists in small numbers in different people's not entire people's.  

Could someone swat the fly please?