Apostasy
Does Not Carry Punishment in the Qur’an
By Dr. Bashir Ahmad
Wildwood, MO
A recent St. Louis Post Dispatch
, July 8, 2005, carried a news item in very bold
letters under the heading “Web site announces
abductors’ slaying of Egyptian diplomat”.
The insurgents issued the following statement:
“The judgment of God Almighty on the ambassador
of apostates, the ambassador of Egypt, has been
consummated with the praise of God”. It
appears that the insurgents consider all the Egyptians
as apostates!
This gruesome murder has defiled and tarnished
the beautiful and peaceful image of Islam. There
is not a single verse in the Qur’an which
has prescribed any punishment for apostasy. On
the contrary, there are numerous verses which
very clearly and unambiguously declare that there
is absolutely no punishment for apostasy. I shall
be quoting below some of those verses.
“Those who believe, then disbelieve, then
again believe, then disbelieve and thereafter
go on increasing in disbelief, Allah will never
forgive them, nor guide them to any way of deliverance.”
Qur’an 4/137-138
A recanter cannot enjoy the repeated luxury of
believing and disbelieving if the punishment for
recantation was death.
Surah AL-IMRAN, which was revealed after the victory
of Badr 2 AH/AD 624, contains the following two
verses which mention the recantation of some of
the Jews of Medina.
“People of the people of the Book , why
do you confound truth with falsehood and hide
the truth deliberately?A section of the people
of the Book urge some from among themselves: why
not affirm, in the early part of the day, belief
in that which has been revealed unto the believers
and repudiate it in the latter part thereof, perchance
they may return? “ Qur’an 3/72-73
Ibn Ishaq has given the names of those Jews who
hatched this plot: Abdallah b. Sayf and Adiy b.
Zayd and AL-Harith b. Auf agreed to pretend to
believe in the message of Muhammad sas and his
companions at one time, deny it another to confuse
them. This was their attempt to confuse the believers
and make them recant the faith.
None of these three Jews was punished. This very
strictly shows that apostasy carries no punishment
in Islam.
Violence in any shape or form is very strictly
prohibited in the matters of religion.
This has been very forcibly reiterated in Surah
AL-BAQARAH.
“There shall be no compulsion in religion,
for guidance and error have been clearly distinguished
then whoso rejects those who hinder people from
following the right path and believes in ALLAH,
has surely taken hold of a strong and dependable
support which will never break. Allah is All Hearing,
All Knowing.” Qur’an 2/257
So the verse very clearly tells Muslims not to
resort to violence in the name of conversion.
This principal of no compulsion was reiterated
after the victory of Badr.
“Now if they should dispute with thee, say
to them: I have submitted myself wholly to Allah,
and also those who follow me. Say to those who
have been given the Book and those to whom no
revelation has been vouchsafed: Do you submit
yourself to Allah also? If they submit they will
surely be guided; but if they turn away, thy duty
is only to convey the message. Allah is watchful
of his servants.” Qur’an 3/21
Prophet Muhammad’s, sas, role was to convey
the message of Allah peacefully.
“And obey the messenger and be ever on your
guard; but if they turn away then remember that
the duty of our messenger is only to convey our
message clearly”. Qur’an 5/93
and also,
“The messenger’s duty is only to convey
the message; and Allah knows your overt actions,
as well as your secret designs.” Qur’an
5/100
The concept of death for apostasy
This concept, totally against the Qur’an
and sharia, arose as a result of deep rifts in
religious doctrine after the assassination of
the third caliph Uthman (644) during the struggle
for succession. Kharijism and shiisim were the
two main movements. Kharijites were the first
Muslims to declare that a grave sinner no longer
remained Muslim. Kharijites was the first distinct
sect to appear in Islam. They maintained that
a grave sinner ceases to be a Muslim and cannot
re-enter the faith; instead, he should be killed
with his family. They considered all non-Kharjites
to be outlaws and non-Muslim.
Kharijites conflicted directly with the Qur’an
and the Sunnah of the Prophet sas. Prophet Muhammad,
sas,. knew the Munafiqun of Medina and their leader,
Abdallah b. Ubayy and yet he took no action against
him.
THE QURAN STRESSES THE BROTHERHOOD
OF MUSLIMS
“All believers are brothers; so make peace
between your brothers, and be mindful of your
duty to Allah that you may be shown mercy”.
Qur’an 49/11
SOME KILLING DONE IN THE PAST
ON THE BASIS OF APOSTASY
A Portuguese Friar had embraced Islam and then
reverted to his former faith. He was executed
at Aurangabad. (Ref: Sir Judanath Sarkar, Short
History of Aurangzib (Calcutta 1954, pp 105-106).
The reasons for this execution were political
not religious. The friar was under strong suspicion
of spying for the Portuguese under the cover of
Islam.
The seventeenth century martyr was Muhammad Said
Sarmand. Born of Jewish parents at Kashan, Sarmad
was a rabbi before embracing Islam. A great Persian
poet, he was a monist and denied the existence
of matter. He was executed in the region of Aurangzib
(reigned 1658-1707). His mazar which is opposite
to the Jami Masjid in Delhi, attracts hundreds
of Muslim offering fatiha.
Jewish orientalist, Bernard Lewis, has expounded
forcefully the basic peaceful tenets of Islam:
“What matters was what people did - orthopraxy,
rather than orthodoxy - and Muslims were allowed
on the whole to believe as they chose to do, so
long as they accepted the basic minimum, the unity
of God and the apostolate of Muhammad, and conformed
to social reforms.” (Ref. Bernard Lewis,
The Jews of Islam. Princeton, Princeton University
Press 1983, p. 53).
On critically analyzing the subject of Punishment
of Apostasy, it becomes crystal clear that the
Quran and Sunnah has given complete freedom of
conscience to every individual. He or she is free
to accept or recant Islam. Those dishing out death
to apostates are willfully rejecting the commandments
of the Qur’an and Sunnah.
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