How do you explain that peace which humanity seeks is in Islam?
In his book Postmodern Conceptions, Prof. Dr. Ibrahim Ozdemir gives brief information about the Islamic practices under the title of Muslims brotherhood with Humanity. I leave you with this real important ascertainment. Is peace, which humanity seeks in Islam?
According to Quran, human is the most honorable of all beings. He is the caliph (leader of a Muslim nation) of Allah (swt) on earth. Because of that, it has been attached great importance to him and he has been honored. Killing an innocent considered as killing all of the humanity.
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) held non-Muslim funerals in respect, therefore emphasized how much more important of being a human than belonging to any religion. This conception has a great share for Muslims having tolerance towards other people of different religions and having a tradition of dialogue with them.
On the other hand, just because Muslims conception of other religions depends on Quranic decrees, they have never compelled people to convert under their sway. It should be seen as the natural consequence of the (Quranic) principle, There is no compulsion in the religion. (Baqarah Surah, 2:256)
Thereby, people who were in the conquered territories have never come across with compulsion, on the contrary with the condition of paying a special tax (jizya); they had been let free to choose their faith.
Some of the Prophets (pbuh) statements have brought a light on the matter for Muslim administrators. These are;
Whoever hurts a Non-Muslim citizen of a Muslim state hurts me, and he who hurts me annoys God." (Sahih Bukhari, Hadith)
"He who hurts a Non-Muslim citizen of a Muslim state, I am his adversary, and I shall be his adversary on the Day of a Judgment." (Bukhari)
Compulsion in the religion was prohibited from the very day of Islam just because it is contrary to the essence of the religion. It is stated clearly in the Holy Quran that Prophet Muhammads mission is to convey Allahs instructions and guidance not to convert them to Islam by compelling.
The applications of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in a surety happened within the framework of Quranic rules. As already known, Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had started to live with Jews after the emigration from Macca to Madina. Prophet (pbuh) left a written document (script) about his relations with Jews. The code of rules, which Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) brought into being with the civic headliners of Madina should be accepted as the first written constitution that has ever made by a sovereign state.
In this written constitution, which consist of fifty articles it has been provided that Jews would maintain their own religion. By stating that, Jews and their allies were given a religious freedom.
The territory of Najran was located in south of Macca, used to be the center of Christianity. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) with the well-known treaty that he had made with Christians of Najran provided religious freedom and administrative autonomy to them. Moreover, immunization rights were given to their shrines and to their religious leaders.
These basic principles which were stated precisely with Quran and Sunnah (Prophets illustrious Practices), later carried on by Muslim administrators. In this respect instructions that Abu Bakr (as) [first caliph (leader of a Muslim nation) after the death of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had given to his executive commanders and the treaty that Omar (as) had made during the conquest of Jerusalem reflects the same approach. Moreover, Abu Bakr in his instructions to one of his commanders, Do not cut date palms, fruit-bearing trees, and do not kill animals like sheep, camel, and goat unless [you need to kill it> for food, given great importance to natural habitat even in the war times.
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