'All Religions Other Than Islam Are Heresy': Saudi Religious Council

[ygalg1]

From news article:

The Saudi fatwa reads as follows: "The Permanent Council for Scholarly Research and Religious Legal Judgment has studied the queries some individuals brought before the Chief Mufti… concerning the topic of the construction of houses of worship for unbelievers in the Arabian Peninsula, such as the construction of churches for Christians and houses of worship for Jews and for other unbelievers and [the question of] the owners of companies or organizations allotting a fixed place for their unbelieving workers to perform the rites of unbelief.

"After considering the queries the Council answered as follows:

"All religions other than Islam are heresy and error. Any place designated for worship other than [that of] Islam is a place of heresy and error, for it is forbidden to worship Allah in any way other than the way that Allah has prescribed in Islam. The law of Islam (shari'a) is the final and definitive religious law. It applies to all men and jinns and abrogates all that came before it. This is a matter about which there is consensus.

"Those who claim that there is truth in what the Jews say, or in what the Christians say - whether he is one of them or not - is denying the Koran and the Prophet Muhammad's sunna and the consensus of the Muslim nation… Allah said: 'The only reason I sent you was to bring good tidings and warnings to all [Koran 34:28]'; 'Oh people, I am Allah's Messenger to you all [Koran 7:158]'; 'Allah's religion is Islam [3:19]'; 'Whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it shall not be accepted from him [3:85]'; 'The unbelievers from among the people of the Book [i.e. Jews and Christians] and the polytheists are in hellfire and will be [there] forever. They are the worst of all creation… [98:6].'

"Therefore, religion necessitates the prohibition of unbelief, and this requires the prohibition of worshiping Allah in any way other than that of the Islamic shari'a. Included in this is the prohibition against building houses of worship according to the abrogated religious laws, Jewish or Christian or anything else, since these houses of worship - whether they be churches or other houses of worship - are considered heretical houses of worship, because the worship that is practiced in them is in violation of the Islamic shari'a, which abrogates all religious law that came before it. Allah says about the unbelievers and their deeds: 'I will turn to every deed they have done and I will make them into dust in the wind [Koran 25:23].'

"Thus the 'ulama agreed that it is forbidden to build heretical houses of worship - such as Christian churches - in a Muslim country, and that it is forbidden for there to be two directions of prayer coexisting in a Muslim country, and that there should be no symbol of unbelief, neither churches nor anything else. They agreed that it is obligatory to destroy any church or other heretical house of worship that was built after [the advent of] Islam, and it is forbidden to oppose the ruler in the matter of its destruction, and he must be obeyed.

"The 'ulama agreed that building heretical houses of worship, such as churches, in the Arabian Peninsula is the most weighty of sins and the worst of crimes, because there are reliable and explicit sayings of the Prophet [hadith] that prohibit the existence of two religions in the Arabian peninsula [i.e. another religion in addition to Islam], among them the Prophet's words that were related by [Imam] Malik and others and were recorded in the Sahihayn [the two most authoritative collections of hadith for Sunni Muslims compiled by Al-Bukhari and by Muslim]: 'There shall not be two religions together in the Arabian Peninsula.'

"The Arabian Peninsula is Islam's sanctuary and its basis. It is forbidden to allow or permit unbelievers to penetrate it or to receive citizenship there or to buy property, not to speak of building churches for the worshipers of the cross. There is no place in the Arabian Peninsula for two religions, but only for one - the religion of Islam, sent by Allah through Muhammad, His Prophet and Messenger. There will not be two directions of worship there, but just one single direction - the direction of the Muslims, towards the Ka'ba in Mecca. Praise Allah who enabled the rulers of these lands to ward off these heretical houses of worship from the pure Islamic land.

"[We turn to] Allah, to whom we complain about the heretical houses of worship that the enemies of Islam brought, like the churches and others, to many Muslim countries. We ask Him to protect Islam from their cunning and deceit.

"If one allows or consents to the establishment of heretical houses of worship, like churches, or if one allots a fixed place in a Muslim country [for them to worship] - this is the worst sort of aid to unbelief and of bringing their rites into the open, [in defiance of what is said in Koran 5:2] 'Help one another to good deeds and fear of Heaven, and don't help one another to sin and aggression. Fear Allah, for Allah punishes harshly.'

"Sheikh Al-Islam Ibn Taymiyya said: 'Whosoever thinks that churches are Allah's houses and serve as places for His worship, or whosoever thinks that the deeds of the Jews and the Christians are worship of Allah and obedience to His Prophet, and whosoever likes this and permits it or helps them [the unbelievers] to open [houses of worship] and to perform their religion and thinks this to be proximity or obedience [to Allah] - he is an unbeliever.'

"He also said: 'Whosoever thinks that visiting dhimmis [monotheist non-Muslims under Muslim rule] in their churches is proximity to Allah, he is an apostate. If he didn't know that this was forbidden, he should be so informed, and then if he persists, he is an apostate.'

"We find refuge in Allah in order not to backtrack from the right path… Those who turned back on their tracks after the right path was clear to them - Satan seduced them and filled their hearts with false hopes [Koran 47:25]'; 'They said to those who hated what Allah revealed: we will obey you in some matters, but Allah knows your secrets [Koran 47:26]'; 'How will it be when the angels take their souls and strike them on their faces and their backsides [Koran 47:27]'; 'This is because they followed that which angered Allah and they hated Allah's satisfaction, so he thwarts their actions [Koran 47:28]'.

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[Mediocrates]

Do you care? I don't.

[Mil]

Waiting for reaction of our Muslim posters..... They'll of course blame it on Israel and such....

[ygalg1]

Do you care? I don't.

I would like some clarification over

there is no compulsion in religion

I would like to know what

consensus of the Muslim nation

means?

you want to close eyes as it is ain't our problem, but it is-- cause eventually it will reach to our shores. the holocaust hap cause people close their eyes and opened it when it was to late. I don't want this to happen again.

[Harlequin]

Nothing new there, really. This is the actual situation not only in S.A. but also e.g. Egypt and I guess other muslim countries.

As many people in Europe as possible should read this, while they see big S.A. funded mosques going up around them, and muslims try to impose their sensitivities on everybody else.

I don't really want another muslim asking for tolerance - I really do not.

[andak01]

Waiting for reaction of our Muslim posters..... They'll of course blame it on Israel and such....

Well of course, why wait for us to speak? I put as much credence in pronouncements coming from Saudi as Medio does. We don't have a Pope and he doesn't live there. BTW, what does the Pope say concerning the erection of mosques in Vatican City? What did the Pope say when papal control extended beyond its walls?

[Zlatorog]

The support of the Pope is meaningless since some French got murdered by the guard there. After Torquemada Venice invented 'secularization' and then the Habsburgs did the same, in a small triangle of their estate.

I think two Popes were building mosques, John Paul II helped the efforts of building that big one in Rome.

The first mosque in Italy that was destroyed - was destroyed because the Italians hated the Habsburg soldiers.

Diokletian had two residences, one was in Aquilea, the other one in Split. Jerome, probably not Illirian, was sceptical about Greece... Gnostics thought Turkey was Samaria, Bohemia Judea... They distorted the meaning of Norea.

Constantin thought of all those other parts, some of which were clinging to Bellenus (Aquilea) and Triglav stubbornly to the 13th century. But that's just because we couldn't get along with the Germans and had a civil war.

Noricum had freedom of religion, in practice that meant some Jewish and Greek art etc. The third part of Noricum is somewhat similar to Mithraic. Christian meant anti Arian. Saracen invaders were meaningless (8th, 9th century) compared to Avars and Magyars. Eventually there was even correspondence between Dalmatia and Spain. After the French sacked us Pope forbade sacking us and the Ottomans probably ignoned all treaties with the Croats because they had a Pope in Rome.

[Justcurious]

If Islam is superior to other religions, I'm sure the followers are more than willing to put it into a neutral test. An excellent way to convince non-believers, provided it makes all the wonders it claims.

[andak01]

I'd say that everywhere that isn't a Sharia state is a neutral test. Sharia states themselves are oppressing people more to flex their political muscle than because Sharia itself is oppressive. I have always contended that banning none Muslims from Arabia and even from Mecca is not an Islamic requirement. My proof is that there were Jews and Christians living in Mecca until after the death of the Prophet (SAW). Since it doesn't say that in the Quran and Muhammad didn't say it, then it isn't Sunna.

As to the heresy part, what monotheist religion doesn't believe that all other religions are heresy? My Baptist aunt is convinced that my family is going to be dancing in flames someday. Monotheism is about one God and one path and a myriad of descriptions of what that path is.

[Justcurious]

My Baptist aunt is convinced that my family is going to be dancing in flames someday.

Why do believers of many religions always threat with these extremes? Why not with something much more likely, such as bankruptcy, prison sentence, fatal disease, etc.

[Muslima]

If Islam is superior to other religions, I'm sure the followers are more than willing to put it into a neutral test. An excellent way to convince non-believers, provided it makes all the wonders it claims.

It does Justcurious

Did you know that when American troops were stationed in Saudi , how many were converting to Islam? Khaled bin Sultan and General Shwarzkoff, used to joke about it.

[Muslima]

I would like some clarification over I would like to know what
means?

you want to close eyes as it is ain't our problem, but it is-- cause eventually it will reach to our shores. the holocaust hap cause people close their eyes and opened it when it was to late. I don't want this to happen again.

Ygalg, the opinion of one scholar doens't speak for the whole Muslim world. Saudi today follows a very extreme version of the faith.

The ban against non Muslim's is for political purposes. Not religious ones. The majority of ulammah (scholars) will disagree with this decision. The Quran gives freedom of worship, and The Prophet placed no such restrictions. When Saudi didn't even exist, these restrictions were not there. Hijaz had a very tolerant attitude toward's non Muslim's in general.

Other than a ban in the five mile radius in Mecca and Medina (because the 2 cities are a religious sanctuary) there is no need for restrictions elsewhere.

Just to give an insight into what these scholars are thinking, .......one of them was saying.....
"why should we respect their religions when they are throwing dirt on ours every day"
He was referring to the negative publicity in the media. This sort of thing, colours their vision, and they add their own personal "flavour" to these religious edicts, which they clearly shouldn't be doing.

[Justcurious]

It does Justcurious

Did you know that when American troops were stationed in Saudi , how many were converting to Islam? Khaled bin Sultan and General Shwarzkoff, used to joke about it.

But where was the competition? Surely there are some links.

[Muslima]

But where was the competition? Surely there are some links.

What are you talking about?
By competition do you mean other religions? WEll remember these men were American's, and not tied to Saudi, they can follow any religion they want, they do know about other religions.
Was that your point? Or are you saying that if there were other religions they could pick those? In that case i'd point you to Europe and other countries, where people convert.