One of the most confusing issues surrounding Muslims is: What is our relationship to non-Muslims. This is especially important considering that, as individuals, many of us live in societies inhabited by non-Muslims, and at the level of the Ummah, the Muslims deal with non-Muslim nations.

In order to clarify this issue, we have to distinguish between three relationships: The relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims as individuals; the relationship between the Muslim Ummah and other states; and the relationship between Islam as an idea and Kufr as an idea. Following is an explanation of each:

Relationship between Islam and Kufr

Allah (swt) says in many ayahs that there is no reconciliation between Islam as an idea and Kufr and will always be at loggerheads with one another. This does not mean that the individuals who carry these ideas will be in a state of perpetual conflict among themselves because non-Muslims will be allowed to live under the jurisdiction of the Islamic State and must be treated as citizens, even though they carry Kufr ideas. Furthermore, Muslims are obligated as individuals to respect all human beings, including the non-Muslims, and to treat them in the best possible manner.

This understanding has a profound impact upon the thinking of the Muslims because there are many attempts to reconcile between Islam and Kufr. The call to 'Modern Islam,' bridging between Islam and Western Culture, and Abrahamic Religions, are among a few such efforts. If such ideas are allowed to fester unchecked, they will result in diluting the Islamic Aqeedah and culture. Therefore, the Muslims must remain vigilant in maintaining the purity of the Islamic thought and culture among them by recognizing that there can be no common ground between Islam and Kufr as ideas.


Muslim and non-Muslim relations as individuals

Allah (swt) created within the human being an innate tendency that pushes the human being to respect one another, to show concern for the well-being of other human beings. This tendency is one of many manifestations of the Instinct of Kind. Islam not only recognizes this tendency, but enhances this quality to a very high level. Therefore, it is essential for Muslims to understand this basic idea when discussing how Islam organizes the relationship between Muslims and non-Muslims on an individual scale. In general, Islam orders the Muslims to treat other human beings with the highest degree of respect and to show genuine concern for them. To this end, Islam laid down several rules governing the behavior and etiquette of Muslims towards non-Muslims, the rights of neighbors, and how Muslims should deal with other Muslims, while at the same time establishing many rules that protect the dignity and honor of non-Muslims as well as Muslims. However, with this understanding, certain provisions must be kept in mind:

1). While there must exist tolerance for non-Muslims as human beings, the Muslims must remain firm in presenting Islam to them in a truthful manner, and there can be no excuse to compromise Islam or to reconcile Islam with their Kufr ideas.

2). Allah (swt) warns the Muslims not to take the Kuffar as 'Wali,' and unfortunately, many Muslims misunderstand this to mean 'friend.' However, there is a difference between a Wali and a friend. A Wali is somebody whom you would actually look up to as a role model and try to imitate. And looking up to the Kuffar and imitating them means imitating them in the way they think, their outlook towards life, and the manner in which they conduct life, which is prohibited for Muslims because the Muslims are ordered to follow only Islam and to refer to Islam as the source for their thinking, culture, outlook, and behavior. Therefore, one can invite a non-Muslim friend for dinner, but if he orders alcohol, then the Muslim must draw the line. Also, a Muslim can visit a non-Muslim friend, but if that non-Muslim is going to have a Christmas party with mixing, then the Muslim must refuse. And a shrewd Muslim who takes a non-Muslim as a friend will make these issues clear beforehand so as not to put himself or herself in an embarrassing situation.

3). While in general the Muslims are ordered to show respect, kindness, and concern towards others, there is an exception regarding those who in positions of authority or represent the status quo, or those who attack Islam openly or secretly. For such individuals, the Muslims must assume a very firm position and confront such personalities in an aggressive manner, keeping two things in mind. First, this confrontation should not take the form of attacking such personalities for its own sake, or for 'fun', or poking fun at the personal characteristics of such individuals (Islam prohibits attacking the physical characteristics of anyone, even Ariel Sharon). Rather, confronting such personalities must occur within the context of the intellectual and political struggle that Muslims are obligated to undertake; therefore, the attack must be directed at the ideas, policies, and actions that such individuals carry out to show their contraction to Islam, and how they impact the well-being of Muslims and of humanity. The best example to demonstrate this behavior is the Prophet (saaws). A Jewish woman would lay trash in front of the Prophet (saaws), but he would go visit her when she fell ill. However, when dealing with the leaders of Quraysh, such as Abu Jahl and Abu Lahab, the Prophet (saaws) would be very firm, even when they approached him in a 'nice' manner. Secondly, even in confronting such personalities, Islam established an etiquette and set a very high standard. Thus, in engaging in intellectual and political struggle against the status quo and those personalities who represent it, the Muslim would not resort to vulgar street language used by the masses. When Allah (swt) addressed the customs, ideas, and systems of the disbelievers in the Qur'an, He used a very aggressive stance while simultaneously maintaining a very high level of eloquence.


Relationship Between the Muslim Ummah and Other Nations

In general, the relationship between other nations will be dealt with according to the foreign policy that those nations have. Accordingly, the relationship that the Muslim Ummah has with other nations will be defined by the foreign policy that Islam has outlined for the Islamic State. Thus, like any other state, the Islamic State would establish treaties with other states, engage in trade and commerce with other nations, would declare war against hostile states, and would assume a position of alertness towards states with imperialistic ambitions in the Muslim land or potentially belligerent states. In addition, the Islamic State, as the State that carries the ideology of Islam, would seek to convey the Islamic way of life to the people of the world through various channels.

One feature that should be emphasized in this relationship is that Islam prohibits the Muslim Ummah from seeking assistance from other states or allowing other states to intervene in their affairs. Allah (swt) repeatedly warns the Muslims of the consequences of such an action. In fact, any independent nation would never seek the assistance of another foreign entity or allow an outside power to become involved in its affairs, as such a move would constitute political suicide and an effective end to the sovereignty of that state. While it is allowed for Muslims to seek the help of non-Muslims as individuals, this provision does not apply to the Muslim Ummah seeking help or political alliance with other states. For this reason, the Prophet (saaws) allowed for himself the protection of Abu Talib and allowed other individual Sahabi to seek protection from non-Muslims. In addition, the Prophet (saaws) sought the help of a Mushrik tracker in escaping from Mecca. However, the Prophet (saaws) refused any assistance from the leaders of Mecca, because those leaders represented the status quo and what was being negotiated was not the personal well-being of the Prophet (saaws) but the fate of the entire Islamic Daw'ah. Also, when the Prophet (saaws) engaged other armies in jihad, he allowed non-Muslims to fight alongside him as individuals, but in one instance when a non-Muslim army came under its own flag and offered assistance, the Prophet (saaws) refused their help.

There may be some confusion regarding the manner in which the Qur'an speaks of the Jewish people and in the manner in which the Prophet (saaws) punished some of the Jewish tribes. What should be known is that, when the Qur'an reprimands the Jews, it does so because they violated the Command of Allah (swt) and His Messengers, and not merely because they were Jews. Allah (swt) is the Creator, and He is above discrimination. Also, when the Prophet (saaws) punished some of the Jewish tribes, he did so as a head of state because they committed certain violations as independent states, such as violating treaties that they agreed upon with the Muslims, or choosing to side with the Quraish as they took up arms against the Islamic State. The Prophet (saaws) did NOT punish them because they were Jews, but because they committed certain violations, and the punishment for these violations would apply to anybody; had Bani Quraidah consisted of Hindus, they would have received the same punishment for their violations. In this manner, Islam is just and fair because the Shariah does not prescribe punishment based upon ethnicity, belief, or color, but based upon a specific crime or transgression.

Conclusion

Islam is the system that was revealed by Allah (swt), the Creator, to be implemented upon all human beings. The Muslims have been given this responsibility to implement Islam and carry this message to humanity, and not only will Allah (swt) will question us on the Day of Judgment as to whether or not we fulfilled this responsibility, but the other nations and people (including the non-Muslims) will testify either for or against us that we delivered this message to them on that day. As such, Islam is a system meant to be applied upon all human beings, and Allah (swt) gave every human being the right to experience the Justice of Islam. This includes all people, be they Jews, Christians, Aethiests, or otherwise. And history will testify that, as far as Jews are concerned, the only period in which they experienced true justice and prosperity was under Islamic rule, and the Jewish people themselves will attest to this fact. Up until now, the Jewish people consider their Golden Age as living under Islamic rule in Spain, and when the Muslims and Jews were persecuted by the Catholics during the Inquisition, where did the Jews all flee to? They fled to the Muslim lands, and many of them fled to Istanbul, which was the capital of the Uthmani Khilafah at the time. The Jews would not have fled to the Islamic lands if the Muslims were terrorist, fanatical, barbaric, savage people. In fact, even the Europeans, who were enemies of the Muslims, looked up to the Muslims, even though the Uthmani State was considered the worst Islamic State that the Muslims had. Therefore, it is our responsibility to let the people of the world know not only that Islam is the truth, but that it is the best system for humanity and the only valid system for human beings.


May Allah (swt) enable us to understand Islam correctly so that we can worship Him correctly and fulfill our responsibilities.