Surah al-Ma'idah (The Table) 5 : 52

Overview (Verses 52- 53)

When Hypocrisy is Laid Bare
 
Some of those who do not read the Qur’ān properly and do not know the true nature of Islam, and some who are deceived may think that all religions are the same while all denial of faith is the same. They imagine that all those who “respect religion” can stand together in one camp against atheism because atheism opposes all religions and stands against the very idea of being religious. This is, however, unacceptable to Islamic thinking. Nor does it sound right to a person who appreciates Islam as it should be appreciated: as an ideology giving rise to a movement seeking to implement the Islamic system.
 
In Islamic thinking and to a true Muslim’s understanding, matters are clear and simple. Submission to God is the essence of faith. Islam, which means submission, does not recognise any religion which is not based on submission to God, because God says this in the Qur’ān: “The only true faith acceptable to God is [man’s] self- surrender to Him.” (3: 19) He also says: “He who seeks a religion other than self-surrender to God, it will not be accepted from him.” (3: 85) After the Prophet’s message was delivered there is no longer any religion acceptable to God except this religion of Islam in the form preached by the Prophet Muĥammad (peace be upon him). What used to be accepted from Christians before the Prophet Muĥammad’s mission is no longer acceptable, in the same way as what used to be accepted from the Jews before Jesus was no longer acceptable after he was given his message.
 
The fact that there have lived, after the mission of the Prophet Muĥammad, Jewish and Christian people does not mean that God will accept from them what they do or recognise what they follow as a Divine religion. That was the case before God’s last Messenger was sent. Now that he has conveyed his message, there is no longer any acceptable faith other than Islam. The Qur’ān makes a statement of this fact which admits no other interpretation.
 
Islam does not force anyone to abandon his faith in order to embrace Islam because the Islamic principle is clear: “There shall be no compulsion in religion.” (2: 256) This, however, does not mean that Islam acknowledges that they have a faith of their own, in the Islamic sense of the word. Hence, there can be no “religious front”, as it were, which Islam may join in opposition to atheism. From the Islamic point of view, there is a religious faith, which is Islam, and a non-religion which includes everything other than Islam. “Non-religion” may take many forms including a faith of Divine origin, if distortion has crept into it, or a pagan faith, or an absolute denial of faith altogether. These doctrines may have their disagreements, but they are all in conflict with Islam and there can be no alliance between them and Islam.
 
As has already been explained, every Muslim is required to deal fairly and kindly with the people of earlier revelations, unless they persecute him on account of his religion. He is permitted to marry from among their chaste women although scholars have different views on whether a Muslim is permitted to marry a Christian who believes in the divinity of Jesus Christ, or claims that he was son of God, or one who believes in the Trinity. Even when we accept the permissibility of marrying a Christian woman, fair treatment and inter-marriages do not mean that a relationship of alliance and patronage may be forged. Such concessions cannot be construed as acknowledgement that, after the message of the Prophet Muĥammad, the religions of the people of earlier revelations remain acceptable to God. They are not. Nor can Islam be lined up in one front with other religions in opposition to atheism. Islam was revealed in order to correct the beliefs of the people of earlier revelations in the same way as it corrects the beliefs of pagans and idolaters. It calls on them all to accept Islam because it is alone the faith of self-surrender which is acceptable to God. When the Jews claimed that they were not called upon to accept Islam, and felt that it was beneath them to be so called, the Qur’ān confronted them with a clear statement to the effect that if they turned away from Islam, they would be considered unbelievers.
 
Every Muslim is required to call on the people of earlier revelations, atheists and pagans to submit themselves to God. He is not allowed to compel any of them to accept Islam, because faith cannot be accepted through compulsion. Compulsion is not only forbidden; it is futile. Such a requirement is only logical. If a Muslim were to acknowledge that the beliefs of the people of the Scriptures remained acceptable to God after the mission of the Prophet Muĥammad, he would only be contradicting himself if he were to call on them to believe in Islam. Such a call can have only one basis, namely, that he does not recognise their faith as acceptable to God. Therefore, he calls them to the proper faith. Once this premise is accepted, it follows that a Muslim cannot be consistent if he joins those who do not submit themselves to God in an alliance which aims to establish the faith based on the principle of self- submission.
 
From the Islamic point of view, this is a question of faith and one of strategy. Perhaps the faith aspect is clear by now and it can be made clearer by reference to Qur’ānic statements which leave us in no doubt that it is not possible to establish an alliance between Muslims and people of the Scriptures. The strategy aspect is also clear. Every effort made by a believer must have as its aim the establishment of the Islamic, way of life as outlined in the message of Islam preached by the Prophet Muĥammad. This is a complete system that encompasses all human activities. How, then, can a Muslim cooperate in such an effort with one who does not believe in Islam as a faith, a way of life and a legal system? Such a person directs his efforts towards objectives which are, to say the least, inconsistent with those of Islam, if they are not directly opposed to them. Islam does not recognise any objective or effort which is not based on faith, although it may appear to serve a good purpose: “As for unbelievers, their works are like burnt ashes which the wind blows about fiercely on a stormy day.” (14: 18)
 
Islam requires a Muslim to dedicate all his efforts to the cause of Islam. Only a person who does not understand the nature of Islam and its method can imagine that any human activity, however secondary, may be separated from Islam or that there are aspects of life which lie outside the Islamic way of life. Such ignorance of the nature of Islam may cause people to imagine that a true Muslim may cooperate with those who are hostile to Islam or those who will not accept anything from a Muslim unless he abandons his faith, as God states of the Jews and Christians in His revealed Book. Such cooperation is impossible from both a faith and strategy point of view.
 
`Abdullāh ibn Ubayy, who was one of those described in the Qur’ān as having “disease in their hearts”, justified his support of the Jews and his determination to maintain his alliance with them by saying that he feared changes of fortune. His argument was indicative of his lack of faith. It is God’s patronage and support that should be sought. To seek the support of others is both futile and erroneous. `Abdullāh ibn Ubayy’s argument is the same as that of everyone like him; hypocrite, sick at heart, ignorant of the true nature of faith. At the other end we find `Ubādah ibn al-Şāmit who disclaimed all alliance with the Jews once he realised their true feelings. The two positions are at variance, since they rely on diametrically opposed concepts and feelings. The same difference exists at all times between a faithful heart and one which is devoid of faith.
 
The Qur’ān threatens those who seek the support of the enemies of their religion, the hypocrites, by bringing about victory for the believers or by revealing the truth about the hypocrites: “God may well bring about victory (for believers) or some other event of His own making, and those (waverers) will terribly regret the thought they had secretly harboured within themselves.” (Verse 52) At this point of victory, whether it is here a reference to the conquest of Makkah, or to passing judgement over unclear issues, or to the accomplishment of God’s will, those who have disease in their hearts will experience terrible regret over their past attitudes. The believers will wonder at the state of affairs which befalls the hypocrites: “The believers will say: Are these the selfsame people who swore by God their most solemn oaths that they were with you?’ All their works are in vain and they will lose all.” (Verse 53)
 
God brought about victory in the past, and true intentions were laid bare, efforts came to nothing and certain groups of people turned out to be the losers. We have here the same promise from God that victory will be brought about every time we hold fast to our ties with God and we dedicate ourselves to Him alone. To do this, we have to understand the Divine way of life and make it the basis of our life. We have to fight our battle in accordance with God’s guidance and seek alliance with no one but God, His Messenger and other believers.