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Apostasy in Islam (Arabic: ارتداد, irtidād or ridda) is commonly defined as the rejection in word or deed of their former religion (apostasy) by a person who was previously a follower of Islam. The four major Sunni Madh'hab (schools of Islamic jurisprudence) all agree that apostasy is a sin as long as the individual does not do so in ignorance or under duress.[1][2] They also differentiate between harmful apostasy and harmless apostasy[3] (also known as major and minor apostasy).[1] According to Wael Hallaq nothing of the apostasy law are derived from the Qur'an,[4] Some Islamic jurists, such as Hanafi jurist Sarakhsi,[5] Maliki jurist Abu al-Walid al-Baji, and Hanbali jurist Ibn Taymiyyah,[6] and some contemporary Islamic jurists, such as Shafi`i Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa[7][8] and Shi'a Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri,[9] argued or issued fatwas that either the changing of religion is not punishable or is only punishable under restricted circumstances.[10][11][12][13] Some groups within Islam such as the Shi'a Ismaili reject death for apostasy altogether.[citation needed] Some prominent contemporary examples of death sentences threatened or issued for apostasy include Abdul Rahman, an Afghan convert to Christianity who was arrested and jailed on the charge of rejecting Islam in 2006 but later released as mentally incompetent.[14]
[edit] Qur'anic referenceThe Qur'an states that God (in Arabic, Allah) despises apostasy. See verses [Qur'an 3:72], [Qur'an 3:90],[Qur'an 16:106],[Qur'an 4:137] and [Qur'an 5:54] which deal with apostasy directly and which state that Allah will punish and reject apostates in the afterlife. Except 16:106-109, the verses that discuss apostasy all appear in surahs identified as Madinan and belong to the period when the Islamic state had been established. W. Heffening states that in Qur'an "the apostate is threatened with punishment in the next world only," adding that Shafi'is interpret verse [Qur'an 2:217] as adducing the main evidence for the death penalty in the Qur'an. Wael Hallaq holds that "nothing in the law governing apostate and apostasy derives from the letter of the holy text."[4] The dissenting Shia jurist Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri, a significant Shi'a religious authority, states that the above verses do not prescribe an earthly penalty for apostasy.[9] [edit] Sunni Hadith referencesHeffening holds that contrary to the Qur'an, "in traditions, there is little echo of these punishments in the next world… and instead, we have in many traditions a new element, the death penalty."[15] Examples of such passages include 9:83:17, 4:52:260, 9:84:57, 9:84:58, 9:89:271, etc. Wael Hallaq states the death penalty was a new element added later and "reflects a later reality and does not stand in accord with the deeds of the Prophet."[4] Montazeri believes that it is probable that the punishment was prescribed by Muhammad during early Islam - due to political conspiracies against Islam and Muslims, and not only because of changing the belief or expressing it. Montazeri defines different types of apostasy. He does not hold that a reversion of belief because of investigation and research is punishable by death, but prescribes capital punishment for a desertion of Islam out of malice and enmity towards the Muslim community.[9] [edit] According to TafsirMore recently, Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi, a noted 20th century Islamic Scholar argued that verses [Qur'an 9:11] of the Qur'an sanction death for apostasy. The argument given by Mawdudi[16] for these verses is:
Mawdudi's interpretation is supported by other Muslim writers. For example, Afzal ur-Rahman in Muhammad, Blessing for Mankind, Seerah Foundation, London, Revised Second Edition, 1988, p. 218 under "Apostasy" states:
However, there are also some scholars that reject Mawdudi's interpretation. S. A. Rahman concluded "that not only is there no punishment for apostasy provided in the Book but that the Word of God clearly envisages the natural death of the apostate. He will be punished only in the Hereafter…"[17] He continues and says that there is no reference to the death penalty in any of the 20 instances of apostasy mentioned in the Qur'an. In his book on Punishment of Apostasy in Islam, Rahman declares the verse [Qur'an 2:256] to be "one of the most important verses of the Qur'an, containing a charter of freedom of conscience unparalleled in the religious annals of mankind…". He goes on to criticize the attempts by Muslim scholars over the ages to narrow its broad humanistic meaning and impose limits on its scope in their attempts to reconcile it with their interpretations of Muhammad's Sunna. However, Maqaalaat li'l-Shaykh Ibn Baaz rejects the idea that 2:256 deals with apostasy, and claims that it only applied to non-Muslim dhimmis who were paying their jizya, and that it was subsequently abrogated.[18] [edit] What constitutes apostasy in IslamAttributes of apostasy according to some Muslims include:[who?] [edit] Regarding monotheism and polytheism
[edit] Regarding prophethood of Muhammad
[edit] Regarding beliefs
[edit] Treason ElementSome Muslims ascribe a requirement of disbelief with an act against Islam, i.e. joining the enemies who are at war with Muslims or as in Quran (Qur'an [Qur'an 5:33]) "those who wage war against God and His Apostle".[1] [edit] Punishment for apostasy[edit] Execution In Islamic law (sharia), the consensus view is that a male apostate must be put to death unless he suffers from a mental disorder or converted under duress, for example, due to an imminent danger of being killed. A female apostate must be either executed, according to Shafi'i, Maliki, and Hanbali schools of Sunni Islamic jurisprudence (fiqh), or imprisoned until she reverts to Islam as advocated by the Sunni Hanafi school and by Shi'a scholars.[19] A minority of medieval Islamic jurists, notably the Hanafi jurist Sarakhsi (d. 1090),[5] Maliki jurist Ibn al-Walid al-Baji (d. 494 AH) and Hanbali jurist Ibn Taymiyyah (1263-1328), held that apostasy carries no legal punishment.[6] Some contemporary Islamic Shafi`i jurists, such as the Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa,[7][8] some Shi'a jurists such as Grand Ayatollah Hossein-Ali Montazeri,[9] and some jurists, scholars and writers of other Islamic sects, have argued or issued fatwas that either the changing of religion is not punishable or is only punishable under restricted circumstances, but these minority opinions have not found broad acceptance among the majority of Islamic scholars.[10][11][12][13] [edit] Preferred form of executionMost Islamic scholars agree that the appropriate punishment for apostasy is beheading.[citation needed] Mamluk Sultan Baybars II also practiced torture of apostates. A case is recorded when a woman who had apostatised was led through the streets of Cairo dragged on her bottom, then strangled in a boat in the middle of the Nile and thrown into the river. But it must be noted that Baybars was a dictator, and the very the famous imam Al-Nawawi stood against many of Baybars decisions. Like when the time Baybars wanted to force a tax on the people so he can collect money to defend the country from the incoming Mongol threats, But the imam stood against him and said "No money will be taken from the people's pockets until you spend all the gold and luxury you have, and if after all this spending you need more, only then you can take money from the people". In modern times, followers of the Ahmadiyya sect in Afghanistan were stoned to death. The execution for apostasy was abolished in most Muslim lands in the 19th century either through European pressure or through the direct European rule; however, cases of imprisonment and deportation of apostates still occurred. [edit] Applying law in the Muslim worldMost countries of the Middle East and North Africa maintain a dual system of secular courts and religious courts, in which the religious courts mainly regulate marriage and inheritance. Saudi Arabia and Iran maintain religious courts for all aspects of jurisprudence, and religious police assert social compliance. Sharia is also used in Sudan, Libya and Afghanistan. Some states in northern Nigeria have reintroduced Sharia courts. In practice the new Sharia courts in Nigeria have most often meant the reintroduction of relatively harsh punishments without respecting the much tougher rules of evidence and testimony. The punishments include amputation of one/both hand(s) for theft, stoning for adultery, and execution for apostasy. In 1980, Pakistan, under the leadership of President Zia-ul-Haq, the Federal Shariat Court was created and given jurisdiction to examine any existing law to ensure it was not repugnant to Islam[15] and in its early acts it passed ordinances that included five that explicitly targeted religious minorities: a law against blasphemy; a law punishing the defiling of the Qur'an; a prohibition against insulting the wives, family, or companions of the Prophet of Islam; and two laws specifically restricting the activities of Ahmadis, who were declared non-Muslims. Under traditional Islamic law[20] an apostate may be given up to three days while in incarceration to repent and accept Islam again and if not the apostate is to be killed without any reservations. There are difference between the four schools in the various details on how to deal with the various aspects of imposing the penalties with respect to the material property and holdings of the apostate and in the status and rights of the family of the apostate. A distinction is also made between "Murtad Fitri", an apostate who was born of Muslim parents, and "Murtad Milli", an apostate who had converted into Islam initially. Some additional penalties and considerations that are mentioned are that a divorce is automatic if either spouse apostatize, an under age apostate is imprisoned till he reaches maturity and then he is killed, and the recommended execution is beheading with a sword. The examples of Apostasy given below show that these punishments are rarely carried out in toto at present, and also underline the problem in harmonizing the constitutional law and Islamic law in the various countries. In the period of the early Islamic Caliphate, apostasy was considered treason, and was accordingly treated as a capital offense; death penalties were carried out under the authority of the Caliph, the most famous such incidents being the Martyrs of Cordoba. Today apostasy is punishable by death in the countries of Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Qatar, Yemen, Iran, Sudan, Afghanistan and Mauritania. In Pakistan blasphemy is also punishable by death. Other punishments prescribed by Islamic law include the annulment of marriage with a Muslim spouse, the removal of children and the loss of all property and inheritance rights. [edit] Opposition to executionDeath for apostasy was "not in practice enforced" in later times in the Muslim world, and was "completely abolished" by "a decree of the Ottoman government in 1260AH/1844AD."[21] S. A. Rahman, a former Chief Justice of Pakistan, argues that there is no indication of the death penalty in the Qur'an.[22] Abdullah Saeed and Hassan Saeed argue that the law of apostasy and its punishment by death in Islamic law conflicts with a variety of fundamentals of Islam. They contend that the early development of the law of apostasy was essentially a religio-political tool, and that there was a large diversity of opinion among early Muslims on the punishment.[23] Such views, however, are rejected by mainstream Muslim scholars.[19] Other prominent Islamic scholars like the Grand Mufti of Cairo Sheikh Ali Gomaa have said apostasy should be legal, but stating that God will punish apostates in the afterlife.[24] Medieval Muslim scholars (eg Sufyan al-Thawri) and modern (eg Hasan at-Turabi), have argued that the hadith used to justify execution of apostates should be taken to apply only to political betrayal of the Muslim community, rather than to apostasy in general.[25] These scholars argue for the freedom to convert to and from Islam without legal penalty, and consider the aforementioned Hadith quote as insufficient confirmation of harsh punishment; they regard apostasy as a serious crime, but undeserving of the death penalty. Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, an Islamic scholar, writes that punishment for apostasy was part of Divine punishment for only those who denied the truth even after clarification in its ultimate form by Muhammad (see Itmaam-i-hujjat), hence, he considers it a time-bound command and no longer punishable.[26] [edit] Opposition to the execution based on the Qur'an and HadithThe following verses and sayings from the Qur'an and Hadith suggest opposition to the execution of apostates due to no mentioning of killing apostates, and that doing otherwise contradicts with the doctrine of freedom of religion in Islam. [edit] Qur'an[And say [O Muhammad]: 'The truth [has now come] you're your Sustainer: let, then, him or her who wills, believe in it, and let him or her who wills, reject it.] (Al-Kahf 18:29) [There shall be no coercion in matters of faith.] (Al-Baqarah 2:256) [And so, [O Prophet,] exhort them; your task is only to exhort. You can not compel them [to believe].] (Al-Ghashiyah 88:21-22) [Thus, [O Prophet,] if they argue with you, say, "I have surrendered my whole being unto God, and [so have] all who follow me' – and ask those who have been vouchsafed revelation aforetime, as well as the unlettered people, 'Have you [too] surrendered yourselves unto Him?' And if they surrender themselves unto Him, they are on the right path; but if they turn away – behold, your duty is no more than to deliver the message: for God sees all that is in [the hearts of] His creatures.] (Aal `Imran 3:20) [Behold, as for those who come to believe, and then deny the truth, and again come to believe, and again deny the truth, and thereafter grow stubborn in their denial of truth — God will not forgive them, nor will guide them in any way.] (An-Nisaa' 4:137) Verily, We sent down to you [O Muhammad] the Book [Qur'an] for mankind in truth. So, whosoever goes astray, he goes astray to his own loss. And you [O Muhammad] are not a guardian over them. (Az-Zumar 39:41) [edit] Hadith
Ubayd-Allah ibn Jahsh converted to Christianity and Muhammad also left him unharmed.[27][28] [edit] Justifications for the death penalty[edit] MaududiIn the 20th Century, Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi defended traditional views on apostasy against the idea of freedom of religion in Islam.[16] He summarized what he saw as the most likely objections by critics:
Maududi claims that the misunderstanding and criticism arises because of a "fundamental misconception" about Islam:
Maududi also declares:
And since it is a state, Maududi declares it "has the right to protect its own existence by declaring those acts wrong which undermine its order", and proceeds to equate apostasy to treason. He then discusses the difference between a kafir, a dhimmi, and the appropriateness of death for them if they apostatize after conversion, and for those born of Muslim parents he states:
Maududi considers the threat of execution as not forcing someone to stay within the fold of Islam, but as a way of keeping those who are not truly committed out of the community of Islam. Maududi rejects the third criticism because unlike other religions which are free to exchange believers, Islam is "on whose ideas and actions society and state are constructed" cannot allow "to keep open its door that would spell its own ruin, the scattering of its own structure's parts, the stripping away of the bonds of its own existence", and he compares this to the treason penalty on the books of the U.S. and Britain. Maududi also rejects the charge of contradiction. In his words:
[edit] OthersEssentially the same arguments are sketched by the Shi'i Islamic author Sayyid Muhammad Rizvi in the brief article Apostacy (Irtidad) in Islam,[29] relying upon the opinions of some of the earlier scholars of Islam. However, Ibn Warraq points out some earlier scholars of Islam who found support in the Qur'an for the death penalty for apostasy.[30] He quotes al-Shafi (died 820 C.E.), the founder of one of the four orthodox schools of law of Sunni Islam that verse [Qur'an 2:217] meant that the death penalty should be prescribed for apostates, and Al-Thalabi and Al-Khazan concurred, and states that Al-Razi in his commentary on 2:217 says an apostate should be killed. Ibn Warraq also quotes commentaries by Baydawi (died c. 1315-1316) on [Qur'an 4:89] as "Whosoever turns back from his belief (irtada), openly or secretly, take him and kill him wheresoever ye find him, like any other infidel". Verse ([Qur'an 4:88]) reads:
[edit] Apostasy in the recent past[edit] BackgroundThe violence or threats of violence against apostates in the Muslim world usually derives not from government authorities but from individuals or groups operating with impunity from the government.[31] An example is the stabbing of a Bangladeshi Murtad Fitri Christian evangelist while returning home from a film version of the Gospel of Luke.[32] Bangladesh does not have a law against apostasy, but some Imams encourage the killing of converts from Islam. Many ex-Muslims in Great Britain have faced abuse, violence, and even murder at the hands of Muslims.[33] There are similar reports of violent intimidation of those electing to reject Islam in other Western countries.[34] Other examples of persecution of apostates converting to Christianity have been given by the Barnabas Fund:
Similar views are expressed by the 'non-religious' International Humanist and Ethical Union.[36] [edit] Islamic Republic of AfghanistanIn March 2006, an Afghan citizen Abdul Rahman was charged with apostasy and could have faced the death penalty for converting to Christianity. His case attracted much international attention with Western countries condemning Afghanistan for persecuting a convert. Charges against Abdul Rahman were dismissed on technical grounds by the Afghan court after intervention by the president Hamid Karzai. He was released and left the country to find refuge in Italy.[31] Two other Afghan converts to Christianity were arrested in March and their fate is unknown. In February, yet other converts had their homes raided by police.[31] [edit] Islamic Republic of IranProbably the most prominent[citation needed] contemporary figure accused of apostasy was Salman Rushdie. In 1989 the killing of that author was urged in a fatwa by the Ayatollah Khomeini, the ruler of Iran at the time, for the blasphemy of authoring the book The Satanic Verses. According to US thinktank Freedom House, since the 1990s the Islamic Republic of Iran has sometimes used death squads against converts, including major Protestant leaders. Under President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the regime has engaged in a systematic campaign to track down and reconvert or kill those who have changed their religion from Islam.[31] 15 Ex-Muslim Christians[37] were incarcerated on May 15, 2008 under charges of apostasy. They may face the death penalty if convicted. A new penal code is being proposed in Iran that would require the death penalty in cases of Apostasy on the Internet.[38] At least two Iranians - Hashem Aghajari and Hassan Youssefi Eshkevari - have been arrested and charged with apostasy in the Islamic Republic (though not executed), not for self-professed conversion to another faith, but for statements and/or activities deemed by courts of the Islamic Republic to be in violation of Islam, and that appear to outsiders to be Islamic reformist political expression.[39] Hashem Aghajari, was found guilty of apostasy for a speech urging Iranians to "not blindly follow" Islamic clerics;[40] Hassan Youssefi Eshkevari was charged with apostasy for attending the 'Iran After the Elections' Conference in Berlin Germany which was disrupted by anti-regime demonstrators.[41] [edit] Bahá'ísBahá'ís in Iran, the nation of origin of the Bahá'í Faith and Iran's largest religious minority, are considered apostates by the Shi'a clergy because of their claim to a valid religious revelation subsequent to that of Muhammad. Iranian law therefore treats Bahá'ís as heretics rather than members of an independent religion, as they describe themselves. Bahá'ís have therefore been subjected to much persecution (documented by various third party entities such as the United Nations, Amnesty International, and the European Union) including beatings, torture, unjustified executions, false imprisonment, confiscation and destruction of property owned by individuals and the Bahá'í community, denial of employment, denial of government benefits, denial of civil rights and liberties, and denial of access to higher education.[42] In April 2006, after a court case in Egypt recognized the Bahá'í Faith, members of the clergy convinced the government to appeal the court decision. One member of parliament, Gamal Akl of the opposition Muslim Brotherhood, said the Bahá'ís were infidels who should be killed on the grounds that they had changed their religion.[43] [edit] AlgeriaOn March 21, 2006, the Algerian parliament approved a new law requiring imprisonment for two to five years and a fine between five and ten thousand euros for anyone "trying to call on a Muslim to embrace another religion." The same penalty applies to anyone who "stores or circulates publications or audio-visual or other means aiming at destabilizing attachment to Islam."[31] [edit] TurkeyTurkey, being a secular state, does not implement Islamic Law (Sharia), thus there is no judgement in Turkish legislation for apostasy. Moreover execution, which is a penalty for apostasy in Sharia, is not implemented in Turkey. More recently, on January 21, 2007, the Central Council of Ex-Muslims was founded in Germany, an association led by Iranian exile Mina Ahadi and Turkish-German immigrant Arzu Toker. The association stands up for former Muslims who chose to abandon Islam. Shortly after going public on February 28, 2007, the group received death threats by radical islamists.[44] On April 18, 2007, two Turkish converts to Christianity, Necati Aydin and Uğur Yüksel, were killed in the Malatya bible publishing firm murders. Having tortured them for several hours, the attackers then slit their throats. The attackers stated that they did it in order to defend the state and their religion. The government and other officials in Turkey had in the past criticized Christian missionary work, while the European Union—which Turkey hopes to join—has called for more freedom for the Christian minority.[45][46][47] [edit] EgyptThe Mohammed Hegazy case, shows the huge problems in that country for those wishing to leave Islam and be recognised as a member of another religion – where Hegazy has suffered death threats from family and prominent Islamic figures alike. A Judge ruled "He (Hegazy) can believe whatever he wants in his heart, but on paper he can't convert."[cite this quote] He is the first Egyptian Muslim convert to Christianity to seek official recognition of his conversion from the Egyptian Government.[citation needed] In February 2009, a second case came to court, of convert to Christianity Maher Ahmad El-Mo’otahssem Bellah El-Gohary, whose effort to officially convert to Christianity, faced opposing lawyers who advocated he be convicted of "apostasy," or leaving Islam, and sentenced to death.
In 1992 Islamist militants gunned down Farag Foda and Egyptian secularist. They claim they did so because the prophet ordered the death of apsotates. (see below) [edit] Other countriesVigilantes have killed, beaten, and threatened converts in Pakistan, the Palestinian territories, Turkey, Nigeria, Indonesia, Somalia, and Kenya. In November 2005, Iranian convert Ghorban Tourani was stabbed to death by a group of fanatical Muslims. In December 2005, Nigerian pastor Zacheous Habu Bu Ngwenche was attacked for allegedly hiding a convert. In January 2006, in Turkey, Kamil Kiroglu was beaten unconscious and threatened with death if he refused to deny his Christian faith and return to Islam.[31] In Malaysia, although there has not been violence visited upon apostates, cases such as the Lina Joy episode confirm that Muslim apostasy is illegal and unaccepted by the state, at least on an identification card. [edit] Terrorism against apostatesIn the battle of hamra al asad the Prophet Muhammad captured a former Muslim and ordered him to be beheaded (Muhammads cousin, Ali carried out the beheading for him). Many critics of Islam claim that these acts promote terrorism against apostates, and also promote beheading.[49] [50][51] [52] Some critics have said that "beheading is part of islam", and western Muslims who deny beheading has got anything to do with islam are "hippocrates". Beheading is also practiced in Saudi Arabia. [51] [52][53] Furthermore, according to the hadith and Quran, people who leave Islam must face the death penalty. In 1992 Islamist militants gunned down Farag Foda and Egyptian secularist. They claim they did so because the prophet ordered the death of apsotates. Before his death, Farag Foda was declared an apostate and foe of Islam. An Al-Azhar scholar, Mohammed al-Ghazali, a witness before the court, declared it was not wrong to kill a foe of Islam. Al-Ghazali said:
This was due to the sayings of the Prophet, who said:
"[55] Sahih al-Bukhari 9:84:57 One of the followers of the Prophet refused to sit down and talk until a Jewish man who left Islam was killed. Only after he was killed did he continue.[56] [edit] See also
[edit] References
[edit] Further reading
[edit] External links
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