The Precarious Position of Jews and Christians in Muslim Countries

Al-Jazeera’s Arabic-language online newspaper, alJazeera.net, recently published what can only be described as a targeted hit piece against Indonesia’s tiny Jewish community. The article (English here) describes them as, “…provid[ing] unlimited support to the Israeli occupation in Palestine,” and also as being “among the Jewish religious extremists who previously went out in marches supporting the Israeli aggression on Gaza.” Then comes the real kicker: “These Jews have constructed a tower for a menorah in Manadu, which is considered the largest in the world.”

What does this al-Jazeera piece mean? To understand, we must first examine how Islamic law treats non-Muslims. Generally-speaking, non-Muslims living under Muslim rule have two options: die, or convert to Islam (see Qur’an 9.5). However, for Jews and Christians, who are given special status in Islam as the ‘People of the Book [i.e. the Bible]’, a third option is available: become a dhimmi, or protected person. The basis for this comes from Qur’an 9.29: “Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of the Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued” (emphasis added).

Regarding this last phrase, Ibn Kathir, the most widely respected Qur’anic commentator, explains, “Therefore, Muslims are not allowed to honor the people of Dhimmah [i.e. Jews and Christians] or elevate them above Muslims, for they are miserable, disgraced and humiliated.” Jews and Christians living in Muslim countries are to live as second-class citizens. When the caliph ‘Umar entered Jerusalem in the 7th century, he codified this by creating several rules for the conquered Christians to live by, called ‘the Pact of ‘Umar,’ which is the basis for Islam’s treatment of Jewish and Christian minorities today. These rules include, but are not limited to, the following:

• they may not construct new places of worship, or restore old ones;
• they may not teach the Qur’an to their children;
• they may not dress like or otherwise imitate Muslims;
• they must refrain from erecting religious symbols and displaying them outside of their places of worship; and
• they may not prevent any of their people from converting to Islam.

When the Indonesian Jews constructed that towering menorah, they were explicitly breaking the terms of the dhimmi covenant. According to Islamic law, this means they lose their protected status, and it becomes incumbent on Muslims to attack them until they either convert to Islam or are killed. Essentially, then, to the devout Muslim, this article from al-Jazeera is saying, “Come here, Muslim, there is a Jew (hiding himself behind me); kill him” (Sahih Muslim, Bk. 41, No. 6981).

Is my language too strong? Am I just being a mean-spirited Islamophobe? Let’s look at the facts–let’s look at what transpired recently in Egypt and see if it was not exactly what I’m describing here.

In July 2010, an Egyptian Coptic Christian named Kamilia Shehata went missing. Soon thereafter, Muslims began alleging that Camilia had converted to Islam, and for this reason was being held in a Coptic church against her will. If this were true (which it wasn’t), then it was a clear violation of the dhimmi covenant. Because of that, several Muslim shaykhs, including Saudi Shaykh ‘Abd-al-Rahman bin Nasir al-Barrak, issued fatwas calling for Muslims to rescue Kamilia, by force if necessary, from the “infidel Coptic Church in Egypt.” The faithful followers of Muhammad subsequently responded with the savage bombing of Saints’ Church in Alexandria, killing 12 Copts and wounding at least 29.

We’ve seen how Muslims responded when they believed that Coptic Christians in Egypt had broken their dhimmi covenant. How will they respond to Indonesian Jews breaking that same covenant? Only time will tell, but it certainly points to the danger and threat of violence that constantly hangs over the heads of Jews and Christians living in Muslim countries.

Al Mutarjim

Founder, Translating Jihad

translatingjihad@gmail.com