Sunday, July 3, 2016

Death Penalty for Leaving Islam

Islam presents a unique and severe problem in the modern world because of one dangerous rule. The punishment prescribed for apostasy (a Muslim leaving the religion of Islam) is death. Let's see what the Islamic books have to say.

(I) QURAN:

18:65 to 18:80 - Then found they one of Our slaves, unto whom We had given mercy from Us, and had taught him knowledge from Our presence. Moses said unto him: May I follow thee, to the end that thou mayst teach me right conduct of that which thou hast been taught? ... So they twain journeyed on till, when they met a lad, he slew him. (Moses) said: What! Hast thou slain an innocent soul who hath slain no man? Verily thou hast done a horrid thing. He said: Did I not tell thee that thou couldst not bear with me? ... And as for the lad, his parents were believers and we feared lest he should oppress them by rebellion and disbelief.

The situation here is Moses (Moses is considered in Islam as a Prophet) getting some Islamic moral lessons from his guide Al-Khidr (name is not spelled out in the Quran). When Al-Khidr killed a boy who hadn't murdered anyone, Moses immediately questioned him with the Islamic rule against unlawfully shedding blood (5:32). Al-Khidr explains the death penalty citing two reasons - the boy's parents being Muslims and his disbelief in Islam and rebellion against parents.

Given the fact that the boy was born to Muslim parents, the reasons cited for the punishment are:

(1) Disbelief in Islam - is clear apostasy as the boy comes from a Muslim family.
(2) Rebellion against parents - disobedience to believing parents' teachings amounts to apostasy.

Let's examine the Tafsir of ibn Kathir to verify:

Tafsir Ibn Kathir (18:80) - Ibn `Abbas narrated from Ubayy bin Ka`b that the Prophet said: "The boy Al-Khidr killed was destined to be a disbeliever from the day he was created." It was recorded by Ibn Jarir from Ibn `Abbas. He said: "His parents were believers, and we feared he would oppress them by rebellion and disbelief". Their love for him might make them follow him in disbelief.

(II) HADITHS: 

If you are not convinced by what is written in the Quran on apostasy, let's check the authentic hadith collections to see how Muhammad dealt with apostasy.

Sahih al-Bukhari 6922 - "Whoever changed his Islamic religion, then kill him."

Sahih Muslim 1676 - "It is not permissible to take the life of a Muslim who bears testimony (to the fact that there is no god but Allah, and I am the Messenger of Allah), but in one of the three cases: the married adulterer, a life for life, and the deserter of his Din (Islam), abandoning the community."

Muwatta Imam Malik 36:1419 - "If someone changes his deen - strike his neck!"

Jami At-Tirmidhi 1458 - "Whoever changes his religion then kill him."

Sunan Abu-Dawud 4352 - "The blood of a Muslim man who testifies that there is no god but Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah should not be lawfully shed but only for one of three reasons: married fornicator, soul for soul, and one who deserts his religion separating himself from the community."

Sunan Ibn-Majah 20:2632 - “Whoever changes his religion, execute him.”

Sunan An-Nasai 4059 - "Whoever changes his religion, kill him."

As we can clearly see, all the major hadith collections unanimously agree on death penalty for Muslims who leave Islam.

To make matters worse, claiming to be a Muslim by words is not enough. Even if you act un-Islamic through actions you may be eligible for death penalty.

Sahih al-Bukhari 3611 - Narrated `Ali: I relate the traditions of Allah's Messenger to you for I would rather fall from the sky than attribute something to him falsely. But when I tell you a thing which is between you and me, then no doubt, war is guile. I heard Allah's Messenger saying, "In the last days of this world there will appear some young foolish people who will use (in their claim) the best speech of all people (i.e. the Qur'an) and they will abandon Islam as an arrow going through the game. Their belief will not go beyond their throats (i.e. they will have practically no belief), so wherever you meet them, kill them, for he who kills them shall get a reward on the Day of Resurrection."

If you ever wondered why are tens of Islamic groups fighting and killing each other over who represents the true Islam, this is why. This principle of declaring a Muslim as an apostate is known as Takfir. ISIS and some other Islamist groups take Takfir very seriously.

If we analyze the hadiths, Muhammad's clear command to kill whoever leaves Islam is mentioned in atleast 33 independent saheeh (authentic) graded chains of hadiths from Islam's 7 main hadith collections, repeated at least twice in each of these. The references (arabic reference numbers) are below:

Sahih al-Bukhari 3017 
Sahih al-Bukhari 4344 
Sahih al-Bukhari 6878 
Sahih al-Bukhari 6922 
Sahih al-Bukhari 6923 
Sahih al-Bukhari 3611 
Sahih al-Bukhari 5057 
Sahih al-Bukhari 6930 
Sahih al-Bukhari 7157 
Sahih Muslim 1676 a 
Sahih Muslim 1676 c 
Sahih Muslim 1733 d 
Sunan Ibn-Majah 20:2630 
Sunan Ibn-Majah 20:2631 
Sunan Ibn-Majah 20:2632 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4351 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4352 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4354 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4355 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4356 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4502 
Sunan Abu-Dawud 4767 
Muwatta Imam Malik 36:1419 
Muwatta Imam Malik 36:1420 
Sunan An-Nasai 4059 
Sunan An-Nasai 4060 
Sunan An-Nasai 4063 
Sunan An-Nasai 4064 
Sunan An-Nasai 4065 
Sunan An-Nasai 4066 
Sunan An-Nasai 4102 
Jami At-Tirmidhi 1458 
Jami At-Tirmidhi 2158

(III) Counter Arguments:

Let's check three passages in Quran which are often quoted by Muslims to save the face of Islam and argue that it guarantees freedom of religion.

2:256 - There is no compulsion in religion. The right direction is henceforth distinct from error. And he who rejecteth false deities and believeth in Allah hath grasped a firm handhold which will never break.

18:29 - Say: (It is) the truth from the Lord of you (all). Then whosoever will, let him believe, and whosoever will, let him disbelieve.

109:1 to 109:6 - Say: O disbelievers! I worship not that which ye worship; Nor worship ye that which I worship. And I shall not worship that which ye worship. Nor will ye worship that which I worship. Unto you your religion, and unto me my religion.

However, these passages only forbid forced conversion of people to Islam. They don't deal with the case of Muslims leaving Islam, as shown by the Tafsirs. The first verse was revealed to forbid the forced conversion of a Jew to Islam (ironically when a Jewish tribe was being expelled from Medina). The second and third passages were during Muhammad's early days in Mecca when he was preaching Islam to the disbelievers, conveying them that he was not forcing them to join Islam. The moral example set by the Moses-Khidr story still stands all the same. As Muhammad conquered Mecca and became the only power in the region, he eventually gave an ultimatum to all polytheists to leave the Islamic territory, submit to Islam or die.

9:5 - Then, when the sacred months have passed, slay the idolaters wherever ye find them, and take them (captive), and besiege them, and prepare for them each ambush. But if they repent and establish worship and pay the poor-due, then leave their way free. Lo! Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

However, when Muslims were to conquer outside the "holy" territory of Islam, unbelievers were given the additional option of paying a tribute tax called Jizya if they wanted to remain non-Muslims. People familiar with Islamic history would know two more facts:

(1) When some tribes which had accepted Islam during the time of Muhammad declared apostasy, Muhammad's successor Caliph Abu-Bakr immediately launched the famous Apostasy (Riddah) Wars against them.
(2) Every single school of Islamic jurisprudence which followed the time of Muhammad - the Sunni schools of Shafi'i, Hanafi, Hanbali and Maliki as well as the Jafari (Shia) schools - all prescribed death penalty for apostasy.

All this clearly shows that the so called freedom of religion given by Quran is not absolute and has exceptions. As can be clearly seen, apostasy is one of those exceptions.

(IV) What if Islam is not the Law

Those who defend Islam often argue that this is only an issue if the state is governed by the Shariah (Islamic Law). So, what happens when Islam hasn't become powerful enough to govern the Laws of the state or the country is secular for whatever reason?

9:23 - O ye who believe! Choose not your fathers nor your brethren for friends if they take pleasure in disbelief rather than faith. Whoso of you taketh them for friends, such are wrong-doers.

58:22 - Thou wilt not find folk who believe in Allah and the Last Day loving those who oppose Allah and His messenger, even though they be their fathers or their sons or their brethren or their clan.

Muslims are commanded to disown fellow family members and discard friendship with them for choosing to disbelieve in Islam. Those who are obsessed with Islam may also try to implement Islamic Law by murdering apostates, which is not uncommon in Islam where religion is considered larger than life. As is often the case, apostates from Islam can have to live the rest of their lives in fear simply for choosing to leave the religion and openly expressing their views even if they are not living under a country governed by Islamic Law.

CONCLUSION: Islam does not demand forced conversion of unbelievers. However a Muslim who leaves Islam is given the death penalty in Islamic Law. Muslims are asked to disown fellow family members if they choose to disbelieve. The intolerance shown by Islam towards apostasy presents a huge problem for basic human rights and liberal values. This is something we have to be aware of and speak honestly about.