Islam as the Religion of Monotheism
Islam is the religion of monotheism: the oneness of God, Almighty, in divinity, lordship, essence, attributes, and actions. This monotheistic concept reaches the peak of purity and abstraction that human language cannot fully express. Instead, it uses examples to bring them closer to understanding. The essence of Islam, and sincerity to it, is the monotheism conveyed in Surah Al-Ikhlas: "Say: He is Allah, the One; Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any equivalent." (Al-Ikhlas: 1-4). In Islamic belief, "There is nothing like unto Him, and He is the Hearing, the Seeing." (Ash-Shura: 11). According to Islamic philosophers: “Whatever comes to your mind, Allah is not like that!” While other doctrines and philosophies depict God with an image, stating that Adam was created in His image, Islam, through its doctrine and the Arabic language, interprets this to mean that Allah created Adam in his (Adam’s) own image, with the pronoun "his" referring to Adam. Thus, Allah is exalted above any physical representation or imagery.
The Ladder of Sharia and Islamic Law
The Sharia of Islam is the highest, best, and final stage in the sequence of divine laws and messages that have come from Adam to Muhammad, peace be upon them. This Islamic Sharia confirms and encompasses the preceding prophecies, messages, scriptures, and tablets. It affirms the constants of the single divine religion's beliefs and values, corrects any distortions and changes that occurred, reminds of what has been forgotten, and renews and adds to what has been surpassed by temporal development and geographical changes. It also transitions divine legislation from local to global, from temporality to eternity, and from merely a religious call to a comprehensive methodology for religion, state, nation, civilization, and society. This comprehensive approach ensures that the state protects the religion, and the religion governs the state, covering both the earthly and the hereafter, the individual and the collective, the self and the other: "Say: Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds. No partner has He. And this I have been commanded, and I am the first [among you] of the Muslims." (Al-An'am: 162-163).
The International Aspects of Islam
The international verses in the Quran were revealed during the Meccan phase, before the migration and establishment of the state: "And you do not ask of them for it any payment. It is not except a reminder to the worlds." (Yusuf: 104), "And We have not sent you except as a mercy to the worlds." (Al-Anbiya: 107). The relationship between Islamic Sharia and the people of previous divine laws took its theoretical, legal, and practical path from the initial interactions between the Islamic community and its state with those of other religious communities.
The Constitution of Medina
In the state of Medina, from its first year of establishment (1 AH / 622 CE), its constitution, known as "the charter" or "the book," stated: "The Jews are a community alongside the believers. The Jews have their religion and the Muslims have their religion. Whoever follows us from among the Jews has the same rights and support as long as they do not wrong or betray. They shall be supported against whoever fights the people of this charter, and they shall offer counsel and kindness without sin" (1).
First Encounter with Christianity
In the first encounter with Christianity in 7 AH / 628 CE, when the external relations of the Islamic state began, the companion Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah (586 – 650 CE) addressed Al-Muqawqis, the ruler of Egypt, specifying Islam's relationship with previous laws and messages: "You have a religion, Christianity, which you would not abandon except for something better, which is Islam, sufficient by Allah over what came before it. Just as Moses prophesied about Jesus, so did Jesus prophesy about Muhammad. Our call to you to the Quran is like your call to the people of the Torah to the Gospel. We do not prohibit you from following Christ, but we command you to adhere to him" (2).
The Delegation of Najran Christians
When Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) welcomed the delegation of Najran Christians in 10 AH / 631 CE, he opened the door of his mosque for them to pray their Easter prayer. He established their relationship with Islamic Sharia and its state through a covenant he wrote for them, which described a complete relationship of citizenship under the Islamic state, with religious reference and a unified nation. The Prophet (peace be upon him) wrote for them: "To the people of Najran and their surroundings, and all who adhere to Christianity across the earth: the protection of Allah and the guarantee of Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah, are upon their wealth, selves, religion, churches, everything in their possession. I will protect their side and defend them, their churches, houses of worship, and monasteries. I will guard their religion and nation wherever they are, just as I protect myself, my family, and the people of Islam. They shall have the same rights as Muslims, and upon them are the same obligations. They will be partners with Muslims in what they have and what they owe" (3).
Establishing Full Citizenship Rights
Since that time, Islam has established full citizenship rights based on religion and Islamic creed, rather than demolishing religious beliefs, as is the case in other civilizations. Islam is the upright religion, which straightens and corrects people's affairs: "So direct your face toward the correct religion before a Day comes from Allah of which there is no repelling. That Day, they will be divided." (Ar-Rum: 43), "Say: Indeed, my prayer, my rites of sacrifice, my living and my dying are for Allah, Lord of the worlds. No partner has He. And this I have been commanded, and I am the first [among you] of the Muslims." (Al-An'am: 162-163). It is the religion of uprightness, followed by a nation that pursues the path of justice and righteousness: "And they were not commanded except to worship Allah, [being] sincere to Him in religion, inclining to truth, and to establish prayer and to give zakah. And that is the correct religion." (Al-Bayyina: 5).
Islam as a Religion of Evidence
Islam is the religion of evidence that clarifies and explains matters, whether tangible or intellectual. This term and its derivatives appear in the Quran in 357 places: "So that those who perished [through disbelief] would perish upon evidence and those who lived [in faith] would live upon evidence. And indeed, Allah is Hearing and Knowing." (Al-Anfal: 42), "There has come to you from your Lord, a clear evidence, guidance, and mercy." (Al-An'am: 157).
The Religion of Proof
Islam is the religion of proof, the clear decisive argument, providing evidence for its beliefs and truths, and invites others to bring forth their proofs: "O mankind, there has come to you a conclusive proof from your Lord, and We have sent down to you a clear light." (An-Nisa: 174), "And whoever invokes besides Allah another deity for which he has no proof, then his account is only with his Lord. Indeed, the disbelievers will not succeed." (Al-Mu’minun: 117), "And they say, 'None will enter Paradise except one who is a Jew or a Christian.' That is [merely] their wishful thinking. Say, 'Produce your proof, if you should be truthful.'" (Al-Baqara: 111), "Or have they taken other than Him as deities? Say, 'Produce your proof. This [Quran] is the message for those with me and the message of those before me.' But most of them do not know the truth, so they are turning away." (Al-Anbiya: 24), "And We will extract from every nation a witness and say, 'Produce your proof,' and they will know that the truth belongs to Allah, and lost from them is that which they used to invent." (Al-Qasas: 75).
Islam as Knowledge
Islam is knowledge: "And whoever argues with you about it after [this] knowledge has come to you - say, 'Come, let us call our sons and your sons, our women and your women, ourselves and yourselves, then supplicate earnestly [together] and invoke the curse of Allah upon the liars [among us].'" (Al-Imran: 61). In Islam, Allah is the "Knower of the unseen and the witnessed" (At-Tawba: 94), and those of knowledge, along with Allah and the angels, are the ones who stand firm in justice: "Allah witnesses that there is no deity except Him, and [so do] the angels and those of knowledge - [that He is] maintaining [creation] in justice. There is no deity except Him, the Exalted in Might, the Wise." (Al-Imran: 18). They are the ones who fear Allah most when they discover the secrets of divine creativity and power in the universe: "It is only those who have knowledge among His servants that fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Exalted in Might and Forgiving." (Fatir: 28). Therefore, when Islam judges and seeks judgment, it does so based on knowledge: "Say, 'Produce your proof if you should be truthful.'" (Al-An'am: 143), "Do you have any knowledge that you can produce for us?" (Al-An’am: 841), "Bring me a scripture before this or a remaining trace of knowledge, if you should be truthful." (Al-Ahqaf: 4).
Islam as Light and Enlightenment
Islam is light, enlightenment, and intellectual illumination: "Allah guides to His light whom He wills." (An-Nur: 35), "Allah is the Protector of those who believe. He brings them out from darkness into the light." (Al-Baqara: 257). In Islam, Allah is light; "Allah is the light of the heavens and the earth." (An-Nur: 35), and the Quran is light: "So believe in Allah and His Messenger and the light [i.e., the Quran] which We have sent down." (At-Taghabun: 8), Similarly, wisdom, which is the right judgment of reason, is also light. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said in a hadith: "Indeed, Allah revives hearts with the light of wisdom" (Narrated by Imam Malik in Al-Muwatta). The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is also light: "There has come to you from Allah a light and a clear Book [i.e., the Quran]." (Al-Ma'idah: 15).
Footnotes:
- "Collection of Political Documents from the Prophetic Era and the Rightly Guided Caliphate," 17-21, collected and verified by Dr. Muhammad Hamidullah al-Haidarabadi, Cairo Edition, 1956.
- Ibn Abdul Hakam: "Conquest of Egypt and Its News," 46, Leiden Edition, 1920.
- "Collection of Political Documents from the Prophetic Era and the Rightly Guided Caliphate," 111-821.
