Are Muslims who live in non-Muslim countries committing a sin by following the leaders of those countries who do not know Islamic teachings? I am asking this in the light of the Qur'anic verse which says: "Do not follow the desires of people who have no knowledge."
First of all we should be clear that the phrase ‘people who have no knowledge’ refers to any people who adopt a system or a social set-up which is contrary to Islam. This is true whether they know about Islam or not. If they know Islam and what it teaches and then they decide nevertheless to adopt a different system, then their knowledge has stopped at merely being aware of something good without benefiting by it. They are in the same position as one who knows that he only needs to switch on the electricity in order to have light but decides not to do so and continues to live in darkness, paying little care to the risk he or his family may run as a result.
If a Muslim or a group of Muslims live in a country which implements a law that is in conflict with the divine law, and they are unable to influence the process of law-making, they commit no sin provided that they do not do anything to help this process to enact more laws which are at variance with God's law. They must also make it clear that they do not approve of this process because it constitutes an aggression on God's authority to legislate. This they should do in the best way available to them, even if it is merely denying that authority in their hearts. Furthermore, they must try to conduct as much of their own affairs as possible in accordance with Islamic teachings. When they have done that, they discharge their minimum responsibility to implement God's law. At least they have the feeling of disapproval when they have no power to change the situation in order to ensure the practical implementation of Islamic law.
• Muslims: Malaise afflicting and disparity within
Many people may find it difficult to believe when they see the miserable condition of Muslims everywhere, as they suffer hardships that come from natural causes and ones which are caused by fellow human beings. If everything occurs by God's consent, how come He allows so much injustice? Why should millions of children be left without parents only because others fight over some wretched causes? Some of these children are kidnapped and sold as spare parts to rich individuals in rich countries. To whom will these children pray? May I also ask about two people who are very pious and truly religious, but one leads a life of poverty, hardly able to make ends meet, while the other lives his whole life in affluence, with no financial worry. Both their situations occur with God's consent. Both may be admitted to heaven in the Hereafter. Thus, the one living in poverty loses out because he does not experience the comfort of affluent living. Could you give me an explanation to all this without saying that it is all God's experiment?
I am amazed when people cite the misfortunes of human beings as cause for turning away from faith or disbelieving in God altogether. What I understand from such an attitude is that people wish to believe in God on their own terms. It is as if they are saying to God that if they believe Him, then He should spare them any misfortune and ensure for them the sort of life they expect as good believers. He should give them wealth and comfort, and also He should rid them of their enemies. This is certainly the wrong attitude because it is not based on a proper understanding of the meaning of believing in God and what to expect as a result of such belief.
The proper understanding of the terms and conditions of the bargain we make with God when we profess to believe in Him is that manifested by the believers from Madinah, i.e. the Ansar, when they made their covenant with the Prophet, asking him to move over to Madinah, saying they should support and protect him. One of them said to them just before they made their pledge: "Are you aware of what you are pledging to this man (meaning the Prophet, peace be upon him)? You are pledging to support him in the face of much killing among your men and also much looting of your property. If you feel that should this happen and you suffer killings among your chiefs and nobles, and loss of property, then you would let him down, then it is time to withdraw now before you humiliate yourself in front of God and people alike. On the other hand, if you are prepared to honor your pledges in spite of all that, then come forward and give your pledges, for that will ensure for you a position of honor in this life and in the life to come." They told him to step aside, and turned to the Prophet to ask him: "What will our reward be if we honor our pledges?" He said: "Heaven." They rejoiced: "That is a profitable deal. We shall not go back on it and we accept no going back."
That is the proper understanding. For all the sacrifices they were asked to give, they were not promised any quick reward. They were not told that they would have so many positions in the government to be formed by the Prophet, nor were they told they would have a certain percentage of any land to be occupied or the booty to be gained in any battle. In fact they were not promised anything whatsoever in this world. What they were promised related to a different world altogether. They were promised 'heaven' and that belongs to the life to come.
This applies all the time to all believers. They have to fulfill their part of the bargain and give any sacrifice that may be called upon to give without expecting any reward in this life. All they may expect is 'heaven,' and that is a 'very profitable deal,' as the Ansar realized. This means that they have to prove what they profess. It is not sufficient to say that one is a believer without proving that in a practical manner. Hence God has made this life a test. I do not quite understand what my reader means when he refers to 'God's experiment.' God does not experiment, because He knows the result of any situation even before that situation takes place. What does He need to experiment for? However, God puts us to a test in this life so that we may prove to ourselves and those around us that we truly believe in Him.
The test is not the same for everyone. Some of us are tested with poverty while others are tested with affluence; some may be healthy while others suffer poor health and in both situations we are tested. Some may have power and high position while others have neither, yet both are being tested. Certainly God does not need to put us to such tests in order to know our true metal. It is we who have to prove that we deserve heaven because we are able to go through the test and pass with honors. Hence, the two believers in your example are being tested, one with poverty, the other with wealth. If both prove themselves, then both go to heaven. Neither would have lost, because the reward is there for both of them to enjoy. None of us could say whether we would have done better had we had a different test. A poor person may say, 'I wish I could have been tested with wealth. At least I would have enjoyed the comforts of a life of plenty.' Who knows that he may do worse with a test of plenty than with a test of poverty.
People may ask why Muslim communities everywhere are suffering misfortunes at the hands of the enemies of God and man? Well, the test that this life is all about is meant for individuals and communities alike. Communities must prove that they are prepared to sacrifice their all in order that God's word may be held supreme. The Prophet and his companions did just that before God gave them the victories that ensured for them a life of supremacy over their enemies. At the Battle of the Moat the Muslims were running the risk of being exterminated with their women and children. When they remained steadfast, God gave them victory without having to fight their enemies.
When we look at the world, we must realize that for a long time the Muslims have been only Muslim by name. They need to demonstrate they truly deserve to be called Muslims. To do so they have to treat Islam as their guiding principle, and to live a truly Islamic life. When they have done so, and when they have fought determinedly to maintain their Islamic identity, God will fulfill His promise to them and give them victory. It is always the case that human beings need to prove themselves first for God's promise to apply to them. When you look at all the trouble spots in the Muslim world, you will find that the determination to lead an Islamic life has been lacking. Even in Afghanistan, victory has not been complete, because of the struggle for power among brethren. Thus power has been placed as more important than Islamic brotherhood. Victory will then be slow in coming. When they were determined to fight the foreign enemy and maintain the Islamic identity of Afghanistan, God gave them that victory. Had they lived up to Islamic expectations, they would have been given a greater victory.
One point remains to be clarified. It is not true to say that everything happens with God's consent, because God never consents to what is evil. But everything happens with God's will. God has certain laws to operate in this world. They take effect by His will. So, when anything happens in accordance with these laws, it takes place with God's will. If the Muslims take the necessary steps to ensure their victory, God will grant them that by His will, in accordance with His laws. If they do not, they will fail to achieve victory, and that will be by His will and again in accordance with the laws He has set in operation. So we must not blame God for not supporting us; we should blame ourselves for not doing enough to deserve that support.
• Muslims: Negligent in major religious duties
What is the status of those Muslims who do not conduct their lives in accordance with Islamic teachings. They profess to believe in God and His messenger, but they neither offer obligatory prayers nor attend to other major duties of Islam. Are they Muslim? When they die, are they to be buried as Muslim? I also ask about the difference between being Muslim and being Mu'min.
The Mu'min means a "believer," or a person who consciously believes in the oneness of God, associating no partners with Him in any sense or form, and also believes that Muhammad, peace be upon him, was a Prophet whom God chose to carry His final message to mankind.
However, the Prophet, peace be upon him, defines having faith as "having your beliefs firmly entrenched in your heart and giving practical credence to them through your action." A Muslim, on the other hand, is a person who admits to belong to the Islamic faith. The term Islam signifies "submission," and this means that a Muslim submits himself to God in all matters and situations. It is difficult to imagine that a person does that without being a firm believer.
The distinction between the two is real. In the Qur'an we read the following verse which draws a clear line separating the two:
"The Arabs of the desert declare: 'We are true believers.' Say: 'You are not. Rather say: 'We profess Islam,' for faith has not yet found its way into your hearts. If you obey God and His messenger, He will not deny you the reward of your labors. God is Forgiving and Merciful."
So a person may declare that he is a Muslim, but that remains a statement which requires substantiation through action and attitudes. He may attend to his Islamic duties and abstain from what God has made forbidden, but remains only at the stage of being a practicing Muslim. We cannot judge whether he actually submits himself to God in all situations.
That is a matter which is known only to God. Therefore, we consider him to be a Muslim, because we are ordered to judge people on the basis of what they profess and do. You will realize that a person may claim to be a Muslim and actually appear to attend to all Islamic practices while he is totally devoid of faith.
He may simply be a hypocrite or one who wants to penetrate the ranks of Muslims for some purpose of his own. As we cannot judge his intentions, we have to take his word and leave judgment on his intentions to God who knows what is in everyone's hearts. He actually knows the innermost thoughts of every creature. It is possible, therefore, that a person appears to be a Muslim without actually being one. But if he is truly a Muslim, he matches his declared belief with submission to God in all his life affairs.
When he has done that, he is a true believer, or a Mu'min. When a person who professes to be a Muslim neglects his Islamic duties and indulges in what God has forbidden, there are two possibilities.
Either his attitude is the result of lack of faith or a matter of simple negligence and carelessness. It may be that such a person has been brought up in a Muslim family and he is used to saying that he is a Muslim when he is asked about his faith. Deep inside, however, he does not truly believe. He may find the whole idea of religion to be tiresome but he does not wish to be known as a non-believer. Such a person does not belong to Islam at all.
On the other hand, a person who knows that as a Muslim he has some well defined duties and that he must attend to them, and yet he remains negligent. When the occasion presents itself, as when he is with a group of people and they begin a congregational prayer, he will join them because on such occasions he finds encouragement or does not wish to be thought of as a non-believer. Such a person is guilty of negligence which is sinful. He is liable to punishment for disobedience to God, but he may also be forgiven his sins.
These two persons have totally different cases. The first one is a non-believer while the other is only a negligent believer. How can we tell whether a person we know belongs to the first or the second category? There is simply no way of knowing that . We are commanded by God to accept what people profess and leave judgment on their intentions to God who knows all about them.
Needless to say that in the light of the foregoing, anyone who claims to be a Muslim should be buried with Muslims when he dies. We prepare his funeral in the proper manner of Islamic burial. We pray God to forgive him and leave matters at that.
If God knows him to be believer, He will forgive him and we leave matters at that. But a person who is a non-believer will not earn God's forgiveness [no matter how he was buried.]