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Why Death Penalty For Apostasy Was Instituted By Earlier Muslims

Started by Neptin, March 25, 2021, 03:27:47 PM

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Neptin

Yusuf Al Qaradawi: If they had gotten rid of the apostasy punishment, Islam wouldn't exist today. Islam would have ended since the death of the prophet, peace be upon him. Opposing apostasy is what kept Islam to this day.

Rashidun Caliphate Era (Apostasy War)
Wikipedia states that the first caliph, Abu Bakr, fought a defensive war against the apostates in the infant Islamic state after Muhammad's death. But hadith and alternative sources like Al Tabari imply that Abu Bakr fought an offensive war on grounds of the rebel tribes refusing to pledge allegiance to him or withholding their zakat from him.

It seem more plausible that the apostates sought secession or autonomy to govern themselves, a demand Abu Bakr felt undermined his rule. Abu Bakr himself never stated he was fighting these people for leaving Islam, still his decision became invoked by later scholars as proof that apostasy is a capital crime in Islam.

Plus, if you consider that Abu Bakr later becomes a sanctified figures in Sunni Islam, it makes sense that the scholars would approve death penalty for apostasy. I mean, what would later Muslims think of their idol if they learn he fought people for leaving Islam, whereas no where in Islamic law is this sanctioned?

So, to justify Abu Bakr and ensure his legacy remain intact, Sunni sages needed to apostasy criminalized under canon law.

Post Rashidun Caliphate Era (Abbasid Revolution)

During the Ummayad's reign of Arabia, the Shiites and Abbasids often slam them as unbelievers for not prioritizing Islam and Muslims. The Ummayads weren't hesitant in appointing non-Muslims in position of authority and didn't care to incentivise their non-Muslim subject to Islam. In fact, Ummayad's enforced polices that neutered any benefit of converting to Islam.

Now, when the Abbasids came to power, they reversed many of the Ummayad's policies in favor of Muslims, and instituted strong incentives for non-Muslims to convert. Muslims now gained more privileges and access to power and wealth over non-Muslims. The result of this is unlike in Ummayad's era, non-Muslims increasingly converted to Islam to gain certain privileges.

This mean, many of these converts were fake. They didn't believe in the Qur'anic message, but upheld the Muslim label whenever it was profitable, and as soon as the Muslim label is no longer of benefit they returned to their former faith. Apparently, the scholars came to realize this loophole and it became a challenge to overcome in order to save the future of Islam.

The scholars obviously realized they couldn't stop people from converting to Islam, and they wouldn't go back to the former Ummayad policies that did not incentivise conversion but at least kept out fake converts. Still something had to be done. And the only conceivable thing would be to a measure to scare off fake converts.

And what would be more effective in deterring these fake converts than penalizing apostasy with death?
Reclaiming Islam from extremism;
[url=http://flamesoftruth.wordpress.com]Flames Of Truth[/url]

Abdun Nur

Let examine if you have a claim to be Muslim in the first place, before any basis of judging if others are Muslim or were Muslim, so that your assertion that for simply rejecting an idea or claim, for which you state there is a granted right to commit murder.

In Islam you may have no sovereign,not even a messenger can be your sovereign,

What's a sovereign, someone that exercises supreme authority within a limited sphere as an acknowledged leader.

What's authority?

Authority is the ability for a leader to author the power to give orders, make decisions, and enforce obedience.

Now a right is a grant from a superior (master) upon an inferior (slave), and a right exists at the whim of the granter.

A free soul has inherent power, and is not effected in any way by the granted rights of another.

This means as soon as you worship a sovereign you cannot be a Muslim, it would be impossible as you have directly acted against the basic concept of Islam to have no sovereign!





Sarah

Peace

I guess they had all sorts of justifications for evil i.e. murdering people who decided to leave Islam. Even if they were 'fake Muslims', it was still wrong to murder them for it. Now the world thinks the Qur'an promotes this when it doesn't.

'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. Allah is Hearer, Knower.' 2:256
'These are the verses of Allah which We recite to you in truth. Then in what statement (hadith) after Allah and His verses will they believe? (45:6)'

Abdun Nur

The fake Muslims were not the murder victims Sarah, they were the murderers.

There is no religion of Islam, that's a construct of hadith, Islam was a system of common unity, now of course Islam is a Riba, sovereign based fantasy, people love to be stupid.

almarh0m

Quote from: Sarah on March 27, 2021, 11:08:10 AM
Peace

I guess they had all sorts of justifications for evil i.e. murdering people who decided to leave Islam. Even if they were 'fake Muslims', it was still wrong to murder them for it. Now the world thinks the Qur'an promotes this when it doesn't.

'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. Allah is Hearer, Knower.' 2:256



Peace

There was never any penalty believing in Deen al Islam then disbelieve if you you so choose...it has always been an individual prerogative to believe or disbelieve in Islam as per Qur'an 4/137.

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا ثُمَّ كَفَرُوا ثُمَّ آمَنُوا ثُمَّ كَفَرُوا ثُمَّ ازْدَادُوا كُفْرًا لَّمْ يَكُنِ اللَّهُ لِيَغْفِرَ لَهُمْ وَلَا لِيَهْدِيَهُمْ سَبِيلًا
Transliteration:   Inna allatheena amanoo thumma kafaroo thumma amanoo thumma kafaroo thumma izdadoo kufran lam yakuni Allahu liyaghfira lahum wala liyahdiyahum sabeelan
Yusuf Ali:   Those who believe, then reject faith, then believe (again) and (again) reject faith, and go on increasing in unbelief,- Allah will not forgive them nor guide them nor guide them on the way.
Mohsin Khan:   Verily, those who believe, then disbelieve, then believe (again), and (again) disbelieve, and go on increasing in disbelief; Allah will not forgive them, nor guide them on the (Right) Way.
Saheeh:   Indeed, those who have believed then disbelieved, then believed, then disbelieved, and then increased in disbelief - never will Allah forgive them, nor will He guide them to a way.

This verse clarifies the misconception about being a Murtad can be justifiably killed.

Peace
"He who Created me, it is He who Guides me"