What is the ruling on returning the greeting and congratulating Christian colleagues on their festival?

The questioner : Shaykh, if you permit, a question. I work. I have some Christians there, some Christians work or study at the workplace. After the festival, they come to congratulate me. So I don't know, I mean, I would prefer to stay away from them, but they offer themselves and say "May you be well every year" and so on, and shake hands. Is it permissible for me to stay away from them? Should I greet them? What is your opinion?

The Shaykh : Also, where do you live?

The questioner : Number Jambal. Our brother, son of...

The Shaykh : I don't mean, where is the workplace?

The questioner : I study at the university College of Business.

The Shaykh : Yes, and there are Christians.

The questioner : There are many.

The Shaykh : Ah. As for me, I did not stay away from the Christians. You are asking if I should stay away from them, meaning I did not stay away from them.

The questioner : Shaykh, if you permit, a question. At the workplace, I have some Christians there, some Christians work or study at the workplace. After the festival, they come to congratulate me. So I don't know, I mean, I would prefer to stay away from them, but they offer themselves and say "May you be well every year" and so on, and shake hands. Is it permissible for me to stay away from them? Should I greet them? What is your opinion?

The Shaykh : Where do you live?

The questioner : Our brother. Abu...

The Shaykh : I don't mean, where is the workplace?

The questioner : I study at the university College of Business.

The Shaykh : Yes, and there are Christians.

The questioner : There are many.

The Shaykh : Ah. In truth, I did not stay away from the Christians. You are asking if I should stay away from them, meaning I did not stay away from them.

The questioner : It is teaching, and they train there, it is a government school, so I do not know what is possible. I did not stay away from them, yes. I mean, it does not happen to.

The Shaykh : You are living with them, how can you stay away from them?

The questioner : I have my own office, I do not mix with them. Distance is relative, my Shaykh, distance is relative. For example, one might not mix with them in their gatherings, not in their offices. And I do not sit in gatherings, even I do not sit in some Muslim gatherings. Because some Muslims have participated with them in many things. So I stayed away, praise be to Allah, there is a group. Ah, praise be to Allah, no one is better than Allah, but they are good, I sit with them. But sometimes they do.

The Shaykh : Return to them, why?

The questioner : I do not return to them because I heard from some brothers that it is not permissible to greet a mushrik (one who associates partners with Allah). They are his colleagues, my Shaykh, they are his colleagues, teachers.

The Shaykh : In any case, may Allah bless you, Abu Ibrahima, what Allah willed. In any case, if it is difficult for you to deal with these disbelievers, you should stay away from them as much as you can, even if it means you do not perform wudu' in a place where you are afflicted with the kind of trial you described to me just now. First, I want to remind my brother Abu Ibrahima, along with everyone present and those you brought, 'Abd Allah, of the like of what Allah the Exalted said: their homes, from your homes, that you be just to them, that you be good to them . The polytheists in Islam are in three categories: three categories: those at war, those with a treaty, and dhimmis.
The Shaykh : As for these warring ones, there is no need to speak about them; they are enemies of the religion, meaning enemies of the religion in belief and enemies of the religion in action. As for the other two categories, they are enemies of the religion in belief but not enemies of the religion in action. They are those with a treaty and those under protection (dhimmis). The word "treaty" itself indicates their nature. They are those with whom the Muslim state has established a treaty, so they do not fight the Muslims or harm them, and the Muslims, naturally, do not fight them or harm them. The third and final category are the people of dhimmah (protected non-Muslims). They are those who accepted to reside in the lands of Islam and to submit to the system of Islam. The system of Islam does not interfere in their religious affairs, but the general system of Islam must apply to all those called citizens today, meaning in one homeland. So now, after we have known this classification, which I have no doubt about, these Christians who have lived in the lands of Islam for many long centuries are, without a doubt, not to be considered from the first category, meaning from the warring ones. If that is not the case, they must either be those with a treaty or those under protection (dhimmis).
The Shaykh : Likewise, this second category cannot be considered those with a treaty, because they are residents there. One with a treaty lives outside but comes here to handle interests or benefits for his nation or his people, and so on. So the reality is that these are closest to being dhimmis (protected non-Muslims), but the truth is that they are dhimmis who have broken the conditions that the Muslim rulers imposed on them. If there were a government truly ruling by Islam, it would be necessary to remind them of the conditions set by previous rulers and for them to commit to fulfilling them. The discussion on this is long, but the point now is that these Christians living in these lands, the previous verse applies to them. They did not fight us and did not expel us from our homes, so Allah does not forbid us from being kind to them and being just toward them. "Indeed, Allah loves those who are just." What does that mean, Shaykh? You are kind to them and you are just.

The questioner : Do you mean being kind to them? Meaning in returning the greeting and so on, or what? The speech is coming now. Meaning.

The Shaykh : You dealt with them. Good. So it is not permissible. The old. And not calling them, not oppressing them, not deceiving them. And so on. It is possible. What does not fall under this general Qur'anic text is what the question was about just now. Now they come and greet you.
The Shaykh : It was said to you that it is not permissible. We do not say that Abdullah is the one who told you, no, he is innocent, but he is saying this, this is it. Yes, the important thing is that this statement, meaning that it is not permissible to return the greeting to Christians, has no basis in the Shari'ah. The Shari'ah has two rulings: one is explicitly stated, and the other is derived. As for the first, which is explicitly stated, it is . So there is returning the greeting, not that there is no returning of the greeting, but returning the greeting is not as we return the greeting to our Muslim brothers, but briefly: "And upon you." This is the text. As for the derivation, it differs if the disbeliever, when he greets the Muslim, his greeting is not clear, but it might be what they say today, "Migom"? In that case, we adhere to this text: "And upon you."
The Shaykh : But if his greeting is explicit, like the greeting of a Muslim to his Muslim brother, then the saying of Allah the Exalted applies: . We said this is derivation; the first is a text . But we say it is not always that we took this as derivation. What is its basis? We mentioned first the verse: "And when you are greeted," by anyone. Second, and this is the important point, derivation from his saying (peace and blessings be upon him): "If the Jews greet you, say 'And upon you,' for one of them says 'As-sam' instead of 'As-salam,' 'As-sam 'alaykum' (death upon you)." So we say "And upon you." But if he throws the greeting in clear Arabic, "As-salamu 'alaykum," the cause is removed, and with the removal of the cause, the effect is removed. And when the effect is removed, the text of the verse applies: . Now, if you are afflicted with those Christians who come and greet you, if you are in doubt about the form of their greeting, you do not greet them as you heard from you just now, no, you do not greet them, but you say to them "And upon you." But I believe today there is no Christian who gives a booby-trapped greeting, but he lives in a Muslim society, so I know some of them who greet each other with the Islamic greeting, "As-salamu 'alaykum." Yes.
The Shaykh : So if you are certain that this Christian, when he says to you "As-salamu 'alaykum," means "As-salamu 'alaykum" and does not mean "As-sam" (death) with that deviant meaning, then return the greeting to him and do not worry; it is completely permissible. As for the sensitive problem that you feel from what came in your speech, it is your congratulating them on the festival. If it is your festival, what do you say to them? I fear, I fear, as it is said that you, in return, congratulate them on their festival, and you do not do this, if Allah wills. So if it is your festival, you want to be a Muslim diplomat who knows how to deal with them such that you do not speak words that contradict the Shari'ah on one hand, and you also stop them on the other hand, because the previous verse explicitly says to be kind to them and . I hope I have answered your question, if Allah wills.

The questioner : My Shaykh, may Allah bless you, I did not intend to say that, not that he does not greet them, he does not return, no, he returns the greeting to them as I say, but by derivation, this is what I did not know. May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : And it is.