Is it permissible for Muslims to allow Christians to build churches within their lands and hold their religious services in them?
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The questioner : Is it permissible for Muslims to allow Christians to build churches within their lands and hold their religious services in them?
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. After that:
This is a very important question, because many people assume that the difference between the religion of Islam and other religions—whether that be the religion of the Christians who claim descent from Jesus, the son of Mary, or the religion of the Jews who claim descent from Moses, peace be upon them both and upon our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)—is like the difference between one school of thought and another within the same religion. This is a mistaken assumption. All servants are the servants of Allah the Exalted; He is their Creator and Provider, He is the One who prepared them and sustained them, and to Him is the ultimate return, and with Him is the Reckoning on the Day of Resurrection. He, Blessed and Exalted is He, worships His servants with whatever He wills of Shari'ah, and Allah the Exalted erases what He wills and establishes what He wills. However, He, Blessed and Exalted is He, made clear in His Noble Book, which He revealed to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), that whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will not be accepted from him. Islam is the Shari'ah that Allah the Exalted prescribed for His servants in every time and in every place.
During the time of the call of Moses (peace be upon him), Islam was the religion of the Jews. During the time of the call of Jesus (peace be upon him), Islam was the religion of the Christians. And after the sending of the Messenger (peace be upon him), Islam was his religion alone. Allah the Exalted said:[An-Nisa 4:79] And He the Exalted said: [Al-Furqan 25:1] The people and the worlds are a general term that includes all the children of Adam. Indeed, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent to the jinn and the humans, and He the Exalted said: [Al-A'raf 7:158].
Therefore, the religion of Islam is the religion upon which the creation, from the children of Adam and from the jinn as well, must be. This is the obligatory duty, and it is the religion with which Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent. Accordingly, for a person to adopt a religion other than Islam is forbidden for him and not permissible.
Accordingly, if any non-Muslim wishes to build places of worship, such as churches or others, in the lands of the Muslims, that is not permissible, because it means displaying a religion other than Islam in the lands of Islam, and that is not permissible. Two religions do not coexist in one land; rather, the religion is one, which is the one by which Allah worships His servants. Therefore, it is forbidden for the rulers of the Muslims to enable any non-Muslim, whether Christian, Jew, or other, to build places of worship in the lands of Islam, whether they are churches, monasteries, synagogues, or others. Only mosques are built, which are a distinctive feature of the Muslims.
The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and may peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. After that:
This is a very important question, because many people assume that the difference between the religion of Islam and other religions—whether that be the religion of the Christians who claim descent from Jesus, the son of Mary, or the religion of the Jews who claim descent from Moses, peace be upon them both and upon our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him)—is like the difference between one school of thought and another within the same religion. This is a mistaken assumption. All servants are the servants of Allah the Exalted; He is their Creator and Provider, He is the One who prepared them and sustained them, and to Him is the ultimate return, and with Him is the Reckoning on the Day of Resurrection. He, Blessed and Exalted is He, worships His servants with whatever He wills of Shari'ah, and Allah the Exalted erases what He wills and establishes what He wills. However, He, Blessed and Exalted is He, made clear in His Noble Book, which He revealed to Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him), that whoever seeks a religion other than Islam, it will not be accepted from him. Islam is the Shari'ah that Allah the Exalted prescribed for His servants in every time and in every place.
During the time of the call of Moses (peace be upon him), Islam was the religion of the Jews. During the time of the call of Jesus (peace be upon him), Islam was the religion of the Christians. And after the sending of the Messenger (peace be upon him), Islam was his religion alone. Allah the Exalted said:
And We have sent you, [O Muhammad], to the people as a messenger
وَأَرْسَلْنَاكَ لِلنَّاسِ رَسُولًاBlessed is He who sent down the Criterion upon His Servant that he may be to the worlds a warner -
تَبَارَكَ الَّذِي نَزَّلَ الْفُرْقَانَ عَلَى عَبْدِهِ لِيَكُونَ لِلْعَالَمِينَ نَذِيرًاSay, [O Muhammad], "O mankind, indeed I am the Messenger of Allah to you all, [from Him] to whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. There is no deity except Him; He gives life and causes death." So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the unlettered prophet, who believes in Allah and His words, and follow him that you may be guided.
قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ إِنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيْكُمْ جَمِيعًا الَّذِي لَهُ مُلْكُ السَّمَوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ لا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ يُحْيِي وَيُمِيتُ فَآمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ النَّبِيِّ الأُمِّيِّ الَّذِي يُؤْمِنُ بِاللَّهِ وَكَلِمَاتِهِ وَاتَّبِعُوهُ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَTherefore, the religion of Islam is the religion upon which the creation, from the children of Adam and from the jinn as well, must be. This is the obligatory duty, and it is the religion with which Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was sent. Accordingly, for a person to adopt a religion other than Islam is forbidden for him and not permissible.
Accordingly, if any non-Muslim wishes to build places of worship, such as churches or others, in the lands of the Muslims, that is not permissible, because it means displaying a religion other than Islam in the lands of Islam, and that is not permissible. Two religions do not coexist in one land; rather, the religion is one, which is the one by which Allah worships His servants. Therefore, it is forbidden for the rulers of the Muslims to enable any non-Muslim, whether Christian, Jew, or other, to build places of worship in the lands of Islam, whether they are churches, monasteries, synagogues, or others. Only mosques are built, which are a distinctive feature of the Muslims.