True Islam and its Role in Modern Society
In the Name of Allah,
the Compassionate, the Merciful
Peace and Blessings ﷺ
be upon our master Muhammad and his Family
{ from a single soul ... } (Al-Nisa', 4:1)
Statement issued by the International Islamic Conference
held in
Amman, the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, under the title:
In accordance with the fatwas issued by the Honourable and Respectable Grand Imam Shaykh al-Azhar, the Grand Ayatollah Al-Sayyid Ali Al-Sistani, the Honourable and Respectable Grand Mufti of Egypt, the Honourable and Respectable Shi'i clerics (both Ja'fari and Zaydi), the Honourable and Respectable Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman, the Islamic Fiqh Academy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Grand Council for Religious Affairs of Turkey, the Honourable and Respectable Grand Mufti of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Respectable Members of its National Fatwa Committee, and the Honourable and Respectable Shaykh Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi;
And in accordance with what was mentioned in the speech of His Hashemite Majesty King Abdullah II bin Al-Hussein, King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan during the opening session of our conference;
And in accordance with our own knowledge in sincerity to Allah the Bounteous;
And in accordance with what was presented in this our conference by way of research papers and studies, and by way of the discussions that transpired in it;
We, the undersigned, hereby express our approval and affirmation of what appears below:
1) Whosoever is an adherent of one of the four Sunni Schools of Jurisprudence (Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali), the Ja'fari (Shi'i) School of Jurisprudence, the Zaydi School of Jurisprudence, the Ibadi School of Jurisprudence, or the Thahiri School of Jurisprudence is a Muslim. Declaring that person an apostate is impossible. Verily his (or her) blood, honour, and property are sacrosanct. Moreover, in accordance with what appeared in the fatwa of the Honourable and Respectable Shaykh al-Azhar, it is not possible to declare whosoever subscribes to the Ash'ari creed or whoever practices true Sufism an apostate. Likewise, it is not possible to declare whosoever subscribes to true Salafi thought an apostate. Equally, it is not possible to declare as apostates any group of Muslims who believes in Allah the Mighty and Sublime and His Messenger (may Peace and Blessings be upon him) and the pillars of faith, and respects the pillars of Islam and does not deny any necessary article of religion.
2) There exists more in common between the various Schools of Jurisprudence than there is difference. The adherents to the eight Schools of Jurisprudence are in agreement as regards the basic Islamic principles. All believe in Allah the Mighty and Sublime, the One and the Unique; that the Noble Qur'an is the Revealed Word of Allah; and that our master Muhammad, may Blessings and Peace be upon him, is a Prophet and Messenger unto all mankind. All are in agreement about the five pillars of Islam: the two testaments of faith (shahadatayn), the ritual prayer (salat), almsgiving (zakat), fasting the month of Ramadan (sawm), and the Hajj to the Sacred House of Allah. All are also in agreement about the foundations of belief: belief in Allah, His Angels, His Scriptures, His Messengers, and in the Day of Judgement, in Divine providence - good and evil. Disagreement between the ʿulama' is only with respect to the ancillary branches of religion (furu') and not the principles and fundamentals (usul). Disagreement with respect to the ancillary branches of religion (furu') is a mercy. Long ago it was said that variance in opinion among 'ulama' "is a good affair".
3) Acknowledgement of the Schools of Jurisprudence within Islam means adhering to a fundamental methodology in the issuance of fatwas. No one may issue a fatwa without the requisite personal qualifications which each School of Jurisprudence defines. No one may issue a fatwa without adhering to the methodology of the Schools of Jurisprudence. No one may claim to do absolute Ijtihad and create a new School of Jurisprudence or to issue unacceptable fatwas that take Muslims out of the principles and certainties of the Shariʿah and what has been established in respect of its Schools of Jurisprudence.
4) The essence of the Amman Message, which was issued on the Blessed Night of Power in the year 1425 H. and which was read aloud in Masjid al-Hashimiyyin, is adherence to the Schools of Jurisprudence and their fundamental methodology. Acknowledging the Schools of Jurisprudence and affirming discussion and engagement between them ensures fairness, moderation, mutual forgiveness, compassion, and engaging in dialogue with others.
5) We call for casting aside disagreement between Muslims and unifying their words and stances; reaffirming their mutual respect for each other; fortifying mutual affinity among their peoples and states; strengthening the ties of brotherhood which unite them in the mutual love of Allah. And we call upon Muslims to not permit discord and outside interference between them. Allah the Sublime says:
{†} (Al-Hujurat, 49:10)
Praise be to Allah alone.
There is a suggestion that an appendix be added to the Final Statement of the Conference which includes the two following important recommendations:
- Participants in the International Islamic Conference, while meeting in Amman, the Capital of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, close to the Holy Aqsa Mosque and occupied Palestinian territories, underline the necessity of exerting all possible efforts for the protection of the Holy Aqsa Mosque against the dangers and encroachments it is exposed to. This can only be done through putting an end to occupation and through the liberation of holy places.
- Participants stress the necessity of consolidation of the meanings of liberty and respect of opinion and opinion of the other side(s) in our Muslim Worlds.
AMMAN, Jordan, July 6; Leading Muslim clerics on Wednesday endorsed religious edicts (fatwas) forbidding the declaration of any Muslim an apostate (takfir) and limiting the issuance of religious edicts to qualified Muslim clerics in the eight schools of Islamic jurisprudence.
The endorsement of the edicts was part of a general statement emanating from the International Islamic Conference convened by His Majesty King Abdullah in the Jordanian capital, Amman. The joint statement, collecting signatures from scholars and clergy of the eight schools, is the first of its kind.
The statement, issued in the presence of King Abdullah, forbids declaring any adherent to any one of the eight schools of jurisprudence or to Sufism, an apostate; acknowledges the agreement among the eight schools on the fundamental principles of Islamic belief and practice; instructs the eight schools to establish a mechanism by which only qualified clergy could issue religious edicts and forbade the issuance of edicts by unqualified clergy; affirms the necessity and benefit of dialogue among the eight schools and urges Muslims to eschew discord and instead unite and fortify affinity among Muslim people and states.
The statement's terms of reference included religious edicts issued by ten of the most preeminent members of the global Islamic clergy ahead of the conference, which condemned the doctrine of takfir, among other things. The edicts were issued by Their Eminences Grand Imam Sheikh Al Azhar Sheikh Mohammed Sayyed Tantawi; Grand Ayatollah Al Sayyid Ali Al Sistani; Grand Mufti of Egypt Ali Jumaa; a compendium of Shi'i clerics (both Ja'fari and Zeidi); Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman Ahmad Bin Hamad Al Khalili; the Islamic Fiqh Academy in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia; the Grand Council for Religious Affairs, Turkey; Grand Mufti of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan Sheikh Izzeddine Al Khateeb Al Tamimi, and the members of its National Fatwa Committee; and Sheikh Dr. Yusuf Al Qaradawi.
Other elements of the statement were drawn from King Abdullah's address to the conference, which urged more than 170 scholars and clerics from the different schools of Islamic thought to unify the global Muslim community against threats to its integrity from both Muslims and non-Muslims. The King said that divisions within the global Islamic community, acts of violence and terrorism and accusations of apostasy and the killing of Muslims in the name of Islam violate the spirit of Islam and generate global turmoil because they give justification to non-Muslims to judge Islam according to acts that Islam disavows, and subsequently interfere in Muslims' affairs.
The King said it was unacceptable to call an adherent to any one of the eight schools of jurisprudence an apostate. All schools recognize the fundamental principles of Islamic belief and uphold the five pillars of Islam, he said, and therefore practice true Islam. The mutual acknowledgment of all schools of Islamic jurisprudence would permit the emergence of a fundamental methodology in the issuance of religious edicts in order that those issuing edicts would be "qualified for this undertaking," the King said.
"This," he said, "would end the practice of defaming others as apostates and close the door on ignorant people who practice killing and terrorism - of which Islam is innocent - in the name of Islam."
http://www.usnewswire.com/ 2005 U.S. Newswire 202-347-2770/ http://asmasociety.org/home/ 07/29/2005
2005-07-30
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