Can we(muslims) marry christians?
Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,
As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa
Barakatuh. (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)
One of our brothers/sisters has asked this
question:
asalamoailaikum....
and the other one is quite embrangling for
me... is that.. can we(muslims) marry christians? well
as being ehl-e-kitab we can... but the christians do shirk..ie they say jesus
is a son of God... which is not according to the teachings of islam...and we
should not marry those who do shirk!!!
(There may be some grammatical and spelling
errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from
questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in
confidentiality.)
Answer:
Marry Christians shirk
In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask
for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever
He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that
there is no one (no idol, no person, no
grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai,
nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that
Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.
Your Question: can we(muslims) marry christians? well as
being ehl-e-kitab we can
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 5 Surah
Maidah verse 5:
5 This day are (all) things good and pure
made lawful unto you. The food of the
People of the Book is lawful unto you and yours is lawful unto them. (Lawful unto you in marriage) are (not only)
chaste women who are believers, but chaste women among the People of the
Book revealed before your time when ye give them their due dowers and
desire chastity not lewdness nor secret intrigues. If anyone rejects faith fruitless is his work
and in the Hereafter he will be in the ranks of those who have lost
Allah Subhanah has indeed given permission for the
believers to marry chaste women from among the People of the Book, if they wish
to do so.
Your Statement: ... but the christians do shirk..ie they
say jesus is a son of God... which is not according to the teachings of islam
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 9 Surah
Taubah verse 30:
30 The Jews call Uzair a son of Allah and
the Christians call Christ the son of Allah!
That is a saying from their mouths; (in this) they but imitate what the
unbelievers of old used to say. Allah's
curse be on them: how they are deluded away from the Truth!
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 5 Surah Maidah
verses 72-73:
72 They do blaspheme who say: "Allah is
Christ, the son of Mary." But said
Christ: "O children of
73 They do blaspheme who say: Allah is one
of three in a Trinity: for there is no god except One Allah. If they desist not from their word (of
blasphemy) verily a grievous penalty will befall the blasphemers among them.
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah
Nisaa verse 171:
171 O people of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: nor say
of Allah aught but Truth. Christ Jesus
the son of Mary was (no more than) a Messenger of Allah, and His Word which He
bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in Allah and His
Messengers. Say not "Trinity":
desist: it will be better for you: for Allah is One Allah: Glory be to Him:
(for Exalted is He) above having a son! To Him belong all things in the heavens and on
earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer
of affairs.
Even when the Quran was being revealed, the Christians
believed in the falsehood that Prophet Jesus (a.s.) was the son of Allah
Subhanah! But in spite of their this
false belief and blasphemy, Allah Subhanah has permitted the believers to marry
amongst the chaste Christian woman, if they choose to do so.
Your Statement: and we should not marry those who do
shirk!!!
Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 2 Surah
Baqarah verse 221:
221 Do not marry unbelieving women
(idolaters) until they believe; a slave woman who
believes is better than an unbelieving woman even though she allure you. Nor marry (your girls) to unbelievers until
they believe: a man slave who believes is better than un unbeliever even though
he allure you. Unbelievers do (but)
beckon you to the fire. But Allah
beckons by His grace to the Garden (of Bliss) and forgiveness and makes His
Signs clear to mankind: that they may celebrate His praise.
Indeed, Allah Subhanah has forbidden the believers to
marry amongst the ‘mushriks’ (polytheists or idolators). Even though the Quran holds the Jews and the
Christians guilty of the abominations of blasphemy, disbelief and ‘shirk’;
Allah refers to them as the People of the Book because unlike the other
‘mushriks’, the People of the Book in essence believe in the true concept of
monotheism or One God through the Divine Scriptures that Allah Subhanah sent
towards them, but they themselves twisted the Truth and invented false beliefs
without any authority.
Besides believing in the essence of monotheism, the People
of the Book believe in all the other aspects of faith: ie. in the concept of
the Messengers, in the concept of Divine Books, in the concept of the Angels,
in the concept of
There is a huge misunderstanding and confusion in the
Muslim Ummah today that the People of the Book commit shirk, therefore the laws
of the permissibility of their food and the marriage with their woman are
forbidden to the believers. Allah
Subhanah Himself in the Quran declares that the People of the Book commit
shirk, but in spite of that has given them a special status as the People of
the Book and made it permissible for the believers to marry amongst their woman
and eat of their food; if they wish to do so.
Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to
Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only
Source of Strength.
Your Brother in Islam,
Burhan
Wister