Jews in the World of Islam

Multiculturalism of Islam

The traditional tolerance under Islam falls short of full religious liberty which requires equality among people of different creeds as a basic human right. Islamic rule assigned different ranks and tasks to people of different beliefs in a way that allows only faithful Muslims full membership within the community. However, the definition of religious tolerance, judged by today's standard, is not applicable to that of the history. Therefore, it is true that Jewish minorities benefited a great deal from the tolerance of Islam throughout the Middle Ages, which was severely lacking in Christian Europe. In return, Muslims asked minorities to obey their laws; and this mutual way of living is what led to a multicultural society under Islamic state.

The position of Jews greatly improved under the rule of Islam for many reasons. One evident reason for this improvement is that they were one minority among others; in the areas concurred, there was a large variety of religions and Jews were only a small community among others such as Syrians, North Africans and Christians. As a result of that, Muslims had other ethnics groups to worry about and considering the small number of Jewish community, they started building trust with Jews as they do not evoke a danger for the sake of Islamic rule. This feeling of security towards the Jews led to a certain degree of tolerance forming a less rigid oppression. In addition to the security reasons, Islam is believed to be a religion of justice and equality. Jews of newly conquered territories, such as Jews of Hims, preferred Arabs to the Byzantines because of the sense of justice and religious tolerance in Islam. They claimed: "We prefer your rule and your justice to the oppression and injustice under which we were formerly. And we shall surely repel Heraclius' army from the city, with the help of your governor."

No laws forced conversions on Jews following this rapid extension of territories because the Quran indicates, "There is to be no compulsion in religion" (Sura2:256). Quran embodies religious diversity and so, accepts the identity of the newest born monotheistic religion among Judaism and Christianity; thus implying the principles built on previous ones, but in an uncorrupted way. There exists a strong religious pluralism in Quran. As evidence, Lewis translates the verse CIX6: "To you your religion, to me my religion." Lewis also claims that Judaism is an incomplete form of Islam and therefore, should be respected as "genuine if distorted divine revelation" according to Islam. Furthermore, Islam is closer to Judaism than any other religions. For instance, the study of religious law involves the main activity of Islam's and Judaism's religious communities; both ulema and rabbis teach and interpret religious laws, shari'a and halakha. The application of it in everyday life is strong as opposed to the ascetic Christian priests isolated from their communities. Religious law is at the center of both religions in a way that affects every aspect of life. The Quran's pluralism and sound similarities between these religions led to mutual exchanges as well as mutual respect.

Aforementioned similarities in mind, Jews enjoyed gradually increasing degrees of tolerance from the early stages of Islam through Middle Ages. Bernard Lewis mentions, "In the early centuries of the caliphate, we may speak of a move in the direction of greater tolerance. From the time of the Prophet to that of the first caliphs and beyond to the universal empire of the Umayyad and the Abbasids, there is an unmistakable increase in tolerance accorded to non-Muslims. From about the twelfth and thirteenth centuries onward, there is a noticeable move in the opposite direction." One way to explain this increasing improvement is to point out that Muslims at the beginning constituted a religious minority as they spread with religious conquests from the Arabian Peninsula to the Mediterranean and parts of Europe. They had to preserve their identity in their own empire and not be absorbed among their subjects in conquered territories. To do that, they needed to impose rules and an internal autonomy within religious communities of minorities.

One of these regulations was the poll tax dhimmis had to pay, called jizya. It was mainly imposed to differentiate the minorities from the ruling Muslims who were the community of "believers." Keeping the political authority in their hands, Muslims also had a spiritual fulfillment through jizya, as the separation of "people of the book" was confirmed by Muhammad's hadith and Quran's verses: "Fight against those to whom the Scriptures were given, who believe neither in Allah nor in the Last Day, who forbid not what Allah and His apostle have forbidden, and follow not the true faith, until they pay tribute out of hand, and are humbled" (Sura9:29). However, Jews were able to adapt themselves psychologically to these facts Ð'-more easily than other minorities, as they had already been subjects for many centuries. Also, Stillman mentions that, "The tax burden imposed upon them along with all dhimmis under Islam was not much different than the discriminatory taxes paid to their former overlords." Plus, the requirement of jizya from all the "ahl al-dhimma" had some exceptions such as women, children or old men who cannot work. The concept of jizya therefore did not impose a total discrimination towards Jews. Jizya might even be considered as another form of less severe zekat , required tax from Muslims for the purposes of charity.

On the other hand, the humiliation of jizya clearly influenced Jews to convert in Islam, which contradicts the Quran's religious tolerance. Later, this humiliation took a legal form in the Pact of Umar, the doctrine of "the people of the book." It comprised a series of laws designed to separate Muslims from non-Muslims: It imposed Muslim superiority through the humiliation and suppression of dhimmis. Minorities had to accept the rules in order to live under Islamic rule. They have taken the following obligations among many others: "We shall not build in our cities or in their vicinity any new monasteries, churches, hermitages, or monks' cells," "We shall not attempt to resemble the Muslims in any way with regard to their dress, with qalansuwa, the turban, sandals, or parting the hair (in the Arab

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