Question
Salam
I know that Muslim women are not allowed in Islam to marry non-Muslim men; there is a sister on a converts’ list who recently became Muslim and who was asking what to do regarding her non-Muslim husband who accepted her conversion without any problems and who also lets her educate the children the Islamic way. However, when she asked for a piece of advice, most of us told her that the husband has to take shahada (become Muslim) or she should not remain married to him otherwise. Unfortunately, some other people don’t believe so and advised her the opposite way; that she just should remain with her husband and so on,… I would like you to send me concrete cases at the time of the Prophet where Muslim women (sahabiyyat) would leave their non-Muslim husbands if they decided not to convert. I think those cases would be the only proof to convince the people on that list that Muslim women are not allowed to marry or remain married to non-Muslim men even though they are not against the woman’s conversion.
Answer
Salaam
Thank you for writing to us. It is a misconception that the marriage of a non-Muslim couple is invalidated if one spouse converts to Islam. There is no definitive, unequivocal text (nass qati’) that addresses this issue. Pre-Islamic marriages are recognized as valid and legitimate unless there are explicit reasons for annulment. The difference in religion does not constitute a definitive cause for invalidity in the absence of a clear text. Evidence from the Qur’an and Sunnah indicates that a couple with differing religions can maintain their relationship without compromising their respective faiths. The mere fact that one spouse converts to Islam does not invalidate the marriage.
Despite numerous conversions to Islam during his time, it is not recorded that the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) ever separated a married couple or ordered their separation solely due to one spouse’s conversion. In fact, the opposite is documented, such as in the case of his daughter Zaynab, who remained married to Abul-‘As for six years after her conversion before he also embraced Islam, just before the Conquest of Mecca and after the revelation of Surah al-Mumtahinah. The most that occurred was her emigration, leaving him in Mecca after the Battle of Badr, but this did not nullify their marriage. The interpretation that the ayah in Surah al-Mumtahinah mandates the termination of marital relations due to religious differences is incorrect. This directive applies only when one spouse is actively at war with Islam (harbi) and the Rasool has completed the Hujjah on them. It does not apply to a non-Muslim who tolerates the spouse’s conversion and permits the children to be raised according to Islamic principles.
Surah al-Mumtahinah (60:10) states, “The believing women are not lawful for the disbelieving husbands…” This was specific to those believing women who emigrated from the territories of adversaries, the Kuffar (those who disbelieve after the truth was made clear to them by the Rasool).
Commenting on this Aayah, Ustaz Ghamidi writes:
“When the Almighty directed Muslims to sever every kind of relationship with these disbelievers, the marriages of those women who had come to Madīnah to protect their faith were also terminated. It is evident that this directive relates only to those disbelievers who are active adversaries and began opposing it by becoming its enemies.” (Ghamidi; Al-Bayaan, Vol. 5)
This measure was intended to prevent any inclination towards the enemies of Islam, as evidenced by the case of Hatib bin Abi Balta’ah, who informed the polytheists of some Muslim movements due to his relatives in Mecca.
When one spouse converts to Islam while the other is not hostile to Islam, they are permitted to remain together. Separation is not required merely due to religious differences. The practice of the Prophet (pbuh) and the Companions, regarding those who embraced Islam in Mecca before the Hijrah and during the Conquest of Mecca, supports this view. While a difference in religion due to one spouse’s conversion allows for the possibility of annulment, it does not mandate it.
The conclusions of the various Madhhabs (juristic schools) on this matter should not be given precedence, as they may oppose established evidence, have weak justification, or lack strong juristic reasoning (istidlal). Allowing the couple to remain together implies that their marital life, including physical relations, is permissible.
This is our view.
Answered by: Mushafiq Sultan
Date: 2019-05-17
