Prof. Jansen states on a blog called Hoeiboei that the Copts who were killed at Maspero violated the laws of the Islamic Shari’a. See for his argument in Dutch: http://hoeiboei.blogspot.com/2011/10/kopten.html#more
The arguments of Jansen are important since he knows Islam and Islamic scriptures well. He translated, for example, the Qur´an in Dutch and wrote numerous scholarly but also populist books on Islam.
I. Jansen’s argument: Copts are killed when they violate the Shari’a
“Copts,” Jansen writes on October 14th, “Coptic Christians must have thought that this spring would bring them more religious freedom. They must have thought that, just as many Western media believed, that freedoms that are normal in the West (restoring a mosque or church) would also be applied in Egypt. That is not true. Now we are certain about this.”
Here I provide a translation of excerpts from Jansen´s article:
High on the list of forbidden things is substantial maintenance of church buildings and synagogues. Because Islam replaced Christianity, it is unthinkable that such large maintenance would still be required. That is why it is forbidden and that is logical. We, of course, do not need to speak about building new buildings. Building new churches is in violation with the Shari’a. New buildings of mosques in Europe and America are instead an enrichment that brings joy.
The stipulation that substantial maintenance to churches or building new churches is forbidden is mentioned in the so-called “Pact of Umar” (a 7th or 8th century document), which also stipulated how a non-Muslim is to be dressed and how someone who is not Muslim needs to step aside when he is on the same road as a Muslim. Friends of Islam are paying insufficient attention to these rules.
The colonial period was one full of injustice and suppression. The rules of Umar were not fully applied in those days and most modern church buildings date from this period. But these date back to over fifty years ago and the necessity of large maintenance is becoming obvious.
Shari’a-fundamentalists—Egypt has many of them, resist vehemently such maintenance of Christian buildings. They are supported by the government [of Egypt] that simply forbids such activities, as if this is a state-threatening activity that violates public order. The Shari’a-fundamentalists are of the opinion that killing Copts who violate the rules of Islam in this regard are in accordance with law and customs.
It seems that Shari’a-fundamentalists are well-represented in all layers of the Egyptian population and within the government. The argument is not about precise figures and the amount of support they are able to generate in Egypt; it is that this is a group that knows how to obtain what it wants, which is costing the lives of others. It concerns tens of human lives and a large, but unknown number of Copts who disappeared. We will not speak about the hundreds of wounded, they had ‘luck.’
This all looks unbelievable to modern, Western readers. That is the consequence of the way we have been informed about the Middle East by Dutch state media and Middle Eastern affairs experts, such as Bertus Hendriks, M.A. It is not so simple to find an explanation as to why the media are providing a distorted image. Anyone who knows the history of Christians under Islam can only sigh that Islam presented its real face again. Not all Muslims always want to kill when Christians violate the rules of the Shari’a, but the number that is willing to use deadly violence was, in October 2011, also large enough to create tens of Coptic martyrs.
May those who joined the martyrs before them, the prophets and the saints, hide under the throne of the Allmighty.
II. My comment: Jansen should have mentioned the general lack of security in Egypt
Sadly, many Egyptian Christians have lost their lives since the Revolution. These were people who believed the Revolution would herald new freedoms, but instead they paid dearly with their lives. But, in telling the story, one needs to tell the complete story and not just blame all wrongs squarely on Muslims, who Jansen describes as “Shari’a-fundamentalists.’’
The term “Shari’a-fundamentalists” is not liked by Muslims who advocate the application of the Shari’a but believe that the Shari’a allows restoring and building new churches. Jansen, however, does not explain the different views on the application of the Shari’a.
Jansen does not explain who these “Shari’a fundamentalists” are but no doubt his reference is to a limited number of people who interpret the Shari’a in a way that is very restrictive to Christians. Who are these people? And how representative are they for Muslims in modern Egypt? Jansen admits in his article that their numbers do not need to be large. “The argument is not about precise figures and the amount of support they are able to generate in Egypt. The argument is that this is a group that knows how to obtain what it wants which is costing the lives of others,” he writes.
It would nevertheless be good for the discussion if he would have given names with references to sources and would have admitted that other Muslims oppose those views.
Jansen states that the people he refers to know how to obtain what they want. He should have informed his readers that there is a near state of anarchy in Egypt that explains that many groups in society make efforts to obtain what they want. Jansen does not mention this, which is no real surprise because media give this insufficient attention. He also did not experience this, as he does not live in Egypt and has not visited the country in at least 15 years. Jansen’s information is based on both Western and Arabic media reporting and, as he correctly states, much media reporting is biased. Knowing this should make one more cautious in making statements.
What is not reported in most media is that the Egyptian security is largely absent from the streets anywhere in Egypt. Egyptians, Muslims, and Christians, rightly complain about lack of security. Fortunately, I do not have a car in Egypt, but journalist Hosam al-Aidy, a good friend of mine, showed me on October 7th how hooligans had vandalized his car, and tried to take him out, probably to steal his car. There are numerous stories about such car theft. Many are afraid to be on the streets in popular areas of Cairo at night. I was told stories of insecurity in Qalyub and Shubra al-Khayma where I have friends.
I went to visit Mārīnāb, only hours after the church under construction was destroyed, and was surprised to not find any security on the road between the railway station of Idfū, where I arrived, and the village. In the Mubarak years, there would have been several check points and, as a foreigner, I would have been questioned many times along the way. This time my taxi driver could drive me to the village without being stopped even once. That has its pleasant side of course—freedom to travel; but this freedom also has its negative side; groups doing whatever they like to do, including the people Jansen describes as “Shari’a-fundamentalists.”
Security has been largely absent from the streets since Egypt’s hated Minister of interior, Habib al-Adly, instructed the security to leave the streets on January 28th and open the prisons, freeing Islamists and criminals alike. We do not know why he did so, but Dr. Latifa Fahmy, a prominent AUC professor who knew Suzanne Mubarak personally, told me that there was a conflict on January 28th between President Mubarak and Habib al-Adly about how to respond to the massive demonstrations. Probably Habib al-Adly wanted to show Mubarak that he could not do without the security under his command.
Immediately following al-Adli’s order, the army appeared in the streets—people who had no experience in policing a country. Demonstrators started targeting the security. It is likely that freed prisoners were among them. Police stations were attacked and burned. Policemen and officers of all ranks became afraid to enter the streets. They are gradually returning, but this takes time. If one sees policemen or police cars, one sees them often in the company of an army vehicle.
Months after the Revolution, security is still largely absent from the streets. It certainly makes large numbers of people yearn for “the good old days” of dictator Mubarak. Is security largely absent from the streets to make people yearn for the days prior to the Revolution? Who knows? Here, we enter the realm of speculation and not one of the people in the street, the religious leaders, journalists, nor the scholars that I met know why security has not yet returned. Retired police officers speak of strong anti-security sentiments in Egypt (which is not surprising with all violence that has been carried out in the name of security) and officers not wanting to return to the streets. That is plausible, but no one knows for certain, except perhaps a few people in the SCAF who will not speak out.
Due to Jansen’s lack of knowledge on the ground, he also did not see that Christians are trying to circumvent difficult laws and regulations concerning church-building. This is on the one hand very understandable because of the difficulties they are facing, but at the same time provides Muslims with the often valid argument that Christians are violating laws and regulations.
Muslims who blame Christians for this should realize that laws and regulations are also violated by Muslims in building mosques or any building that people, Muslim or Christian, want to see established. This is an environment where Christians are told to obey the law, but many Muslims are exempt. Having a just law, equally applicable to all, is needed, but in a society with a weak and largely absent government, this is a distant reality.
III. Jansen does not know about the construction of new churches in recent years
Jansen’s argument that modern churches were mostly built in the colonial period is incomplete. Many churches were indeed built in that period, but many churches were also built earlier or later. Whether they all had a permit remains to be seen, but nevertheless, they were established and were functioning. I would like to provide hereby some photos of church buildings under construction that I made in October 2011.
In the immediate vicinity a mosque has been built, now much smaller than the church, still this is worrisome for Christians as the potential for conflict abounds under such circumstances. Both Christians and Muslims compete with each other for the largest and most beautiful buildings for houses of worship. Providing more community care in smaller and thus less expensive houses of worship would, in my opinion, prove more beneficial for both communities.
The photos were taken in October 2011. I did not search for these buildings, but happened to pass by the two churches while I was going to appointments in Cairo. There are plenty other churches that were built outside the colonial period. Of course there were often obstructions; sometimes permissions were given, sometimes they were revoked, there were changed or unanswered requests for permissions, but in one way or another, sometimes with bribes, Christians have also been able to build. Church-building was never easy, but stating that it was only possible in the colonial days is incorrect!
IV. Does the Shari’a prohibit the building of churches?
I decided to ask some Muslim friends to respond to Jansen’s claim that a number of Muslims interpret the Shari’a in a very restrictive way regarding church building. I also asked them to comment on the “Pact of Umar”. What is the value of this pact for Muslims today in Egypt? What is the importance of this pact for Salafis? Do Muslims who oppose building or renovating churches refer to the Shari’a and this pact? I also asked Dr. Nagia Abdel Moghney Sa’id, architect and deputy chair of the Egyptian Moral Rearmament Association (MRA), about building on the Early Warning and Early Response system as proposed by Imam Muhammad Ashafa and Pastor James Wuye from Nigeria.
a. Dr. Nagia Abdel Moghney Sa’id: Personal experiences
Dr. Nagia responded in two emails, on October 17th and 18th.
On October 17th she wrote:
In The Name of God Most Gracious Most Merciful
Dear Drs. Hulsman,
Thank you very much for your reply. I fully agree with you and pray that whatever efforts and positive steps we started may be multiplied, be blessed and bear fruit. Within our limited capacities, we try our best and leave the rest to God Almighty, for "Man's extremity is God's opportunity." The MRA wants to apply both short term immediate action and responses as well as long term plans and implementation.
Regarding immediate action, we have contacted reverend Dr. Refaat Fikry, pastor of the Evangelical church in Shubra, Cairo, whom we have known for many years through the Dialogue Forum and Janique Blattmann of Arab-West Report. We consulted him for cooperation as to what needs to be done right now. His thought was that we need to spread our MRA efforts to Upper Egypt. He suggested that we would travel together to Idfū after arranging with an NGO or some local responsible leaders in the region to hold a public meeting or event in Idfū or in the village of Mārīnāb where the spark of the clashes started and initiated a tragic confrontation in Maspero leading to a very critical situation in the country.
I thought maybe you can help us reach the right people in Idfū or the village itself, as you kindly helped us before in Naga Hammadi.
I informed him about your “Early Warning and Early Response” to conflict prevention and resolution [following Imam Muhammad Ashafa and Pastor James Wuye's two visits to Egypt in 2009 and 2011]. This is very much needed now.
I also discussed with him working together on developing a short film, using available material documenting our common true life experience and endeavor to preserve and reinforce the unity of our national fabric, overcome difficulties and painful situations and inspire hope for a better future based on mutual trust and respect. We need professional help and funding to prepare such a tool. We hope to use it in all of Egypt though direct on site contacts and indirectly through the media. We wish "For the love of tomorrow films"[who produced films about the conflict resolution work of Imam Muhammad Ashafa and Pastor James Wuye] could help.
Yesterday, I was able to reach father Samuel of the Naga Hammadi monastery and the "Hope and Faith" NGO who with Bishop Kyrillos had received our MRA group on January 3, 2011, in our mission of sympathy and solidarity with the families of the victims of the Naga Hammadi tragic assault. We hope to be able to go back to Naga Hammadi for further cooperation and bridge building.
Regarding, long term methods for raising awareness, promoting mutual respect and common shared values, we met on Saturday to discuss practical immediate steps to respond to Dr. Latifa Fahmy's initiative to launch a multi-purpose campaign for abolishing illiteracy while reinforcing moral values. We have been working for some time on developing material to be used both in schools and in abolishing illiteracy classes, inspiring a sense of responsibility, sound relationships and respect for life. In the U.K., MRA had introduced in schools interactive material to promote such attitudes besides the skills of reading, writing and mathematics. They termed it “the three Rs" standing for Responsibility, Relationships and Respect for life. We hope to be cooperating with Cairo University's Center for Civilization Studies and Dialogue of Cultures. Dr. Pakinam Sharqawi has kindly encouraged her students to join us as volunteers in the campaign. We look forward to meeting the volunteers soon to acquaint them with our purpose and methodology.
Finally, I do agree with our dear colleague and brother, Assad Chaftari from Lebanon, that 'Our message is revolutionary by itself and that we need to declare it openly and boldly. The media is thirsty for hope' and our team is hope by itself.'
Three members of our team [Hebatullah-Mariam, Ahmedullah and myself] have worked on this since January of this year and designed a poster as a tool that demonstrates and confirms the long cherished unity of our national fabric expressed in archeological and architectural elements of the Egyptian landscape which includes mosques and churches in Luxur, St.Catherine’s monastery in Sinai, Naga Hammadi, Cairo and Alexandria. The papyrus background symbolizes the national socio-cultural fabric. The main title and names of the locations have been typed in Arabic but we hope to add English as well. See the attachment.
We are needing all your prayers and support. Thanks again. All best wishes.
Sincerely,
Dr. Nagia Abdel Moghney Said
On October 18 Dr. Nagia wrote:
In The Name Of God Most Gracious Most Merciful
Dear Drs. Hulsman
Thank you very much for alerting us to such unfortunate 1- misconceptions of Islam and 2-distortion of facts and substantial evidence actually existing on the ground in Egypt regarding the building of churches over the ages.
Thank you very much for your fair and justly comment on Prof. Jansen's article. Allow me to forward both to Prof. Dr. Muhammad Muhammad Abū Laylá of the Azhar University, an enlightened Muslim scholar and to Prof. Dr. Muhammad El-Kahlawy of the Cairo College of Archaeology who is an authority on Muslim-Christian coexistence in Egypt over the ages, as evidenced in archaeological heritage. I trust both very much.
As for my own understanding and observations, I would like to convey the following:
1-True Islamic teachings, whether in the holy Qur’an or Sunna, induce us, to respect and protect places of worship where God's name is remembered, be it a synagogue, a church, a mosque or a monastery. See verse 40 and 41 Sura [chapter] 22 of the holy Qur’an.
2-Umar Ibn El-Khatab, the second Khalif after prophet Muhammed, peace be upon him, when entering Jerusalem, was invited by the pastors of the church of the Resurrection to pray the afternoon Muslim prayer. He refused and stated that he feared that if he would do so, it would be turned into a mosque after him.
3-Houses of worship are raised by God's permission for people to praise God and purify themselves and not to cause harm to others. They represent a light house and refuge and should be based on piety. See verses 35 -38, Sura [chapter] 24, and verses 107-110 of Sura 9 of the holy Qur’an. God Almighty himself has forbidden prophet Muhammed himself to pray in a mosque that was unduly built to cause harm, disruption and disunity among believers.
4-In Egypt, houses of worship have been built before and after Islam entered Egypt. Furthermore, Muslim rulers were responsible for allocating funds to restore churches and monasteries and build new ones, where needed even beyond Egyptian borders. Salāh al-Dīn, ruler of Egypt, after liberating Jerusalem, allocated funds for building an orthodox monastery in Jerusalem.
5- As you clearly mentioned, churches and monasteries were and are still being built all over Egypt before and after the colonial period. Architectural departments in our Egyptian universities teach and encourage scientific research regarding the distinctive of indigenous monasteries and churches and take undergraduate as well as graduate students to visit and appreciate the authenticity, beauty and environmental consciousness of those buildings and compounds. I have experienced this myself when I was a student in the early seventies of the twentieth century and with my sons when they were at college, also studying architecture. I also remember joining them on a field trip organized by Prof. Dr. Baha Bakry, some years ago, to study and admire the monasteries of Wadi El-Natroun in the western desert. We spent a wonderful day there and were very warmly welcomed by the monks. The visit happened to be on a Friday and the monks graciously arranged for the Muslims in our group to hold their prayers within the premises of the monastery itself.
Some years earlier our dear friend and colleague Hoda Naguib [a Christian Egyptian] arranged for us, as a family of architects [Muslim Egyptians] to visit Jabal al-Tayr monastery, Samallūṭ, Minya, to consider embarking on a research project to promote and upgrade the immediate surroundings of that monastery next to an ancient church with a cave were Virgin Mary, Jesus Christ, peace be upon him, and Josef sought refuge when they fled to Egypt. A new church was also built close by. Inhabitants of the area and surroundings, whether Muslims or Christians celebrate together every year the feast of the Virgin Mary who is considered by Muslims the most pure and holy of woman as described in the holy Qur’an. His Grace Bishop Baphnotius of Samalut warmly welcomed us and invited us to visit the holy site as well as a community hospital built by the church serving Muslims and Christians alike. The Bishop is a medical doctor himself. It was interesting to know that he invited highly professional and well experienced medical Muslim Egyptian doctors and staff members of the Azhar University to come all the way from Cairo to examine and treat Samalut patients seeking medication in that hospital. This is true Egypt. True Christianity and true Islam. I can never forget the generosity of Bishop Baphnotius. Our visit happened to be on the 27th of Ramadan, the holy month of fasting for Muslims. The eve of the 27th of Ramadan is considered one of the holiest nights when fasting Muslims pray and celebrate the eve when the first verses of the Holy Qur’an were revealed to prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. When it was sun set and time to break our fast, Bishop Baphnotius invited us to have 'Iftar' [breakfast] in the church guest house. When he came to Cairo we were honoured to have him visit our home. He was fasting then, and we were keen to prepare special 'Siami' [fasting] food [CH: for Christians this means no meat and no milk products].
Hoda also invited us to visit the Abuna Samaan church and monastery in Muqattam. Thousands of Christian Egyptians as well as international tourists are keen to visit it. We as Muslim visitors were very warmly welcomed by the priests there.
Dr. Inas Barsoum, arranged for us, in the year 2000 AD, to visit the Abu Sayfeen convent in old Cairo when representatives of the Mediterranean Dialogue were visiting Egypt at the invitation of the Egyptian Moral Rearmament Association (MRA). Again we were very warmly welcomed by the nuns. I remember the sensitivity to our needs and care they gave to my elderly mother. My mother was walking slowly with her stick so the nuns got her a wheel chair to be able to move around with us. We talked together, ate together and prayed together.
In May 2009, Drs. Hulsman kindly arranged for Imam Ashafa and Pastor James from Nigeria, who were guests of the Egyptian Moral Rearmament Association (MRA) to visit the monastery of Saint Macarios in the Wadi E-Natroun. The late Prof. Dr. Ahmad Al-Sayih, of the Azhar university, was with us and he stood in reverence praying for the prophets and martyrs buried in the grounds of St. Macarios monastery. This is Egypt.
6- Since my childhood up till now, my parents, God bless their souls, and myself had close friends and team mates who were not only Muslims, but also Christians and an Italian Jewish friend living in Egypt and an Indian Hindu couple. We would invite them to our home for 'Iftar' in Ramadan, light a candle and pray together. Over the years, we would respond to our friends invitation to attend Christmas celebrations, weddings and of course pay respect during funerals. We also in turn invited our Christian friends and visitors to join us on various occasions in mosques that we go to. The imams of those mosques [Dr. Ismail El-Diftar, Shaykh Sayed El Sabahi, Dr. Muhammad Megahed and Dr. Mukhtar El-Ayeh] also welcomed our guests and were very hospitable to them. This applies to the oldest mosque in Cairo, Amr Ibn El-Aas mosque, the Azhar grand mosque in Fatimid Cairo, Salah Eldin mosque in Manial district and Al-Tawaba mosque which is still under construction in Helmiat Al-Zaytoun area. The Grand Imam of the Azhar, Dr. Ahmad al-Tayīb, has also received our guests when he was the Rector of the Azhar University. This is Egypt.
7- Even when isolated foolish or disruptive incidents occur, the vast and great majority of the Egyptian people abhors and denounces it and stand together in solidarity against it. I can never forget the scene of Egyptian Muslims eagerly going to join and protect their Christian fellow citizens and brethren on Christmas eve last January after the most abhorring tragic explosion in front of Two Saints Church in Alexandria. I can never forget the wisdom poise and warm welcome of His Grace Bishop Kyrillos and father Samuel welcoming our MRA group as we visited Naga Hammadi in a mission of sympathy and solidarity to meet with the families of the victims before the anniversary of the tragic assault on Christians and their Muslim friends by one man, Kammouny, of Naga Hammadi. The Egyptian authorities captured and tried Kammouny. He was proven guilty and sentenced to death, and finally executed last Monday. I am sure that the Egyptian people will overcome the Maspero tragedy and its repercussions and that peace and unity will prevail.
8- Last September we were participating in the annual retreat and MRA meeting in Lebanon. Our Lebanese friends and team mates chose the Tanaiel monastery guest house [near Zahla], more than one hundred years old, to hold such an event. It was a great pleasure to be there.
Father Gabriel Khairallah has taken great care of us all. It was Bairam and our Christian Lebanese friends prepared special treats for us. They allocated a special room for Muslims to pray and on Friday. They arranged for us to travel to Azhar El Biqā' to attend the Congregational prayers led by his reverence, Shaykh Khalil El-Mais, the Mufty of the Biqā' area. We listened to his sermon, prayed after him and were escorted with our Christian friends to his guest hall. He was so warm and hospitable and even served us himself when we were offered feast sweets. We all had a very deep and friendly conversation. He invited us to stay longer but we had to go back to the monastery guest house. He humorously remarked there is no difference between 'Al-Dayr' meaning monastery and 'Al-Dar' meaning home, referring to his guest house. It was very moving that a very fine Saudi lady came all the way from Jeddah alone to join and participate in our meetings in Tanaiel. Two years ago she had also come all the way to Egypt to meet with the Imam and pastor from Nigeria, saluting their trust building and reconciliatory efforts in their country.
True Islam and Christianity have been lived and practiced in the past, still being lived today and by God's will and grace will continue to be lived in Egypt, Lebanon and elsewhere.
Sincerely,
Nagia Abdelmoghney Said
b. Dr. Afaf Badran: Jansen does not understand Egypt, nor Islam
Dr. Afaf Badran, a senior member of the Moral Rearmament Association, wrote on October 20:
Dear Kees and all,
After reading excerpts (translated by Cornelis Hulsman) from blog Hoeiboei of the Dutch writer known as Arabist Hans Jansen, I feel it is a pity that it is he (the Arabist) who translated the Qur’an to the Dutch language. If the excerpts are correct, it is evident that he does not really and truly understand the Qur’an or Islam. Therefore, I am afraid that if his books are really popular, that that could be for one of two reasons. One is that the Dutch people may be very eager to know more about Islam and evidently it is unfortunate that they are given a negative image. The other reason could be that his books play along a tune that is favored by those who buy his books.
The truths that defy Hans Jansen’s arguments are:
The maintenance or the building of churches in Egypt is not forbidden or prohibited by Islam. Had Islam prohibited the building or maintenance of churches or synagogues there would not have been a verse in Qur’an which tells the prophet, and so urges any Muslim to humbly tell the unbelievers who argue with him, “You have your own belief and I have mine“ (Surah 109: 6). Prophet Muhammad never pressured his wife Maria, an Egyptian Copt, to adopt Islam, even as a favor for her husband, the prophet of Islam.
Islam does not stipulate that a non-Muslim needs to step aside when he is on the same road, but asks a Muslim to be humble and selfless but also not to overdo, look down upon himself or step aside for others who are ever so arrogant to show similar courtesy when they can.
In Egypt, in the last 60 years, since the end of the colonial period till today, many churches have been maintained and hundreds have been built, many of them prestigiously built.
Killing a human, whatever his religion is, is prohibited in Islam. The Qur’an states that whoever kills a soul (person) - save for having killed another or for spreading mischief in the world- is as if he killed all people. (Surah 5: 32).
However, during the times of the three presidents who led Egypt after the colonial period, there were incidents of capture, abduction, imprisonment and sometimes killing of Muslim fundamentalists and even scholars.
Most western media and writers never cared to mention or investigate such incidents. In Mubarak’s time, the police force was accused not only of doing so largely, but gatherings were monitored and limited for political reasons and mosques were to close right after prayer times. On the other hand police was exhibiting protective security points in front of all churches. This seemingly discriminative treatment could have aggravated the Muslim fundamentalists and of course the Muslim mobs (mostly Muslim by name) who can be easily moved in general, more so when control is minimum. The checkpoints at churches in the minds of many represented the ousted regime, which was corrupt and appeared to be biased. When these checkpoints became less tight or disappeared, the places that were previously protected became vulnerable, perhaps a little more than others which were not normally protected.
The tantalizing thing is the evidences that were discussed recently that the police force at Mubarak time was responsible for the act of terrorism and destruction of the Two Saints Church in Alexandria.
On January 3rd 2011, when we (a group of Muslims from MRA) visited Naga Hammadi to console the relatives of the victims of last year’s Christmas assault (which resulted in the killing of six Christians and a Muslim in front of the church), we understood from them then that there was an evident air of corruption in the trial of the criminal and in the way the prosecutors and judge handled the case. There was clear insinuation on their part that the regime was behind this corruption. We believed them because they were honest in their feelings and observations. We conveyed the observations to reliable officials and to the public without quoting any particular person.
Also, when we were informed about an old church there that needed maintenance that was not granted permission, we took photos and reported the delay to an important honest official whom we made an appointment with to meet with one of the fathers of the Naga Hammadi Church.
This is a brief review that I would like Hans Jansen, who seems to know very little about Egypt and Egyptians, to know.
There is a lot more that shows warm and great Christian Muslim relations that are mutually nurtured.
N.B. Al-Kammouny who is the killer of the seven Christmas victims of January 6th 2010 was executed just last week.
Regards,
Afaf Badran
Architect and Environmental Designer
c. Imam Fadel Soliman: The Pact of Umar is forged and is no basis for the Shari’a
Introduction Cornelis Hulsman: Does the Shari’a forbid building churches, as Prof. Jansen claims? Fadel Soliman, Director of the Bridges Foundation disagrees. He first delves into Muslim-Christian history, and then refers to Christian leader Rafiq Habib, who stated that the Shari’a is the best guarantee for safeguarding Christian interests, including building churches. Fadel Soliman then discusses the “Pact of Umar,” which according to Jansen, is the basis of forbidding the building of churches. The problem is that two famous medieval Muslim scholars, who modern Islamists often refer to, base their anti-Christian arguments on that “Pact of Umar,” but Fadel Soliman argues that important Muslim and non-Muslim scholars reject this “Pact” see it as a forgery that has no relation to the Shari’a. It thus seems that Jansen generalized the opinions of some extremists and presented them, wrongly, as the beliefs of all Muslims.
Fadel Soliman:
Every religion in the world considers its followers to be believers while others are considered non-believers. Islam, however, differentiated between non-believers from Christian and Jewish backgrounds and all others as Muslims consider themselves to be spiritual descendants of Abraham, one of the greatest five Prophets of Islam, and whom Muslims call “The father of the Prophets.”
It is not difficult for someone who reflects on the word “ISLAM” to realize its uniqueness. Islam is the only religion in the world which is neither called after a person nor after a group of people or a tribe nor after a geographic region. The whole world knows that Muslims love their prophet Muhammad very much but at the same time they find it offensive if they are called “Mohammedans.” Muslims believe that Islam is not limited to the followers of Prophet Muhammad but rather the true followers of any prophet are considered to be the Muslims of their time.
Therefore they are Muslims not Mohammedans because Muhammad himself was Muslim as well as Jesus, Moses, Abraham and all the prophets.
Muslims believe that it was always one religion and that the followers of every prophet should accept the next prophet in order to continue in Islam or else then they are committing an act of disbelief. That is why Muslims look at modern Jews and Christians as unbelievers who came from good roots, common roots while the Jews and Christians look at Muslims as heathens.
I said “modern Jews in Christians” in the previous paragraph simply because the first generation of Muslims looked at some types of Christians, those who rejected the trinity and the divinity of Jesus, as the true followers of Jesus or the Muslims of their time. It is well known that this type of Christians, namely the Arians, where persecuted and slaughtered in huge massacres at the hands of the Byzantines. This is why they joined the armies of the Muslims which conquered the Byzantines as stated in books of history like the chronicles of John, Bishop of Nikiu.
This Egyptian Orthodox Christian bishop mentioned, in page 200 of his chronicles, that the Muslims under the leadership of Amribn Al-Ass, one of the great companions of the prophet, treated the Christian Orthodox Pope Benjamin, who escaped from the Byzantines to the desert for 13 years, with respect and that they never looted or plundered the churches and the monasteries but rather maintained them in a good condition.
All Egyptians at the time were called Copts [a name derived from the Greek name Egyptos], whether they were Arians, Orthodox or Catholic or even pagans. All Arians accepted Islam. It is more accurate to say that they updated their beliefs by accepting the Prophet Muhammad as the final messenger of God, a colleague of Jesus and Moses and a graduate of the same school from which they graduated. Also many of the followers of other religions and Christian denominations accepted Islam for the simplicity of its theology.
A reader of the history of Egypt can see that the relationship between Muslim Copts and Christian Copts went through ups and downs, but generally they both lived together peacefully because they both shared the same race, color, traditions and language.
It is true that some rulers persecuted the Christians but all of them were oppressors and tyrants by nature who oppressed both Muslims and non-Muslims. The best example of these is Abū 'Alī al-Manṣūr al-Ḥākim bi-AmrAllāh, a Fatimid Caliph ruling between 996 and 1021. He issued some laws oppressing Christians and at the same time he did the same to all Egyptians. He even went to the extent of prohibiting mulukhyia which is the favorite dish of all Egyptians until today.
But what surprises me after the January 25th peaceful revolution, which proved that Muslims – not excluding Islamists - and Christians shared a lot of good feelings of brotherhood and cooperation towards each other, is that some people try to create a feeling of global paranoia against Islamists, making use of the several assaults on Churches in the recent few months.
The causes of these assaults on Churches remain a mystery because not one Islamist was charged and it is well known that the old regime is trying to abort the revolution through its old dirty games.
Prof. Dr. Hans Jansen recently raised the issue of building churches if Islamists would apply the shari’a. It is interesting to know that Dr. Rafiq Habib, a prominent Christian, said that the only guarantee for Christians in Egypt is the application of the Shari’a. With this he meant their interests, including building churches. Rafiq Habib is the vice-president of the Freedom and Justice party founded by the Muslim Brotherhood. Among their very first founders are 130 Egyptian Christian Copts.
Dr. Habib is one of the most renowned Evangelical theologians, who has been a consultant of the Muslim Brotherhood for the past 12 years and when a thinker of his weight says something like that it should ring a bell.
Let's assume that a liberal secular democracy like the one in Switzerland is to rule in Egypt. Isn't it a fact that if the Muslim majority wants to ban the building of church towers or putting of crosses on top of church domes they will do it through a transparent democratic process like the one which banned the mosques' minarets in Switzerland?
Dr. Habib did not say that the shari’a is the only guarantee for Christians because he was bribed to say so but rather because he is a clever well educated Christian Copt who knows that the Shari’a has all the pros of democracy, grants equal rights to all citizens, and most important is that -unlike secular Democracy - it prevents the majority from oppressing the minority.
According to the Shari’a, Muslims cannot ban crosses on churches or building church towers like it is the case with their mosques in Switzerland.
The Al-Farouq Encyclopedia, written by the great scholar of Islam Shibly Al-Numany, which talks about the Farouq a title given to the second Khalif Umar ibn Al-Khattab, it is mentioned that Christians can present their crosses except in the places where Muslims gather like today's clubs and coffee shops. They can also ring their church' bells at any time except when Muslims are praying which is 5 times every day, each prayer period is 5 to 10 minutes, and not bring their pigs out to the places where Muslims gather which means that under Shari’a law they can grow pigs in their own farms.
Also, it is mentioned in the agreement between Umar and the people of Jerusalem [in the mid 7th century mainly Christian] that they should not fear any harm for themselves or their money or their churches or their crosses. That was at a time when Arab Muslims were new to countries where people were divided into trinitarian Christians and Arians. It was expected that Arians would be taking revenge from trinitarian Christians for all the oppression they suffered during the time of the Christian Byzantines.
Khalif Umar ibn Al-Khattab had a Christian helper whom he tried to convince to embrace Islam but the young man always refused to accept Islam and their conversations always ended with the verse in Chapter 2 of the Qur’an “Let there be no compulsion in religion.”
But unfortunately some people today claim that the Shari’a oppresses non-Muslims and in particular Christians. They thereby refer to what is called “Al-Ohda al-Umariya” or the Pact of Umar which is a controversial agreement between Khalif Umar ibn-Al-Khattab and a group of Christians which prevents them from raising their crosses or building new churches or renovating old ones and many other rules which contradict both the reality and his own tolerant rule that I referred to earlier.
The controversy lies in the authenticity of this document. It was created in later years and falsely attributed to Khalif Umar. But at the same time two famous scholars of Islam depended on this document in setting out verdicts regarding dealing with Christians. Those scholars were Ibn Qayim al-Jawziyah [1292-1350] and Ibn Taymiyyah [1263–1328] who both died in the 14thcentury.
All scholars of authentication considered the Pact of Umar inauthentic because of the problems regarding its sources, the anonymous parties in the agreement and the place where it took place was not mentioned.
IbnQayim al-Jawziyah alone mentioned three different narrations. One says that it was written by the Christians of Arabia themselves, the other one says that it was written by one of Umar’s commanders called Abdul Rahmanibn Ghannam who in turn sent it to take Umar's approval before he sent it to the Christians of the Levant and the third version says that it was an agreement between Abdul Rahmanibn Ghannam and the Christians of Damascus in particular which was sent later to Umar for his approval.(Ibn Qayim al-Jawziyah, AhkamAhl Al- Dhimma, vol. 2, page 657 )
Ibn Asaker mentioned two other probabilities for this agreement. One is that it was a letter sent by Khalif Umar to anonymous Christians and the second is that it was a letter from anonymous Christians, probably from Damascus, sent to Abu Obaydaibn al-Jarrah, one of Umar's commanders. (Ibn Asaker, The History of Damascus, vol. 1, pages 149 and 178).
Arthur Stanley Tritton, (1881 – 1973) was a British historian and scholar of Islam. He was appointed Professor of Arabic at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London in 1938. He refuted this so called “Al-Ohda Al-Umariyah” or the Pact of Umar in his book “The Caliphs and Their Non-Muslim Subjects” (A. S. Tritton, Frazer Press, 2008).
Also sir Thomas Walker Arnold (1864-1930) rejected the authenticity of the Pact of Umar in his book “The Preaching of Islam: A History of the Propagation of the Muslim Faith (Thomas Walker Arnold, Kessinger Publishing, 2006) who said that French and Italian researchers proved that this agreement “Al-Ohda Al-Umariyah” (the Pact of Umar) was forged, written in later centuries but was attributed to Umar.
What is really amazing is the huge contradiction between the rules in the so-called “Al-Ohda Al-Umariyah” and the agreement of Umar’s famous commander Khaledibn al-Waleed with the Christians of Damascus and Hums which was completely the opposite as it guaranteed their safety and security in their homes and churches, for themselves and their crosses and full right to worship and live freely without any harm. That agreement was extremely tolerant as mentioned in (Balazery, Fotouh Al-Bildan, page 131).
Now, knowing that Al-Ohda Al-Umariyah (Pact of Umar) is a forged document one problem remains and that is how could two good scholars like Ibn Qayim al-Jawziyah and Ibn Taymiyyah depend on such a fragile source in issuing their opinions?
Fahmy Howeidy, one of the most renowned contemporary researchers in Islamic thought, wrote in his book “Citizens not Dhimmis,” page 212, that the extremism of Ibn Qayim al-Jawziyah and Ibn Taymiyyah against Christians cannot be understood without understanding the whole surrounding atmosphere of the 11th to 14th centuries which were loaded with religious extremism after the savagery of the Crusades who slaughtered tens of thousands, looted, plundered and raped women. The cooperation of some Christian Arabs with the Crusaders and then with the Mongols who occupied the Muslim world and destroyed Bagdad and many other cities caused bitterness and tensions between them and the Muslims.
Howeidy says “that is why it is necessary not to read Fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) without considering the historical context, because Islamic Jurisprudence is affected by the historical reality of that moment, not only positively but negatively as well. Ibn Al-Qayim's opinions towards non-Muslims are the best proof of this but ultimately what remains is the constant reference to the texts and its spirit of the Shari’a of God Almighty.”
Fadel Soliman
Director of Bridges Foundation
twitter: Fadel Soliman
e-mail: info@bridges-foundation.org
Conclusions
It is obvious from the scholarly work of Professor Jansen that he knows his Islamic texts well, including the writings of Ibn Qayim al-Jawziyah and Ibn Taymiyyah. No doubt he knows authors who base their arguments on their writings, so what should a public reading such authors believe? Of course, that building churches is violating the Shari’a and that such beliefs encourage violence. Those arguments must be rejected with arguments that old fatwas and texts must be understood within their historical context. A focus only on radical authors and presenting their texts out of context is in itself a bias that should be refuted.
Jansen does not live in Egypt and he appears to be an “ivory-tower” scholar. He is either unaware of the arguments of Muslims who are vehemently opposed to those anti-Christian interpretations of Islamic scriptures or simply does not want to consider their arguments. Jansen also did not experience the lawlessness in Egypt that all Egyptians suffer from; neither does he see new churches being built. This is not surprisingly given that he only gets informed through texts and media which, as Jansen himself writes, are often very biased.
I would like to see a scholar of the stature of Jansen engage in dialogue with Muslim scholars, asking questions that only he is able to ask because he knows his texts, but then also be ready to listen to what Muslims respond.
