Points: - Why should members of one religion pay taxes to the heads of another religion?
- Those who pay Jizya must be humiliated.
- People embraced Islam to avoid paying Jizya.
REFUTATION
Why should members of one religion pay taxes to the heads of another religion?
The questions to be asked here should be:
The questions to be asked here should be:
(a)
What are these taxes used for?
(b)
What do other tax collectors do with the wealth?
Before
going on to answer these questions, it needs to be stressed that Muslims also
pay taxes to the Islamic state called Zakat and, a
Muslim refusing to pay Zakat
is in the same category as a non-Muslim refusing to pay Jizya. So, it’s not a
matter of collecting from non-Muslims while the Muslims are left to enjoy their
wealth. The apostate wars that were fought during the reign of Abu Bakr
Siddique were against some ‘Muslims’ who decided to stop paying Zakat.
It is also worthy to note that not every non-Muslim pays the Jizya. Islamic Hanafi scholar, Abu Yusuf states, "slaves, women, children, the old, the sick, monks, hermits, the insane, the blind and the poor, were exempt from the tax.
He also goes on to state that: "jizya should not be collected from those who have neither income nor any property, but survive by begging and from alms."
Al-Qurtubi writes: "there is a consensus amongst Islamic scholars that jizya is to be taken only from heads of free men past puberty, who are the ones fighting, but not from women, the children, the slaves, the insane, and the dying old."
Islamic scholar, Ibn Qayyim wrote, "And there is no Jizya upon the aged, one suffering from chronic disease, the blind, and the patient who has no hope of recovery and has despaired of his health, even if they have enough."
Now, let’s answer the questions.
It is also worthy to note that not every non-Muslim pays the Jizya. Islamic Hanafi scholar, Abu Yusuf states, "slaves, women, children, the old, the sick, monks, hermits, the insane, the blind and the poor, were exempt from the tax.
He also goes on to state that: "jizya should not be collected from those who have neither income nor any property, but survive by begging and from alms."
Al-Qurtubi writes: "there is a consensus amongst Islamic scholars that jizya is to be taken only from heads of free men past puberty, who are the ones fighting, but not from women, the children, the slaves, the insane, and the dying old."
Islamic scholar, Ibn Qayyim wrote, "And there is no Jizya upon the aged, one suffering from chronic disease, the blind, and the patient who has no hope of recovery and has despaired of his health, even if they have enough."
Now, let’s answer the questions.
What Are The Taxes Used For?
When
Muslims and non-Muslims pay Zakat and Jizya respectively, the wealth goes to
the Islamic state’s treasury after which it is used for what ALLAH has
commanded it to be used for. ALLAH says, “The alms (Zakat) are meant only for the
poor and the needy and those who are in charge thereof, those whose hearts are
to be reconciled; and to free those in bondage, and to help those burdened with
debt, and for expenditure in the way of Allah and for the wayfarer. This is an obligation
from Allah. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.”
Suratul Tawba (9:60)
It
is very important to note that ALLAH did not specify the religion of the
beneficiaries of the state treasury; as long as the person belongs to a
community that pays taxes (Zakat or Jizya) he/she is entitled to welfare from
the Islamic state irrespective of his/her religion. Islamic scholars throughout
Islamic history have hinted that ‘the poor’ as used in the above stated verse
refers to the indigent among the Muslims while ‘the needy’ refers to the
indigent among the Jews and the Christians. Abu Bakr Siddique, the first caliph
of Islam, stated in his treaty with the non-Muslim residents of the Islamic
state, "And I have granted the right
that if an old person becomes incapable of working or is suffering from ill
health or is a destitute after being rich, so much so that his co-religionists
start giving him alms, then his jizyah will be remitted; he and his family will
receive the allowance for maintenance from public treasury as long as he lives
in the Islamic State". This was also exemplified by Umar bin Khattab
during his reign as caliph. Umar was moving along with his aides when they came
across two lepers who were begging along the road. He was moved by this and
asked those with him who the beggars were after which he was informed that they
were Jews who could no longer work because of the advanced state of their
illness. Umar ordered for them to be put on monthly stipends from the state
treasury.
What Do Other Tax Collectors Do With The Collected
Wealth?
From
history, the ultimate beneficiary of collected tax in the traditional setting
is a monarch. Emperors, kings, queens and the likes who build massive palaces
for their own comfort while the masses toil. Today the queen of England is referred
to by some as the richest woman in the world which will push us to ask the
question, ‘Has she ever worked?’ How then did she come to be regarded as such? Simple,
tax payers money made her rich. This does not happen in pristine Islam.
Since other religions have no provisions for a head of state backed by scripture, their religious authorities have no control over how the collected wealth is utilized. So, what would you go by; pay your taxes to people who will use it to build palaces and pass them on to their heirs or, pay it to people who will use it to assist you when you are in need?
Since other religions have no provisions for a head of state backed by scripture, their religious authorities have no control over how the collected wealth is utilized. So, what would you go by; pay your taxes to people who will use it to build palaces and pass them on to their heirs or, pay it to people who will use it to assist you when you are in need?
Conclusively,
members of every civilized society pay taxes even though the taxes might be called
a range of names. In civilized societies, failure to pay stipulated taxes is
seen as treason against the state which is why the use of the term ‘tax evasion’
has become so widespread.
Even celebrities are not left out when it comes to punishing people who refuse to pay their taxes (tax evaders). On July 6 2016, soccer legend Lionel Messi was handed a 21 month suspended jail sentence for refusing to pay taxes. American actor, Wesley Snipes, was on April 24 2008 sentenced to three years in prison for the same crime (tax evasion) to mention just a few. So, we see that there is nothing derogatory in paying the Jizya.
Those who pay Jizya must be humiliated
As Muslims will always emphasize, the actions of Muslims is not part of Islam if they are not sanctioned by the Qur'an or the Prophet (SAW). No doubt, some Muslims go to the extreme in implementing Islamic rulings, Islam however remains 100% straight on issues. As regards the humiliation of tax (Jizya) payers, according to Mark R. Cohen (a non-Muslim), the Qur'an itself does not prescribe humiliating treatment for the dhimmi when paying Jizya, but some later Muslims interpreted it to contain 'an equivocal warrant for debasing the dhimmi (non-Muslim) through a degrading method of remission'. Islamic scholars Imam Nawawi said as regards this, "I know of no sound support for it in this respect, and it is only mentioned by the scholars of Khurasan. The majority of scholars say that the jizya is to be taken with gentleness, as one would receive a debt. The reliably correct opinion is that this practice is invalid and those who devised it should be refuted. It is not related that the Prophet or any of the rightly-guided caliphs did any such thing when collecting the jizya." Once again, Qur'an and Sunnah makes Islam; not the actions of Muslims.
People embraced Islam to avoid paying Jizya
It is worthy to note that the amount paid as Jizya is far less than that paid for Zakat as the Jizya is collected mainly as a payment for the security rendered by the Islamic state. Islamic scholar, Imam Nawawi, "The minimum amount of the jizya is one dinar per person per annum; but it is commendable to raise the amount, if it be possible to two dinars, for those possessed of moderate means, and to four for rich persons."
The Prophet (SAW) himself imposed 1 dinar per annum which was far less than the amount given as Zakat. A Muslim gives 2.5% of his annual income as Zakat. Ibn Hanbal was of the opinion that, from history, peasants and cultivators were also exempted from jizya. With all these facts, do you still think a person will quit paying Jizya to pay Zakat?
Even celebrities are not left out when it comes to punishing people who refuse to pay their taxes (tax evaders). On July 6 2016, soccer legend Lionel Messi was handed a 21 month suspended jail sentence for refusing to pay taxes. American actor, Wesley Snipes, was on April 24 2008 sentenced to three years in prison for the same crime (tax evasion) to mention just a few. So, we see that there is nothing derogatory in paying the Jizya.
Those who pay Jizya must be humiliated
As Muslims will always emphasize, the actions of Muslims is not part of Islam if they are not sanctioned by the Qur'an or the Prophet (SAW). No doubt, some Muslims go to the extreme in implementing Islamic rulings, Islam however remains 100% straight on issues. As regards the humiliation of tax (Jizya) payers, according to Mark R. Cohen (a non-Muslim), the Qur'an itself does not prescribe humiliating treatment for the dhimmi when paying Jizya, but some later Muslims interpreted it to contain 'an equivocal warrant for debasing the dhimmi (non-Muslim) through a degrading method of remission'. Islamic scholars Imam Nawawi said as regards this, "I know of no sound support for it in this respect, and it is only mentioned by the scholars of Khurasan. The majority of scholars say that the jizya is to be taken with gentleness, as one would receive a debt. The reliably correct opinion is that this practice is invalid and those who devised it should be refuted. It is not related that the Prophet or any of the rightly-guided caliphs did any such thing when collecting the jizya." Once again, Qur'an and Sunnah makes Islam; not the actions of Muslims.
People embraced Islam to avoid paying Jizya
It is worthy to note that the amount paid as Jizya is far less than that paid for Zakat as the Jizya is collected mainly as a payment for the security rendered by the Islamic state. Islamic scholar, Imam Nawawi, "The minimum amount of the jizya is one dinar per person per annum; but it is commendable to raise the amount, if it be possible to two dinars, for those possessed of moderate means, and to four for rich persons."
The Prophet (SAW) himself imposed 1 dinar per annum which was far less than the amount given as Zakat. A Muslim gives 2.5% of his annual income as Zakat. Ibn Hanbal was of the opinion that, from history, peasants and cultivators were also exempted from jizya. With all these facts, do you still think a person will quit paying Jizya to pay Zakat?
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