The Idea of Accepting the Other. PAGE 3 of 3 1 | 2 | 3
And:"And they say: 'There is nothing but our life of this world, we die and we live and nothing destroys us except time. They have no knowledge of it, they only conjecture. And when Our clear aayaat are recited to them, their argument is not other than that they say: 'Bring back our fathers if you are truthful.' Say: 'Allah gives you life then causes you to dies, then He will assemble you on the Day of Resurrection about which there is no doubt but most of mankind know not'" [TMQ Al-Jathiya: 24- 6].
Even the aayaat of Surah Al-Kahf, which one of them used as evidence, does not depart from this style of refuting the concept or concepts of kufr. Nor is the dialogue, as they say, a mere intellectual process only; rather it is understanding and refuting the concepts of kufr. This is clear in the rebuke of the companion, rejecting the kufr of one of the two, saying:
"Do you disbelieve in He who created you dust then out of a (nutfah) then fashioned you a man? But as for me, He is Allah my Lord and none shall I associate with my Lord. Had you, when you entered your garden, only said: 'Whatever Allah wills (will occur), there is no power except with Allah.' If you see me less than you in property and children, perhaps my Lord will give me better than your garden and send upon it a (husband) from the sky, then it will be a slippery earth. Or its water becomes deep sunken so that you will not be able to seek it" [TMQ Al-Kahf: 37- 41].
So how can it be said that the companion did not pronounce judgment while he rebukes him saying: 'Do you disbelieve in He who
created you?' then he directs him to what is obliged upon him to say namely: 'Whatever Allah wills, there is no power except with Allah.' Then he explained to him the power of the All-Capable (Al-Qadir) Creator to send the bolt (from heaven) and make the water disappear. So how can it be said that this is a model of religious dialogue without restriction or condition, without pronouncing judgements and accepting the other as he is?!!! As for the one using as evidence His saying:
"Say: 'O you disbelievers! I do not worship that which you worship. And you do not worship what I worship'" [TMQ Al-Kafirun: 1-3]
for dialogue with disbelievers (kafireen) and His saying:
"If one of the polytheists seeks your protection, grant him protection until he hears the word of Allah then escort him to a place of safety" [TMQ At-Taubah: 6]
for dialogue with polytheists; this is an incorrect deduction and outside its context. Surat Al-Kafirun has pronounced a judgment against them, which is that they are kuffar and will remain upon their kufr without ever believing. Allah subhanahu knew that they would never believe ever and He informed the Messenger of Allah about that. He commanded him to convey it to them and to reject their offer of mutual exchange of deities yearly. So there remains no place for dialogue whatsoever after Allah subhanahu informed that they would remain disbelievers until death. This Surah descended regarding specific people. Allah spoke the truth. Some of them died and some of them were killed; and none of them believed.
As for His saying:
"If one of the polytheists seeks your protection, grant him protection until he hears the word of Allah then escort him to a place of safety" [TMQ At-Taubah: 6].
There is no evidence in this ayah for what they claim about dialogue between equals. There is no indication therein for dialogue; rather therein is a command to make the polytheist hear the word of Allah, and either he believes or he is escorted to his place of safety. So the ayah is about giving protection to the polytheist who wishes to ask about Islam, so Islam is explained to him in a way that is hoped he will embrace it. There is no evidence in the ayah for dialogue in order to know his opinions in the way of equality and equivalence without pronouncing judgement against him. The ayah determines that he is a polytheist, so it pronounced
judgement of polytheism. It does not seek a dialogue with him to know his opinions; rather it seeks making him listen to the Qur'an. So there is no sense in using it as evidence. ------ END