Faith and Sword
\r\n Al-Baqara (The Cow) - Chapter 2: Verse 256
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"There is to be no compulsion in religion. Surely, the right direction has been made clear and distinct from error. He who rejects false deities and believes in God has grasped a firm handhold which will never break. And God is Hearing and Knowing."
This verse was revealed on the occasion when some Companions among the Helpers (ansar) asked the Prophet for permission to compel their relatives to profess Islam. However, some of these people had practiced Christianity or Judaism since their early childhood, and the Banu Nadir, a Jewish tribe of Medina even had children who were related to the Companions, but who were brought up by Jewish parents and were considered Jews. When the Prophet issued orders for the Banu Nadir to move out of Medina, so as to prevent clashes between them and the Muslims, some Companions sought instead to force their relatives into Islam. It was at this juncture that the preceding verse was revealed, and the Prophet ordered his Companions not to compel anyone, but to give them the choice to decide what religion they wished to follow.
\r\nCommentators of the Quran, such as Ibn Kathir and Rashid Rida, have considered this text to be a general proclamation in the sense that it absolutely prohibits compulsion in religion. No one must be compelled to embrace Islam, as it would serve no useful purpose for a person to do so under coercion, while his mind and heart remain closed to enlightenment and guidance. To this Rashid Rida adds that belief (iman), which is the pillar and essence of religion, implies a willing submission of the self which cannot be gained through duress: it must be attained through conviction and reason. Force, therefore, has no place in the matter of belief. The subsequent portion of the verse, Rida adds, endorses the general message of the verse, namely, in this religion there is guidance and light and the call to the faith should be through explanation. Once people are shown the right path then it is their choice whether to follow it or abandon it. Rida continues:
\r\n\r\n\r\nWe are ordered to invite people to the path of God with wisdom and good exhortation ...This would explain the place of holy war (jihad) in Islam. Jihad is not of the essence of religion nor one of its goals. It is only a protective shield and is resorted to as a matter of political necessity. The common hysteria and its misguided exponents who assume that faith is established by the sword merit no attention whatsoever.
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Compiled From:
\r\n "Freedom of Expression in Islam" - Mohammad Hashim Kamali