Islam: A Guide for Jews and Christians - Electric Scotland

194 t CHAPTER EIGHT
How are these clear statements in theQuran and hadith to be
reconciled with “There is no coercion in religion” or even the Prophet’s
apparent resigned tolerance early in his Meccan days? “You
have your religion,” he was instructed to say to the pagans, “and I
have mine” (109:6). Muslim exegetes and lawyers were quite as
capable as their Jewish and Christian counterparts at harmonizing
the apparent contradictions of Scripture, but in this instance they
felt there was little need. The consensus opinion was that the later
verse, “Fight against those who do not believe in God,” abrogated
or canceled the earlier, “There is no compulsion in religion.” Officially,
then, there was no religious tolerance in Islam save for Jews
and Christians and then only under the negotiated capitulation
contract called the dhimma.
Dhimma and Dhimmis
Muhammad’s attitude toward the People of the Book, as he called
those who shared the same scriptural tradition with Islam, was
generally favorable. Early on, in fact, he had called on them to
verify his message. But as time passed, the Quran came to look on
Jews and Christians as adherents of rival rather than collegial
faiths. Some of this change in attitude was dictated by events at
Medina itself, where Jewish tribes made up part of the population.
Not only did the Jews of Medina reject Muhammad’s prophetic
claims; they began secretly to connive with his enemies in Mecca to
overthrow him. Muhammad’s own reaction was determined and
progressively more violent. As the Prophet’s political strength in
the oasis grew, the Jewish tribes of Medina were first banished,
then taken and enslaved, and finally executed on the spot. This
quite extraordinary behavior is matched by nothing in the Quran,
and is quite at odds with Muhammad’s treatment of the Jews he
encountered outside Medina. We must think then that his action
was essentially political, that it was prompted by behavior that he
read as treasonous and not some transgression of the law of God.
That later encounter with Jews took place in 627 in the course
of a raid on Khaibar and Faydak, two oases north of Medina