Accepting A Gift From A Kaafir On The Day Of His Festival

Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid
Language: English | Format: PDF | Pages: 08 | Size: 1 MB

A question answered by Shaikh Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid regarding: My neighbour is an American Christian, and she and her family brought me a gift when it was Christmas. I could not refuse the gift, lest she be offended. Can I accept this gift, as the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) accepted gifts from kaafirs?.

Praise be to Allah.

Firstly:
The basic principle is that it is permissible to accept gifts from kaafirs, so as to soften their hearts and make Islam attractive to them, as the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) accepted gifts from some of the kaafirs, such as the gift of al-Muqawqis etc.

Al-Bukhaari gave a chapter in his Sahih the title of: Accepting gifts from the mushrikeen. He (may Allah have mercy on him) said: Abu Hurayrah (may Allah have mercy on him) said, narrating from the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): “Ibrahim (peace be upon him) migrated with Sarah and entered a city in which there was a king or a tyrant, and he said: ‘Give her Haajar (as a gift).’” And the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) was given as a gift a (roast) sheep in which there was poison. Abu Humayd said: The king of Aylah gave the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) a white mule and a cloak, and wrote to him. And he mentioned the story of the Jewish woman and her gift of a poisoned sheep to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him).

Secondly:
It is permissible for a Muslim to give gifts to kaafirs and mushriks, with the aim of softening their hearts towards Islam, especially if they are relatives or neighbours. ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) gave a hullah (suit) to his mushrik brother in Makkah, as was narrated by al-Bukhaari (2619).

But it is not permissible to give a kaafir a gift on the day of one of his festivals, because that is regarded as approving of or participating in celebration of the false festival. If the gift is something that will help in celebrating the festival, such as food, candles and the like, then it is even more haraam, and some of the scholars are of the view that this is kufr.

Concerning The Ruling On Celebrating The Gregorian Year 2000

Shaykh Muhammad Salih Al-Munajjid
Language: English | Format: PDF | Pages: 10 | Size: 1 MB

Praise be to Allaah Alone and blessings and peace be upon the one after whom there is no Prophet. The Standing  Committee on Academic Research and Issuing Fatwaas has reviewed the many questions and requests for fatwaas  submitted to His Excellence the Grand Mufti and forwarded to the Standing Committee from the general trust of the  Council of Senior ‘Ulamaa’ (no. 3825, dated 21/7/1420 AH). People have asked questions concerning the rulings on  paying attention to and celebrating the European (Gregorian) millenium, and others matters pertaining to this  event. It is sufficient for us to quote just two of the questions asked: In the first question, it is asked:  “Nowadays we are seeing media reports about the events and preparations leading to the Year 2000 CE and the  beginning of the third millenium. The kuffaar, Jews, Christians and others, are excited about this and are pinning  great hopes on this event. My question, O respected Shaykh, is this: some so-called Muslims are also showing  interest in this event and regard it as an auspicious time for getting married or doing certain things. Some of  them are advertising this event in their stores and companies etc., in ways that are offensive to Muslims. What is  the shar’i ruling on respecting this occasion, showing an interest in it, exchanging greeting on this occasion –  whether verbally or by sending cards – etc.? May Allaah reward you with much good on behalf of Islam and the  Muslims.”