The attitude of sunnī Islam toward Jews and Christians as reflected in some legal issues

Abstract

How have Muslim scholars viewed followers of other religions, mainly ahl al-kitāb (the People of the Book, i.e., Jews and Christians)? Islamic laws in two areas - slaughter and marriage - reflect both an attempt to separate Muslims from non-monotheists (demonstrated by rules against consuming meat from animais slaughtered by non-monotheists and against marrying their women), and the permissibility of contact between Muslims and ahl al-kitāb. The extent of these contacts is dictated by two opposing motives: the desire to maintain ties with ahl al-kitāb, and a wish to avoid the danger to the Islamic framework posed by these ties. Consequently, Muslim jurists generally permit meat from slaughter by ahl al-kitāb - even when the obligation to mention the ñame of Allāh has not been fulfilled - but most jurists prohibit meat from an animal slaughtered by a Christian who recites the name of Jesus over the slaughter. Similarly, the marriage law, which allows certain kinds of marriage between Muslims and ahl al-kitāb, prohibits marriages that result in the inferiority of the Muslim to a kitābī spouse, for such inferiority carnes with it the danger of assimilation.