Can non-Muslims be buried in Muslim graves?

In the same context, the third fatwa is published in the same issue of the magazine, and related to the issue of the burial of non-Muslims in the graves of Muslims.

The sheikh says in his fatwa:

It is not permissible for a Muslim to bury a non-Muslim in the graves of Muslims so as not to be harmed by his (the Christian), torture in the grave. Scholars of the Salafis brought up the issue of non-Muslim women who die when pregnant from a Muslim, and said that they should be buried alone; neither in the graves of the Muslims or in the graves of others. Al-Bayhaqi narrated that Waleed Ibn al-Asqa’a said that he buried a Christian woman who was carrying a Muslim fetus in a cemetery that is neither a tomb for Christians or Muslims, upon the orders of Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal, who said: Because she is an infidel woman, she should not be buried in the graves of Muslims so as not to allow Muslims to suffer her punishment.

The question itself raises suspicion, as it should have been excluded due to the absence of its seriousness! Everyone knows that Muslims have their graves and Christians have their graves and Jews also have their graves. The brief answer is that it is not permissible to bury Christian in the grave of Muslims. However the Muslim Brotherhood’s sheikh refuses to miss an opportunity without insulting the Christians. In his response, the sheikh affirms the inevitability of the torture of non-Muslims in their graves, as the insulting tone dominates the speech adopted by the leading member of the group.

Scholars agree that the deceased is subjected to bliss and torment in his grave, but they also agree that it is all in the hands of God alone. Will no Muslim be tortured in the grave? If the answer is no then will other Muslims buried in the same grave be harmed by his torture?

Does the issue deserve such attention? What about unfortunate accidents as plane crashes, sunken ships or collapsed building? Do not these humanitarian disasters bring together Muslims, Christians and Jews?

The Muslim Brotherhood’s sheikh insists on responding to a question that does not deserve to be answered, but it just gives him an opportunity to accuse the Christians of infidelity and to dispel their faith. Can the Muslim Brotherhood deny that they are deliberately insulting the Christians? Do they believe in coexistence with Christian in a society dominated by respect and shaded by tolerance? They should retreat after they have documented their ideas and published them publicly, and these ideas are confirmed in another fatwa that goes beyond the words of the all the previous.

Sheikh Mohamed Abdullah Al Khateeb gives a new fatwa saying:

This verse and the verses that are following it in Surat Al-Maa’ida reveal facts that the Muslim should know:

• The Jews and those who were involved are the enemies of Islam, as they launch their plans and conspiracies against this religion. The Muslims are supposed to respect their Quran and religion and not to repeat words or actions that contradict their faith. God said in the Quran, “O you who have attained to faith! Do not take the Jews and the Christians for your allies: they are but allies of one another and whoever of you allies himself with them becomes, verily, one of them; behold, God does not guide such evildoers.”
• The second truth “You will surely find the most intense of the people in animosity toward the believers [to be] the Jews and those who associate others with Allah; and you will find the nearest of them in affection to the believers those who say, “We are Christians.” That is because among them are priests and monks and because they are not arrogant.” And we hasten to say that this part of the verse and the subsequent verses resolve the position that the verse does not include all those who said “I am Christian,” but the judgment on a special team with specific features. This category responded to God and believed in Islam and embraced this religion. They are Muslims. Imam al-Qurtubi said the reason for the descent of these verses was “that Najashi and his companions when they heard the Surat Maryam of our master Ja’afar, may Allah be pleased with him, was affected and cried.

The most important thing in Sheikh Al-Khteeb’s fatwa is that it begins with the declaration of the banner of enmity and defiance of the idea of tolerance and coexistence, in light of difference and contrast. The sheikh quickly invokes another verse that forbids Jews and Christians from taking leading positions.

He is not preoccupied with his presentation of the two verses with the comprehensive interpretation, including the reasons behind theses verses and their interpretation upon the interpretation adopted by scholars. He did so only to confirm his previous dominant view. The final truth, from his viewpoint, is that the first verse does not include all Christians; while it is limited to specific group of them who converted to Islam.

The sheikh is not concerned with logic, and neglects that the verse speaks of Christians who had not converted to Islam. This is confirmed by the explicit reference to the priests and monks who are not arrogant. If the verse is limited to Christians who converted to Islam then how does the sheikh explain their description as Christian in the verses and why does it talk about priests and monks? What the Muslim Brotherhood’s sheikh wants is to emphasize that Muslims should keep their cordial relations with only Christians who converted to Islam, while others who insisted to keep their faith are not worthy of love, and respect.

The true Muslim, according to the Brotherhood’s vision of the previous fatwa, should be a genuine hater of non-Muslims. However, they are now talking, in blatant opportunism, about citizenship, coexistence, tolerance, democracy and the full rights of non-Muslims.

Documented and published opinions confirm that they ignore the concept of tolerance and are major supporters of intolerance, and this is confirmed by their intransigence when it comes to the concept of religious freedom.