Often translated as “Loyalty and Enmity,” the little-known Islamic doctrine of wala’ wa bara’ commands Muslims never to befriend or be loyal to non-Muslims, while being clean of, disavowing and ultimately hating them.
During a question-and-answer session at an Islamic conference, the full extent of this divisive doctrine was given full expression (see video; also posted below). Popular preacher Dr. Yassir Burhami, the vice president of the Salafi party in Egypt, explained how Loyalty and Enmity must be upheld at all times—even with a Muslim’s wife, if she happens to be a non-Muslim member of the “People of the Book,” (Christians and Jews, whom Muslim males are permitted to marry from; conversely, male Christians and Jews are strictly banned from marrying Muslim females).
When an attendee asked Burhami how Islam can allow a Muslim man to marry a non-Muslim woman and yet expect him to hate her, the sheikh responded as follows:
Where’s the objection? Do all men love their wives? How many married couples live together despite disagreements and problems? Huh? That being the case, he [Muslim husband] may love the way she [non-Muslim woman] looks, or love the way she raises the children, or love that she has money. This is why he’s discouraged from marrying among the People of the Book—because she has no [real] religion. He is ordered to make her hate her religion while continuing marriage/sexual relations with her. This is a very standard matter…. Of course he should tell her that he hates her religion. He must show her that he hates her because of her religion, and because she is an infidel. But if possible, treat her well—perhaps that will cause her to convert to Islam. He should invite her to Islam and call her to Allah.
Dr. Burhami further used the example of rape as an analogy:
In fact, let me tell you: whoever rapes a woman, does he necessarily love her? Or is he just sleeping with her? He’s sleeping with her for her body’s sake only, and he does not love her in reality, because if he loved her, he wouldn’t have hurt her. Therefore it is possible to have sexual relations [between a Muslim man and a Christian or Jewish woman] without love. This is possible, but as we said, he is commanded to hate her.
Next, Burhami exonerated infidel-wife-hating by quoting the Koran verses that form the cornerstone of the doctrine of Loyalty and Enmity:
Otherwise what do you do with the undisputed texts [of the Koran], such as “Thou wilt not find any people who believe in Allah and the Last Day, loving those who resist Allah and His Messenger, even though they were their fathers or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred… “O ye who believe! take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors…” [Koran 58:22 and 5:51, Yusuf Ali translation]. What do you do with such a verse? What do you do will all these verses?
Indeed, “what do you do with all these verses?”
This is the crux of the problem between so-called Islamists and so-called moderates: Islamic scriptures—like “all these verses” quoted by Burhami—often side with the “radical” (and intolerant, and hostile, and violent, and supremacist) worldview of the Islamists, leaving the moderates without much of a leg to stand on in the realm of Islamic exegesis.
When asked if a Muslim husband can at least greet his wife—according to Islam’s prophet, Muslims are not permitted to offer greetings to non-Muslims—Burhami was consistent:
When he [Muslim husband] comes home, he should not be the first to greet her. He may greet his children [because they are Muslim] or he can offer a general greeting if any other Muslims are present, meaning them by it [but allowing her to think it’s for her]. These are mainstream commands… She has to begin with greeting him, and then he may respond.
If this is how Islam expects the Muslim to treat his non-Muslim wife, simply because she is an “infidel,” how must it expect him to feel about non-Muslim strangers—like the majority of you reading this?
Not that you’d know it, thanks to another of Islam’s complementary teachings: taqiyya.
Note: To learn more about wala’ wa bara’, see Al-Qaeda leader Ayman Zawahiri’s seminal essay titled “Loyalty and Enmity”—nearly 60 pages worth—which I annotated and translated years back in The Al Qaeda Reader (pgs. 63-115). And for more on hate, see “Muslim Prayers of Hate.”
Burhami’s video follows. If English captions do not appear, you may need to turn “CC” on:
From the article (and the quote): “let me tell you: whoever rapes a woman, does he necessarily love her? Or is he just sleeping with her?”
This is utter nonsense! Rape is not “sleeping with” someone. Rape is a crime of violence. It never involves love in any form. These things said by this man, and those who agree with him, don’t know what love is. The question must be asked: why would one want to marry someone he hates, to whom he will not initiate a greeting and to whom he must say he hates? The answer has to be: one such as this enjoys inflicting pain and hurt and committing crimes of violence.
All of this goes against what Creation and the Bible say about the True God. He is a God of order, reasonableness, and most of all Love. His Son, the True Prophet, showed this by not only speaking with non-Jewish women, but doing so before they spoke to him. And offering them the greatest gift before they could even know who he was. And Jesus said that “God makes it rain upon the righteous and unrighteous and makes the sun shine upon the righteous and unrighteous (Matt. 5:45-).”
Thanks, Raymond, for shining a light on the darkness these guys “preach.”
http://www.loonwatch.com/2010/01/raymond-ibrahim-and-the-islamophobic-cash-cow/
I can see why it’s called loon watch-only a loon would believe the conspiracy theory put forward on that site.
I went to loon watch and I didn’t see one article on any muslim cleric inciting violence. I did not see any reports of loons beheading Christians, burning their churches and homes, shooting villagers, and persecuting their women. no article on lunatic muslims having their daughters subjected to female genital mutilation, just hit pieces on Robert spencer and Pamela geller. loonwatch can complain about ijhad watch but the articles report actual atrocities that are happening in the muslim world every day.
Dr. Hussami’s personal & ignorant view obviously represents merely his unfortunate religious &/or cultural narcissistic environment, which very much mirrors Raymond Abrahim’s claimed “expertise” translation on Islam. They both lack knowledge of worth. A fool’s view used by another fool as a propaganda tool…
There are thousands of people that have studied Islam for decades, and millions more who have left the Muslim faith that cant attest to the lunacy of Shariah law. The entire world see’s how Muslim women are treated by the garbage bag, called the Burka, they wear-have you ever watched a Burka clad women try to eat and then honestly say they aren’t being oppressed-seriously.
There very own sacred books echo the same said sentiments towards “infidels” and all women. You’re not fooling anyone.
Teresa do you support the verses in the koran that was quoted in Ibrahim’s article?
Teresa Morrisroe:
Your comment, unfortunately, is full of nonsense, and I hope you see it. Because if you don’t, you really are a fool. You think an Egyptian cleric, a “Dr.” no less, is less informed about Islam than you? You think if a Muslim says Islam teaches something that runs counter to your notions of right and wrong, then he must be wrong? Very naive of you. And why attack Mr. Ibrahim he just translated the man’s words, and put them in context of that doctrine, which does exist, and which is based on the Quran. You would rather prefer we stay in the dark? Those were the cleric’s words! He’s the one to cite the Quran – and yet you attack the messenger?! And then you post a link from a well known Islamist propaganda site, that’s devoted to taking down freedom fighters like Mr Ibrahim? Shame on you — unless, of course, you too are just another lying Muslim
Islam is religion of haterts..it has nothing to do with love… for this article it is reproved… Muhammad himself raped a salve girl and had male child (Ebrahim) with her…. but he nver gave her wife’s right because she was christian lady Mary the coptic).. so what we can say to Muslims.. Muslims are just followers of Islam… and Islam full of hates of all kinds in the name of Allah… what makes to me think that Allah is not God but Allah the hae loving being…
They hate America too along with Obama and His Administration.
This savage is basically saying that a non-muslim wife is his slave and one should rape her.,
Well, on the bright side, this backward, barbaric form of religious nonsense is the fastest growing religion in the world.