The Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Prof. Ahmad At-Tayyeb, continued his talk in “Grand Imam At-Tayyeb Ramadan TV Talk” addressing the permissibility for Muslims’ to congratulate non-Muslims on their festivals, e.g. Christmas, by quoting the Qur’anic verse that reads, ““Allah does not forbid you from from being righteous and acting justly toward those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes - . Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly.” (Qur’an, 60: 8) Based on this verse, the Grand Imam points out that scholars deemed it permissible for a Muslim to give out charity, bequest, and endowment to a non-Muslim. Some of those scholars noted that the reason behind revelation of the quoted verse was when ˀAsmāˀ, daughter of Abu Bakr As-Siddiq, was visited by her mother in Medina when the mother was a polytheist. Then, ˀAsmāˀ asked the Prophet (pbuh) if she could welcome her mother and maintain ties with her. The Prophet’s (pbuh) answer was, “Yes, be kind to your mother.” So, if it is permissible to be kind to a pagan, how can it be impermissible to well treat or greet the People of the Scripture!

The Grand Imam added, in his daily Ramadan TV Talk, that the Qur’an describes the followers of Jesus (pbuh) as the nearest in affection, leniency, and mercy to the believers: “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.” (Qur’an, 5: 82) Almighty Allah also says about them, “We placed in the hearts of those who followed him compassion and mercy.” (Qur’an, 57:27) The Grand Imam then rhetorically asks hardliners, “Would a Muslim expect a different verse or an authentic Hadith to forbid congratulating or greeting a Christian neighbor! How would the Qur’an allow a Muslim man to marry a Christian or Jewish woman who keeps up her faith, given all the spousal mutual respect, mercy and love, considering that they would have children, only to forbid him to congratulate or greet her on Christmas, for instance. Would the Qur’an allow him all that and then warn him to greet his wife on Christmas! Or do those hardliners think that a wife is an exception from such prohibition! How would be the case then while we know that their justification for prohibition persists in either case!

The Grand Imam further stated, “Some of them (the hardliners) would even say that we do not greet the Christians due to a Prophetic Hadith to this effect. Such Hadith reads, “Do not start saluting the Jews and Christians (when you meet them).” This narration is reported from Suhail ibn Abi Salih from his father, and though referenced in Muslim’s Sahih, it is largely criticized. The narrator, who was just and trustworthy, suffered a later amnesia. Ibn Maˁīn thus said that scholars of Hadith kept abandoning his reports. That is why Muslim reported this hadith also in different wording in his narration, which is solely narrated by him and that he was largely confused about it. At times, he reported it as reading, “Do not start saluting polytheists,” at others, “the People of the Scripture,” and on a third occasion, “Do not start saluting the Jews.” Is it logical or consistent then that we act upon a report that is criticized by Hadith scholars themselves! It instructs a very cruel conduct that seriously besmears the image of the Muslims. It is important to recognize the context in which the Hadith was narrated. The report quoted in Muslim’s Sahih was narrated within the context of the Prophet’s campaign to besiege the combatant Jews after they had breached their covenant with him. This academic approach, the Grand Imam points out, does not necessarily mean criticizing the authenticity of reports referenced by Al-Bukhari and Muslim. Rather, this space involves shady areas where numerous forgotten reports were dug up to induce dissension among the Muslims, mockery of the Sunnah, or ridicule major Hadith scholars. Examples to these Hadiths are the reports on the permissibility of breastfeeding adults, the impermissibility of greeting the Jews and the Christians, etc. The digging up of this very limited number of reports was meant only to sow discord and sectarian and denominational tension, destabilize the Arab public, and distort the image of Islam as reflected in the Western mirror only for neocolonial purposes that are known to all!

It is worth noting that Grand Imam At-Tayyeb TV Talk is broadcast for the fifth year on Egyptian and other Arab TV channels. In this year’s edition, the program, which was launched in Ramadan 2016, addresses the characteristics of Islam, moderation in Islam, principles relating to legal obligations, ease of the Sharia, sources of legislation, and debunking misconceptions about the Prophetic Sunnah and about the Muslim tradition.