Islam Rediscovered
21. Islam in History
~ 359 ~
return, and religion will no longer be for God.”
(
Fathul Bari
,
Kitab at-Tafsir
, vol. 8, p.32,
Kitab
al-Fitan
Vol. 13, p. 49).
From this account we learn that war against
persecution as commanded by God was limited in
its scope and of a particular nature. It had to be
directed against those leaders who had established
a system of religious persecution; who were not
ready to grant to believers in monotheism the
liberty to practise their faith. The companions of the
Prophet waged war against such oppression, first of
all in Arabia, and then in major parts of Asia and
Africa, and succeeded in bringing it to an end.
Thenceforth, believers in Islam had full freedom to
practise their religion and to invite others to answer
its call.
After the successful conclusion of this movement
against religious coercion, the believers began living
in an atmosphere of religious freedom. But during
the reign of the Umayyads, when the rot of
corruption had begun to set in, certain Muslims,
referring to this verse of the Qur’an, engaged
themselves in armed conflict with the rulers. To all
