How can Muslims justify the discriminatory tax (jizyah) that Islamic regimes imposed on Christians and Jews?

Question

From the early days of Islam, pagan non-muslims who refused to convert to Islam were slaughtered by Muhammad and his followers. However, many Christians and Jews who refused to convert were spared, but only on the condition that they paid a form of protection money. This special tax (the 'jizyah') had to be paid by Christians and Jews, but not by Muslims. How can such religious discrimination by the founders of a religion ever be justified?

note to emmapeel66
Muhammad and his followers THE FOUNDERS OF ISLAM did kill pagans who would not convert to Islam.
In contrast, the founders of Christianity, Jesus and his followers killed no-one and did not force anyone to convert. All their conversions were acheived by teaching and their example of holiness.

Answer 1

they like to tell us that the dhimmi status was a good thing...that's a laugh

Answer 2

***How can Muslims justify the discriminatory tax (jizyah) that Islamic regimes imposed on Christians and Jews? ****

Most likely the same way tax breaks and exemptions are given to most religious institutions and charities. It is not fair however
what can we do about it. Tax exempt status for the religious is a tax on all of us.

Answer 3

The Jizyah tax is actually less then what the Muslims had to pay in the poor tax every year. Plus all the jizyah tax did was get you out of military service, if you did not want to pay it, you had to defend the land when war came.

Did you even bother to look up what is it?

Answer 4

It is all in the name of control.and greed no different the any church nut just the non Muslims . it has bin going on since the beginning of time . that those that did not convert to the strongest trillion in their country there was a price to be paid . it is not new . and when you go to church they still pass the donation plate around even though you as a tax payer is paying for this person before you to teach you what ever religion he is serving . and you are just adding to his wealth. LMK

Answer 5

well, Emmapeel66 is now shown to be clearly wrong with the 2 journalists in lebanon forced to join this evil sect at gunpoint. Also, this "tax" is only reasonable when considered as the alternative to being tortured to death for the pleasure of the mullahs and imams.
With all this coming to light at last, it is time the world joined forces to eliminate this poisonous fungus growing in our society.

Answer 6

What about the Christians that tortured Muslims and Jews during the Inquistion? At least the Muslims let people who don't want to convert live. The Christians executed anyone who didn't convert.

Answer 7

Humans go through every step of development as a civilization maturates. We have all been the slave and the master. We have all been the whore and virgin. Each of us has in our genes the story of our people. Several million years of development written in the book of the genes. Someday maybe we can read the story ourselves.

Answer 8

Non-Muslims did not have to join the Muslim armies. But they paid a tax instead. And, Muslims were very tolerant of non-Muslims. That is why so many people converted. The conquered people were expecting to be killed, but instead they were protected.

Answer 9

It is usually portrayed by certain critics that jizya is a mechanism for discriminating non-muslims in an Islamic-society. This is a common misconception; jizya is a political method dealing with finance.

One of the main pillars of Islam is called Zakat (Muslims whose wealth is above a certain limit must pay a percentage of it (in most cases 2.5%) to the poor and needy). Islam does not "force" upon non-muslims to follow one of it's main pillar. This certainly quietens some critics who would otherwise be accusing Islam of imposing itself on them. Just like in a non-muslim society muslims pay tax, likewise non-muslims are obliged to pay certain percentage of their money to the Islamic State. It is quite hypocritical of non-muslims to criticize Jizya, whilst, in non-muslims countries muslims have to pay tax. If tax is justified then so should jizya be.

Regarding the amount of jizya Shaykh Abu'l-Hasan Al-Mawardi (d. 1058CE) writes in his book Al-Mawardi, al-Ahkam as-Sultaniyyah, Ta-Ha Publishers Ltd. 1996, pp. 209-210:

"The fuqaha (Jurists) differ as to the amount of the Jizya. Abu Hanifa considers that those subject to this tax are of three kinds: the rich from whom forty-eight dirhams are taken; those of average means from whom twenty four are taken, and the poor from whom twelve dirhams are taken: he thus stipulated the minimum and maximum amounts and prohibits any further judgement on behalf of those responsible for its collection. Malik, however, does not fix its minimum and maximum amount and considers that those responsible should make their own judgement as to the minimum and maximum. Ash-Shafi'i considers that the minimum is a dinar, and that it is not permitted to go below this while he does not stipulate the maximum, the latter being dependant on the ijtihad (judgement) of those responsible: the Imam, however, should try to harmonise between the different amounts, or to exact an amount in accordance with people's means."

It is generally agreed by the four major Jurists that jizya money is based upon one's income. We ought also not forget that muslims are also obliged to pay Zakat.

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Answer 10

the tax was made because christians and jews were allowed to liv in muslim cities but they were not allowed to join the muslim army. SO the tax was copensation for security of the army.

Answer 11

do you pay taxes no matter where you live, Jizyah is just a tax to protect you to be spent on military otherwise you were going to be attacked, captured and turned into a slave with nobody protecting you,