in Abyssinia, whose fine architecture and images were praised. He remarked, “Whenever a righteous man among them dies, they build a mosque over his grave and set up those images inside it. Such people are the worst of creation in Allah’s sight on the Day of Resurrection.”

As for the Muslims, Allah guided them—by His leave—to the truth about which others differed. They believed in all the prophets of Allah without discriminating against any of them, neither exaggerating as the Christians did nor falling short as the Jews did. Likewise, the Jews killed those among the people who enjoined justice, whereas the Christians obey those who call to associating partners with Allah—though shirk is indeed a tremendous injustice—and they obey those who declare the lawful unlawful and the unlawful lawful. The Muslims, however, obey only those who command obedience to Allah and never obey anyone who calls to disobedience.

Within Christianity there is shirk with Allah; within Judaism there is arrogance that turns them away from worshipping Allah. The Exalted said about the Christians: “They took their rabbis and monks as lords apart from Allah, and also the Messiah, son of Mary, whereas they were commanded to worship only one God. There is no god but He. Exalted is He above what they associate with Him.” ⦗al-Tawbah 31⦘

And He said about the Jews: “Is it that whenever a messenger brought you something your souls did not desire, you grew arrogant—rejecting some and killing others?” ⦗al-Baqarah 87⦘

Islam, therefore, is that the servant submits to Allah alone, worshipping Him alone in the manner He has commanded. Whoever submits to Him and to anyone besides Him is a polytheist, and Allah does not forgive that partners be associated with Him. And whoever