the testimony that there is no god but Allah,” and he went on to relate the rest of the ḥadīth (1). They then embraced Islam without hope of worldly gain and without fear of worldly harm.

In the same vein, those Jews of Medina who became Muslim—many besides ʿAbd Allah (ibn Salām) (2) whose names are recorded in the works of sīra and maghāzī—did not accept the faith for the sake of this world or out of fear of the sword. They entered Islam while the Muslims were in dire need, surrounded by numerous enemies, and under assault from the nations of the earth, without whip or lure (3). They endured the hostility of their relatives and the loss of their support in both wealth and person at a time when the Muslims’ strength was weak (4) and their resources scant (5). One of them would oppose his own father, mother, household, and clan, abandoning the comforts of this life for the sake of Islam (6)—not for office or riches. On the contrary, he would relinquish position and wealth, bearing the unbelievers’ beatings, insults, and every kind of abuse, yet none of that would divert him from his religion.

Therefore, even if many rabbis, monks, and priests, along with those named by this questioner, have chosen disbelief, the overwhelming majority of the world’s population from among the various groups of unbelievers has entered Islam, and only a small fraction remains compared with those who have embraced the faith.