Abd Allah ibn Ibrahim al-Luhaydan
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Abd Allah ibn Ibrahim al-Luhaydan is a contemporary Islamic scholar and researcher, best known for his treatise Samahat al-Islam fi Muamalat Ghayr al-Muslimin ("The Magnanimity of Islam in Dealing with Non-Muslims") .
Scholarly Focus and Legal Thought
Al-Luhaydan's research focuses on Islamic jurisprudence and ethical principles governing relations between Muslims and non-Muslims. In his treatise Samahat al-Islam fi Muamalat Ghayr al-Muslimin, he examines how Islamic law defines tolerance and fairness toward non-Muslim communities of various backgrounds and traditions, drawing upon the Quran, the Sunnah, and the practical application of the Prophet ﷺ, the Companions, and the Successors .
He organized his study into an introduction and five major sections addressing: the conceptual meaning and legal significance of tolerance; the model of the Prophet ﷺ; the historical practice of the early Muslim community; testimonies and observations recorded by non-Muslim historians and Orientalists; and contemporary state practice within Saudi Arabia .
In his analysis of early Islamic history, al-Luhaydan emphasizes that Islamic governance never engaged in forced conversions, citing historical documentation such as the correspondence between the Christian population of al-Sham and Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah, as well as modern historical assessments by figures like Thomas Arnold regarding the sustained survival of Christian communities in the Muslim world .
Al-Luhaydan argues that authentic Islamic tolerance represents a middle path between excessive permissiveness and unwarranted severity, stressing that a correct understanding of its legal parameters is essential to avoid both extremes . He also asserts that the protections and rights granted to non-Muslims in Saudi Arabia are grounded directly in Islamic Sharia rather than secular international conventions or external recommendations, advocating for the wider clarification of these principles through educational and public media channels .
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List of Works
Samahat al-Islam fi Muamalat Ghayr al-Muslimin (The Magnanimity of Islam in Dealing with Non-Muslims) is a contemporary treatise on Islamic jurisprudence and ethics. It examines the legal and moral principles governing the treatment of non-Muslims in Islamic law, drawing from foundational scriptural sources, early historical practice, non-Muslim testimonies, and modern application to elucidate the concept of tolerance and leniency across relations with non-Muslims of all categories and traditions.