al-Fath al-Umari lil-Quds Namudhaj lil-Dawa bil-Amal wal-Qudwa
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- الجامعة الإسلامية بالمدينة المنورة
al-Fath al-Umari lil-Quds Namudhaj lil-Dawa bil-Amal wal-Qudwa (Arabic: الفتح العمري للقدس نموذج للدعوة بالعمل والقدوة, lit. 'The Umari Conquest of Jerusalem: A Model for Calling to Islam through Action and Example') is a historical monograph by Dr. Shafiq Jaser Ahmad Mahmoud, former head of the History Department at the Islamic University of Madinah . The study examines the Muslim conquest of Jerusalem during the caliphate of Umar ibn al-Khattab, analyzing how the practical conduct, justice, and moral exemplarity of the early Muslims served as an active means of da'wah (calling to Islam) .
Background and Purpose
The author frames the study around the Islamic principle that inward belief must be confirmed through outward action, ethics, and practical treatment of others . He argues that early Muslim adherence to values such as justice, humility, mercy, and fidelity to covenants was the foremost factor in winning over conquered populations and showcasing the virtues of Islam . The book highlights Jerusalem's religious significance in Islam as the first qibla, the third sacred sanctuary to which journeys are made, and the destination of the Prophet Muhammad's ﷺ Night Journey (Isra and Mi'raj) . It also points to the pre-Islamic Arab origins of Jerusalem's inhabitants, tracing them from early Canaanite Jebusites through Christian Arab tribes such as Lakhm and Judham .
Structure and Content
The work is organized chronologically and thematically into several core topics:
- Historiographical analysis of the conquest: The book assesses the varying historical narratives concerning the date and circumstances of Umar's arrival in Syria . The author favors the Syrian (Shami) accounts stating that Umar traveled specifically from Madinah to accept the surrender of Jerusalem at the request of general Abu Ubayda ibn al-Jarrah and the city's Patriarch Sophronius, rather than Kufan accounts suggesting his journey was solely intended for an administrative gathering at al-Jabiya . It also analyzes conflicting dates reported by early historians—including 15 AH in a report by al-Tabari from Sayf ibn Umar, 16 AH cited by Ibn Sa'd, Khalifa ibn Khayyat, al-Ya'qubi, Ibn Asakir, al-Waqidi, and al-Baladhuri, and 17 AH transmitted by Yaqut al-Hamawi, al-Baladhuri, Ibn Ishaq, and al-Tabari—concluding that 17 AH is the most probable .
- Events of the siege and surrender: The author recounts Abu Ubayda's advance toward Jerusalem following the Battle of Yarmuk and the capture of Damascus, deploying divisions led by commanders including Khalid ibn al-Walid, Shurahbil ibn Hasana, and Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan, alongside forces previously led by Amr ibn al-Aas . Despite severe winter conditions and rain, the Muslims maintained the siege until Sophronius agreed to surrender on the condition that the Caliph himself receive the city .
- Exemplary conduct of Umar and the companions: The text highlights incidents demonstrating Umar's humility, such as appointing Uthman ibn Affan as his deputy over Madinah, traveling with minimal provisions and a single mount, alternating rides with his servant, and famously rebuking Abu Ubayda when crossing a water ford by stating: "You were the most humiliated, lowest, and fewest of people, and God elevated you through Islam" . It also records Umar's protection of Christian property, including compensating a Christian vineyard owner whose grapes had been eaten by hungry Muslim troops .
- Comparative Christian and Islamic narratives: Drawing on both Islamic historical chronicles and Christian sources (such as Franciscan accounts cited by Khalil Totah and Bulus Shehadeh), the book describes Umar granting the safety pact known as the Umari Assurance (al-Uhdah al-Umariyya) . It notes Umar's refusal to pray inside the Church of the Holy Sepulchre to prevent future Muslims from seizing it as a prayer site, his locating of the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, and his leading of the Muslims in clearing accumulated debris from the area .
- The Umari Mosque: The study discusses early descriptions of the mosque established by Umar on the Temple Mount/al-Aqsa plaza, reviewing classical accounts by al-Waqidi, al-Bakri, Ibn Hubaysh, al-Maqrizi, and Mujir al-Din al-Ulaymi, as well as Western archaeological and historical assessments by K. A. C. Creswell, Guy Le Strange, the 7th-century Frankish pilgrim Bishop Arculf (c. 670 CE), and the Byzantine chronicler Theophanes the Confessor .
Publication
The work was published as an academic paper and treatise, appearing among other issues in volume 29 (issue 61) of the Journal of the Islamic University of Madinah .
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