Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-Maabid al-Shirkiyya fi Bilad al-Muslimin

Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-Maabid al-Shirkiyya fi Bilad al-Muslimin (The Ruling on Building Churches and Polytheistic Temples in Muslim Lands) is a legal treatise written by the Saudi-based scholar Ismail ibn Muhammad al-Ansari (d. 1417 AH / 1997 CE) addressing the prohibition against constructing and renovating non-Muslim places of worship in Islamic territories Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1.

Background and Purpose

The treatise was authored as a refutation of statements published in the press regarding the permissibility of constructing churches in Muslim lands Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…. Specifically, al-Ansari responded to remarks reported in the newspaper al-Sharq from February 13–14, 1979, by Sufi Abu Talib, the Speaker of the Egyptian People's Assembly, who asserted at a public symposium on the implementation of Islamic law that granting Christian minorities the freedom to build churches is a fundamental principle demonstrating the nobility of Islam Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…. Al-Ansari argued that divine legislations universally forbid disbelief (kufr), which inherently necessitates the prohibition of establishing places intended for its practice Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M….

Structure and Contents

Al-Ansari organized the work into five main sections Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1:

1. Prophetic Traditions: A compilation of hadiths cited by jurists regarding the prohibition of founding or renewing churches in Islamic lands, such as narrations barring two qiblas in a single territory Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1.
2. Reports of the Companions: Historical reports and stipulations transmitted from the Companions, notably the conditions established by Umar ibn al-Khattab and rulings attributed to Abdullah ibn Abbas Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1.
3. Doctrines of the Four Schools: Canonical textual rulings from the Hanafi, Maliki, Shafi'i, and Hanbali madhhabs concerning non-Muslim places of worship Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1.
4. Classification of Territories: An exposition following Ibn Qayyim al-Jawziyya's three-part division of lands where non-Muslim subjects (ahl al-dhimma) reside—cities founded by Muslims (such as Basra, Kufa, Baghdad, and Cairo), lands conquered by force (anwatan), and lands acquired through peace treaties (sulhan)—detailing the specific legal status of temples in each Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1.
5. Conclusion: An appendix presenting the legal verifications and treatises of Ibn Taymiyyah on the subject Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M….

Reception and Publication

The work was reviewed and commended by Abd al-Aziz ibn Baz, then General President of the Administrations of Scholarly Research, Ifta, Da'wah, and Guidance in Saudi Arabia, who composed a formal endorsement (taqriz) dated 25 Shawwal 1400 AH Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…+1. Ibn Baz emphasized the consensus of classical scholars on the prohibition of building churches in Muslim countries—particularly in the Arabian Peninsula—and ordered the treatise to be printed and distributed under the auspices of the presidency Hukm Bina al-Kanais wal-M…. The presidency published subsequent printings of the work, including a third edition in 1426 AH Al-Ara al-Fiqhiyya al-Mua….