A storm of controversy erupted on social media in several Arab countries following the spread of a fatwa issued by the Permanent Committee of the General Presidency for Scholarly Research and Ifta in Saudi Arabia.
The fatwa relates to the issue of “unification of religions” and the idea of establishing the “Abrahamic Family House”, which was recently inaugurated by the UAE.
What does that fatwa say? And when was it issued? What is the truth regarding what was rumored regarding it on social media? And how did the responses and comments of the tweeters come regarding?
What are the details of the fatwa? Is it new or old?
Issuer: The Standing Committee for Scholarly Research and Issuing Fatwas, affiliated to the Saudi General Presidency for Scholarly Research and Issuing Fatwas, and among its tasks is to “refer general issues to the Council of Senior Scholars for study.”
subject: The fatwa came “in response to questions received by the committee and the opinions and articles published in the media regarding the call for “unity of religions” … and the call that resulted from that to build a mosque, church and temple in one area …”.
Her position on the idea of the “Abrahamic Family House”: The fatwa, in its entirety, criticized and rejected any reference to “the unity of religions.” It included ten decisions. The text of the ninth resolution stated, “3 – Nor is it permissible for a Muslim to respond to an invitation to: (build a mosque, a church, and a temple) in one compound …”.
Its number and date of issue: Fatwa bearing No.19402And, contrary to what was rumored on social media, it is not new. It was issued on the 25th Muharram in 1418 AH Which he agrees May 31, 1997 AD. That is, it was issued regarding 26 years ago.
The committee that issued this fatwa: Many also did not notice that the head of the committee that issued the fatwa was Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Abdullah bin Baz, who at the time held the position of Grand Mufti of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and who died in May 1999, which confirms that the fatwa is old.
Why did tweeters spread that it was a new fatwa? Many of the tweeters who rejected the idea of the “Abrahamic House” sought to find fatwas that support their position, but when they re-posted links to the text of the fatwa, many of them did not pay attention to the date of its issuance. Many news websites made the same mistake. Also, the official website of the General Presidency for Scholarly Research and Iftaa did not include the original date of its issuance, while at the same time displaying today’s date in the Hijri calendar, which some interpreted wrongly as a new fatwa.
An escalating controversy on social media
Reactions were divided on social media, and varied between those who welcomed the idea of ”unification of religions in one place” and that it was “a manifestation of tolerance between religions,” while others launched a scathing attack on the idea, citing opinions that “prohibit” the idea of unification between religions.
Many Saudi tweeters criticizing the idea of establishing the Abrahamic House and uniting religions cited the statements of the Council of Senior Muslim Scholars at the time of Sheikh Bin Baz’s presidency before his death that “it is not permissible for a Muslim to respond to the call to build a mosque, church, and temple,” which is the old fatwa that some believed was new.
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Some of the tweeters saw that the idea of establishing the Abrahamic House and uniting religions “outwardly is beneficial while inwardly is harmful.”
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The misunderstanding regarding the date of the fatwa’s issuance contributed to wrong political interpretations, such as it being “a clear indication of Emirati-Saudi disagreements over the religious reference.”
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Tweeters: The Abrahamic House is a symbol of tolerance
On the other hand, another group of tweeters defended the establishment of the Abrahamic House, and they justified this by “the antiquity of the fatwa on which the opponents relied, and that it is not suitable for every time and place, as is the case with the fatwa prohibiting women from driving a car.”
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Some of the tweeters did not object to the establishment of the Abrahamic House, but they did not agree with the expression “unification of religions.”
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While tweeters pointed out, “The West guarantees freedom of belief and worship for every human being, and this is what the Emirates did,” and they marveled at the negative reactions to the establishment of the Abrahamic House.
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Responses from Emiratis
For their part, Emirati officials, academics, and media professionals defended the idea of establishing the “Abrahamic House,” stressing that it “calls for coexistence and tolerance between religions and does not affect any connection with the idea of monotheism in God,” and that “those who follow the path of prohibition are strict.”
The Chairman of the Defense, Interior and Foreign Affairs Committee of the Federal National Council, Dr. Ali Al-Nuaimi, on his Twitter account, said, “It is not possible to work with a fatwa issued 26 years ago.”
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While the Emirati academic and writer close to the authority, Abd al-Khaliq Abdullah, denounced the allegations that “the UAE preaches a new Abrahamic religion,” and stressed that “the Abrahamic House calls for dialogue and coexistence between the three religions, and that there is a big difference between the two ideas.”
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Emirati journalist Mohammed Al-Taqi said, “The UAE has become the best model of human brotherhood thanks to the Abrahamic House.” He cited a hadith by Sheikh Mohammed Al-Issa, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League, in which he affirmed that “the owners of other monotheistic religions are people of the book whom God singled out for a privileged position in Islam.” And that “there is a difference between the Abrahamic family and the Abrahamic religion.”
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The opening of the Abrahamic family house
The publication of the old fatwa and the controversy that accompanied it came in the wake of the inauguration of the UAE Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior, Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and with him the Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence, Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, the so-called “House of the Abrahamic Family”, in the capital, Abu Dhabi, in the presence of Extremist “Israeli” religious leaders last February.
According to the Emirates News Agency, “The Abrahamic Family House reflects the state’s vision of the convergence of humanity and the dialogue of cultures.”
Hamad Khalifa Al-Mubarak, head of the Abrahamic Family House, said, “The establishment of the Abrahamic House comes as an extension of the vision of peace and mutual respect in the Emirates, which is home to more than one nationality from around the world.”
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What is the Abrahamic family house?
- It is a complex of a mosque, church, synagogue and educational center on Saadiyat Island, which is considered the cultural center of the city of Abu Dhabi in the Emirates.
- And he founded the “House of the Abrahamic Family”, in implementation of the human fraternity agreement that was signed between the Sheikh of Al-Azhar and the Pope of the Vatican in early February, in Abu Dhabi in 2019.
- The house of the Abrahamic family includes three places of worship, which are the “Grand Imam Ahmed Al-Tayeb” mosque, the “Pope Francis” church, and the “Musa bin Maimon” synagogue.
