Omar in Jerusalem

The Caliph left Ali in Medina as his deputy and himself left for Jerusalem. He had only one attendant with him and only one camel to ride. Omar and the attendant rode the camel by turns. It happened to be the servant's turn to ride on the day when they were to reach Jerusalem. "Commander of the Faithful," said the attendant, "I give up my turn. It will look awkward, in the eyes of the people, if I ride and you lead the camel."

"Oh no," replied Omar, "I am not going to be unjust. The honor of Islam is enough for us all."

Abu Obaid, Khalid, Yazid and other officers of the army went some distance to receive the Caliph. All of them were wearing silk cloaks. This made Omar angry. He took some pebbles and threw them at his generals, saying, "Have you changed so much in just two years? What dress is this? Even if you had done this two hundred years from now, I would have dismissed you."

The officers replied, "Commander of the Faithful, we are in a land where the quality of clothes worn tells the rank of a man. If we wear ordinary clothes, we will command little respect among the people. However, we are wearing our arms underneath the silken robes."

This answer cooled down the anger of the Caliph.

Next the Caliph signed the treaty of peace. It ran as follows:


"From the servant of Allah and the Commander of the Faithful, Omar: The inhabitants of Jerusalem are granted security of life and property. Their churches and crosses shall be secure. This treaty applies to all people of the city. Their places of worship shall remain intact. These shall neither be taken over nor pulled down. People shall be quite free to follow their religion. They shall not be put to any trouble..."

The gates of the city were now opened. Omar went straight to the Temple of David (Masjid-i-Aqsa). Here he said his prayer under David's Arch.

Next he visited the biggest Christian church of the city. He was in the church when the time for the afternoon prayer came.

"You may say your prayers in the church," said the Bishop.

"No," replied Omar, "if I do so, the Muslims may one day make this an excuse for taking over the church from you."

So he said his prayers on the steps of the church. Even then, he gave the Bishop a writing. It said that the steps were never to be used for congregational prayers nor was the Adhan [ call to prayer ] to be said there.

HAZRAT IBRAHIM AND THE OLD MAN

 In the Middle East there is a land known as Palestine. Long before, in this land there lived a very great prophet. Prophet is a messenger of Allah. He has been chosen by Allah Himself to teach people religion, good thoughts and good deeds. The name of this great prophet was Hazrat Ibrahim. (He is also known as Abraham in the Bible). He had come to Palestine from Iraq.
Hazrat Ibrahim was very fond of guests. He liked to invite guests to his house. He was good to travellers. He took them to his house and gave them food to eat and bed to sleep. This good quality of his is described in the Qur'an.
Every morning Hazrat Ibrahim stood by the main road near his house and waited for travellers to pass. As soon he saw them he invited them to his house to be his guests. Hazrat Ibrahim liked this good deed very much. It pleased him to make other people happy and comfortable. Thus, Hazrat Ibrahim would everyday bring home one guest at least. If he came across no traveller even for a day he would become unhappy. Without having a guest, he would not touch food himself.
Once it so happened that no traveller passed that way for three days running. This, naturally, upset Hazrat Ibrahim. It made him sad. Without having a guest on his table he would not eat. Each morning Hazrat Ibrahim went to the main road hopefully. He would strain his eyes far away to the horizon. Yet no traveller was to be seen. Each evening he would return to his home disappointed.
Three days passed. One morning an old man appeared on a camel. Hazrat Ibrahim was happy. He invited the old man to his home to eat with him The old man accepted the invitation.
In the house they set to eat. Hazrat Ibrahim recited "Bismillah" before taking the food, but the old man did not say anything. Hazrat Ibrahim asked why he did not remember Allah before taking his meal. Was not Allah our Creator, our Nourisher and our Master? Was it not proper to remember Him before partaking of the food provided by Him?
The old man said that it was not the custom in his religion. Hazrat Ibrahim asked him what his religion was. He said that he was one of those who worship fire.
Hazrat Ibrahim was very much annoyed and turned the old man out.
As soon as the old man went away, the angel Jibrail came to Hazrat Ibrahim, from Allah. Jibrail told Hazrat Ibrahim that Allah had been feeding this unbeliever person for seventy years. Could not Hazrat Ibrahim tolerate him for even one meal! Hazrat Ibrahim felt very sorry for this. He immediately ran after the old man. Finally he reached him and persuaded him to return to his house to have food together. He finally succeeded in getting the old man to his home.

The Delegation of Najran Christians

No doubt the most important interaction between the Christians and the Prophet was the visit of the Najran delegation to Madina. Makka and Madina had a very small Christian population (Waraqa ibn Nawfal was one of them). The majority of Christian residents lived in Najran. The Prophet’s first important encounter with Christian clergies was in the 9th year of Hijra (AD 631), one or two years before his death.

Prophet Muhammad had been sending official letters to different countries and their rulers, inviting them to Islam. Among these were two different invitations that had been sent to Najran with Khaled ibn al-Walid and Ali ibn Abi Talib.13 At that time the Najran Christians had a highly organized religious life. Before Islam, foreign teachers had even visited the town, such as the Italian priest Gregentius, which had deepen-ed their religious knowledge.14 Few of the Najran Christians converted to Islam; the majority of them did not change their religion after these invitations. Prophet Muhammad sent a representative to them, Mughira ibn Shu’ba, who was sent to explain the invitations and the religion of Islam. After discussions with Mughira, the Christians of Najran decided to send a group of people to visit the Prophet. The delegation was made up of about 60 well-educated Christians: A bishop, his 45 scholars, and 15 men. Their intention was to learn the nature of the revelations Prophet Muhammad was receiving.15

When the Najran delegation reached Madina, they debated with the Prophet in an investigatory dialogue for two or three days in the mosque (Masjid) of Madina. Prophet Muhammad allow-ed them to pray in the mosque (Masjid al-Nabawi) where the Muslims prayed. The whole incident was the first occurrence of peaceful dialogue between Christians and Muslims; it was the first time that Christians prayed in a mosque.16

Prophet Muhammad warmly welcomed the Najran delegation and provided them with a place to stay in Madina, in a secure place close to his mosque. He even ordered that their tent be pitched for them by the Muslims. However, the Najran delegation and Prophet Muhammad were not able to reach a solution in theological terms. At the end of these exchanges, the Najran Christians told the Prophet: “O, Abu al-Qasim, we decided to leave you as you are and you leave us as we are. But send with us a man who can adjudicate things on our properties, because we accept you.” The delegation was granted their request and a written assurance was provided by the Prophet that their lives, property, and religion would be protected. He made witnesses sign this undertaking.17 The Najran Christians were the first Christian community with whom the Prophet had a jizyah 18 agreement. At the beginning of the meeting, they had disagreements with the Prophet about the concept of the Trinity, but later on they were able to make a social pact.19 This contract was an initial step that would lead to further developments.