Should wife from people of the Book change her religion to Islam

13-11-1999 | IslamWeb

Question:

If a Muslim man marries a girl belonging to the people of the book, after marriage can she follow her religion or should she change her religion to Islam? Please answer in light of Quran and Sunnah.
Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

The marriage of a Muslim man with a woman from the people of the Book does not necessarily make her Muslim; rather, she is still considered upon her religion. However, if she pronounces the Two Testimonies of Faith, which is saying “Ashhadu An-La Ilaaha Illa Allah wa Ashhadu Anna Muhammadan Rasoolu Allah” [I bear witness that None has the right of to be worshipped but Allah and I bear witness that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah] she becomes a Muslim provided she believes in their meaning and acts according to their requisites. Nonetheless, her husband should not force her to become a Muslim but he should try to convince her to do so with wisdom and good admonition, and show her the good traits of Islam by his good behavior with her, as the proverb puts it: ‘Actions speak louder than words’.

Allah knows best.

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