Islam & the Modern World · Islam as a Working System
Rights of the neighbour, the worker and the guest
In short
- 1.The Prophet, peace be upon him, said Gabriel kept urging kindness to the neighbour until he thought neighbours would inherit.
- 2.Pay the worker before his sweat dries.
- 3.The neighbour's rights do not depend on his religion.
The claim being examined
Social obligation is left to individual conscience and the state.
The Islamic position
Islam assigns concrete, named duties toward the people physically around you, including non-Muslims, with the neighbour singled out repeatedly.
Analysis
The texts are specific and easy to verify. Sahih al-Bukhari 6014 and Sahih Muslim 2624 record that Gabriel kept advising the Prophet, peace be upon him, about the neighbour until he thought the neighbour would be made an heir. Sahih al-Bukhari 6016 records that whoever believes in God and the Last Day should not harm his neighbour, and Sahih Muslim 46 links faith to honouring the neighbour and the guest. That these rights extend to non-Muslim neighbours is the position of the jurists and is illustrated by the report of Abdullah ibn Amr instructing that his non-Muslim neighbour be given a share of a slaughtered sheep first, citing the Prophet's repeated instruction (Sunan Abu Dawud 5152, Jami at-Tirmidhi 1943). On labour: Sunan Ibn Majah 2443 records the instruction to give the worker his wage before his sweat dries, and Sahih al-Bukhari 2270 records God's enmity against one who hires a worker, takes full work from him and does not pay him. Also relevant is the prohibition on burdening servants beyond capacity and the instruction to feed them from what you eat (Sahih al-Bukhari 30). Present this as a system of concrete duties in a radius rather than as generalised kindness, and note honestly that Muslim employers, including in Muslim-majority states, frequently violate the wage rulings.
From the Qur'an
وَبِالْوَالِدَيْنِ إِحْسَانًا وَبِذِي الْقُرْبَىٰ وَالْيَتَامَىٰ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْجَارِ ذِي الْقُرْبَىٰ وَالْجَارِ الْجُنُبِ
And be good to parents, relatives, orphans, the needy, the near neighbour and the distant neighbour.
From the Bible
From the Sunnah
Gabriel kept advising me concerning the neighbour until I thought he would make him an heir.
Give the worker his wages before his sweat dries.
Allah says: three I will oppose on the Day of Resurrection... and a man who hires a worker, takes full work from him, and does not pay him his wages.
Sources
Sahih al-Bukhari 6014 · Sunan Ibn Majah 2443 · Sunan Abu Dawud 5152 · Sahih al-Bukhari 6014; Sunan Ibn Majah 2443
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