The Muslims must not abandon the Christians, neglect them, and leave them without help and assistance since I have made this pact with them on behalf of Allah to ensure that whatever good befell Muslims it would befall them as well and that whatever harm befell Muslims would befall them as well ([79], p. 36).
The passage encapsulates the spirit of religious pluralism in that it fosters mutually inspiring relationships and common action among members of different religious groups for the “common good” ([58], p. 2). As Patel and Meyer remind us, religious pluralism is “not simply relativism, but makes room for real and different religious commitments” ([58], p. 2). In the Covenant with the Najrans, Muhammad encourages Muslims and Christians to become mutually dependent upon one another for safety and prosperity. Benevolence, encouraging goodwill, commanding charity, and deterring evil are the most sincere mechanisms to reaching these aims ([79], p. 32). This particular
passage from the Covenant with the Christians of Najran aligns closely to verse 16:91 of the Qur’an:“And fulfill the covenant of Allah, when you have made a covenant, and do not break (your) oaths after making them firm, and you have indeed made Allah your surety. Surely Allah knows what you do” ([51], pp. 333–34). On the other side of the spectrum, however, there are verses of the Qur’an that can be viewed as contradicting the messages of the Covenants. For example, the Qur’an (9:29)
commands Muslims to “Fight those who do not believe in Allah, nor in the Last Day, nor forbid what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden, nor follow the Religion of Truth” ([51], p. 236), which can be interpreted to mean fight “infidels”, or non-believers, such as Christians. In the Qur’an, however, the term “infidel” is not just a noun or an adjective; “infidel” is the word that the Qur’an uses to describe exclusively the Meccan aristocracy with which the Muslim community was at war with. Scholars of the Qur’an tell us that verses dealing with “infidels” are not meant to encourage the use of violence among Muslims. In fact, “such an interpretation is completely false and contradicts authentic Islamic teachings” [80]. Consider the following commentary for further evidence of the defensive nature of verse 16:91:
If the non-Muslim country did not attack the Muslim one nor mobilize itself to prevent the practice and spread of Islam, nor transgress against mosques, nor work to oppress the Muslim people in their right to profess their faith and decry unbelief, then it is not for the Muslim country to attack that country. Jihad of a military nature was only permitted to help Muslims defend their religion and remove oppression from the people ([53]).
The context of Qur’an (9:29) must also be placed in its proper historical context. The Byzantine Empire, the great Christian power of the time, had mobilized its forces to fight against the rise of Islam. As Ali notes, the use of force against Christians “was not in any way the object of the Qur’an to bring the Christians into subjection. On the other hand, the Christians “first moved themselves to bring Muslim Arabia under subjection” ([51], p. 236). Prophet Muhammad did not initiate aggression; rather he and his followers were under attack from those groups who wanted to destroy the Islamic state [80]. As for fighting the Jews, they had conducted a peace pact with the Prophet after he migrated to Medina. Soon afterwards, as Musaji notes, “they betrayed the peace pact and joined forces with the pagans and the hypocrites against Muslims” [80]. Therefore, the command to fight in verse 9:29 was not directed towards all Christians, only those who were aggressive and threatening violence against the ummah.
The equitable ethos of the Covenants—in tandem with the Qur’an—challenge those who declare Islam as fundamentally intolerant of Christians. In line with the message of the Covenants, the Qur’an (5:82) establishes Prophet Muhammad as an admirer of Christians: “ . . . you will find the nearest in friendship to the believers to be those who say, We are Christians. That is because there are priests and monks among them and because they are not proud” [51], p. 155). In the Covenant with the Monks of Mount Sinai, Muslims and Christians are asked to work with one another in order for members of each group to recognize valuable gains in interfaith interaction:
