Are monetary benefits to encourage conversion to Islam wrong?

Question

Is it wrong to encourage conversions to Islam by giving monetary or materialistic benefits as a symbol of support, help and brotherhood?

Also, There is a verse in the Quran that defines people who are eligible to receive charity money (Zakat). Among them are people who newly embrace Islam so is this encouraged?

Al-Mu'allafatu Qulubuhum are leading tribal figures of influence on their people, and giving them Zakah is hoped to incline them to convert to Islam.

Apart from Zakat, Are there any examples from the Prophet's pbuh history wherein he gave gifts or other benefits,emoluments etc to encourage conversion to Islam? Also in the modern scenario how can one apply this?

Answer 1

bismi llahi rahmani rahim

those you have mentioned are المؤلفة قلوبهم and those were both non-muslims and recent converts (whose conversion was perceived rather as an act of assimilation) who were powerful enough to cause trouble to the tiny muslim community so giving a part of Zakat to them was a containment policy to have them siding with muslims and to avoid domestic trouble as muslims (who were very few) had to face external geopolitical challenges.

Thus, the aim was not to give poor converts a financial comfort to encourage them to convert although conversion is universally encouraged in every licit mean.

The Calife Omar ceased the payment of Zakat to that category because at his time the Islamic nation was strong enough to survive any domestic trouble. What Omar has done was pure and pertinent Ijtihad.

Poor muslims or converts who came to medina and only counted on the support of the community were around 400 and belonged to ahl-assifa أهل الصفة (ie abu huraira). Their status disappeared by the time of Omar who founded "bayt al Mal" which was in charge of redistributing the money of Zakat and other ressources to needy muslims (for the first time in recorded human history).

God knows best