What is an acceptable legitimate cause for killing a human being in Islam?

Question

On this Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halal#Animals

Muslims

In Islam, killing a human being is not permissible without a legitimate cause. Especially killing a Muslim person, since this has been stressed and explicitly mentioned many times in both Quran and Sunnah. According to the Islamic law, the legitimate reasons that make a Muslim's blood (life) permissible and so could be killed, can be mainly categorized into two groups:

• Reasons that don't annul Muslim's faith (still a Muslim).
• Reasons that annul Muslim's faith (becomes non-Muslim).

Reasons that don't annul Muslim's faith

• Murder.
• Adultery.

Reasons that annul Muslim's faith

Apostasy from Islam, whether explicit or by committing any act that annuls Muslim's faith and hence becoming an apostate e.g. disparaging or disrespecting Islam's prophet Muhammad, abandoning or denying the Salat, etc.

In my religion, everything works eye for an eye. If someone kills someone you care about, you kill them back. Other then that, I feel that there should be no other justifiable reason to kill somebody.

I cannot figure out what this wikipedia is trying to say, it seems like it's deliberately confusing and there is no explanation why there is more then 1 acceptable reason to kill a person (kill someone who has killed).

Under "Reasons that don't annul Muslim's faith" it says that Muslims can commit acts of Murder and Adultery and that will not invalidate their Muslim faith.

So the way I interpret this is that:"Reasons that don't annul Muslim's faith (still a Muslim)." States that it is acceptable to kill anybody for anything and it is acceptable to commit adultery (rape) in the Islamic religion.

And the second reason why it is acceptable for killing another human being: "Reasons that annul Muslim's faith (becomes non-Muslim). Yet there is no list of reasons that invalidate a Muslim's faith, so I can only assume that nothing a Muslim does will invalidate a Muslim's faith so Muslim's are excluded from being acceptable to be murdered.

The way I see it then is that this system basically allows Muslims to murder and rape anyone for anything they wish as long as they don't murder their own people.

Can someone please clarify if I am understanding this right and if not, what is the true meaning of these words in this Wikipedia article.

Answer 1

To answer your question I have a feeling you are intentionally portraying Islam as a religion of rape and murder to upset and enrage certain people. I will simply state that in true Islam nobody can be murdered without proper trial.

The Wikipedia article states this (killing a human being is not permissible without a legitimate cause) and has a reference to a relevant Quranic verse. I cannot fathom how you are interpreting this as "it is acceptable to kill anybody for anything and it is acceptable to commit adultery (rape) in the Islamic religion" unless you are intentionally making things up. Could you explain yourself?

Your second assumption: there is no list of reasons that invalidate a Muslim's faith, so I can only assume that nothing a Muslim does will invalidate a Muslim's faith so Muslim's are excluded from being acceptable to be murdered is also very vague and quite flawed. Faith is a relative thing and is not this or that every day. The intensity varies. Killing someone because he has less faith on day x than on day y is not a valid reason to kill someone.

I am not an Islamic scholar and cannot explain the Quran for you but some scholars have used this verse:

[...] And those who abuse the Messenger of Allah - for them is a painful punishment.

Surat At-Tawbah [9:61]

to justify killing people who insult the prophet Muhammad (PbuH). I do not say that is a correct movement or that it isn't. I am only giving reference as to why some Muslims might see this as a reason to kill other Muslims (i.e. "annul faith" as stated in the Wikipedia article, how vague that might sound).

I am not an Islamic scholar, I am giving you the knowledge and information I have. May God assist me.

Answer 2

It seems that your concern centres around the perception that Muslims are not allowed to kill or rape each other, but they can do it to non-Muslims. Let me make it clear that the blood of non-Muslims is not permitted for Muslims, EXCEPT if the non-Muslim is at war with the Muslims. Even in conditions of war, it is not permissible to kill women, children and non-combatants.

The Wikipedia article is outlining the cases when it is permissible to take the life of a Muslim. In all other circumstances it is not permitted to take the life of Muslim. Furthermore, the killing cannot just be done by anyone. There are laws and people need to go to trial to establish their guilt, before any punishment is meted out. If it was allowed for people to take the law into their own hands, anarchy would ensue.

Just because the Wikipedia article does not mention non-Muslims, does not mean that non-Muslims can be killed in any circumstance. Of course the conditions under which a non-Muslim can be killed are broader and less restrictive than killing Muslims, as clarified above.

The other misconception that you harbour, is that since murder and adultery don't render one out of the fold of Islam, these acts are acceptable in Islam. If that was the case, why would they be killed for these acts in the first place? The fact is that Murder and Adultery are major sins, which lead to enormous punishment, but it does not affect the faith of the individual. Also, just because the article does not list conditions for apostasy, does not mean they do not exist. The article is not meant to be comprehensive. I encourage you to be more critically minded and research Islam. May Allah guide you to the Straight Path.

Answer 3

So the way I interpret this is that:"Reasons that don't annul Muslim's faith (still a Muslim)." States that it is acceptable to kill anybody for anything and it is acceptable to commit adultery (rape) in the Islamic religion.

I don't see how you conclude Islam accepts adultery and murder since the Islamic punishment for those crimes is death.

And the second reason why it is acceptable for killing another human being...

Killing another human here is talking about capital punishment for high crimes in Islamic law. The wiki article is trying to explain the sanctity of human life in general and the cases where a person loses the right to life, similarly as shown in other legal systems and societies around the world.

A Muslim has a right to be called a Muslim by having certain beliefs and also declaring them publicly. Those beliefs can be annulled through apostasy and the wiki article mentioned some forms of apostasy in your quote. Murder is not apostasy but a Muslim who challenges the legality of a certain rule in Islam has committed apostasy and will be arrested and counseled by an Islamic court to remove the misconceptions. The apostate is given a few days to reconsider their mistakes but will be given capital punishment if he/she does not.

Answer 4

Islam doesn't tell anyone to go around killing people as far as it is keeping the Muslim faith strong. It is totally wrong. In that way if a person said something harsh to me for which I got hurt, I can't go and kill that person for that and say I can kill her because I still am a Muslim and I believe in Islam even after killing her. Islam is a religion which tells that revenge is also a gunnah.

What you have posted is really wrong.

Answer 5

Murder and adultery and rape and other such crimes do not annul a Muslim's faith, but that does not mean they are permissible.

They are massive sins that guarantee you a seat in hellfire and make you're blood permissible.

If I commit murder, I will be a criminal and be punishable by the law, but that will not change my citizenship.

If someone murders my mother, It is allowed for me to kill him, but it is not allowed for their family to kill me as the life borrowed has been taken back