Islam, Wealth & Poverty.

GCSE Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)

By Zeshan Akram

Religious Studies Coursework

Wealth & Poverty

By Zeshan Akram

Form 11S

Introduction

Wealth and poverty is a very important topic in Islam. It could be the difference, for many people, between going to heaven and going to hell in the next life (Akhirah). It affects everyone in the world as money has become an essential part of surviving. Wealthy people tend to get connected with being ‘powerful’ whereas the poorer people get associated with being ‘weak’. This is a link many people use.

Allah chooses who to give wealth to and who not to give it to. Wealth is a test made by Allah for us. The richer people are judged on how they spend it and the poorer people are judged on how they do without it and whether they are patient.

In this coursework I will try and outline the Muslim teachings on wealth and poverty, explain the need for world development and look in to a Muslim charity organisation.

Muslim Teachings on Wealth and Poverty

What is poverty is Islam?

Poverty is the lack of those things that decide the quality of life, including food, clothing, shelter and safe drinking water, but also such the opportunity to learn, to work and to enjoy the respect of others.

Many people will see this as a punishment but in Islam, we believe that it is a test from Allah. If we are patient we pass our test and we get heavily rewarded by Allah. If we get angry and start blaming everyone then we get sinned and it shows to us that our belief is not strong.

Poverty can be caused by moral evil or natural evil. Moral evil is the result of any morally negative event caused a person. An example of a moral evil might be murder, or any other evil which someone can be held responsible. Natural evil is not caused by a person, it is natural. An example of this is an earthquake or a tsunami. Both of theses types of evil can make a wealthy person much poorer. This is Allah saying he can take things away in an instance.

This world is only a test; it is a stepping stone to the next life. This is why we must not be closely connected with our wealth because at the end of the day it is nothing. We get tested on how we earn our money. Here are some hadith regarding this:

‘Abu Huraira narrated that the Prophet said: A time will come upon the people when one will not care how one gains one's money, legally or illegally.’ (Bukhari)
‘It is reported by Jabir that the Prophet said: The flesh and body that is raised on unlawful sustenance shall not enter Paradise. Hell is more deserving to the flesh that grows on one's body out of unlawful sustenance.’ (Ahmad).
‘Abu Said related that the Prophet said: The truthful and trustworthy businessman will be in the company of Prophets, saints and martyrs on the Day of Judgment.’ (Darimi, Tirmidhi)

Throughout the world, non believers are doing bad things yet they live luxuriously and Muslims do well but are still poor. This is Allah testing our patience. We should consider this test as a good thing because you get the chance by Allah to gain reward. The rich must spend on the poor to gain reward:

Abu Huraira related that the Prophet said: The Lord's commandment for every one of His slaves is, ‘Spend on others, and I will spend on you'. (Bukhari, Muslim)
Safwan ibn Salim related that the Prophet said: Anyone who looks after and works for a widow and a poor person is like a warrior fighting for Allah's cause, or like a person who fasts during the day and prays all night. (Bukhari)

The poor should not start begging but instead put their trust in Allah as seen in the following hadith:

Narrated Hakim bin Hizam that the Prophet said: The upper hand is better than the lower hand (i.e. he who gives in charity is better than him who takes it). One should start giving first to his dependents. And the best object of charity is that which is given by a wealthy person (from the money which is left after his expenses). And whoever abstains from asking others for some financial help, Allah will give him and save him from asking others, Allah will make him self-sufficient. (Bukhari)

What does Islam say about wealth?

Everyone in Islam is a brother or a sister to another Muslim. Therefore, the Muslim ummah can be interpreted as a big family. Because of this, we must be responsible for one another. This is why we must help the Muslims in need. We can do this in many ways but the most common way is through money. This is the reason for zakat. Allah gave us wealth. It is not ours; therefore, we should share Allah’s possession with everyone else.

Islam encourages believers to seek wealth and power because they ...

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What does Islam say about wealth?

Islam encourages believers to seek wealth and power because they are necessary for decent living of human kind:

17:70. We have honoured the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favours, above a great part of our creation.

Allah loves the following rich people:

79:8. And they feed, for the love of Allah, the indigent, the orphan, and the captive,
76:9. (Saying),"We feed you for the sake of Allah alone: no reward do we desire from you, nor thanks.
14-31. Speak to my servants who have believed, that they may establish regular prayers, and spend (in charity) out of the sustenance we have given them, secretly and openly, before the coming of a Day in which there will be neither mutual bargaining nor befriending.

However Allah warned about the evil consequences of wealth in the hands of the unbelievers and the corrupt people as follows:

Some Quranic verses:

96-7. In that he looketh upon himself as self-sufficient.
96-8. Verily, to thy Lord is the return (of all).
89-15. Now, as for man, when his Lord trieth him, giving him honour and gifts, then saith he, (puffed up), "My Lord hath honoured me."
89-19. And ye devour inheritance - all with greed,
89-20. And ye love wealth with inordinate love!

Prophet Mohammed said: the powerful believer is better than the weak one. This tells us that we must try and earn money so that we can become stronger.

What is zakat?

"And they are ordained naught else than to serve Allah, keeping religion pure for Him, as men by nature upright, and to establish worship and to pay the poor-due (Zakat). That is true religion." (Quran 98:5)
Abbas related that a man asked the Prophet, Tell me what should I do to be admitted to Paradise and he (the Prophet) answered: Worship Allah associating nothing with Him, observe Salat, pay Zakat and strengthen the ties of kinship. (Bukhari, Muslim)

Zakat is a pillar of Islam. It basically means ‘purify’. It is a duty on Muslims to pay 2.5% of their wealth to particular categories in society when their yearly wealth goes beyond a minimum level. Zakat is the required giving of a set amount of one's wealth to charity. It is regarded as a type of worship and of self-purification.

Zakat does not refer to generous contributions given out of kindness, but to the giving of 2.5% of one's wealth each year to benefit the poor.

The benefits of Zakat, apart from helping the poor, are as follows:

Obeying God
Helping a person admit that everything comes from God on loan and that we do not really own anything ourselves
Admit that whether we are rich or poor is God's choice
Learning self-discipline
Freeing yourself from the love of possessions
Behaving honestly

The 2.5% rate only applies to cash, gold and silver, and commercial items. There are other rates for farm and mining produce, and for animals.

Here is a table with all the rates

As you can see in the table, the zakat must only be paid if you have the minimum amount before hand. Different types of Zakat are donated on special occasions, such as, Zakat al-Fitr which is given at the end of Ramadan. There is also Zakat that is donated at the Aqiqah- the naming ceremony of a baby.

Sadaqah

Another form of charity is Sadaqah which is optional charity. It can be given at any time and is not compulsory, but there is a great reward for donating. Sadaqah Jariah is continuous charity, which means donating to a certain cause that will benefit the giver forever (until the end of time). This can be anything from giving money to a Mosque to merely having children. Donating to a poor family will mean that they will pray for that person until after he dies. Children that are raised in a correct manner and raised to respect their parents will pray for their parents before and after their death.

Riba/Interest

The Quran bans Muslims from being involved in riba - the lending of money at interest.

It states that those who lend or borrow at interest will go to hell. This is because interest takes money from the poor and gives it to the rich, whereas Islam should take money from the rich and give it to the poor.

This causes problems for Muslims living in the United Kingdom because:

They cannot have mortgages
They cannot buy things on hire purchase
They cannot use credit cards
They cannot have savings accounts in banks or building societies
They cannot have current accounts in banks which give interest
They cannot have loans.

To avoid these problems, many Muslims:

Only use Muslim banks which give a share of profits rather than charging or giving interest
Form savings groups so that houses can be bought one at a time without involving anyone in mortgages
Save for things so that they can pay cash.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Islam takes the issue of wealth and poverty very seriously. It is a very sensitive topic and can be the difference between going to hell or heaven. Both wealth and poverty is a direct test from Allah. If you pass you get rewarded but if you fail it you get sinned and it shows that your faith is very weak.

The Need for World Development

The need for development is a very talked about issue. It is debated almost everyday.

Development is mainly the process of developing; growth. In what we conditions we live today has evolved from past and we gradually try to make our life better. This whole process to improve our standard of living from our past experiences is known as development. Development can be different for different people. For example: a farmer's development is a good yield of crops and a high family income while on the other hand for a businessman it is to gain from his business. Development deals from many aspects like physical, mental, national, human etc.

But in this busy life of 21st century development is mainly taken on the basis of income by most of the people.

There are three main types of countries: first world, second world and third world.

Blue – 1st world

Red – 2nd world

Green - 3rd world

First World Countries

The term "First World" refers to so called developed, capitalist, industrial countries, roughly, a bloc of countries aligned with the United States after word war II, with more or less common political and economic interests: North America, Western Europe, Japan and Australia.

Second World Countries

"Second World" refers to the former communist-socialist, industrial states, (formerly the Eastern bloc, the territory and sphere of influence of the Union of Soviet Socialists Republic) today: Russia, Eastern Europe (e.g., Poland) and some of the Turk States (e.g., Kazakhstan) as well as China.

Third world countries

"Third World" is all the other countries, today often used to roughly describe the developing countries of Africa, Asia and Latin America.
The term Third World includes as well capitalist (e.g., Venezuela) and communist (e.g., North Korea) countries, as very rich (e.g., Saudi Arabia) and very poor (e.g., Mali) countries.

LEDCs and MEDCs

LEDCs: Less Economically Developed Countries

MEDCs: More Economically Developed Countries

In general, LEDCs are non-industrial nations. They tend not to have a base of manufacturing industries and residents are less economically advantaged (i.e. poor). Another term for LEDCs is Third World nations. The majority of the world outside of Europe, the United States, Canada, South Africa, Israel, Japan and the former Soviet Block nations fall under this title.

MEDCs are industrialised nations with large scale industry and a high gross-domestic-product rating. Citizens of these countries are usually economically well off with a small chance of starvation. They are also referred to as First World nations. They include all of the nations listed above with the exception of the Soviet Block nations which are known as Second World nations.

Why are some countries LEDCs while others are MEDCs?

Many factors affect why some countries are more developed than others. These include: wars, natural disasters, no family planning and debts. All these affect the development of a country.

Wars: These affect development as they completely ruin the country. Many people die including lawyers and doctors. Fields are no longer able to grow crops. The country also loses a lot of money because of the weapons it purchased.

Natural Disasters: These affect the development because they tear down almost everything. Then the government has to ask for money to pay for the damages.

No Family Planning: Often in the poorer countries families have many children. This means that they can’t afford to get food for them.

Debts: These debts are often to western countries. They ask for money when their in a crisis. The western countries then give money but charge interest.

Muslim Charity Organisation

The charity I will be doing is: ISLAMIC RELIEF

Islamic Relief (IRW) is an international relief and development organization, dedicated to ease the suffering of the world's poorest people. The organization has full-time offices in 25 countries and provides assistance in over 30 countries worldwide.

Its stated mission is: to ease suffering, hunger, illiteracy and diseases worldwide regardless of color, race or creed, and to provide aid in a compassionate and dignified manner. Islamic Relief aims to provide rapid relief in the event of human and natural disasters and to establish local development projects to eradicate poverty, illiteracy and disease

IRW was established in , , in by doctor , in response to the famine in Africa. It is a member of the 's and it is a party to the Code of Conduct for the and NGOs in Disaster Relief.

Fundraising Offices are situated in the following countries: Belgium, France, Italy, Germany, Mauritius, Netherlands, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and United States.

Islamic Relief is headquartered in Buena Park, California as a non-profit organization.

Orphans

The Holy Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) said:
"I and the person who looks after an orphan will be in Paradise together like this..." - then he raised his forefinger and middle finger together.
(Hadith Bukhari)

Islamic Relief has people sponsoring 20000 orphans around the world. It gives the children the care they need, providing them with food, shelter, healthcare, education and emotional support.

DPRU

Islamic Reliefs Disaster Preparedness Response Unit (DPRU) helps by responding to natural disasters. It says that although we cannot stop the, we can at least respond to them to minimize casualties.

The DPRU has three main objectives:

to proactively prepare and maintain supplies for disasters
to respond to disasters and implement relief programs
to build disaster response capacity of Islamic Relief staff around the world

Education and Training

Education is important in solving many problems. That is why IRF takes it very seriously. Islamic Relief aims to provide poor people and communities with access to education or career training.

IR: