Money and "Zakat"

Muslims, Money and "Zakat"

Day 03, for Friday, October 7 2005

Muslims actually have a lot to say about money in general. Historically, Muslims have been very successful as merchants. Many think that Islam has essentially grown as a world religion through holy wars, but in reality trade and business contacts have been a very significant means of spreading Islam. This continues to be true even today. During the past 150 years, many tribes in Africa have been converted to Islam through relationships developed as a result of commercial contacts. Many Arabs in the Middle East consider their oil wealth to be God’s means of financing the furtherance of Islam around the world. They are making significant use of that wealth to promote Islam through the distribution of the Qur’an and other literature, as well as through the construction of mosques and aid programmes in various countries.

An important principle of Islam is that all things belong to God, and that wealth is therefore held by humans in trust. Christians should be in general agreement with Muslims on this point. Another positive teaching of Islam about money is an emphasis against usury in lending. This principle is not always followed in reality, but it is positive that Muslims are encouraged to restrain the negative power of high interest rates.

Recently, Muslims have made significant contributions to economic development in many poorer nations through micro-enterprise loans, an idea that started in Bangladesh. The world-famous Grameen Bank and other initiatives of a similar nature have helped millions of people around world to become relatively prosperous through small business loans of often only US$50–200. The Grameen Bank was founded by Muslims — not to further the cause of Islam but rather to help the poor. Many Christian organisations have copied this model in their efforts to encourage economic development. (www.grameen-info.org).

Zakat

One of the five pillars of Islam is called “Zakat”, which concerns the giving of one’s money and or goods. The word “Zakat” means both “purification” and “growth”. The Zakat consists of giving 2.5 per cent of one’s annual increase in goods or funds (or both). Muslims generally associate the Zakat with specifically giving to the poor. The Zakat can be distributed among eight categories of people, including those who do not have material possessions or a means of livelihood, those who convert to Islam, those who borrow, those who are fighting for the cause of Allah, or one who is stranded on a journey.

Prayer points

* Pray for Muslims to become disciples of the Lord concerning their finances and resources. Jealousy, coveting, pride and duty have often dominated Muslim and Christian attitudes towards money. May God help us as Christians to teach and model the values of the risen Jesus concerning finances to Muslims. Only God can show us His way.

* Instruct them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and ready to share, storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may take hold of that which is life indeed. 1 Timothy 6:18-19

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