Blessings of Khilafat — Page 120
120 set forth what is most upright and best, and putting aside the extreme positions, has given the middle way that is the best. I firmly believe that should one put forth only the system of Zakat before Europe, no one will be able to find any excuse to deny the sublime qualities and excellences of this system. There are people who consider Zakat to be a kind of penalty, whereas it is not a penalty at all. To help you understand this, I will give a simple example. The government collects tax from its citizens, and then from that tax it builds the army and police to protect the country and its people. In order to bring comfort to its subjects, the government constructs roads and hospitals and provides the population with numerous benefits. Since the government collects a tax with the intent of providing facilities for its citizens, nobody considers such a tax to be a penalty. Similarly, Zakat is not a penalty; rather, the injunction in this regard has been issued in the interest of the people themselves. Just as a government collects tax for the betterment of its citizens, God too has imposed Zakat and has promised that as a recompense of this payment your fortunes will be blessed greatly and that they will become secure against every kind of loss and misfortune. God says: 11 That is: Take alms out of their wealth, so that you may cleanse them and purify them thereby. And pray for them, because your 11 S u rah at-Taubah , 9:103