Through Force or Faith? — Page 274
?— A Reply to Pope Benedict XVI 274 Economics The second major part of human life pertains to economic matters which are necessary for the survival of any society. Besides Islam, other religions contain very little teachings about economic mat- ters. In this respect, when we study Islam, we find a continuous stream of guidance flowing in the Quran, while all previous reli- gions seem to remain content with only a few drops. For example, in Judaism there are only a few instructions about financial sys- tem and even those are mostly concerned with the seventh year, known as the Year of Release (or Sabbatic Year), when Jews freed the slaves and all Jewish debts were remitted (Deuteronomy 15:1); or there are some rules concerning inheritance. However Islam throws a flood of light on economic principles. Islam initiated an elaborate system of inheritance and defined the share of every person that he is to get from the estate of the deceased. For example, how much shall be the share of the son, the daughter, the husband, the wife, the sister, the brother, the mother and the father ( S u rah an-Nis a’ , 4:12–13, 177). There is no description in such detail concerning inheritance in religions before Islam; and, for that reason, their followers often quarrelled with each other in this matter. If there were male children, females were not given any share in inheritance (Numbers 27:8); and even among the males their respective share was not clearly defined. The Bible tells us only that the first-born son should receive double the share compared to others (Deuteronomy 21:17). Islam defines it clearly that men and women both shall inherit the property