The document discusses concepts related to charity and wealth distribution in Islam and other faiths. It summarizes views from the Quran, early Islamic scholars, and other religious traditions on how wealth should be shared equitably to prevent socioeconomic inequality and promote social cohesion. Global estimates suggest over $130 billion is given annually as mandatory and voluntary alms in the Muslim world. While charity can increase status, Islamic teachings emphasize giving secretly to protect recipients' dignity. The highest form of charity involves sustaining the non-poor through gifts and loans.

1. Neighbours in Faith
University of Bedfordshire
Ahmed Ehtesham Uddin
- PhD Candidate at UCL, Institute of Education – University of London.
- National Zakat Foundation (NZF)
November
2015
ahmed.uddin@nzf.org.uk
www.nzf.org.uk
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2. “Men, though separate, need one another.
Without knowing, each serves the other”
- 10th century Arab poet, al-Mutanabbi.
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3. Economy – What guidance do our faiths give
us about how we should create, share and
use wealth.
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Title:

4. Inherited Inequality
- “Society is becoming ever more fragmented as the very rich pull
away from the rest”.
- Economist: Thomas Piketty’s book Capital in the 21st Century.
- Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett in their book The Spirit Level
state that after a certain point of development, how well a society
performs is dependant not on how wealthy it is but on how equal it
is.
- Muslim jurist called Muhammad ibn Idris al-Shafi (767 — 820 CE) -
existing socio-economic order in that society is preserved
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5. The role of Zakat?
The third pillar of Islam: a religious financial
obligation; an amount due on the wealth and
income of a Muslim, to be given to the poor and
needy and other purposes as specified in the
Quran.
It is not an act of charity and it is not a tax.
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6. Zakat in the Qur’an
• The word Zakat mentioned 32 times.
• Conjoined with prayer (Salah) 28 times.
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7. Recipients: 9:60
Poor Needy Those whose
hearts are to be
reconciled
Zakāt
Administrators
Emancipation
of slaves
WayfarerDebtors In the way of
Allah

8. Worldwide Zakat Flow
• No real data on the annual worldwide Zakat flow, but
Islamic financial analysts estimate that over £130
billion is given as both mandatory and voluntary alms
in the Muslim world each year.
• That’s approximately 15 times more than global
contributions to humanitarian aid in 2011.
• Just Giving – most charitable ‘religious’ group.
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9. Gift: the unreciprocated gift
- Sociologist Marcel Mauss (1872-1950)
- He argues that gifts of any kinds are signs of
status and assert one’s status of being
superior to individuals that receive the gift.
- Mauss believed that is the uninterrupted
exchange of gifts between individuals that
creates stability in society. A breakdown of this
cycle or flow of exchange of gifts signals a
challenge to the status quo. (Singer, 2008)
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10. Al-Mawardi and Reciprocity
• 11th century Islamic scholar: Al-Mawardi in the
Book of Right Conduct in Matters Worldly and
Religious
• Zakat prescribed to comfort the poor and thus
free them from hatred, isolation, despair and
envy.
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11. Continued...
• When to give, how much to give and whom to
give to.
• They have the responsibility of giving willingly
and whole-heartedly.
• Most importantly they should not part with any
money for the sake of a reciprocal benefit and
must not remind people of their generosity
(Benthall et al, 2003:16).
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12. Manner of Islamic Giving…
“Believers! Do not nullify your acts of charity by stressing your
benevolence and causing hurt as does he who spends his wealth
only to be seen by men and does not believe in Allah and the Last
Day. The example of his spending is that of a rock with a thin coating
of earth upon it: when a heavy rain smites it, the earth is washed
away, leaving the rock bare; such people derive no gain from their
acts of charity. Allah does not set the deniers of the Truth on the right
way.” (2:262 - 264)
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13. “If you disclose your almsgiving, it is well; but
if you conceal them and give them to the poor,
that is better for you.” (2:271)
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14. To avoid the concept of Muassian reciprocity,
there is a great emphasis in Islam and reward
on giving charity in secret as it preserves the
dignity of those who receive the charity, and
also prevents the giver from being boastful or
seeking praise.
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15. Maimonides
• In the Jewish tradition we find in the works of Maimonides, the
twelfth century Andalusian philosopher writes about similar
concepts of not shaming the recipient.
• Maimonides works has laid the foundations of modern principles of
enlightened charity by asserting that the highest form of giving was
to help the poor to rehabilitate themselves, thus encouraging self-
reliance. (Benthall et al, 2003:17)
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16. Eight levels in giving charity (tzedakah)
On an ascending level, they are as follows:
• 8. When donations are given grudgingly.
• 7. When one gives less than he should, but does so cheerfully.
• 6. When one gives directly to the poor upon being asked.
• 5. When one gives directly to the poor without being asked.
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17. • 4. Donations when the recipient is aware of the donor's identity, but the
donor still does not know the specific identity of the recipient.
• 3. Donations when the donor is aware to whom the charity is being
given, but the recipient is unaware of the source.
• 2. Giving assistance in such a way that the giver and recipient are
unknown to each other. Communal funds, administered by responsible
people are also in this category.
• 1. The highest form of charity is to help sustain a person before they
become impoverished by offering a substantial gift in a dignified
manner, or by extending a suitable loan, or by helping them find
employment or establish themselves in business so as to make it
unnecessary for them to become dependent on others.
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18. Apathy
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19. Reference
• Benthall, J., Jourdan, J (2003). The Charitbale Crescent. London:
I.B.Tauris. 9.
• Mattson, I. (2003). Status Based Definitions of Needs. In: Bonner,
M., Ener, M. and Singer, A Poverty and Charity in Middle Eastern
Contexts. New York: SUNY. 31-48.
• (O'Toole, G. (2014). UK Muslim charities shift focus to local
aid.Available:
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2014/07/uk-muslim-
charities-shift-focus-local-aid-20147229022190995.html. Last
accessed 10th Feb 2015.)
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20. Q&A!
Ahmed Ehtesham Uddin
- PhD Candidate at UCL, Institute of Education – University of London.
- National Zakat Foundation
November 2015
ahmed.uddin@nzf.org.uk
www.nzf.org.uk
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