Asalaamu Alaykum Brother,

Ah, good ole’ “creeping shariah”. One imagines a tiger lying in wait to pounce when someone isn’t looking.

Years ago in Dearborn, MI, we were constantly facing attacks from various news sources complaining that Dearborn was going to enforce sharia law, just because there is a huge Muslim population, and because the mayor was very sympathetic and warm with Muslims there.

First, I’d say you need to explain to them that the power of a word comes in what we tell ourselves about it.

If I spread a rumor that BANANA was a terrifying word with awful connotations, and if I had millions of people listening to me (*cough*PRESIDENT TRUMP*cough*), eventually everyone in America would be making up a word for that fruit to avoid using that word.

Sharia is just an Arabic word that means “law”, and it’s a key point. Unless you are a black or brown person in America, you don’t really need to be afraid of the word “law”, because the law would almost always be on your side.

More importantly, you must emphasize that Shariah laws, BY DEFINITION, only apply to Muslims. There is no compulsion in religion; there is no such thing as a “forced conversion” in Islam.

People choose the right or wrong path, and God deals with them. No human or humans can enforce Islamic law on a person who refuses to even accept Islam.

Next, what if some judge found actually allowed Shariah law to be enforced in a civil suit between two Muslims? Why is that terrifying? How does that affect non-Muslims?

What if by some crazy, crazy magic, Islam became the majority religion in North America (bear with me here), what would that mean for non-Muslims? NOTHING. Also, nothing. And then, more nothing.  

It is important to clarify that shariah is very different than hudud, meaning “punishment”. Again, even if an Islamically-sanctioned court of law were to come into power in America, non-Muslims need not fear hudud, either because, again, it does not apply to non-Muslims!

I hope this answers your question and provides you with some resources, and may Allah make it easier for you!