The term non-Muslim tells us that someone does not identify as Muslim. It can refer to a Christian, a Hindu, a Buddhist or someone with no religious affiliation. These people may have very different beliefs, practices and ways of naming their own identities. The Quran uses more specific expressions in particular passages. One is ahl al-kitāb, commonly translated as People of the Book. Its meaning becomes clearer when we read what a passage asks of the people it addresses. Quran 3:64 · Ibn Kathir on Quran 3:64 · Quran 22:17
Who is being addressed?
In Quran 3:64, Muhammad is told to invite the People of the Book to terms that include worshipping God alone and associating nothing with him. The invitation addresses people outside the community of the Quran’s followers and makes a specific proposal about worship. The classical commentator Ibn Kathir names Jews and Christians when explaining the audience, along with those who follow their ways. Quran 3:64 · Ibn Kathir on Quran 3:64
Ibn Kathir also discusses a report in which the verse appears in a letter to Heraclius, the Byzantine ruler. In the version collected by al-Bukhari, Muhammad’s letter addresses a particular Christian ruler and then cites the invitation to the People of the Book. The report illustrates how a general form of address could be used in an encounter with someone identified by a particular religious and political setting. Ibn Kathir on Quran 3:64 · Sahih al-Bukhari 7
What changes with the passage?
Quran 29:46 concerns how believers should dispute with the People of the Book. It calls for a good manner of argument, makes an exception concerning those who act unjustly, and refers to revelation received by both parties. Quran 5:5 addresses a different matter. It describes the food of the People of the Book as permissible to believers and theirs as permissible to the other community. It also refers to people who were given Scripture earlier. The surrounding words show whether the passage is about discussion, recognition of earlier revelation or a question of practice. Quran 29:46 · Quran 5:5
What a wider list of communities shows
Quran 22:17 names believers, Jews, Sabians, Christians, Magi and polytheists in a passage about divine judgment. The list distinguishes several communities instead of treating everyone outside the Muslim community as one group. Its purpose is different from that of the passages about the People of the Book. Reading the list in context also helps explain why a broad modern label cannot supply the particular relationship a verse describes. Quran 3:64 · Quran 22:17
Conclusion
Non-Muslim is a broad description of affiliation. In the Quran, People of the Book points to a relationship with earlier revelation and has a function within the passage that uses it. Reading an invitation, a direction about argument and a list of communities side by side makes those differences easier to see. The names people use for their own traditions answer a further question about identity.
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