If you covert from Islam to Christianity in Saudi Arabia, would you get executed?

Question

Abu Sahabi · Answer

Yes and No!

In law you may be executed as it depends to whether you preach to your new religion and whether you attack Islam publicly. In practice: you will not be executed as the court takes this issue very serious and usually do not issue the execution -hoping that one day you will return to Islam.

Ofcourse, I can give you plenty of websites and attach hundreds of reports that confirm the opposite. Ask anything and you will find reports saying yes Saudi does that in a daily basis. In reality: it never happened.

Saudi people who have doubts about their religion, if exist, go through a very comfort social program. Usually out of the government control ( by local mosque/imam) with the help of local organizations/friends.  That said, I never heard of a single incident of someone coverting to christianity.

Jos Buurman · Answer

%3E The desert kingdom is defined by Wahhabism, a purist and strict interpretation of Islam. It is forbidden to openly practice other religions. Apostasy – conversion to another religion – is punishable by death. Radical Islamic breeding ground is widely present in the kingdom and Saudi funding of terrorism abroad is the main source of Sunni terrorism in the world. Most Christians are expats from Asia or Africa. Converts to Christianity from Islam face the risk of being killed or abused by their own families. House churches are often raided by the religious police.

%3E

Saudi Arabia & Christian Persecution [ https://www.opendoorsusa.org/christian-persecution/world-watch-list/saudi-arabia/ ]

Also:
Saudi Arabia: Writer Faces Apostasy Trial [ http://www.hrw.org/news/2012/02/13/saudi-arabia-writer-faces-apostasy-trial ]

According to wiki on Apostasy:
"death penalty, although there have been no recently reported executions"
Apostasy [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostasy ]

I'd say there is a risk of execution for breaking the law (but not carried out recently). And there is the risk that family will take care of it (no reports, obviously).

Cyrus Razavi · Answer

Generally in Islam the penalty for turning your back to Islam is execution.

How it is practiced is different from country to country.

If you publicly announce your conversion from Islam to anything, you will risk punishment by death in Saudi.

This is how Islam deters its followers from converting to any other religion or even denouncing God and Islam.

Now let us look at Saudi's worst nightmare Iran.

In Iran you have freedom of religion, to some extent, you can openly be Christian, and Jew or even Zoroastarian. WE have churches and synagogues in Iran. Bu you are not allowed to try to convert or recruit any one to one of these religion.

A Muslim is not allowed to convert to any other religion, if you do this and you are exposed. You will be punished either by lashing and most likely by execution.

These two Islamic branches have one thing in common; You are not allowed to leave Islam, if you do the punishment is most likely death.

Zoya Goldman · Answer

In Saudi Arabia, individuals can be and have been sentenced to death and executed for apostasy. Although there is no contemporary consensus on the treatment of apostasy, it is punishable by death in Saudi Arabia. The death penalty for apostasy may be ta’zir, as the Hanbali school does not consider apostasy to carry a hadd punishment, while still allowing for the death penalty. Traditionally, apostates are afforded a period of time to turn back to Islam, but the death penalty still applies under this rule (in jurisdictions that provide for it)—an individual who persists in his opinion will be executed, thus, there is ultimately no freedom to publically adhere to a divergent opinion without being executed. The Death Penalty in Saudi Arabia [ http://www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org/country-search-post.cfm?country=Saudi+Arabia ]

Apostasy law is actively enforced in Saudi Arabia. For example, Saudi authorities charged Hamza Kashgari, a Saudi writer, in 2012 with apostasy based on comments he made on Twitter. He fled to Malaysia, where he was arrested and then extradited on request by Saudi Arabia to face charges. Kashgari repented, upon which the courts ordered that he be placed in protective custody. Similarly, two Saudi Sunni Muslim citizens were arrested and charged with apostasy for adopting the Ahmadiyya sect of Islam. As of May 2014, the two accused of apostasy had served two years in prison awaiting trial. Apostasy in Islam [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostasy_in_Islam#Saudi_Arabia ]

In Saudi Arabia, the last known case of an individual who was executed on apostasy charges was in 1992  (as of 2006) Testimony by Felice D. Gaer, Vice Chair [ http://www.uscirf.gov/advising-government/congressional-testimony/testimony-felice-d-gaer-vice-chair-0 ]

In August [2014] those executed by Riyadh were sentenced to death for crimes such as apostasy, adultery and “sorcery.” Saudi Arabia Beheaded 59 People So Far This Year — But Hardly Anyone is Talking About It [ http://www.globalresearch.ca/saudi-arabia-beheaded-59-people-so-far-this-year-but-hardly-anyone-is-talking-about-it/5408391 ]

Answer

I'm no expert on Islam or Saudi Arabia, but I do know that the Quran states that the appropriate response to anyone converting from Islam to anything else is death.

Different countries have different rules for how far the church's influence can be pushed into the state. Bangladesh only recently changed their law from executing atheists. From my research, converting from Islam in Saudi Arabia may result in your execution.

Freedom of and from religion is so important, it is embarrassing as a nation if you don't have this rule written in stone somewhere in your nation's documents. It's fundamentally important, and for any nation that doesn't have this basic human right, I'm embarrassed for you. I have a more sophisticated justice system in my own living room than some countries have in their entire legal system.

Roger Grainger · Answer

That's a confused question: You can't be Christian and Muslim at the same time! Are you intending to ask Do Muslims get executed for converting to Christianity in SA? When I lived there it was a capital offense to apostasize, meaning for a Muslim to reject Islam, he could get his head chopped off. I don't really understand what Christians have to do with it. Apostasy can be as mild as a fallen-away Muslim remarking that he doesn't like Islam anymore, or as extreme as a Saudi Muslim converting to Christianity.

Mark L. Levinson · Answer

Here is Dr. Mohammad Mukadam, chairman of the AMS-UK (Association of Muslim Schools UK), telling the British not to care:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7XRCYlZ4XOQ

If you covert from Islam to Christianity in Saudi Arabia, would you get executed?

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