In the Spring of 2006 an Afghan citizen, Abdul Rahman, who had converted from
Islam to Christianity was arrested under local shari`ah law which mandates the death
penalty for apostasy. As a result of international pressure Abdul Rahman was released
and given asylum in Italy.1 This widely publicized incident highlighted the urgent need for Muslims to seriously reexamine the restrictive shari`ah laws on apostasy. It is
unfortunate, however, that this case took place in the war ravaged context of Afghanistan,
where relief aid for the victims of war is dispensed by Christian agencies some with a
primarily evangelistic agenda. A similar program of aid evangelism has been undertaken
in wartorn Iraq. The activities of such groups have reinvigorated the debate over whether
it is ethical for philanthropical activities and humanitarian service to be undertaken with
the primary intent to proselytize. The legitimacy of religious conversion and the ethics of ...
