Relationships between rich and poor — Islam

What the specification asks for

Paper 1, Section 4, 4.5 (Islam). Assessed on AO1 (knowledge and understanding) and AO2 (analysis and evaluation), weighted equally. Incandio is aligned to this specification. It is not published by, endorsed by or affiliated with Pearson, and it reproduces none of Pearson's indicative content — the point numbers are given so you can check every unit against your own copy.

1 · Understand it

Calling this charity gets the whole topic wrong. The Qur'an describes the payment as a due in the wealth of the rich rather than a gift from it — the poor are named as having a claim before the owner decides anything. On that account withholding it is not meanness. It is closer to theft.

What it means

Zakat is the obligatory annual payment, commonly 2.5% of qualifying wealth held for a year, and it is one of the Five Pillars. Qur'an 9:60 names the categories of people entitled to receive it, so it is targeted rather than left to the giver's preference. Nisab is the threshold below which nothing is due, which means the poor are not taxed.

Sadaqah is voluntary giving, and it sits above zakat rather than instead of it. It is unlimited, and the tradition reads it broadly — the recorded teaching includes a smile as sadaqah, which is what makes the duty available to somebody who has no money. Sadaqah jariyah is continuing charity: a well, a school, a tree, whose benefit outlasts the giver. Merging zakat and sadaqah into one paragraph about giving is the commonest way to lose this unit.

Riba is interest or usury, and it is forbidden. The reasoning is that wealth should be earned through risk and effort rather than by lending to somebody who has no choice, and it is why Islamic banking exists as a separate system with profit-and-loss-sharing products instead of interest-bearing ones.

One accuracy point worth carrying: the Five Pillars are the Sunni framing. Shi'a Islam speaks of the roots of religion and the obligatory acts, and has an additional obligatory payment, khums, alongside zakat — an addition rather than a disagreement. Writing that Muslims have five pillars without qualification is a confusion the reports record.

Why believers hold it

The reasoning is that a duty depending on the giver's mood will fail exactly when it is most needed, because generosity contracts in hard times and hard times are when the poor need it. Fixing the rate, setting a threshold and naming the recipients turns concern for the poor from a sentiment into a system — and the system runs whether or not anybody feels moved.

The prohibition of interest is the other half of the same policy and the more radical claim. Debt at interest is the mechanism by which a temporary shortage becomes a permanent condition, so forbidding it attacks a cause of poverty rather than a symptom. A strong answer treats zakat and riba together rather than as two unrelated rules.

The standard objection to religious giving — that charity leaves the structures producing poverty untouched — lands less squarely on Islam than on charity in general, because naming zakat as the poor's right and outlawing interest are both structural claims. But it does not miss entirely: a fixed low rate on qualifying wealth will not redistribute at the scale modern inequality requires, and a person who has paid may reasonably feel the duty is discharged.

The Humanist position is that progressive taxation and welfare are preferable because they are universal and accountable, and that 2.5% is insufficiently progressive for very large fortunes. The Islamic reply is not that the state is the wrong instrument — zakat was historically collected by Muslim states — but that the duty persists where the state fails, which is a claim about reliability rather than about jurisdiction.

Where it comes from

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 9:60 (translated)

  Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer them.

  The Qur'anic basis of zakat, naming the categories of people entitled to receive it. Zakat is an obligation, not a donation.

  What it is doing here: Names who the money belongs to, which is what converts the giving from a discretionary act into an entitlement held by identified categories of people.

• Islamic practice — The Five Pillars (Sunni framing); recorded in Hadith collections including Sahih al-Bukhari

  Shahadah, Salah, Zakat, Sawm, Hajj.

  The five obligatory acts of Sunni Islam: declaration of faith, prayer, alms, fasting in Ramadan, and pilgrimage to Makkah.

  What it is doing here: Places the payment among the obligatory acts of the religion, so that failing to pay is a failure of worship rather than a lapse in generosity.

• Hadith — Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Faith (translated)

  None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.

  Faith is measured by how one treats others. One of the most widely cited hadith on social ethics.

  What it is doing here: Supplies the standard that makes the voluntary giving above zakat make sense, since wishing for another what one wishes for oneself does not stop at the minimum.

Where it bites

It shows in zakat collected and distributed through mosques and through organisations such as Islamic Relief and Muslim Aid, and in the surge of giving every Ramadan, when many Muslims calculate and pay their zakat together. It shows in Islamic banking's profit-and-loss-sharing products, which exist because interest is forbidden rather than because they are commercially convenient. And it shows in sadaqah jariyah projects — wells, schools and clinics — built specifically so that the benefit continues after the giver has died.

For an answer, name one organisation or one practice. The wording asks for examples of practical generosity with particular reference to zakat and sadaqah, and a paragraph about Muslim generosity with nothing concrete in it has answered the general question rather than this one.

What people get wrong

People think: Zakat is the money Muslims give to charity.

Actually: It is an obligation and a Pillar, owed at a fixed rate on qualifying wealth whether or not the giver feels generous, and payable only to categories the Qur'an names. Sadaqah is the voluntary giving beyond it. Collapsing the two loses the distinction the entire unit rests on.

People think: Muslims have five pillars.

Actually: That is the Sunni framing. Shi'a Islam speaks of the roots of religion and the obligatory acts, and adds khums as a further obligatory payment. Saying it flatly lets one tradition speak for the whole religion, and the reports record this specific unqualified claim as an accuracy failure.

People think: Christians believe divorce is always wrong.

Actually: That is the Catholic position; Orthodox Christianity permits divorce in limited circumstances and most Protestant churches permit divorce and remarriage. The relevance here is the same pattern of error — letting one part of a religion speak for all of it, which is exactly what happens when the Sunni Pillars are given as the whole of Islamic obligation.

What the examiner expects you to understand

• Call zakat obligatory and never call it charity, because the obligation is what makes the material distinctive.
• Keep zakat and sadaqah in separate sentences with their difference stated, since merging them loses the unit's core.
• Name an organisation or practice, as the wording asks for examples of practical generosity.
• Bring in riba, because attacking a cause of poverty is a stronger argument than describing relief of it.
• Qualify the Five Pillars as the Sunni framing rather than presenting them as the whole of Islam.

2 · Grade 9 Notes

Core belief / issue

Islam does not treat giving to the poor as generosity. Zakat is one of the Five Pillars, calculated at a fixed rate on wealth held for a year, and the Qur'an describes it as the right of the poor in the wealth of the rich. Sadaqah — voluntary giving — sits above it, not instead of it. That distinction between the obligatory and the voluntary is the heart of this unit and the thing weak answers collapse.

Key terminology

Incandio's mark schemes credit the religion's own vocabulary; spelling variants are accepted, a vague paraphrase is not.

Zakat (also zakah)

The obligatory annual payment, commonly 2.5% of qualifying wealth, distributed to specified categories of recipient.

Sadaqah (also sadaqa)

Voluntary giving, of money, time or even a kind word; unlimited and not a substitute for zakat.

Riba

Interest or usury; forbidden in Islamic law, which is why Islamic banking exists as a separate system.

Nisab

The threshold of wealth below which no zakat is due, so the poor are not taxed.

Sadaqah jariyah

Continuing charity — a well, a school, a tree — whose benefit outlasts the giver.

What Islam teaches

• shared — Zakat is obligatory, is one of the Five Pillars, and is owed rather than donated.
• shared — The Qur'an names the categories of people zakat may be given to, so it is targeted rather than discretionary.
• shared — Sadaqah is voluntary and unlimited, and the tradition treats even small acts as sadaqah.
• shared — Charging interest is forbidden, because Islamic teaching holds that wealth should be earned by risk and effort rather than by lending to those in need.

Why it teaches this

The reasoning is that a duty which depends on the giver's mood will fail exactly when it is most needed. Making zakat obligatory, fixing the rate, setting a threshold and naming the recipients turns concern for the poor into a system rather than a sentiment. And the prohibition of interest attacks the mechanism by which poverty deepens, which is why a strong answer treats zakat and riba as two halves of one policy rather than as separate rules.

Sources of authority

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 9:60 (translated)

  Alms are for the poor and the needy, and those employed to administer them.

  The Qur'anic basis of zakat, naming the categories of people entitled to receive it. Zakat is an obligation, not a donation.

  How to use it: Because it is a duty with named recipients and a fixed rate, Islamic giving is closer to a tax than to charity — a distinction that scores well on 4.5.

  What it does not settle: Zakat is a minimum; sadaqah is voluntary giving beyond it. Confusing the two is an accuracy error.

• Islamic practice — The Five Pillars (Sunni framing); recorded in Hadith collections including Sahih al-Bukhari

  Shahadah, Salah, Zakat, Sawm, Hajj.

  The five obligatory acts of Sunni Islam: declaration of faith, prayer, alms, fasting in Ramadan, and pilgrimage to Makkah.

  How to use it: The Pillars turn belief into a structure of practice, which is why Muslim answers about worship, charity and pilgrimage all connect back to one framework.

  What it does not settle: This is the SUNNI framing. Shi'a Islam speaks of the five roots of religion and ten obligatory acts. Writing 'Muslims have five pillars' without qualification is the confusion the 2022 report records.

• Hadith — Sahih al-Bukhari, Book of Faith (translated)

  None of you truly believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.

  Faith is measured by how one treats others. One of the most widely cited hadith on social ethics.

  How to use it: It makes belief and ethics inseparable — a Muslim cannot claim faith while wronging a neighbour — which is why hadith is a source of authority alongside the Qur'an rather than an illustration of it.

  What it does not settle: Hadith authority differs between traditions, and the Qur'anists reject hadith entirely — a group the Pearson mark schemes themselves mention.

• The Qur'an — Qur'an 49:13 (translated)

  We created you from a single pair ... and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another.

  Human diversity is intended by God, and its purpose is mutual knowledge. The verse also states that the most honoured are the most righteous, not the most powerful.

  How to use it: Difference is designed rather than tolerated, so racial harmony is God's plan being fulfilled rather than a compromise — that is a stronger claim and it scores better.

  What it does not settle: It does not by itself settle questions about the roles of men and women.

Different interpretations

• Zakat read as a tax and read as an act of worship; it is formally the latter, which is why it is a Pillar, and it functions as the former.
• The prohibition of riba read as covering all interest, and read as covering exploitative interest only; the majority position is the first and it is why Islamic finance exists.
• Sadaqah read as money, and read as anything beneficial — the Prophet's recorded teaching includes a smile; the broader reading is what makes the duty available to the poor as well.

Differences within Islam

Sunni, Shi'a and Sufi Muslims agree that zakat is obligatory, that sadaqah is commended and that riba is forbidden. Shi'a Islam has an additional obligatory payment, khums, alongside zakat; that is an addition rather than a disagreement.

The traditions broadly agree here. Saying so is a stronger answer than inventing a division.

Application to the issue

It shows in zakat collected and distributed through mosques and through organisations such as Islamic Relief and Muslim Aid; in the surge of giving during Ramadan; in Islamic banking's profit-and-loss-sharing products; and in sadaqah jariyah projects — wells, schools and clinics — built to keep benefiting people after the giver has died.

Arguments supporting

• An obligation redistributes more reliably than generosity does. — Zakat is owed at a fixed rate whether or not the giver feels moved. (islam)
  Answered by: A fixed low rate can also cap giving, since a person who has paid may feel the duty is discharged.
• Forbidding interest attacks a cause of poverty rather than its symptoms. — Debt at interest is how a temporary shortage becomes a permanent condition. (shared)
  Answered by: Credit also enables enterprise, and Islamic finance has had to devise instruments that reproduce much of what interest does.

Arguments challenging

• Charity leaves the structure that creates poverty untouched. — Redistribution after the fact does not change who owns what. (non-religious)
  Answered by: The prohibition of riba and the naming of zakat as the poor's right are both structural rather than palliative claims, so the objection lands less squarely on Islam than on charity in general.
• Wealth redistribution is the state's job, not religion's. — Taxation reaches everyone; zakat reaches only the observant. (non-religious)
  Answered by: Zakat was historically collected by the state in Muslim polities, so the two are not alternatives in principle — and the religious duty persists where the state fails.

Secular / non-religious perspective

Humanists support helping the poor on grounds of shared humanity and reduced suffering, and generally prefer progressive taxation and welfare to voluntary charity because it is universal and accountable. They would agree that structural causes matter more than almsgiving, and would question a fixed 2.5% rate as insufficiently progressive for very large fortunes.

Examinable throughout Paper 1. Nothing here earns a mark on Paper 2.

Evaluation

The hinge: Whether the answer to poverty is duty or structure. Islam gives an unusual answer — it makes the duty structural, by fixing it, naming its recipients and outlawing interest.

Defensible conclusions

• Zakat is the strongest example on this specification of a religious duty designed as a system rather than as an appeal, and calling it charity misses what makes it interesting.
• It is not sufficient on its own: a fixed low rate on qualifying wealth will not redistribute at the scale modern inequality requires.
• The prohibition of riba is the more radical claim and the harder one to sustain in a global economy, which is why Islamic finance is both a serious institution and a contested one.

Not defensible

• Calling zakat charity or describing it as voluntary; it is a Pillar and it is owed.
• Confusing zakat with sadaqah, which loses the distinction the whole unit rests on.

Exam use

• Identify · 3 marks — Three ways Muslims help the poor, or three Islamic teachings about wealth.
• Outline · 4 marks — Two developed. 'Muslims pay zakat (1) — an obligatory annual payment of a fixed share of their wealth, which the Qur'an calls the right of the poor (1).'
• Explain · 6 marks — Explain why helping the poor is important for Muslims: zakat as a Pillar, the named recipients, sadaqah, and the prohibition of interest.
• Evaluate · 12 marks — 'Religious people should give away their wealth.' Zakat's fixed rate is an argument against the extreme as well as for the duty.

Common mistakes

• Describing zakat as charity or as optional, which removes what makes it distinctive.
• Merging zakat and sadaqah into one paragraph about giving.
• Naming no organisation or practice, when the specification asks for examples of practical generosity.

“Christians believe divorce is always wrong.” — That is the Catholic position. Orthodox Christianity permits divorce in limited circumstances, and most Protestant churches permit divorce and remarriage.

Write instead: Name the tradition. 'Catholic teaching holds marriage indissoluble, so the Church annuls rather than divorces' is accurate and scores; 'Christians believe' on a divided question is not. Do not over-correct. Many claims genuinely ARE shared — the Trinity, the resurrection, the authority of the Bible — and hedging those makes an answer weaker, not more careful. (Named in the 2025 examiner report for Paper 1.)

Grade 9 insight

The Qur'an describes zakat as a due IN the wealth of the rich, not a gift FROM it — the poor are named as having a claim on it before the giver decides anything. A Level 4 answer draws out the consequence: on this account withholding zakat is not meanness but theft, which is why classical Islamic states could collect it by force and why the Muslim argument about poverty is a property argument rather than a compassion argument.

Carry on through Islam

• Previous unit: 4.4 · The multi-faith society and interfaith relationships
• Next unit: 1.1 · The prophets and Prophet Muhammad
• Relationships between rich and poor in the other religions: Buddhism · Christianity · Hinduism · Judaism · Sikhism
• Side by side: Relationships between rich and poor across the six religions — What do believers owe the poor?
• All of Islam · Incandio Religious Studies · The 4RS1 specification