Can Muslims put their children in the non-Muslims' schools?

[bamalli]

Can Muslims put their children in the non-Muslims' schools?

*QUESTION*

Is it permissible for Muslims to put their children in the schools of the
non-Muslims, knowing the many contradictions to the the Islaamic
*Sharee'ah*that are found in their schools and the effects they have
on our children?
Specifically for:

(a) those who have a proper Islaamic school in their city, but it is
expensive

(b) those who do not have a proper Islaamic school in their city, rather
there are "Islaamic" schools run by people of innovation

(c) those who do not have any kind of Islaamic school whatsoever in their
city

*ANSWER* by Shaykh Muhammad 'Umar Baazmool, instructor at Umm Al-Quraa
University in Makkah

What is apparent to me, and Allaah knows best, is that it is not permissible
under any circumstances for the Muslims to put their children in the schools
of the non-Muslims. This is not permissible, expecially when these schools
teach things that are foreign to the Deen, like the beliefs of the
Christians or the Jews, or other impermissible things.

This is the case whether there is an Islaamic school in the city or not. No
doubt, when one puts his children in the non-Muslims' school while there is
an Islaamic school in the city, this is even more severely prohibited than
the one who does so and does not have an Islaamic school in his city.

[ This was the end of the shaykh's answer on the cassette. When asked over
the telephone about the issue of Muslims putting their children in the
schools of the people of *bid'ah*, the shaykh requested that the following
be added to his answer: ]

And it is not permissible for the Muslims to put their children into schools
where innovation is being taught, or things that are in contradiction to the
Sunnah. The scholars are preventing students of knowledge from reading the
books of the innovators, so how can it be permissible for little children to
study in schools where innovations are taught?! Especially when they are not
able to distinguish between Sunnah and *bid'ah*, their hearts may become
attached to innovations, and Allaah's Refuge is sought. So it is not
permissible to put children in schools where innovation is taught.