Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh and ramadan kareem brothers and sisters in Islam.
I see many people have commented with different opinions mashaAllah, it shows the brothers and sisters are concerned, may Allah reward all of you for your intentions. I wanna prove a small humble point here, please read with an open mind as a submitter to Allah. I'm not a scholar, but a mere slave like yourselves. The below facts are given by well known and authentic scholars of Islam, so they're not my own opinions. Green text are references or contexts from the Qur'an and Sunnah.
First of all, when Allah says in the Qur'an
"Do not take the non-muslims as comrades rather than muslims", the context of the ayah is that
do not place the non-muslims in your heart as a priority over muslims. To further emphasize on it, a muslim who gambles, drinks alcohol and commits zina is better than a non-muslim. Because
he at least believes in Allah and eventually will enter Janna at some point by the mercy of Allah, whereas the non-muslim rejects Allah and is in constant shirk and kufr, and will never enter Jannah if he dies in that state (as per the Qur'an).
Allah says,
He will forgive any and all sins, except shirk (if one dies upon it).
Secondly, its okay to be friends with non-muslims as long as the relationship and the reason doesn't go against the Islamic Shariah. I have lived, worked and ate with non-muslims. But my aim was to convey the message of Islam, not to seek pleasure. And I humbly request all my brothers and sisters out there, do not go to do dawah work if you're not equipped with the correct knowledge and wisdom. Because when the non-muslims will pose difficult questions or point out a flaw in you that goes against Islam, it will affect your imaan as well as those around you. So it causes more harm than good. Neither the prophets of Allah or the companions go give dawah without the proper knowledge.
Thirdly,
Rasoolullah (Sal Allahu Alayhi Wa Sallam) said in an authentic hadith,
"Whoever raises the flag of Jahiliyah (ignorance), is in the fire". Which means (one of the meanings), that when the ayaat (commands) of Allah are presented to you, do not reject or turn away from them because of excuses that YOU think matter. Allah doesn't see things how we see. Our visions are flawed and biased, often times we think we're doing the right thing, while Allah calls them
the biggest losers in the Qur'an. The
ones who think they're doing good, but their deeds are wasted in this world because their intentions or goals were not right. So when Allah says to stay away from something, its smart to follow that command, because Allah designed everything and He alone knows what's best for whom.
Rasoolullah also said
"Be careful of who you choose as your friends" and in another hadith he said
"You will be with the one you love".
Your friends will affect your mind, habits, thoughts and actions and if you consider the second hadith, might affect your final destination as well. A kafir will pull you towards kufr (you won't realize it), a muslim will pull you towards good (might not be true in all cases, haha). The point is, shayateen work 24/7, if you think you're gonna outsmart the devil, then you're overly wrong. Shaytaan tricked your father and mother Adam and Hawa (Alayhuma Assalam), so what makes you think you're better than your father and mother? Think about it. If you wanna be protected,
be in the company of those who remember Allah and they bow down and prostrate to Allah day and night.
Bottom line... Yes, you can be friends with the non-muslims. But maintain a distance and Allah and the believers should be your priority. If someone still is confused, please read
Surat Al Ma'idah from ayah 52 through 57. Contemplate deeply and you'll see things in a crystal clear manner inshaAllah.
And Allah Rabbul Izzah knows best. Sorry for the long post.