- The idea of social welfare has been regarded as one of the fundamental values of Islamic tradition, and social service in its various forms has been instructed and encouraged. It is only complete if an individual's religious life is accompanied by service to humanity.
The following verse in the Quran encapsulates Islamic social welfare:
- Turning one's faces toward East or West is not righteousness; it is righteousness to believe in Allah, the Last Day, the Angels, the Book, and the Messengers; to spend of your substance out of love for Him, for your kin, for orphans, for the needy, for the wayfarer, for those who ask, and for the ransom of slaves; to remain steadfast in prayer, to practice regular charity, to fulfill the contracts. We must remain firm and patient during pain (or suffering), adversity, and all phases of panic. The truth-seeking, God-fearing are these people (Quran 2:177).