If a child is born in a remote village without being exposed to the message of Islam, is he still held accountable?

It is the collective duty of the Muslim community throughout the world to convey the message of Islam to mankind and to make it clear to everyone that Allah had chosen Islam as a faith and a code of living for the human race. Therefore, everyone is required by Allah to believe in Oneness of Allah, the Supreme Being, and in the message of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him. If there are impediments put in the way of the Muslim community to prevent it from discharging this duty, the community is expected to do everything in its power to remove these impediments.

It is the right of every human being to learn about Islam and to receive its message. If some people go through life without knowing about Islam or that they are required by Allah to believe in it, Allah will not hold them to account for not being Muslims. We have to remember that Allah is the most just of judges. Hence, He would not make any person accountable for not believing in something about which he knows nothing.

When we say that everyone is required to think and consider and choose his faith, we have in mind someone who has the means to know about different creeds and faiths and who has the ability to distinguish what is true from what is false. A person whom Allah has endowed with sound mind and given him education and opened to him the ways to learn about His message which is addressed to all mankind, is certainly responsible if he fails to make an intelligent choice or decides not to bother about the whole issue of faith and believing in Allah. It is such a person with whom we are concerned and whom we call upon to believe in the Oneness of Allah and in the message of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him.