* I converted but my husband didn’t; Is my marriage halal?

Q: I have converted to Islam for few months now whileI am married to
my non-muslim husband.
I read during my research prior to my conversion that my marriage will
become invalid. This madeit harder for me to convert, but
AlhamdulillahI passed that stage and said my shahada because Ibelieve
Islam is the true religion.
Now, I still pretty much married. By the way, he made it clear that
he will not convert but respects my belief.
Am I living a halal life withmy husband? Please explain why and what
should I do.
- muslimconvert. Sameeha/
~
A: (Editors Reply)
See similar questions that we have answered in the past:
Converted to Islam but still married to my Christian husband
Muslim woman convert married to Christian manwants to marry Muslim man
The opinion of almost all Muslim scholars is that if the wife converts
to Islam and the husband does not,they automatically enter 'iddah
(waiting period) for divorce. This 'iddah is 3 months or 3 menstrual
cycles. During that period, the couple are not allowedto have sexual
relations. At the end of the 'iddah, the couple are divorced.
There are other minority opinions, however.
The European Council for Fatwa & Research, including Sheikh Yusuf
al-Qaradawi, Sheikh 'Abdullah bin Bayyah, Sheikh 'Abdullah al-Judai
and others (from Sheikh 'Abdullah bin Bayyah, Sina'at al-Fatwa, pp.
356-7), says:
"If only the wife converts to Islam, the view of the Council is that:
a) if she converts before the marriage is consummated,she must leave
him immediately; b) if she converts after consummation and her husband
converts within 3months or within 3 of her monthly cycles, their
marriage continues in its validity; c) If he eventuallyconverts, their
marriage continues in its validity, without needing a new marriage
ceremony. d) If she wishes to leave her husband after the 3-month time
period, she should seek dissolution of her marriage from the relevant
authorities."
"If the wife is Muslim and the husband is not, the four Madhhabs do
not allow her to remain with him after the expiry of the3-month
period, or to have sexual relations with him. However, some scholars
allow her to remain with him, fully-married, as long as he does not
harm her regarding her religious practice and as long as shehas hope
that he will also convert to Islam eventually."
"It is authentically narrated from 'Umar bin al-Khattab that a woman
became a Muslim while her husband remained non-Muslim: he ruled, "If
she wishes, she may leave him or if she wishes, she may remain with
him." Also, there is an authentic narration from 'Ali bin Abi Talib:
"If the wife of a Jewish or Christian man becomes Muslim, he is
entitled to remain her husband, since he has a covenant with the
Muslims." Similar views are authentically-narrated from Ibrahim
al-Nakh'i, Imam Sha'bi and Hammadbin Abi Sulayman."
***
It is best to stick to the majority opinion and thereby protect your
deen.Try hard during the 'iddah to convince your husband to convert to
Islam along with you. Be very kind to him and extra loving, without
engaging in sexual contact. If he refuses, however, then you must
consider the marriage ended. I realize this is difficult. But our goal
in Islam is to worshipAllah and that must be paramount./