Does Islam allow Muslims to pray for non-Muslims who have died?

A reader recently emailed us the above question as he wants to perform funeral prayers for a close non-Muslim friend who has passed away.
There are three aspects to this;

• Ritual funeral rites as performed for a Muslim.
• General Supplication and
• Condolences and sympathy being shown to the family of the deceased and respect for the deceased’s body.

The general view of Muslims who are not Lahore-Ahmadis is that a Muslim is not permitted to offer condolences to the family of the deceased and offer them sympathy let alone supplication or ritual prayer. Continue reading →