Hat tip to my friend, Tom Stolzoff for posting thus and to Ambra Tesori for providing this additional context regarding the off misquoted (or misrepresented) text from the Quran typically used by radical Islam to justify violence and by the rest world to undercut it. Here is the explanation: Quran: {The infidels are your sworn enemies Sura 4:101} Quran {Prophet, make war on the infidels Sura 66: 9 Quran {Never be a helper to the disbelievers Sura 28:86} The exact Arabic expression in these verses - indeed, in every verse that talks of the non-believer - is Al-Kaferrin or Al-la-dhina Kafaru. The use of Al- or Al-la-dhina limits the verse (and thus commandment) to 1) a specific time and place in historyand 2) a specific group of people who were obstacles to the establishment of Islam in its nascent phase. It is these two factors that caused these verses to be revealed. Had the intentions of the Quran been to extend the application of these verses in perpetuity, it would have used the expression Man Kafar, rather than Al-Kafereen or Al-La-dhina Kafaru. The former, Man Kafar, literally means any one who does not believe in God; while the latter, Al-Kafereen, - the infidels - denotes a specific group of people: they who fought Prophet Mohamed in the early stages of Islam. Moreover, the overriding principle which must ultimately guide our understanding of these verses is the constant Quranic reminder that good Muslims do not initiate violence against others so long as the latter do not provoke hostilities. Quran 2:190 Fight in the cause of God those who start fighting you, but do not transgress limits (or start the attack); for God loveth not transgressors. Indeed, according to other verses, even if a Muslim deemed someone an infidel, according to the Quran, he is still obligated to: 1. Behave with courtesy : Consider, for instance, the following verse, which is supposed to instruct Muslims as to how they should deal with non-Muslims in the midst of hostilities (such as war): 9:6 And if any of the Idolatries (who are fighting you) seeks thy protection, grant him protection, so that he might [be able to] hear the word of God [from thee]; and thereupon convey him to a place where he can feel secure: If Muslims are to behave with such clemency and magnanimity vis-a-vis the infidel during times of war and conflict, how much more should be expected of their interactions with non-Muslims during times of peace? 2. Respect his freedom of choice to be a Disbeliever - as this is a right bestowed upon humanity by God: Quran 18:29 proclaims, The truth is from your Lord: it is the free will of any person to believe (in God) or to be an Infidel (Un believer). 3. Even if a Muslim should be convinced that someone is a non-believer, still he must accept that his fate is in the hands of God alone, since no one human can condemn another - this must be left to the judgment of God. Quran 88:25-26 for behold, unto (ONLY) Us (means God) will be their return, Then it will be for (ONLY) Us to Judge (humans). 22:17 Those who believe (in the Quran), those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Sabians (can mean an ancient religion or people with no specific religion), Christians, Magians, and Polytheists,- God will judge between them on the Day of Judgment: for God (alone) is witness of all things. The significance of the definite article (al) or the substantive pronoun (al-la dhina) which confines the aforementioned verses to a specific time and place - that is, the past, history - as well as against a specific people (i.e., the polytheists of the Arabian peninsula), is also key to understanding those many other verses that are often cited to incite violence against non-Muslims: 1- The infidels are your sworn enemies Sura 4:101 2- Make war on The infidels who dwell around you Sura 9:123 3- When you meet The Infidels in the battlefield, strike off their heads Sura 47:4 4- Mohamed is Allas apostale. Those who follow him are ruthless to The infidels Sura 48:29 5- Prophet, make war on The infidels Sura 66: 9 6- Never be a helper to The disbelievers Sura 28:86 7- Kill The disbelievers wherever we find them (Sura 2:191) 8- 9:29 [And] fight against those (Al-La-Zina) who - despite having been vouchsafed revelation [aforetime] [40] -do not [truly] believe either in God or the Last Day, and do not consider forbidden that which God and His Apostle have forbidden, [41] and do not follow the religion of truth [which God has enjoined upon them] [42] till they [agree to] pay the exemption tax with a willing hand, after having been humbled [in war]. [43] 9- 47:4 Therefore, when you meet The infidels (unbelievers), [4] smite their necks until you overcome them fully, and then tighten their bonds; [5] but thereafter [set them free,] either by an act of grace or against ransom, so that the burden of war may be lifted: [6]
Posted on: Tue, 13 Jan 2015 01:03:14 +0000
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