Thursday, March 24, 2011

What does the Qu'ran say about violence and hatred (especially toward Jews)?

In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.

I thank the users who sent this question and questions relating to this subject because it is such a frequently discussed issue so perhaps I can shed light and remove the ignorance and misconception behind violence/hatred. The original question consisted of the treatment of women and homosexuals, however since both violence and women rights are extremely long and detailed I thought it would be better to split them into two articles. I shall break the question down into two parts to make it easier to understand.
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Part 1: What does the Quran say about hatred/violence towards the Jews.

The Quran mentions that Jews, Christians, and Sabiens, among others are the "People of the Book". Jews are also frequently called "The Children of Israel". There are some verses that mention that the Jews received a curse from God due to them breaking God's covenant, however the Quran clearly explains the curse were for the ones who where there and the ones who actually BROKE the covenant. However anti-Islamic websites either out of evil or out of ignorance completely hide this fact:

[2:63] We made a covenant with you, as we raised Mount Sinai above you: "You shall uphold what we have given you strongly, and remember its contents, that you may be saved."
[2:64] But you turned away thereafter, and if it were not for GOD's grace towards you and His mercy, you would have been doomed.
[2:65] You have known about those among you who desecrated the Sabbath. We said to them, "Be you as despicable as apes."[2:66] We set them up as an example for their generation, as well as subsequent generations, and an enlightenment for the righteous.
In fact the Quran states that the Jews and Christians can go to heaven as long as they believe and do good.


[2:62] Surely, those who believe, those who are Jewish, the Christians, and the converts; anyone who (1) believes in GOD, and (2) believes in the Last Day, and (3) leads a righteous life, will receive their recompense from their Lord. They have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve.
 Therefore we can conclude that hatred towards the Jews is simply blind ignorance as such hatred is simply unfounded in the Quran, and it is simply unfortunate that "scholars" spewing garbage about the Jews are believed by ignorant kids who simply don't know better and most of the time they cannot read or write themselves. Its really quite sad because this goes completely against the teachings of the Prophet.

Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, had a Jewish neighbor that used to try to irritate him by throwing garbage in front of his door daily. One day, he walked out of his home to find no garbage. He immediately went to the woman's house and inquired about her to find that she was ill and he offered his assistance. 
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Part 2: What does the Quran say about violence/fighting in general?

The Quran is so clear and simple when it comes to violence/fighting. It is so unfortunate that anti-Islamic websites lie and distort verses and purposely hide the full context to achieve their political/religious goals, and evil individuals like Bin Laden are only making it harder for us Muslims. Now there are many subcategories of fighting/violence so I hope I can cover all of them.

.:Killing your self (suicide):.
The quickest way to hell is suicide.
Ironically while these guys claim to be the holy of the holy, they are killing themselves, which according to the Quran is GUARANTEED hell. Notice how Bin Laden and all these "scholars" encouraging suicide bombs don't actually do it themselves, nor do their kids do it. 

[4:29] O you who believe, do not consume each others' properties illicitly - only mutually acceptable transactions are permitted. You shall not kill yourselves. GOD is Merciful towards you.
[4:30] Anyone who commits these transgressions, maliciously and deliberately, we will condemn him to Hell. This is easy for GOD to do.
[4:31] If you refrain from committing the gross sins that are prohibited for you, we will remit your sins, and admit you an honorable admittance.

Not to mention the HUNDREDS of hadiths prohibiting suicide no matter what the reason.


.:Killing someone else:.
In Islam it is prohibited to murder someone else. However the death penalty is allowed in the case of murder.


[17:31] You shall not kill your children due to fear of poverty. We provide for them, as well as for you. Killing them is a gross offense.[17:33] You shall not kill any person - for GOD has made life sacred - except in the course of justice. If one is killed unjustly, then we give his heir authority to enforce justice. Thus, he shall not exceed the limits in avenging the murder; he will be helped. [4:93] Anyone who kills a believer on purpose, his retribution is Hell, wherein he abides forever, GOD is angry with him, and condemns him, and has prepared for him a terrible retribution.
.:Fight them where you encounter them:.
Unfortunately anti-Islamic websites use these verses to imply that its OK to go out and randomly slaughter people who arn't Muslims. The verses themselves are SO clear. If someone fights you, you may defend yourself, if they stop fighting, then you stop fighting. Its so simple and clear yet those who have an agenda against Islam lie and purposefully HIDE verses and even PARTS of the VERSES.

[4:91] You will find others who wish to make peace with you, and also with their people. However, as soon as war erupts, they fight against you. Unless these people leave you alone, offer you peace, and stop fighting you, you may fight them when you encounter them. Against these, we give you a clear authorization.

[2:190] You may fight in the cause of GOD against those who attack you, but do not aggress. GOD does not love the aggressors.[2:191] You may kill those who wage war against you, and you may evict them whence they evicted you. Oppression is worse than murder. Do not fight them at the Sacred Masjid, unless they attack you therein. If they attack you, you may kill them. This is the just retribution for those disbelievers.[2:192] If they refrain, then GOD is Forgiver, Most Merciful.[2:193] You may also fight them to eliminate oppression, and to worship GOD freely. If they refrain, you shall not aggress; aggression is permitted only against the aggressors.

In Conclusion

Islam is extremely unfairly portrayed at hating Jews and inciting violence. Despite the fact that the Quran clearly prohibited the incitement of any violence and only permits fighting as self-defense. Now there many be other verses that I missed so please COMMENT, ASK QUESTIONS, and FOLLOW!



17 comments:

  1. Interesting, I like learning about other religions.

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  2. While I for long have wondered when people claim that act done in the name of religion, I have actually never seen any proof. I've been wanting to read the Qu'ran for some time, but i never really came around to it. I think in order to really get a real perception of Islam, you need to read the _whole_ Qu'ran

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  3. cool stuff. i think religion will die at someday

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  4. I hope religion dies. It will mean everyone smartened up enough to stop believing a book that has authors from many different time periods and parts that were cut out because they didn't paint a rosy picture of Jesus

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  5. " It will mean everyone smartened up enough to stop believing a book that has authors from many different time periods and parts that were cut out because they didn't paint a rosy picture of Jesus"
    -Uhh these verses are from the Quran, which only had one author and was compiled while the Prophet was still alive.

    Nice try though.

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  6. this is a good topic. i've always wanted to know more about islam, and it's hard to separate the real from the propaganda!

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  7. True, absorbing different thoughts and cultures is cool, but it is hard to get the real deal sometimes

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  8. Thank you for the intellectual enlightenment. =]
    It's quite unfortunate that both radicals and hatemongers soil the name of peace because of personal biases. :/

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  9. Everyday you learn a little more.

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  10. Very interesting blog! 1+ follower.

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  11. thank you for this post.. this is exactly what people need to read =)

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  12. Religon is not something I feel we should have but hey to each their own.

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  13. I'd prefer you analysed the truth of it rather than the morals in it, but nice analysis nonetheless.

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  14. "I'd prefer you analysed the truth of it rather than the morals in it, but nice analysis nonetheless."
    -What do you mean?

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  15. I appreciate you taking the time to elucidate the propaganda that is rapidly spreading throughout the minds of millions of people. It touching to know that someone else cares.

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