tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60437669680290811.post5003622712864193423..comments2024-02-15T07:21:20.822-08:00Comments on Shamsuddin Waheed: Common misconceptions about IslamShamsuddin Waheedhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04457661333236229563noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60437669680290811.post-25334357111946181582017-02-16T10:15:52.808-08:002017-02-16T10:15:52.808-08:00Dear N.B.,
Welcome to the blog, and thanks for yo...Dear N.B.,<br /><br />Welcome to the blog, and thanks for your comment. <br /><br />As a direct answer to your query, I would kindly refer you to a brief article I composed on this subject which can be found at [url] http://shamsuddinwaheed.blogspot.com/2010/11/questions-on-islamic-law-apostasy-in.html[/url]<br /><br />For the moment, I can briefly say that for Muslims, the first source, both in terms of religious guidance and legal application in Islamic traditional law, is the Qur'an itself. It is seen as the words of God as conveyed to Muhammad, upon whom be God's blessings and peace.<br /><br />The Qur'an places great emphasis on both religious freedom as well as having intellectual/spiritual conviction. Anything other than that would be hypocrisy. Indeed, in the original post here you can find more Quranic textual references to these facts.<br /><br />The question becomes "if the scripture says this, why do people think/believe/do something contrary to that?" <br /><br />That is a question that requires much time to answer, but remember that laws of apostasy were commonplace in the ancient world, even until relatively recently in human history. Moreover, "apostasy" was a term that was [and in many places still] applied to treason against the state, and, as you know, even today, treason is punished rather severely by most governments. <br /><br />Although this is an explanation that is not very detailed, it is-nonetheless- a summary of how I see it as having entered the traditional Muslim law.<br /><br />The quote you shared above also alludes to other things, namely the position of Non Muslims within a society that is ruled by Islamic teachings. I think this is another widely misunderstood situation, largely because of mass ignorance of historical realities. While there is no doubt that there has been Muslims who have done oppression towards Non Muslim minorities, the ethos from early Islamic sources- as well as jurists throughout history, is that Non Muslims were to have their rights respected and honored. <br /><br />There are a number of books by Non Muslim writers which detail these things very well. One writer I would recommend taking a look at is Karen Armstrong. Shes's written so many books, picking up any one of them would help in this regards. <br /><br />In any case, in terms of looking at the question of accepting or rejecting religion, do have a look at the link above. <br /><br />Regards,<br />S.WaheedShamsuddin Waheedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04457661333236229563noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-60437669680290811.post-74668564908405185142017-02-16T07:26:31.139-08:002017-02-16T07:26:31.139-08:00Thank you for this interesting post. There are ot...Thank you for this interesting post. There are other areas of misconception that are <br />worth discussing. One of great concern to me is whether or not Muslims are tolerant of those who choose to reject the Quran as a universal truth.<br /><br />I read the following at http://aboutislam.net/counseling/ask-about-islam/what-does-islam-say-about-freedom-of-religion/ and found it terrifying. Indeed, most Muslim-majority countries have strict laws concerning blasphemy and apostasy which bring serious punishment.<br /><br />"But, there can be an Islamic state where the Quran is accepted as the constitution and the Islamic Shari`ah (law) is in force as the basis of its civil and penal code. In such a state, Muslims can have a special status as citizens, while non-Muslims are given their due rights to believe and practice their religion.<br />There, if a Muslim openly declares that he rejects Islam, it is tantamount to decrying the constitution of that country and the person will be judged for treason and duly punished."NonBelievernoreply@blogger.com