The ideal, tolerant society:
“And kill them wherever you find them, and drive them out from where they drove you out; persecution is worse than slaughter. But fight them not by the Holy Mosque until they should fight you there; then, if they fight you, kill them — such is the recompense of unbelievers, but if they give over, surely Allah is all-forgiving, all-compassionate. Fight them until there is no persecution and the religion is Allah’s; then if they give over, there shall be no enmity save for evildoers.” (Qur’an 2:191-193)
“We will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve for what they have associated with Allah of which He had not sent down authority. And their refuge will be the Fire, and wretched is the residence of the wrongdoers.” (Qur’an 3:151)
“They wish that you should disbelieve as they disbelieve, and then you would be equal; therefore do not take friends from among them, until they emigrate in the way of Allah; then, if they turn their backs, seize them and kill them wherever you find them; do not take for yourselves any one of them as friend or helper.” (Qur’an 4:89)
“This is the recompense of those who fight against Allah and His Messenger, and hasten about the earth to do corruption there: they shall be killed, or crucified, or their hands and feet shall be struck off on opposite sides; or they shall be exiled from the land. That is a degradation for them in this world; and in the world to come awaits them a mighty chastisement.” (Qur’an 5:33)
“When your Lord was revealing to the angels, ‘I am with you; so confirm the believers. I shall cast terror into the hearts of the unbelievers; so strike the necks, and strike every finger of them!” (Qur’an 8:12)
“Fight them, till there is no persecution and religion is all for Allah; then if they give over, surely Allah sees the things they do.” (Qur’an 8:39)
“Make ready for them whatever force and strings of horses you can, to strike terror into the enemy of Allah and your enemy, and others besides them that you know not; Allah knows them. And whatever you spend in the way of Allah shall be repaid you in full; you will not be wronged.” (Qur’an 8:60)
“Then, when the sacred months are over, kill the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them, and confine them, and lie in wait for them at every place of ambush. But if they repent, and perform the prayer, and pay the alms, then let them go their way; Allah is All-forgiving, All-compassionate.” (Qur’an 9:5)
“Fight those who believe not in Allah and the Last Day and do not forbid what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden, and do not practice the religion of truth, even if they are of the People of the Book — until they pay the jizya with willing submission and feel themselves subdued.” (Qur’an 9:29)
“Allah has bought from the believers their selves and their possessions against the gift of Paradise; they fight in the way of Allah; they kill, and are killed; that is a promise binding upon Allah in the Torah, and the Gospel, and the Koran; and who fulfils his covenant truer than Allah? So rejoice in the bargain you have made with Him; that is the mighty triumph.” (Qur’an 9:111)
“O believers, fight the unbelievers who are near to you; and let them find in you a harshness; and know that Allah is with the godfearing.” (Qur’an 9:123)
“When you meet the unbelievers, strike their necks, then, when you have made wide slaughter among them, tie fast the bonds; then set them free, either by grace or ransom, till the war lays down its loads. So it shall be; and if Allah had willed, He would have avenged Himself upon them; but that He may try some of you by means of others. And those who are slain in the way of Allah, He will not send their works astray.” (Qur’an 47:4)
How have Muslims throughout history understood these passages? They took them as meaning “My jihad is trying to make ends meet. My jihad is getting a great education,” right? Unfortunately, the historical record is not quite so full of laughter and sunshine. Find out how Muslims throughout history have actually understood the Qur’an’s exhortations to warfare in my new book, The History of Jihad From Muhammad to ISIS, which you can order here.
“Following Quran a prerequisite to set up an ideal, tolerant society: speakers,” Pakistan Today, November 12, 2018:
LAHORE: Following the teachings of Holy Quran is a prerequisite to achieve the objective of establishing an ideal, tolerant and peaceful society and countering the menaces of terrorism, extremism and sectarianism was the crux of two days of discussions held here at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) and the University of Lahore (UoL).
The discussions titled “Paigham-e-Pakistan Narrative and the Establishment of an Ideal Society” were organised as part of a two-day “International Quran Conference”, attended by international scholars, including professor of Comparative Civilization, Department of Political Science and International Relations Istanbul Sehir University Dr Abdullah al-Ahsan; Dr Khairi Mahyuddin of Faculty of Leadership and Management, University Sains Islam Malaysia; reader in Islamic Studies, University of Glasgow Dr Lloyd Ridgeon; Dr Martin Mahmud Kellner of Institute for Islamic Theology, University Osnabruck Germany and UK Academy of Islamic Sciences principal and director of Wiselife Academy Manchester, UK Shaykh Ahmad Dabbagh.
Addressing the participants, the speakers said the Holy Quran as well as Holy Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) have advocated the creation of a socially inclusive society that embodies a sense of inclusion, establishes a tradition of mutual respect, encourages diversity of perspectives and commends broadmindedness without any racial and religious prejudice.
“Extremism is not the message of Islam. Islam is the religion of peace and humanity. Collective efforts for dissemination of the true message of Islam are imperative and the Paigham-e-Pakistan narrative is a timely step to pursue this goal. The message should be spread across the globe. We must portray a soft and positive image of Islam and highlight Islam as a religion of peace, brotherhood, tolerance and accommodation,” they said.
The speakers especially highlighted the role of ulema, faculty members, civil society and youth to achieve the goal of successfully building a counter-narrative to violence, extremism and terrorism.
“It is the fundamental responsibility of Islamic scholars to protect the religion from corruption, defend it from aggression and protect its sanctity and purity,” they said.
“However, sustaining the positive image of Islam should not be seen as a responsibility of the clerics alone but a collective responsibility of all segments of a society,” they said and called for devising a comprehensive strategy against Islamophobia through close linkages between ulema and the educational institutions….