Taking Back Islam.

Nicholas Kristof reported on an extremely important conference that took place last week at Notre Dame "Quran in its Historical Context".

Strict Islamic scholars have tried to remove the Qur'an over time from interpretation and meaningful discussion, 'protecting'/ prohibiting it from adapting and adjusting to the modern world. They do this because to interpret it literally justifies their own hunger for power and privilege, and also at times because they feel insecure, that Islam is under attack.

In fact, no religion's holy book should be (and is today by rational people - even religious figures) read literally. The Bible and the Torah are full of violence and contradictions. Karen Armstrong, who religion is lucky to have as a scholar, tells us that the only thing we CAN and should take away from every passage in the Bible, like from every Surah in the Qur'an, is compassion - the whole do unto others. (She spoke brilliantly about this on Bill Moyers a few weeks back.)

Dr. Nasr Hamid Abu Zayd, highlighted in Kristoff's article, encourages moving away from literal interpretations of the Qur'an. He correctly argues that at the core of Islam's holy book, is that lesson of compassion: social justice, human rights and women's rights.

It is up to Muslims like Dr. Abu Zayd and Fatima Mernissi (Islamic feminism) and Islamic democrats - to take back their religion through conferences and discussions as such, and books and articles, but it is up to all of us to not fall into the trap of blaming Islam for violence and oppression of women. Those conditions are not there bc of Islam, rather they have political, social and economic roots. As non-Muslims, our attacks on Islam only lead to further protectionism and insecurity which serves the purpose of corrupt, dictatorial Muslim scholars.

Here I wrote about a similar conference in Turkey last year.

Here is a truly excellent analysis of various verses of Islam's holy book entitled "Taliban's Coercion Betrays the Qur'an" by Aloysious Mowe, International Visiting Fellow at the Woodstock Theological Center, Georgetown University.