A weekly newspaper journalist and his editor were both convicted by an Azerbaijan court for insulting Islam and received sentences of 3 years and 4 years, respectively. However, one group calling itself “Your Followers from Azerbaijan” sent a letter to Grand Ayatollah Fazel Lankarani of Qum, Iran, with a little spin that the journalist was concluding that Christianity was superior to Islam in every aspect, and in one section insulted the Holy Prophet and “ridiculed all sanctities of Islam.” In fact, the journalist reported that Europe societies were more successful than Muslim ones because the European culture (Christianity) was based on tolerance and peace, while Islam, based on the life and teachings of Muhammad were not. The letter to the Grand Ayatollah was unquestionably looking for a fatwa that would turn the case into a capital crime, and that is what they received. The spin from "the Followers" also noted that the newspaper had also published pages from Salman Rushdie's "Satanic Verses".
The GA’s fatwa declared that the journalist, if Muslim, is an apostate and in any case has insulted the Prophet. He continued , "it is necessary for every individual who has an access to him to kill him.” The editor “should be dealt with in the same manner.”
Indeed, those who abuse Allah and His Messenger - Allah has cursed them in this world and the Hereafter and prepared for them a humiliating punishment. (33:57)
In a previous article in this series I mentioned that because the Qur'an had been made available to all humanity, and all humanity in turn is responsible for its commandments and its prohibitions, whether they accept Islam or not. For this reason, since the verse 33:57 applies to all humanity, according to Muslims, journalists could be in deep trouble for any negative information generated concerning Allah, his Messenger, or Islam. That is a problem. It is a problem that must be resolved. I would expect that problem to grow as more and more journalists discover more and more about Islam and rush to print, unmindful of the "sensitivities."
In 622 AD, Muhammad escaped from his enemies in Mecca (the Hjira) and became the ruler of the community in Yathrib, now Medina. In approximately 629, he was in the middle of the wars with Mecca, was having problems with outlying settlements in the area, uncooperative Muslims in Medina and was beset with complaints about his domestic affair, including his marriage to his adopted son's divorced wife, his wives' complaining about financial difficulties, and some annoying gossip. According to the Noble Qur'an, Allah realized how stretched His Messenger was struggling with all of these problems, so revealed several verses to resolve the difficulties.
In the verses 33:27 – 33:35 Allah warned the wives that if they kept up complaining they could very easily be divorced, and besides that, they had a choice of the pleasures and the adornments of this world or a plentiful and joyful Hereafter. The wives were then cautioned to begin behaving themselves.
In the verses 33:36 – 33:48 Allah declared that He had decided that His Messenger should marry Zainab, his adopted son’s former wife.
In the verses 33:53-55 Allah laid down restrictions for men visiting His Messenger and his wives. He also forbade anyone from marrying the widows of His Messenger.
In 33:57 Allah specifically warns those insulting Him or His Messenger that He will curse them in this world and in the Hereafter and has prepared for them a humiliating punishment.
In 33:58 Allah warned against gossip.
In 33:59 Allah cautioned the wives of His Messenger—and thereby to others—to be well covered when in public view, even when handling personal chores.
In going through these verses, it is not difficult to see that the verses were meant as warnings for those people who in the year 622 AD were causing a great deal of friction within the community by their gossip and their complaints, and by so doing were causing Muhammad a great deal of consternation.
I could understand the thoughts behind a Muslim cleric’s applying those admonitions against trouble-makers in 622 AD to journalists today, but I could not understand anyone else agreeing with those clerics.
In this year 2007, more than 13 centuries from that 5th year of the Hjira, the human race in its desire to understand everything and the evaluate everything to make things easier for everyone to live and work together, investigates religions, cultures, civilizations, and tries to pick them apart and evaluate them, identifying the bad with the good and trying to understand what elements should be discarded and which retained. While Christians love Christ and the saints who helped make Christianity what it was, we do not arrest, maim or kill anyone from disagreeing with us or insulting God, the saints, or the religion. In fact, we treat such opinions as petty annoyances. Since Muhammad was a great man of religion, and also a commander-in-chief, does the verse of 13 centuries ago mean no one can criticize his military strategy or tactics? Or does the fact that so much of the exhortations and information was "revealed" in the Qur'an change the essence of Islam as an early military power?
Journalists today in their search for truth should not be restricted by these 7th century commands that were targeting a specific and limited group of people at a specific time in history, but interpreted by clerics in one religion to apply to everyone for all time. It is now a problem for this age and needs to be resolved by the United Nations or applicable committees responsible for Human Relations and Human Rights. I am certain that everything in the West would stop and stand still if some American bishop ordered any Christian with an access to an annoying university professor to kill him on site. Every newspaper in the country would carry that story and would demand the arrest of such a malefactor. No reasonable Christian would obey that order. What should that tell us about a community that is neither surprised nor concerned about such occurrences? What should that tell us about a community that would actually expect it to be carried out? It tells me that no other nation should have relations with a nation that supports or even ignores that practice. It tells me that the United Nations must become involved and do something about it NOW! Otherwise, what good is the UN?
HJS
The GA’s fatwa declared that the journalist, if Muslim, is an apostate and in any case has insulted the Prophet. He continued , "it is necessary for every individual who has an access to him to kill him.” The editor “should be dealt with in the same manner.”
Indeed, those who abuse Allah and His Messenger - Allah has cursed them in this world and the Hereafter and prepared for them a humiliating punishment. (33:57)
In a previous article in this series I mentioned that because the Qur'an had been made available to all humanity, and all humanity in turn is responsible for its commandments and its prohibitions, whether they accept Islam or not. For this reason, since the verse 33:57 applies to all humanity, according to Muslims, journalists could be in deep trouble for any negative information generated concerning Allah, his Messenger, or Islam. That is a problem. It is a problem that must be resolved. I would expect that problem to grow as more and more journalists discover more and more about Islam and rush to print, unmindful of the "sensitivities."
In 622 AD, Muhammad escaped from his enemies in Mecca (the Hjira) and became the ruler of the community in Yathrib, now Medina. In approximately 629, he was in the middle of the wars with Mecca, was having problems with outlying settlements in the area, uncooperative Muslims in Medina and was beset with complaints about his domestic affair, including his marriage to his adopted son's divorced wife, his wives' complaining about financial difficulties, and some annoying gossip. According to the Noble Qur'an, Allah realized how stretched His Messenger was struggling with all of these problems, so revealed several verses to resolve the difficulties.
In the verses 33:27 – 33:35 Allah warned the wives that if they kept up complaining they could very easily be divorced, and besides that, they had a choice of the pleasures and the adornments of this world or a plentiful and joyful Hereafter. The wives were then cautioned to begin behaving themselves.
In the verses 33:36 – 33:48 Allah declared that He had decided that His Messenger should marry Zainab, his adopted son’s former wife.
In the verses 33:53-55 Allah laid down restrictions for men visiting His Messenger and his wives. He also forbade anyone from marrying the widows of His Messenger.
In 33:57 Allah specifically warns those insulting Him or His Messenger that He will curse them in this world and in the Hereafter and has prepared for them a humiliating punishment.
In 33:58 Allah warned against gossip.
In 33:59 Allah cautioned the wives of His Messenger—and thereby to others—to be well covered when in public view, even when handling personal chores.
In going through these verses, it is not difficult to see that the verses were meant as warnings for those people who in the year 622 AD were causing a great deal of friction within the community by their gossip and their complaints, and by so doing were causing Muhammad a great deal of consternation.
I could understand the thoughts behind a Muslim cleric’s applying those admonitions against trouble-makers in 622 AD to journalists today, but I could not understand anyone else agreeing with those clerics.
In this year 2007, more than 13 centuries from that 5th year of the Hjira, the human race in its desire to understand everything and the evaluate everything to make things easier for everyone to live and work together, investigates religions, cultures, civilizations, and tries to pick them apart and evaluate them, identifying the bad with the good and trying to understand what elements should be discarded and which retained. While Christians love Christ and the saints who helped make Christianity what it was, we do not arrest, maim or kill anyone from disagreeing with us or insulting God, the saints, or the religion. In fact, we treat such opinions as petty annoyances. Since Muhammad was a great man of religion, and also a commander-in-chief, does the verse of 13 centuries ago mean no one can criticize his military strategy or tactics? Or does the fact that so much of the exhortations and information was "revealed" in the Qur'an change the essence of Islam as an early military power?
Journalists today in their search for truth should not be restricted by these 7th century commands that were targeting a specific and limited group of people at a specific time in history, but interpreted by clerics in one religion to apply to everyone for all time. It is now a problem for this age and needs to be resolved by the United Nations or applicable committees responsible for Human Relations and Human Rights. I am certain that everything in the West would stop and stand still if some American bishop ordered any Christian with an access to an annoying university professor to kill him on site. Every newspaper in the country would carry that story and would demand the arrest of such a malefactor. No reasonable Christian would obey that order. What should that tell us about a community that is neither surprised nor concerned about such occurrences? What should that tell us about a community that would actually expect it to be carried out? It tells me that no other nation should have relations with a nation that supports or even ignores that practice. It tells me that the United Nations must become involved and do something about it NOW! Otherwise, what good is the UN?
HJS
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