Supplement to Nabeel's Post on Qur'an 5:32

As Nabeel noted, and as we have noted before, Qur'an 5:32 is constantly ripped out of context by Western Muslims. The meaning is distorted to such an extent that the "Westernized" interpretation is exactly the opposite of what the verse means in context.

I wanted to add that, two days ago, the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) issued a press release concerning the Times Square bomb plot. Guess which verse of the Qur'an they cited to prove that Islam promotes peace and love towards unbelievers. Yep, you guessed it. And if you also guessed that, like other Muslims (including our friend Nazam), ISNA left out the "We ordained for the Children of Israel" and "spreading mischief in the land" portions, and that they didn't explain to their readers that the very next verse calls for the brutal massacre of those who cause mischief in Muslim lands (e.g. the United States), you guessed right. Observe ISNA's press release:

(Plainfield, IN 05/04/2010) - The Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) joins the Muslim American community and the rest of our fellow citizens in expressing its appreciation of the outstanding work done by the various law enforcement agencies in investigating and apprehending the alleged perpetrator(s) of the botched attack on New York and its residents.

At the same time, ISNA condemns in the strongest terms the planned attack on innocent city-dwellers of every race and creed. The attack, described by the alleged sponsors as a sort of "pay-back" or "revenge", is "inexcusable and without any justification in Islam or authentic Muslim tradition", said Dr. Ingrid Mattson, president of ISNA. "Even the murder of a single innocent person is abhorrent and in direct contradiction to the clear and unequivocal teachings of our faith (Quran Chapter 5,Verse 32), let alone the mass murder of unsuspecting innocent bystanders in a crowded square", she added.

Now I have to ask, if Muslims are allowed to rip passages of the Qur'an out of context to satisfy an agenda, why do Muslims object when critics of Islam do the same? Suppose I were to say: "Well, of course Muslims are trying to blow up Times Square. Surah 9:5 says that Muslims are to 'slay the idolaters wherever you find them.' And since they regard almost all Westerners as idolaters, their religion obligates them to kill us (which is what car-bombs do) wherever they find us (which includes Times Square)."

Here Muslims would quickly condemn such a claim. "How dare you rip this passage out of context! You have to quote the entire verse! You have to quote the verses that come before this! And the verses that come after! You have to examine the historical context! Only then can you arrive at the real meaning of the passage!"

Amen. But for Muslims, this methodology only seems to apply when it's convenient for them. When it's not convenient (i.e. when it doesn't allow them to deceive Westerners about Muhammad's teachings), sound methodology is utterly abandoned.

Of course, as long as it remains Islamophobic to seriously and critically examine the teachings of Islam, Muslims will be able to mislead their ignorant and ill-informed non-Muslim audience.

Here's a video I made on this topic after CNN used 5:32 (with the "We ordained for the Children of Israel" and "spreading mischief in the land" portions carefully removed) to condemn the Fort Hood Massacre:



On a related note, I made a pamphlet (one page, double-sided, Word format) discussing Islam's violent teachings. The pamphlet begins by discussing the misrepresentation and distortion of 5:32. If anyone is interested in distributing copies, I could send you the file, and you can print and fold some copies on a printer.