Commonly Misunderstood Quranic Texts--A must-see lecture

Society Religion & Philosophy
1

Dr. Jamal Badawi recently gave a speech in Ottawa on commonly misunderstood/misquoted Quranic verses. I highly recommend it

http://www3.pak.org/gupshup/smilies/ok.gif

http://www.islam.org/mediaDisplay.asp?ref=3315&T=

***“If people were to know of the things I know, it would all fall apart.”
***CSM

2

plz do paste the text or any link of the text of the lecture....

3

Exellent presentation, here. As a Non-Muslim,
I suspected that Islam really meant this. To
have forseen the evil of 9/11 and made this
speech would have been too good to be true,
but to be of great utility. This speech was
in Canada, a country not attacked to date.
It should be aired in the United States. The
whole of the beliefs of the people of the
book should result in overwhelming goodness.
There should be no mistake in this conclusion
at all!

4

It takes a while for Dr. Badawi to warm up to the subject…but none the less it was an excellent speech.

Jazak’Allah for sharing

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5

sorry armughal..i haven't come across any text version of the lecture. It was given on January 12 i think so its pretty recent. I'll see if i can find one though

Tomasso. i felt the same when i saw the lecture myself..it should be aired on mainstream American media. There have been quite a few instances where journalists and other non-Muslims in the media have been misquoting Quranic verses and taking them out of context to promote the idea that Islam preaches violence. Bill Maher, for example, has totally blown me away with his often times hateful rhetoric. Wether such attacks stem from pure ignorance or prejudice, i dont know. But speeches like this one need to be broadcasted openly in order to shut those up who have been trying to defame Islam and Muslims.

**"If people were to know of the things I know, it would all fall apart."
**CSM

[This message has been edited by hk (edited January 24, 2002).]

6

Here are some main points from the lecture:

  • Since Arabic is a such a diverse language, translation of the Quran is actually translation of the meaning.
  • There is a difference between disbeliever and unbeliever – someone who’s never been exposed to the knowledge and one who rejects it knowingly.
  • Labeling someone kafir (infidel) was not started by muslims.
  • There are more than 200 verses that begin with “O! mankind” – making clear that God is addressing not just muslims.
  • Extreme caution should be practiced when quoting verses. Incomplete verses or verses without proceeding and preceding verses can change the meaning out of context completely. He referred to these acts as cut-n-paste quotes.
  • He said using cut-n-paste (computers or with scissors) any book could be proven to say other wise.
  • Most verses used to brainwash other people of the Book are mainly from chapters 8 & 9. The words ‘Jews’ and ‘Christians’ refer to groups who were in conflict at the time when those surahs were revealed.
  • Other references were made to pagan arabs of that time.
  • I think Dr. Badawi spoke well and even shed a salt-pinch of humor in the end.
7

Hateful rhetoric stems from ignorance or the
abuse of ignorance. If Mr. Maher was really
worth his salt, he would seriously research
his subject matter. He does seem capable of
doing so, having viewed him on more than a
few occasions. Dr. Badawi could well help
the whole world by his scholarly work.