4,844
edits
Contradictions in the Quran: Difference between revisions
no edit summary
| [unchecked revision] | [checked revision] |
(→The destruction of Aad: Added a narrative contradiction on prophet Jonah being cast onto the shore in the Qur'an.) |
No edit summary |
||
| (5 intermediate revisions by 2 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=3|References=4}}A recurring [[:Category:Criticism of Islam|criticism]] of the [[Qur'an|Quran]] is that it contains contradictory pronouncements, as is argued of many other religious scriptures. The occurrence of these contradictions, critics argue, is particularly problematic in the case of the Quran because the Islamic tradition holds it to be the direct, unmediated word of [[Allah]], or God. Indeed, {{Quran|4|82}} makes the confident assertion: "Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction." | {{#seo: | ||
|title=Slavery in Islamic Law | |||
|title_mode={{{title_mode|}}} | |||
|keywords={{{keywords|}}} | |||
|description={{{description|}}} | |||
|image=Are_There_Contradictions_in_The_Quran.jpg | |||
}} | |||
[[File:Are_There_Contradictions_in_The_Quran.jpg |thumb|275px|Video thumbnail for a Youtube vide by Dr Shabir Ally]]{{QualityScore|Lead=3|Structure=4|Content=4|Language=3|References=4}}A recurring [[:Category:Criticism of Islam|criticism]] of the [[Qur'an|Quran]] is that it contains contradictory pronouncements, as is argued of many other religious scriptures. The occurrence of these contradictions, critics argue, is particularly problematic in the case of the Quran because the Islamic tradition holds it to be the direct, unmediated word of [[Allah]], or God. Indeed, {{Quran|4|82}} makes the confident assertion: "Then do they not reflect upon the Qur'an? If it had been from [any] other than Allah, they would have found within it much contradiction." | |||
Critics hold that at least some of these contradictions are irresolvable through any reasonable interpretation and that, to resolve them, exegetes must resort to incredible interpretations. While some of the proposed contradictions, critics admit, may be resolved through the doctrine of [[Naskh (Abrogation)|abrogation]], whereby Allah is said to override his previous instructions (through, for instance, permitting [[alcohol]] at one point and prohibiting at another), many other contradictions are not resolvable in this manner. Indeed, the Islamic tradition holds that the doctrine of abrogation is only applicable in cases of law and not theology - what Allah says at any point with regards to the divine, the hereafter, history, the day of judgement, or other such non-legal matters, must (and, the tradition holds, does) always hold true. Critics, however, have stated that many, including some of the most problematic, of the proposed contradictions are precisely of the theological, and not legal, variety. | Critics hold that at least some of these contradictions are irresolvable through any reasonable interpretation and that, to resolve them, exegetes must resort to incredible interpretations. While some of the proposed contradictions, critics admit, may be resolved through the doctrine of [[Naskh (Abrogation)|abrogation]], whereby Allah is said to override his previous instructions (through, for instance, permitting [[alcohol]] at one point and prohibiting at another), many other contradictions are not resolvable in this manner. Indeed, the Islamic tradition holds that the doctrine of abrogation is only applicable in cases of law and not theology - what Allah says at any point with regards to the divine, the hereafter, history, the day of judgement, or other such non-legal matters, must (and, the tradition holds, does) always hold true. Critics, however, have stated that many, including some of the most problematic, of the proposed contradictions are precisely of the theological, and not legal, variety. | ||
| Line 34: | Line 41: | ||
20:124 <span style="color:#800080">And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind."</span> | 20:124 <span style="color:#800080">And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind."</span> | ||
|} | |} | ||
Durie (2018)<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion'' (p. 408 - 415 Kindle Edition). Lexington Books. ''pp. 219 - 223''</ref> notes that scholars like Witztum and others have proposed an editorial process for the Qur'an, where earlier texts were reworked into later versions, with this contradiction being the result of combining the versions together. However, an alternative "oral-formulaic" approach, advocated by Bannister,<ref>Andrew Bannister, ''An Oral-Formulaic Study of the Qurʾan'', Lanham: Lexington Books, 2014, <nowiki>ISBN 978-0-7391-8357-1</nowiki>.</ref> suggests the Qur'an's narratives were shaped by oral performance rather than editing. Variations in the Fall stories reflect performance differences rather than textual dependence, with the performer adapting the story for different audiences. From the perspective of an oral-formulaic explanation, we can say that Q2 is an ill-formed performance, and its appearance of dependence upon Q7 and Q20 is simply because those other two recorded performances went more smoothly.<ref>Durie, Mark. 2018. ''The Qur’an and Its Biblical Reflexes: Investigations into the Genesis of a Religion'' (p. 410 Kindle Edition). Lexington Books. ''pp. 220''</ref> | |||
===Timing of Allah's instructions to Noah=== | ===Timing of Allah's instructions to Noah=== | ||
| Line 618: | Line 626: | ||
{{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|9|12}}|Say, "Do you indeed disbelieve in He who created the earth in two days and attribute to Him equals? That is the Lord of the worlds." And He placed on the earth firmly set mountains over its surface, and He blessed it and determined therein its [creatures'] sustenance in four days without distinction - for [the information] of those who ask. Then He directed Himself to the heaven while it was smoke and said to it and to the earth, "Come [into being], willingly or by compulsion." They said, "We have come willingly." And He completed them as seven heavens within two days and inspired in each heaven its command. And We adorned the nearest heaven with lamps and as protection. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.}} | {{Quote|{{Quran-range|41|9|12}}|Say, "Do you indeed disbelieve in He who created the earth in two days and attribute to Him equals? That is the Lord of the worlds." And He placed on the earth firmly set mountains over its surface, and He blessed it and determined therein its [creatures'] sustenance in four days without distinction - for [the information] of those who ask. Then He directed Himself to the heaven while it was smoke and said to it and to the earth, "Come [into being], willingly or by compulsion." They said, "We have come willingly." And He completed them as seven heavens within two days and inspired in each heaven its command. And We adorned the nearest heaven with lamps and as protection. That is the determination of the Exalted in Might, the Knowing.}} | ||
Earth | |||
{{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}| | {{Quote|{{Quran|2|29}}| | ||