If Anyone Slays a Person (Qur'an 5:32): Difference between revisions

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The [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] verse 5:32 claims that [[Allah]] decreed for the "sons of Israel" that whoever kills a single person, it is as though he killed all of mankind (a concept lifted from the Jewish Talmud). The verse is often cited by [[dawah|duaah]] in the wake of Islamic terrorist attacks and massacres as proof that the Qur'an forbids such senseless slaughter. Yet these apologetic claims leave out the context of the entire passage and also its implications in Islamic law for dissidents in an Islamic State who do not want to abide by the strictures of [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]].  
The [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] verse 5:32 claims that [[Allah]] decreed for the "sons of Israel" that whoever kills a single person, it is as though he killed all of mankind (a concept lifted from the Jewish Talmud). The verse is often cited by [[dawah|duaah]] in the wake of Islamic terrorist attacks and massacres as proof that the Qur'an forbids such senseless slaughter. Yet these apologetic claims leave out the context of the entire passage and also its implications in Islamic law for dissidents in an Islamic State who do not want to abide by the strictures of [[Shari'ah (Islamic Law)]].  


Michael Pregril notes the common ecumenical usage of verse 32 in popular discourse, then observes "But reading the convergence of Mishnah and Qur'an as a specimen of pre-modern ecumenism is clearly anachronistic if we conflate it with or project it onto the historical milieu that the Qur'an was revealed to address. Rather, given the overarching thrust of the surah, we must conclude that the rabbinic precursor has been deliberately appropriated and its major themes strategically reconstrued to propel a more strident, if not openly militant, message."<ref name="Pregrill2021">Pregill, Michael. ''The Two Sons of Adam: Rabinnic resonances and scriptural virtuosity in surat al-Ma'idah.'' Journal of the International Quranic Studies Association. 6 (2021): 167-224 (see pp. 205-207)</ref>
Michael Pregrill notes the common ecumenical usage of verse 32 in popular discourse, then observes "But reading the convergence of Mishnah and Qur'an as a specimen of pre-modern ecumenism is clearly anachronistic if we conflate it with or project it onto the historical milieu that the Qur'an was revealed to address. Rather, given the overarching thrust of the surah, we must conclude that the rabbinic precursor has been deliberately appropriated and its major themes strategically reconstrued to propel a more strident, if not openly militant, message."<ref name="Pregrill2021">Pregill, Michael. ''The Two Sons of Adam: Rabinnic resonances and scriptural virtuosity in surat al-Ma'idah.'' Journal of the International Quranic Studies Association. 6 (2021): 167-224 (see pp. 205-207)</ref>


==Introduction==
==Introduction==
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{{quote | {{Quran-range|5|33|34}} | Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption (fasaad فساد) is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment, Except for those who return [repenting] before you apprehend them. And know that Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.}}
{{quote | {{Quran-range|5|33|34}} | Indeed, the penalty for those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive upon earth [to cause] corruption (fasaad فساد) is none but that they be killed or crucified or that their hands and feet be cut off from opposite sides or that they be exiled from the land. That is for them a disgrace in this world; and for them in the Hereafter is a great punishment, Except for those who return [repenting] before you apprehend them. And know that Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.}}


Pregrill argues that fasaad here and in verse 32 is being invoked against the Jews and that in Medinan passages, the scope of the word expands beyond the unfaithful peoples of the past to now being strongly associated with the Jews as a proximate threat to Muhammad and the community.<ref name="Pregrill2021" />  
In his academic article on the topic, Michael Pregrill argues that fasaad here and in verse 32 is being invoked against the Jews and that in Medinan passages, the scope of the word expands beyond the unfaithful peoples of the past to now being strongly associated with the Jews as a proximate threat to Muhammad and the community.<ref name="Pregrill2021" />  


On the other hand, definitions of these groups can be found in hadiths, tafsirs, and even other Qur'an verses.
On the other hand, definitions of these groups can be found in hadiths, tafsirs, and even other Qur'an verses.
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