"Truly the religion in the sight of God is submission."
Quran 3:19
Today I chose a very short passage, but one which has inspired some very polarizing debate, and one which shows how if you're reading the Quran without deeper commentary you're probably missing a lot - and maybe coming to conclusions that, if are not necessarily incorrect, are assuredly awfully superficial and simplistic. This is not intended as a holier than thou statement (pun intended) but rather a recognition of the incredible complexity of the Quran and the faith itself.
Seyyed Nasr in the Study Quran writes:
"Submission (islam) both the proper name of the religion revealed through the Prophet Muhammad and a state that describes the adherents of any true religion who conform themselves to God's Will. The Quran describes previous prophets as 'those who submit' - Abraham and Jacob (2:132); Abraham and Ishmael (2:128); the apostles of Christ (3:52; 5:111) - and hence as followers of islam. Many Muslims say that this verse shows that the only religion acceptable to God is the one revealed to the Prophet of Islam, but the most universal meaning of it, which [has] been emphasized by many Islamic authorities over the ages, is that islam in this verse refers to submission to God even if it is not in the context of Islam as the specific religion revealed through the Quran." p. 135
Breaking it down, depending upon whether you focus on Islam with a capital letter or islam with a lower case letter you're either championing the primacy of Islam (the former) or a much more universal view (the latter). So, you might be asking, is it capital or lower case? Arabic doesn't have capital letters, so in this case it's both. And this brings us back to importance of commentary and context. Nasr makes clear that the vast majority of Islamic scholars belief that the revelation relates to a more general inclusive and tolerant understanding of the concept, that is islam as in submission. In a famous hadith the Prophet said, "The best jihad is the conquest of the self." One way to think about it is that the follower of any religion submits to something beyond themselves and their own ego and needs. I agree with Nasr's take of this issue, not simply because he's Nasr (and, well, we know about my man crush on Nasr) and not simply because he backs it up with the research of the vast majority of Islamic scholars, but also because this more universal, tolerant reading fits in with the rest of the Quran; essentially, the Quran preaches toleration and acceptance and respect to other faiths time and time again.
The same argument is often made around, "Whosoever seeks a religion other than submission (islam), it shall not be accepted of him." 3:85
Now, the issue of submission itself is a whole of topic which deserves a lot more thought (and blogging). It's certainly a concept that present day Americans, me included, struggle with.
Quran 3:19
Today I chose a very short passage, but one which has inspired some very polarizing debate, and one which shows how if you're reading the Quran without deeper commentary you're probably missing a lot - and maybe coming to conclusions that, if are not necessarily incorrect, are assuredly awfully superficial and simplistic. This is not intended as a holier than thou statement (pun intended) but rather a recognition of the incredible complexity of the Quran and the faith itself.
Seyyed Nasr in the Study Quran writes:
"Submission (islam) both the proper name of the religion revealed through the Prophet Muhammad and a state that describes the adherents of any true religion who conform themselves to God's Will. The Quran describes previous prophets as 'those who submit' - Abraham and Jacob (2:132); Abraham and Ishmael (2:128); the apostles of Christ (3:52; 5:111) - and hence as followers of islam. Many Muslims say that this verse shows that the only religion acceptable to God is the one revealed to the Prophet of Islam, but the most universal meaning of it, which [has] been emphasized by many Islamic authorities over the ages, is that islam in this verse refers to submission to God even if it is not in the context of Islam as the specific religion revealed through the Quran." p. 135
Breaking it down, depending upon whether you focus on Islam with a capital letter or islam with a lower case letter you're either championing the primacy of Islam (the former) or a much more universal view (the latter). So, you might be asking, is it capital or lower case? Arabic doesn't have capital letters, so in this case it's both. And this brings us back to importance of commentary and context. Nasr makes clear that the vast majority of Islamic scholars belief that the revelation relates to a more general inclusive and tolerant understanding of the concept, that is islam as in submission. In a famous hadith the Prophet said, "The best jihad is the conquest of the self." One way to think about it is that the follower of any religion submits to something beyond themselves and their own ego and needs. I agree with Nasr's take of this issue, not simply because he's Nasr (and, well, we know about my man crush on Nasr) and not simply because he backs it up with the research of the vast majority of Islamic scholars, but also because this more universal, tolerant reading fits in with the rest of the Quran; essentially, the Quran preaches toleration and acceptance and respect to other faiths time and time again.
The same argument is often made around, "Whosoever seeks a religion other than submission (islam), it shall not be accepted of him." 3:85
Now, the issue of submission itself is a whole of topic which deserves a lot more thought (and blogging). It's certainly a concept that present day Americans, me included, struggle with.
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