"And therein We prescribed for them: a life for a life, and eye for an eye, a nose for a nose, an ear for an ear, a tooth for a tooth, and wounds, retribution. But whosoever forgoes it out of charity, it shall be an expiation for him."
Quran 5:45
This passage, drawn from a surah we've visited before and will again, surah 5, al-Ma'idah, here rendered as "The Table Spread," reminds us of Islam's place inside of the Abrahamic monotheistic tradition. Obviously, it is referring to the punishments laid out in the Old Testament. Christians, being the second faith in the tradition, often stress a kinship with Judaism but view Islam as some odd interloper. Muslims stress the continuation of the tradition and its place therein. This particular passage is part of a discussion of how some Jewish tribes were bringing in social class status to their interpretation of the original law, that is, people of a higher class status were being treated differently than someone of a lower class. The Quranic response here is that if you're going to follow this rule then everyone must be truly the same. However, what interests me here is that the Quran takes a step forward and proposes that if you avoid the severity of the original ruling - if someone "forgoes it out of charity" - that will be a blessing. So the Quran is advocating for at least a fairer treatment, but also a kinder interpretation.
Quran 5:45
This passage, drawn from a surah we've visited before and will again, surah 5, al-Ma'idah, here rendered as "The Table Spread," reminds us of Islam's place inside of the Abrahamic monotheistic tradition. Obviously, it is referring to the punishments laid out in the Old Testament. Christians, being the second faith in the tradition, often stress a kinship with Judaism but view Islam as some odd interloper. Muslims stress the continuation of the tradition and its place therein. This particular passage is part of a discussion of how some Jewish tribes were bringing in social class status to their interpretation of the original law, that is, people of a higher class status were being treated differently than someone of a lower class. The Quranic response here is that if you're going to follow this rule then everyone must be truly the same. However, what interests me here is that the Quran takes a step forward and proposes that if you avoid the severity of the original ruling - if someone "forgoes it out of charity" - that will be a blessing. So the Quran is advocating for at least a fairer treatment, but also a kinder interpretation.
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