Emails Asking About Islam -2

Does Islam Discriminate Against Women or Girls?

Re: Reply to your comment on: Douglas Murray - (SML) Are Muslims Too Easily Offended?

Hi again Jane.


Please feel free to use my thought on your blog. I would appreciate it if you would not change them, LOL.

I think you did mention something to the effect that the moral code outlined in the Koran might only apply to people from that day, rather than today. The Koran for instance seems to have no objection to slavery. I will admit that the freeing of slaves was a generous act, but the institution itself was practiced and seems to be condoned by the Koran and the Hadith. There are very few Muslims today who would agree with slavery. Unfortunately there still are some Islamic people and countries who have not outlawed slavery because of the Koran. There are also very few Muslim people who would marry prepubescent children. Unfortunately there are some who do.


I do believe that 4 witnesses for adultery and rape is unreasonable. I do believe that human beings can rationally determine whether adultery or rape has occurred without 4 witnesses.I also believe that a woman's testimony is just as valuable as a man's and a woman can decide what is appropriate for her to wear without asking her husband. I believe that woman can walk around society unaccompanied if she chooses. I believe it is never appropriate for husband to strike his wife.I believe that stoning to death for adultery or apostasy is immoral.

I also believe it is quite fine for Jews and Christians to have political power over Muslims if they are best at the job. There should be no prohibition based upon religion. I don't believe in the modern world, polygamy is unacceptable.

I don't believe that you do know where you stand with respect to a huge number of moral issues facing human beings today. I don't believe that Islam has worked out a universal moral stance to global warming, taxation, women's rights, polygamy, defensive war, Gay rights, Dhimmi rights, Jihad, apostasy. There is a great deal of interpretation that goes on with respect to these things and they are basically the same things we have to work out in the Western world.

Wrt torture-I generally agree that torture is unacceptable, however since I have a very good imagination, I can imagine some instances where it might be acceptable. This is the problem with holy books giving universal moral prohibitions. Morality actually requires an assessment of the particular situation.

it may be that there is some evolutionary value to belief in a God or gods or spirits. I wonder though, if we are evolving away from that. I think that atheism or nonbelief or at least a minimum belief is far and away the fastest growing. If religion is truly a man-made invention, then I would expect there to be a number of different beliefs depending upon culture. I would expect that there would be great confusion about it, even amongst people of the same religion. I think this is exactly what we find.


Does Islam Discriminate Against Women or Girls?

As promised, I haven't changed any of the email or ideas one iota. I have had a lot of enjoyment reading peoples emails, particularly this one, and it's because of freedom that we can exchange views. So here is three cheers for freedom: Hooray for Freedom, Hooray, Hooray.

That was a bit weird, lol.

 

My reply will follow in the next post, It's ready, but to build up suspense, I'll be posting that tomorrow. (see below for more of my thoughts on Allah, Islam, faith and religion)

Allah has revealed to us 99 names and there are other of His names we don't know. We also can learn about His attributes, which helps us to know Him. That's one means to knowing Allah, and then there are His signs in nature, etc.

Many people say they have changed certain habits and so on, but I don't believe most people change as far as who they actually are. I think most people know themselves pretty well, it isn't about changing ourselves but our actions, which is a big part of Islamic conversion and the time that takes could be short or long depending on the person and his/her background and problems, etc. Some people find the conversion almost nothing to complain about, meaning it is rather easy for them. I didn't struggle myself with wearing hijab too much, though it took me 3 months to get up the courage when I was living at the time in a non-Muslim environment, but that is my personal experience and others have a different one.

I believe I am still the same person my parents raised and they recognize that most of the changes about me have been outer ones and others are more private, such as my thoughts or beliefs on things, which I don't always express to my family for reasons I don't go into here. But they know who I am, that I am basically the same daughter they raised and will always have my special personality and quirks.

I am a more God-conscious person however, and that is something which has been ongoing since I converted rather than something which came and went when I was Christian. It has something also to do with the society I choose to live and the company I choose to keep.

I think you have a lot of preset ideas about Islam and Muslims which makes you say the things you do, in a kind of judgmental way.

No problem, it's been interesting as usual to read your reply.

Some Points:
 

 adultery is proven with four witnesses, otherwise it can't be proven, nor can anyone's reputation be spoiled by talk of infidelity without clear evidence and witnesses  this gives opportunity for the sinner to repent of his or her crime and to stop the adulterous behaviour without being dragged through the mud, as is done in western and european nations whenever a hint of "infidelity" occurs.

It is to preserve honor and life that Allah has made it a difficult task to prove adultery by ordering that four witnesses (they must be male, even in this day and age). This requirement means that convictions don't happen a lot, unless the people themselves turn themselves in to receive the punishement (a worldly punishment will ward off the one in the hereafter). Also, if women were to be witnesses, that would maybe make it easier to find four people to testify, than if all four must be men. What adulterer is going to let people find him in a situation like this? It might not happen every one hundred years, but is a good deterrent anyway, when punishment is a possiblilty.

stats on Muslims show that their divorce rate is rising in general. This means that there is more unhappiness or instability inside marriages today,which is due to many modern reasons. We can reflect that women also seek divorce more often in shariah or family courts (in the ME) or in the West and Europe through lawyers or divorce court. But Muslim marriage is still more successful on averrage than other marriage. Infidelity is also not as much of a problem as in non-Muslim societies, in my opinion (probably stats back this up).

Rape, is another issue and viewed with great gravity by the society and earns the displeasure of Allah and is not condoned in any case. It can be easily proven by a physical examination of the victim; it isn't necessary to have even one witness if DNA testing can prove the criminal without any doubt. It is better to have witnesses to corraborate the woman or child's testimony, or in the case of men also, there is the same recourse to medical witness of a doctor or health professional, and first person accounts of witnesses and so on.

(revised June 9th)