What has caused The Qu'ran to be completely taken out of context?

Question

I understand that much of the Qu'ran is misinterpreted by the western world. But it seems as though it is misinterpreted by many muslims as well. For example; women are equal to men. Women should stay "modest". Although I don't agree on the basis of the "modesty", its certainly not meant to be evil. Why have so many muslim men gone out of control with this?! Refusing a woman's right to pray in a Mosque? Making her dress only to show her eyes? Preventing her from education and work?? The arranged marriages when the Qu'ran clearly states that a marriage is invalid if the woman doesn't consent? The rapes, beatings and stoning of girls and young women?!? This is not just 20 or 30 muslim men here, more like hundreds of thousands of muslim men who behave this way.

Answer 1

If you dont want to read the detailed answer i've written, then just read the 1st paragraph: to answer your question, the main reason why the Qur'an is misinterpreted is because many either fail to take into consideration the historical context during which the verses were revealed, or they fail to see that times are changing and that certain verses can only be restricted to 7th century Arabia. Many have taken it to the extreme like Saudi Arabia or Iran, and i guess this is because they are afraid that if they let a thin string go through the needle, people will start bringing thick ropes. They try to avoid adultery & temptation all together, even the small things(i.e. between the permissible and forbidden). In doing so, many of them have restricted some uncompromisable rights; and, thus, have fallen in the wrong.

For more on the misperceptions of Islam, please visit my msn space: http://spaces.msn.com/misperceptionsofislam/

1-(If you are truly religious), I don't understand how you can see chastity and modesty to be things that you "don't agree with." But at least you dont see them as evil and that's a start. You have to understand that chastity/modesty and what they entail are essential constituents of a believer (for both men and women). That does not make the people who choose to follow them oppressed; for in the end, they are the ones that decide. I do not understand why so many people think that if a woman is wearing a veil, that she is forced to do so. That may be true in places like Iran, but these are the extreme cases. Westerners have often portrayed the way Muslim women dress as being outdated and oppressive, but when did conservatism, bashfulness, and chastity become things that repress freedom or productivity? Wearing a headscarf is also seen in Christianity and Judaism – e.g. Nuns. In fact, with all the exposure to sex and the increasing number of sexual harassments, rapes, and unsafe environments, women now need to cover themselves even more than before. It is ironic how the people, who oppose women wearing a veil, come from the very same societies where all the problems stated above are frequent and on the increase. It is more pure and modest for women to cover themselves. Not only do they protect themselves, but they also avoid temptation and the lustful eyes of men around them. and the whole purpose of being a believer is to remain pure for God is it not?

2- The Qur’an provides clear proof of gender equality: “Whoever does evil will be repaid with its like; whoever does good and believes, be it a man or a woman, will enter Paradise and be provided for without measure”; “To whoever, male or female, does good deeds and has faith, We shall give a good life and reward them according to the best of their actions”; “For men and women who are devoted to God – believing men and women, obedient men and women, truthful men and women, steadfast men and women, humble men and women, charitable men and women, fasting men and women, chaste men and women, men and women who remember God often – God has prepared forgiveness and a rich reward.” Notice how the Qur’an makes no distinctions between the two sexes: they both perform good deeds as well as bad ones. There is no biasness or discrimination against women.

3-Women are allowed to pray in a mosque. I dont know where you got this from; though, they are seperated from the men, usually behind a wall. The reason for this is to avoid distractions (this is for men more than women) and impure thoughts, especially when the Muslims are praying i.e. prostrating. As simple as that, it's not because they're inferior. I mean come one, people please use your minds: what reason would a man have to prevent a woman from worshipping God or listening to someone preach about Islam?

4-A women does not have to hide her face, she has the right to show it. That is still in the permissible, but some choose to go the extra step. “Prophet, tell your wives, your daughters, and women believers to make their outer garments hang low over them so as to be recognized and not insulted.” “[Prophet], tell believing men to lower their gaze and guard their private parts: that is purer for them. God is well aware of everything they do. And tell the believing women that they should lower their gaze, guard their private parts, and not flaunt their charms beyond what [is acceptable] to reveal; they should let their headscarves fall to cover their necklines and not reveal their charms.” Though men are not as heavily burdened with covering themselves up like women, they also have obligations (A man can't just walk with his shirt off; he also has to lower his gaze...) The reason why God has not ordained that they wear headscarves for instance is because women are not sexually stimulated as easily as men. and please dont try to convince me otherwise, even in America, where sex is the #1 topic, they admit that "men only - i,e, almost all the time - think about sex" while women seek a meaningful relationship, a friend... and though covering one's charm may be hard for some, women are rewarded so greatly for it that it almost becomes unfair for men: women that cover themselves gain a good deed for every person that lays an eye on them (good deed is multiplied by 10 or more...you do the math).

5-Why are the numbers of divorces in Muslim societies significantly smaller than those of western societies if all Muslim women are truly being treated unfairly by their husbands? Unlike what is portrayed by mainstream stereotypes, women in Islam are not forced to marry men they do not desire. A Muslim woman marries the man of her choice. Her parents can play a role in determining who she marries, but the ultimate decision goes back to her – although, there are always exceptions. The reason why arranged marriages have been adapted is because we Muslims cannot date. You can get to know a person before marrying him or her; dating however will certainly lead to temptation and some sort of physical contact -which you may view as trivial or acceptable, but we see it as grave. A Muslim's marriage is based on faith and devotion to God. To us, the most important thing is for the husband or wife to be a good believer (i.e. religious: devoted to God). When this is settled, one can safely assume that the other has a good and loving character. All that's left is to find someone you're attracted to physically, and that's it, you get married. We don't complicate things. We understand that marriage is a compromise, but when you have someone who truly believes in God, you won't be mistreated (at least not very often).

6-First, in Islam, adultery is not sanctioned by stoning someone to death (though, if i m not mistaken, it is the case in Judaism and Christianity - the story people often refer to of Muhammad PBUH ordering that a Jew be stoned is because he was only applying what was in their scriptures). The punishment in Islam is 80 flags, but that can only be done when you have 4 witnesses against the person who sinned(i.e. you've been committing adultery in a public space and that's very serious), and even then, if they repent, they are forgiven “As for those who accuse chaste women of fornication, and then fail to provide four witnesses, strike them eighty times, and reject their testimony afterwards: they are the lawbreakers, except for those who repent later and make amends: God is most forgiving and merciful.” and personally, the rape stories i've heard about Muslims are very very rare; and those that I have are not average Muslims, but those that are in extremist groups. Many people talk about rape and Muslims jointly because they think Muslims had sex slaves during the time of the prophet. Though there were slaves, they werent treated as regular slaves are treated, but thats a whole other topic. People seem to forget that Prophet Muhammad PBUH - i.e. Islam - was the one who put an end to female infanticide. One of his famous quotes is, “Whosoever brings three daughters upon this religion, and has raised them well, and taught them well, and treated them well, will be granted Paradise.” So a man asked the Prophet PBUH, “O Prophet of God, what if a man had only two daughters?” He replied, “Even if he has only two.” Then the Prophet PBUH was asked again, “And what if a man had only one daughter?” On that, the Prophet PBUH smiled.

Peace be with you

Answer 2

Cultural influences.

There are many social issues in those countries, so the easiest scapegoat is to blame women for problems (like prohibiting women from driving in Saudia, they said it was to keep women safe, but the controversy arose only when the United States brought troops in to send to Kuwait. It was to divert attention-- it's easier to make an issue out of women and attack them than addressing the real issues).

If you control the women, you also control the family.

There is nothing in the Qur'an that says it's ok to rape, or beat a woman. The Qu'ran prohibits such actions. The men who do such things, are not practicing Muslims. They are Muslim only in name. Unfortuantely, most people can't tell the difference.

Answer 3

Part of the reason it is "taken out of context" is that it has no context. The Koran is not organized by subject or by date of writing, but by length of 'sura,' similar to a Biblical chapter. If something is written in there, Muslims have no way of knowing whether that is an early writing that has been abrogated (replaced) or a later writing which is still in effect. That's why there are so many different Muslim groups (more than just the Sunni and Shiite mentioned on the news).

Answer 4

We are living in the last days of this wicked old world and everyone has went from bad to worse.
They are mean to them because they can be and get away with it. Jesus was very kind to women and children.
Read the Bible in Matthrew 24: 7,8 world war was the beginning.
;21,22 great tribulation all flesh was about to be destroyed and then god steps in and ends those things and saves those right hearted ones.
Psalms 37:10,11 Jesus was quoteing from those verses when he said the meek would inherit the earth.
Soon there will be a destruction of the wicked in all religions.
Some use their religion to justify bad conduct. Saying that we are the only ones saved so we can be cruel to others of different faiths. No where does the bible or the quaran say to main and criple little children and rape women and cut off arms and legs as they are doing in Africa to people who have agreed to convert to Islam. There are just cruel people out there hiding behind religion.

Answer 5

Same question: What has caused the Bible to be taken completely out of context? Since both books are basically Fairy Tales and way too much stock in placed in both than it stands to reason that context is irrelevant because the books are being taken too seriously. I wouldn't read a Stephen King Novel any differently than I'd read any version of the Bible or Qu'ran. PEACE!

Answer 6

Muslim men enjoy their freedom whereas muslim women suffer throughout their life... they should be given more rights than men because the balance in society can only be maintained by women.

Answer 7

Women and men aren't equal. In fact, women have a few more rights than men in Islam. I really do wonder why the Quran is interpreted incorrectly, it probably stems from old arabian tradition?

Answer 8

The same way the bible is taken out of context. It was created to help the people but the rulers used it to their own ends and as a way to control people through fear.

Answer 9

for the same reason that christians continually try to justify keeping women out of positions of responsibility - prejudice