How can any muslim possibly claim women are treated as equals in islam?

Question

Merely stating that individuals will be judged as such by Allah does not mean that they have equal rights and roles, or that they are judged by the same standards. In fact, Sura 37:22-23 implies that women will be punished on Judgment Day for sins committed by their husbands.

There is no ambiguity in the Qur’an, the life of Muhammad, or Islamic law as to the inferiority of women to men, despite the efforts of modern-day apologists to salvage Western-style feminism from scraps and fragments of verses that have historically held no such progressive interpretation.

After military conquests, Muhammad would dole out captured women as war prizes to his men. In at least one case, he advocated that they be raped in front of their husbands. Captured women were made into sex slaves by the very men who killed their husbands and brothers. There are at least three Qur’anic verses in which Allah makes it clear that a Muslim master has full sexual access to his female slaves, yet there is not one that prohibits rape.

The Qur’an gives Muslim men permission to beat their wives for disobedience. It plainly says that husbands are “a degree above” wives. The Hadith says that women are intellectually inferior, and that they comprise the majority of Hell’s occupants.

Under Islamic law, a man may divorce his wife at the drop of a hat. If he wishes to remarry her, then she must first have sex with another man. Men are exempt from such degradations.

After military conquests, Muhammad would dole out captured women as war prizes to his men. In at least one case, he advocated that they be raped in front of their husbands. Captured women were made into sex slaves by the very men who killed their husbands and brothers. There are at least three Qur’anic verses in which Allah makes it clear that a Muslim master has full sexual access to his female slaves, yet there is not one that prohibits rape.

The Qur’an gives Muslim men permission to beat their wives for disobedience. It plainly says that husbands are “a degree above” wives. The Hadith says that women are intellectually inferior, and that they comprise the majority of Hell’s occupants.

Under Islamic law, a man may divorce his wife at the drop of a hat. If he wishes to remarry her, then she must first have sex with another man. Men are exempt from such degradations.

Muslim women are not free to marry whomever they please, as are Muslim men. Their husband may bring other wives into the marriage bed. She must be sexually available to him at all times (as a field ready to be “tilled,” according to the holy book of Islam).

Muslim women do not inherit property in equal portions to males. Their testimony in court is considered to be worth only half that of a man’s. Unlike a man, she must cover her head and often her face.

If a woman wants to prove that she was raped, then there must be four male witnesses to corroborate her account. Otherwise she will be jailed or stoned to death for confessing to “adultery.”

Given all of this, it is quite a stretch to say that men and women have “equality under Islam” based on obscure theological analogies or comparisons. This is an entirely new stratagem that is designed to appeal to modern tastes, but is in sharp disagreement with the reality of Islamic law and history.

For more :

http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.com/quran/women/long.html

"Red Dragon" - so why would women be the *majority* of hell's occupants?

Answer 1

I really don't understand it either. I have had Muslim women tell me that Islam is a progressive religion that gives women many rights and protections. Yet a few weeks ago a 17 year old girl in Iraq was stoned and kicked to death for being seen alone with a man. I live in Austria and a few months ago it was major news here when a Muslim woman in Germany decided she want to leave the religion and the man (her cousin) she had been forced into an arranged marriage with as a teen to go back to school and start a new life. She was murdered for this by her own brothers for dishonoring the Islamic faith and dishonoring the family. This is just one of five similar incidents occurring within a short time period.

How can they claim their religion protects women and supports women's rights? I have heard some say that these Muslims aren't following the religion properly or are acting out of cultural rather than religious doctrines. The people involved though have all said they behaved in ways dictated by their religious convictions. I think Islam followers will need to convince their own adherents that their religion honors, protects, and advances the rights of women before I will be able to believe it.

Answer 2

The World will become a better place when the women of Islam wake up and start taking independent action without needing the approval of men.

Answer 3

It's horrible but you said the truth...
That's why they stoned a 16 year old in iran because she was saying she was being raped.
Women are not equal in islam and anyone who says the opposite is dillusional or lying to themselves.
Islam is an oppressive and horrible religion for women and kids.

Answer 4

ALL what you are saying is nonsense. The verse you are referring to does not talk about Muslims it talks about disbelievers, that's why it mentions that disbelievers and their spouses will go to hell. I suggest you read carefully & interpret correctly before claiming you have a point to discuss. You & the likes of you (including self righteous) make me SICK!

Answer 5

ITS SICK.

Talk about euphamisms...wow...might as well call Hitler a lovers of jews as well. Sick sick sick stuff...there is no hell, but I wish I could invent one for people who make this claim.

Answer 6

This is a lot to address in one question. You have made many incorrect and misleading statements, but I will try to address them in order of appearance.

Surah 37:22-23 says: "Bring ye up", it shall be said, "The wrongdoers and their wives, and the things they worshipped besides God, and lead them to the Way, to the Fire!"

Here there is no implication of a wife taking on the sins of her husband. The wives are also mentioned, as the Arabic phrase for wrongdoers is masculine. It announces that the wives who also joined their husbands in wrongdoing will also have their punishment and cannot blame their acts on their husbands. Notice the next part says "and the things THEY worshipped". So the wife will be guilty if she herself had done something wrong, not only if her husband did.

This is the problem with grabbing a verse with no knowledge of Islam as a whole. It is clear from other verses that no one will be punished for the sins of another such as surah 6: 164. The relevant part says "...Every soul draws the meed of its acts on none but itself: no bearer can bear the burden of another..."

Your second point was about war captives. Throughout history women have been captured and raped by opposing armies, irrespective of religion. The Islamic system sought to regulate this tendency in men by putting each female war captive under the control of specific man so that she would have some measure of stability and security. It is true that they are allowed to have sexual relations, as being a war captive is a legal status akin to marriage. The soldier has the responsibility for caring for the needs of the captive. In the past there was no UN to provide for refugees and this system was put in place to provide for them. I have never seen any evidence as to being allowed to rape them or that the Prophet himself ordered such a thing. What is your source for this?

Next you mention that men may beat their wives. The verse in question offers a series of advices on how to deal with a wife who is doing wrong.

Surah 4:34. ...As to those women on whose part ye fear disloyalty and ill-conduct, admonish them (first), (Next), refuse to share their beds, (And last) beat them (lightly); but if they return to obedience, seek not against them Means (of annoyance): For Allah is Most High, great (above you all).

Notice that the man has to stop having sex with her after advising her does not work. Now, most men would be hard-pressed to do that unless his wife was doing something really terrible.

In explanation of the above verse, the Prophet was asked about beating of wives. To which he said they could be hit with a miswak. A miswak is a small toothbrush not even a third of an inch in diameter. He is futher known to have never hit any woman. This is really a last resort in any case and one meant to show that this is the last straw. It could really only have a symbolic significance, as a miswak could not hurt anyone.

As to being "a degree above" women, this is to say that men have the final vote in a dispute. Every group of people, including families and couples must have a leader. In Islam, as in virtually all other cultures, this responsibility is given to men. While the couple should work together by mutual consultation as the Quran encourages, if there is no way for agreement, this "degree" kicks in and the man will make the decision for the family. If there is no such deference to anyone in any team, sometimes decisions cannot be taken and the team, in this case the couple, falls apart.

As to women being "intellectually inferior", please relate which hadith you are referencing.

The hadith about the majority of the occupants of hell being women is due to their loose tongues and their tendency to gossip which is strongly condemned in Islam.

Next you mentioned men divorcing women "at the drop of a hat". It is really not so simple. If you notice in the same chapter you mentioned about wife beating, there is a verse which outlines that arbitration should be used in the case of a split.

Surah 4:35 "If you fear a breach between them twain, appoint arbiters, one from his family and one from hers; if they wish for peace. God will cause their reconciliation..." If a divorce is declared, there is a waiting period of three months in the case of a non-pregnant woman and until the woman delivers for a pregnant woman. In both cases, the spouses are supposed to live together to give the highest possible chance for reconciliation. If he changes his mind within the three month period, there is no need to remarry, as the divorce was never finalized. Furthermore, a man will be restrained from divorce in most cases by his financial obligations to his wife if he is to divorce her. In addition, in Islamic society, divorce is frowned upon and there is a strong incentive to remain married. So it is really not the "drop of the hat" scenerio that you described.

Next you mentioned that a woman has to have sex with another man in order to remarry her first husband. This is a misleading statement. She would have to marry someone else, not "have sex". She should enter this second marriage not with the intention of satisfying a requirement, but with a sincere effort to be married to the new husband. If she would happen to get another divorce, then she could remarry the first husband. This scenerio would only occur if the first husband had already divorced her THREE times.

This is not meant as a punishment to women, but as a restraint on men not to play around with divorce. No man likes the idea of his wife marrying someone else. The thought that this will happen if a man keeps using divorce as a protest should keep a decent man in check. If it doesn't, Islam is putting a limit on him and at the same time encouraging the woman in a strong way to get over that man and move on as he is probably not a good choice for her.

You mentioned that Muslim men are free to marry whomever they choose. This is not correct. A Muslim man may only marry a Muslim, Jew, or Christian. And yes, he may marry up to four wives. This is to provide for those instances were there may be more women than men in a society such as in wartime. Most women would prefer to not share their husbands, so in a normal situation you will not find much instance of polygyny as most women would not agree to be a second or third wife. The first one may ask for a divorce if she cannot live with that, and the vast majority of men would not attempt such a responsibility in any case.

To say that women are a "tilth" is only an anology to the natural world. As a seed is planted in the ground, it may also be planted in a womb. I'm not sure what your point was on that.

As to being available at all times, again that is not quite correct. When a woman is on her menses and for 40 days post-partum, it is forbidden to engage in sex. But generally, it is seen as the duty of both men and women to satisfy their spouses sexually as this keeps them far away from temptation.

On inheritance, a woman does receive half of a male heir's share in some cases. The Islamic system gives women the right to be maintained by their male relatives for their entire lives if they choose. Therefore, not only is a woman free from any expenses, but her male relatives have their own expenses and those of their female relatives to take care of. Seen within that context, giving a woman half the inheritance of her brothers, sons, etc. is actually quite generous.

A woman's testimony is not worth half of a man's. In some cases her testimony will trump that of a man's. You may see my answer to a recent question on this issue.

As to her covering, both men and women are required to dress modestly. Women's requirements are stronger as their is a difference in temperment between men and women, with the former being far more easily aroused.

Now, the next case you mentioned is sad, indeed. This is a sick idea that some people have come up with. There is nothing in the Quran that says a woman should be stoned or jailed if she cannot prove rape.

If you will look at these points with an open mind, you will see that Islam does not hold women as inferior to men. Why do you think the Islam is the fastest growing religion in America? Why are the majority of converts women? Do really think they would choose something which puts them down? Don't you think they are aware of and have investigated the half-truths and complete inaccuracies that you have mentioned?

Think about it. I was one of them once too and approached Islam very skeptically as a woman, after hearing all of the rumors out there. I found that the ideas that people have about Islam are often wildly off-base and with careful and open-minded study, I, an educated American woman, accepted it and many others have too.