
Islam actually means “submission.” When we think of submission, we think of domination; however, Islam requires a different form of thought in how we perceive the relationship between God (Muslims call Allah meaning “The God”) and the believer (or Muslim, meaning “one who submits.”). In this way, a Muslim submits to Allah, God, by entrusting himself in his care (or rehm which in its broadest form means “mercy” but in multiple versions can mean “womb,” “care,” and “trust.”
Christianity has just as much violence and conquest in its past, but when you hear about Christianity today, you generally don't think of any of that unless you're a historian. While it's true that Islam is the dominant religion in many regions currently experiencing violent conflict, that's not nearly universal. As for scriptural passages commanding violence, well... take a glance at the Old Testament for comparison.
imma start off with this from the quran, “Do they not then consider the Quran carefully? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found therein much contradiction.” Quran 4:82 simply put, if there are any contradictions/errors in the quran then, by its own definition, it cannot be from allah
I offer this understanding so you can first understand the pure philosophy of Islam as a religion. It’s important to understand why believers of all faith find Islam as a credible religion. The reason why Islam, as well as Christianity, has often been concocted as religions of conquest and forceful conversion is due to the egos of men who have used religion to inflict their will on people. Instead of thinking of it as religion doing this, think of this as men using religion as a tool to…
justify their control and effectively control the populace. And as you may know, literacy rates back then were supremely lower compared to today’s figures. By using religion as the tool to enforce order and control, it allows a certain few to take advantage of the many. Education and the power of critical thinking has shown how religion, in its purest form, can help us become more pluralistic, open-minded peoples. Religion, as a tool, shows the might of “what is right” that a certain few want to
control. If you look at today’s sects in Christianity in modern day US, you’ll notice how pastors are working fundamentally with politicians and billionaires to influence the populace on religion. You’ll find that men like Elon Musk and Donald Trump, who have not once took a second to learn anything about Christianity, are claiming they are just to inflict their control on the populace. They think of religion as a tool. That is what history doesn’t exactly show. Now you do.
I can actually answer this for you. The Qu’ran, or the Koran in English, is actually really strict in English. However, in its Arabic form, it is interpreted in more than 4 ways because each word has 4 different connotations of that word. As shown above, the word “rehm” in direct English translation mean “mercy.” However, in Arabic, it means three other meanings such as “womb,” “care,” and “trust.” The verses were said at a time to mean what to do at the “most worst” but not exactly…
what you should really be doing. This opens anyone, especially an objective person, to take things at a surface level. However, the Qu’ran inspires one to use critical thinking to understand the inner and outer meanings of the verses in the book, much like how the Bible and the Torah does. I inquire you to read and understand the history and reasonings behind the way it’s written than to just take it at surface level.
The abrahamic beliefs are all rooted in a violent mythology, but all interpret the same bullshit in different ways. A lot of cognitive dissonance is required to believe in the shit and still try to make it seem positive. There are a lot of really amazing people who have sadly been lead to believe these heinous things are real. They’re victims to a shitty system.
surah 4:11-12 tells of what to do with the shares given to daughters, sons, etc; but then, in 4:175, a sister gets a different share in a childless, parentless scenario. nothing crazy on its own but, for an all-knowing god like allah to make such basic arithmetic errors which result in less - or more than - 100% getting distributed, it’s pretty laughable
ex 20:5 / prov 6:34 cannot be compared. proverbs is talking about a husband’s jealousy while exodus is talking about the covenant that existed between God and the israelites gen 22:1 / james 1:13 better but error in train of thought. james is explicitly addressing the differences between be tested to strengthen your faith (as gen 22:1 is discussing) while james 1:13 is clarifying that God never entices us to moral evil.
num 23:19 / 1 Sam 15:10-11 this one is a little more theological but you’re smart so i’m sure you’ll be able to follow along. God’s nature and essential will (being that He is GOD) are unchanging. the use of the terms “change His mind,” and “regret,” is anthropomorphic language being used to convey God’s consistent response to human actions from our temporal perspective. His dealings with us change in accordance to our actions but His will and essence are the same. Think of it like this:
#6 Job was “blameless and upright,” not perfect. meaning he was a man of virtue and integrity who feared God and avoided known evils - meaning he had relative righteousness, not absolute sinlessness. here, romans is quoting the psalms and asserting that universal original sin applies to everyone. Job himself acknowledges his need for a mediator and his own impurity in God’s eyes.
It’s really funny watching you try to make these contradictions mesh when they don’t. Who carried the cross? It wasn’t both. The text doesn’t support that. How many were counted in the census? They’re wildly different numbers. Who started the census? Satan or god? Can’t be both, but the text claims each one did. Your book isn’t perfect. Just accept that.
You were lied to and mislead. That’s not your fault. You still have a whole life ahead of you that can be made much brighter without the burdens of fiction placed on your shoulders. Read the book as it is. ALL of it. Not just the select readings from the pulpit. Then look at history. Science. Data. Wake up. You deserve better.
i do and i understand where you’re coming from. to assume, again, that i haven’t thought critically about any of it is just ignorant. i had my doubts and spewed heresies when i was younger and “edgy,” but that’s changed. you’ve got the ability to stand for what you believe but you’re being misled. idk if it’s because you’re angry with God but make sure to direct that in the right direction. in truth, God did not create evil. evil is what’s present in the absence of God.