|
17 - The Facts on Islam
SECTION IV
A General Critique
17. Can the Koran be objectively
interpreted?
Dr. J Christy Wilson comments
about the problems of interpreting the Koran:
It is most difficult for one who is not a Muslim
to understand the theory that the Koran was inscribed from all eternity on a
tablet in heaven, because some verses supersede and cancel others . . . Even to
Muslims much of the text is unintelligible except through a commentary . . . It
is kept with the utmost reverence, only touched after ceremonial ablutions, and
read or recited by many millions of Muslims who do not understand the meaning of
it's Arabic verses.
In the introduction to his
translation, Dawood comments that because the Koran was originally written in
the Kufic script and there was, therefore, no indication of vowels or
diacritical points, "variant readings are recognized by Muslims as of equal
authority" and "it ought to be borne in mind that the Koran contains many
statements which, if not recognized as altogether obscure, lend themselves to
more than one interpretation."
In Sura 2:100 the Koran itself teaches, "And for whatever
verse We abrogate or cast into oblivion, We bring a better or the like of it;
knowing thou not that God is powerful over everything?"
This verse may serve the Muslim as a rationale for
contradictions between the Koran and the Bible or the Koran and itself, but what
does it say about Allah and his ability to communicate his word clearly and
effectively? Nowhere in the Koran does Allah identify those verses he has
repealed or destroyed. How then does the Muslim know which verses are legitimate
- and which are not?
Even the Koran teaches that its ambiguous parts are incapable
of interpretation:
It is He who sent down upon thee the Book,
wherein are verses clear that are the Essence of the Book, and others ambiguous.
As for those in whose hearts is swerving, they follow the ambiguous part,
desiring dissension, and desiring its interpretation; and none knows its
interpretation, save only God. And those firmly rooted in knowledge say, "We
believe in it; all is from our Lord"; yet none remembers, but men possessed of
minds.
Here we are told the clear
verses are the essence of the Koran. If so, one could assume Muslims
would rarely disagree as to the interpretation of the clear parts. Is this what
we find historically or today? Unfortunately no. Have Muslims ever identified
which are the "clear" parts and which are the "ambiguous" parts? If much of the
Koran is to varying degrees unclear, on what objective basis can one determine
its meaning? And if the material is unessential, why record or reveal it in the
first place? Also, how does the Muslim know all that is involved in having a
swerving heart or how this relates to knowing the location of the ambiguous
parts? The Koran also claims, "Those who have been given the Book know it is the
truth from their Lord . . . " But in light of what we have discussed so far,
upon what objective basis can a Muslim know this?
As we saw, the Koran teaches that Allah occasionally changes
his mind concerning the validity of his word. Here and there one verse is
changed for another. But when critics pointed this out and charged Muhammad with
tampering, they themselves were charged with ignorance. "And when We exchange a
verse in the place of another verse - and God knows very well what He is sending
down - they say, 'Thou art a mere forger!' Nay, but the most of them have no
knowledge." Another translation reads, "When We change one verse for another
(Allah knows best what He reveals), they say: 'You are an impostor.' Indeed,
most of them are ignorant men."
Allah may know best what he reveals, but again, how are
mortals to sort out the meaning? How does a Muslim decide which verse is
"exchanged" or now preferred by Allah? Further, why would Allah exchange one
verse in place of another verse? Why wouldn't he speak clearly the first time?
These are more than mere academic issues. Muslims trust in
the Koran for their eternal salvation. But if Muslims are uncertain of what God
says - and of His intention - how can they know God's will for their lives? How
can they find salvation? By contrast, both Christians and Muslims can know
exactly what Jesus Christ taught because His words have never been changed or
corrupted. In our final question we will see why.
John Ankerberg & John Weldon
|