mikeZellers.blog

Thursday, August 11, 2005

some christians could heed this advice as well...

salman rushdie on a "moslem reformation"

Rushdie wrote that "the insistence within Islam" that the Quran "is the infallible, uncreated word of God renders analytical scholarly discourse all but impossible" and the rigidity "plays right into the hands of the literalist Islamofascists."

"If, however, [the Quran] were seen as a historical document, then it would be legitimate to reinterpret it to suit the new conditions of successive new ages. Laws made in the 7th century could finally give way to the needs of the 21st. The Islamic Reformation has to begin here, with an acceptance that all ideas, even sacred ones, must adapt to altered realities."


which is why i respect the dalai lama who has said if science disproved reincarnation, then buddhists should no longer believe in it...

4 Comments:

At 8:56 AM, Blogger Karen Zipdrive said...

Rushdie calling for changes in interpreting the Koran is like those American Islamic clerics calling for an end to suicide bombings.
Unless Bush's owners the Saudis call for change, we are all still f*cked.

 
At 11:22 AM, Blogger Mike said...

well, i am more a philosopher than a politician. my main point is that i imagine many nod their heads in agreement with rushdie's statements concerning how the myths of islam need reinterpreted, yet continue to use the bible to justify all sorts of nonsense. in other words, it's always easy to recognize the stories of other cultures as "myths"...

that being said, while i am sure rushdie and the american clerics hold little weight, it is encouraging to hear moslems speak out - as opposed to some of the equivocating denouncements heard before...

 
At 6:43 PM, Anonymous Emily said...

I don't disagree entirely, but first they have to prove that the Bible *is* historically accurate.
IMHO, they haven't done that yet.

 
At 12:18 AM, Blogger Mike said...

saying something is a "historical document" is different than saying it is "historically accurate"

 

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