Source: The Huffington Post
By Kashif N. Chaudhry: Physician, writer and humanitarian
We have all heard of Sudan’s death penalty for the “crime” of leaving Islam. Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan (since 2007), Yemen and Afghanistan have similar rulings for apostasy. Do these punishments have any basis in the Islamic faith? Does Islam really punish freedom of conscience?
I was discussing this on social media when a friend and fellow writer Ali Amjad Rizvi claimed: “…the Koran clearly promotes death for apostasy,” leaning on interpretations from the work of Maulana Abu Ala Maududi — the “father of modern Jihadi terrorism” — and Khomeni. “This is one area where I completely agree with Maududi,” he said.
This was a bold claim, because unlike the Bible, there is no mention of apostasy laws in the Koran. Even Sam Harris, a notable critic of Islam, admits to this fact in no ambiguous words: “Interestingly, [the penalty for apostasy] isn’t spelled out in the Koran.”
Ali insisted, however, that Maududi – and not Sam Harris – was credible in his understanding of the Koran. “Sam Harris has not read the Koran in detail,” he pleaded. I, therefore, called him to prove the apostasy laws from the Koran.
Muslims consider the Koran the word of God. Hence, it is the primary and supreme source of jurisprudence in Islam. The practice of Prophet Muhammad, Sunnah, is second in line. Both leave no doubt that apostasy is not a punishable offense at all, let alone by death. Any counter narration or any counter-interpretation of any scholar or cleric, let alone that of the “father of modern terrorism,” stands void when pitched against the Koran. Presenting such statements as solid evidence superseding the Koran only hurts the academic credibility of the critic, exposes their weak understanding of Islamic jurisprudence and bares their biases.
Categories: Ahmadiyyat: True Islam, Americas, Answers to Anti-Islam, Apostasy