by Zainib Ahmad

Created on: May 17, 2008

Islamic punishments are well-known for being harsh and I am not surprised at all. The Press around the world highlights specific incidents and the world gasps and recoils in horror. I gasp and recoil along with the rest but with something worse than horror. I am appalled at the degree to which Islam is misunderstood, especially by Muslims. The Quran is the holy test that guides us to a better life and a safer society. How many people have really read the Quran and tried in all fairness to understand it's laws? How many just rely on the "rulings" of "religious leaders"? An open, honest reading of the Quran teaches us that this sacred text is applicable for all times to come, but our own minds need to move with the times. We cannot read an enlightened text with preconceived ideas coloring everything we read.

Does Islam prescribe death as the punishment for apostasy? Absolutely not. A person who was born a Muslim and wants to change his religion can do so. Someone who converted to Islam and later on wants to change their faith, does not face punishment from any Muslim government or individual. "There is no compulsion in religion". How can Muslims quote this text left and right and yet not truly believe in it. The Quran does tell us that a person who leaves his or her faith for worldly benefits, will be punished by Allah. It does not issue a death threat. The only case when a punishment is due, or happened in the time of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), was when the apostate left the Muslims to join the enemy in time of war and was charged with treason.

What about death threats against those who malign Prophet Muhammad or the Quran? The Quran advises the Prophet to be patient and forbearing. He faced the worst kind of abuse yet he never responded in kind. He never advised or ordered his companions to kill people for insulting him. If some Muslims have learned to react violently to any abuse directed at their beloved Prophet, it is entirely their own mistake, fueled by the mullah mentality of half- baked, self-serving, so-called imams and leaders. It is naturally upsetting to learn that our Prophet was insulted, but if we react like rabid dogs instead of civilized human beings, we are the ones causing the insult and giving Islam a bad name.

In Islam, the punishment for adultery is NOT STONING TO DEATH. The Quran prescribes the punishment as flogging, that is meant to humiliate and chastise, not kill. Stoning to death was the punishment in the Jewish law and wherever

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