Blogs

Important verse on how to approach subjects in the Qur'an and some examples

By AY Mol on 18-11-2009 8:31

aw/Or, zid/increase/add a little aylahi/on it. wa/And ratili/arrange/order/make distinct/convey/read in a calm fashion al-Qur'an/the Qur'an/the Recital/the Reading tarteelan/good ordering/well arranged/distinct/correct-right state of arrangement/set in order.

Or, you shall increase it . And calmy read, convey and arrange the Qur'an in a distinctive, well-arranged, good, orderly, and correct manner.

Tartilan/ترتيلا means here to to group together related subjects & put in a good & meaningful sequence/order.

The root ر ت ل Ratala is for example used for subjects as an army that groups together & starts marching. An army is grouped by rank, company & type of soldier (foot-soldiers, cavalry etc.) (Ratila Al-Jaish / رتل الجيش ). It is also used for a set of nice teeth (Ratlun jamil / رتلجميل), as they are ordered nicely and correct.

The Qur'an has all of its subjects spread out over its text as a woven carpet. To get a good vision on each subject, we are told in this verse to arrange them together so we can understand them. But you must always start with the main subject of the Qur'an, its basic teachings and its main goal. Then you can move on to other subjects without ignoring the Qur'an worldview and focus. For example, the Qur'an says that Silm, the acceptance of Peace and Non-conflict is the Din, the behaviour/obligation, is the only manner accepted by God. Thus this the main focus of the Qur'an when it comes to human laws, advice, conduct, rituals/appointed behaviours.

My involvement with the Dutch Muslim Party made frontpage news

By AY Mol on 11-10-2009 21:03

It discusses how I became a Muslim, my ideas about Islam, science and Dutch ethics, and how I am involved as a researcher for the Dutch Muslim Party (NMP). It is very exciting that the media is focussing on positive Islam. An excerpt, the whole article will be translated later: De Nederlandse Moslim Partij (NMP) werkt aan een Leidse fractie. Of die ook aan de komende gemeenteraadsverkiezingen meedoet, is nog onzeker. Een van de trekkers is Arnold Yasin Mol, opgegroeid in Oegstgeest, sinds kort Katwijker, en bezoeker van Leidse moskeeën. Ook Leiden heeft grote behoefte aan een moslimpartij, zegt Mol. ,,In Leiden komt ten slotte een van de grootste moskeeën in Nederland.'' De standpunten van de moslimpartij moeten zich nog...

New article: Qur'anic perspective on Multicultarism and Inter-Religious relations by Professor Aisha Musa

By AY Mol on 11-10-2009 20:25

The Qur’an indicates that differences in gender, ethnicity, nationality, language, color, and religion are God-given and among the wonders of creation, and it calls on people to recognize and appreciate each other.

We have made you nations and tribes; Qur'anic perspective on Multicultarism and Inter-Religious relations (PDF)

An exceprt from the article:

Such a reading demonstrates that rather than being a wellspring of intolerance and hatred, the Qur'an invites humanity to inter-religious and intercultural understanding and cooperation in striving to achieve social justice for humanity. The examination of what the Qur’an has to say...

My essay "Qur'anic Cosmology" quoted in a new book on Religion and Science

By AY Mol on 30-9-2009 22:24

Prof. Aisha Musa was asked to contribute to a book that would collect essays on how the concept of radical life extension would affect different religions.

Her essay would discuss the effects on Islam and Islamic interpretations. Radical life extension (RLE) is the term given to the concept of the biological human life being extended by scientific progress, using medicines, genetics, healthier foods and enviroments etc. The idea is that humans in the future probably could live forever as long as the universe exists, due to their control of biological means.

This is a very interesting and important topic and Prof.Musa handles it well. She discusses the verses on Noah being mentioned as 'living among them for thousands years less fifty' as an example of RLE. Then she discusses Parwez's...

Rechten van de mens boven de rechten van God: dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl

By AY Mol on 28-9-2009 23:30

Door Oleh In de gemeenschappelijke islamitische perceptie moeten de mensenrechten worden onderworpen om de rechten van God. Daarbij zij verwaarlozing van de rechten van mensen die zijn veroordeeld als ketters of die dreigen het religieuze establishment. Is er een alternatief islamitische interpretatie? Het gesprek Novriantoni en Ramy El-Dardiry, leden van de Liberal Islam Network (JIL), had met prof. dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl, hoogleraar islamitisch recht aan de UCLA, zou wat meer licht te werpen op deze kwestie. De discussie vond plaats in het Hilton Hotel in Jakarta op zaterdag 24 / 7, tijdens het bezoek van dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl's naar Indonesië.JIL: Dr Khaled, zelfmoordaanslag lijkt een trend onder islamitische radicalen tegenwoordig. Hashem Saleh, een Syrische intellectueel, zei dat moslims zich richten op 'kamikaze. Wat is uw mening over de zelfmoordaanslag in de naam van de islam? Khaled Abou El Fadl: Ten eerste, weiger ik deze trend te associëren met het concept van de Jihad. Het concept van Jihad is...

Parwez's view on God and the universe: a form of Muslim Process Theology

By AY Mol on 26-9-2009 12:19

What is Process Theology? It is a modern form of metaphysics philosophy that tries to understand God from a scientific cosmological point of view. It was first developed by the English philosopher A.N.Whitehead in the 1930's, who broke away from the traditional Jewish-Christian concept of God.

A small summary of the key ideas of Process Theology are:

God is not omnipotent in the sense of being coercive. The divine has a power of persuasion rather than coercion. Process theologians interpret the classical doctrine of omnipotence as involving force, and suggest instead a forbearance in divine power. "Persuasion" in the causal sense means that God does not exert unilateral control. Reality is not made up of material substances that endure through time, but serially-ordered events, which are experiential in nature. These events have both a physical...

Qur'an facts; 3 lists from the Qur'an on science, what is Islam, and what is required for the Mu'min (those that maintain safety on Earth)- from Quran a Reformist Translation

By AY Mol on 21-9-2009 22:07

Everything in the universe has submitted to the God's system; submission to

God in peace (Islam) is the law of the universe (3:83). İslam:

· is not a proper name, but a descriptive noun coming from the Arabic root of surrendering/

submission/peace, used by God to describe the system delivered by all His messengers

and prophets (5:111; 10:72; 98:5), which reached another stage with Abraham

(4:125; 22:78).

· is peacefully surrendering to God alone (2:112,131; 4:125; 6:71; 22:34; 40:66).

· is a system with universal principles, which are in harmony with nature (3:83; 33:30;

35:43).

College Training for Muslim Imams in Germany

By AY Mol on 21-8-2009 14:11

Ik hoop dat dit ook verplicht gaat worden in Nederland zodat Moslim leiders beter het debat kunnen voeren en meer connectie hebben met de Moslim jeugd.

College Training for Muslim Imams in Germany A Laborious Process One German state is hoping to improve the integration of its Muslim community by offering imam training programs at university. Michael Hollenbach reports In future, the man reading the text may be able to translate it into good German In most mosques in Germany, prayers are said in Arabic and the sermon is usually given in Turkish. German is rarely heard. "We have 2,600 mosques in Germany and I don't know a single imam who has a European education," said political scientist Bassam Tibi, a professing Muslim. "How can they show the Muslims who live here how to live? These imams would probably tell me I shouldn't integrate." Bulent Ucar, professor for Islamic studies...

The five rules of approaching the Qur'an

By AY Mol on 12-7-2009 12:54

In the understanding of Grand Mufti Alim Muhamed Abduh, Mufti of Al-Azhar University, till his death in 1905:

“ 1. The primary purpose of the Qur’an is to affirm the Tawhid, the unicity of God, and all other subsequent doctrines that affirm God’s action of revelation, the sending of prophets, and the reality of resurrection and human recompense.

2. The Qur’an is a complete and comprehensive revelation; believers cannot be selective in what portions they choose to adhere to.

3. The Qur’an is the primary source for legislation for a righteous society. (While Abduh endorsed the use of reason and science in understanding the text he insisted that social life is to be organized according to the teachings of the Qur’an.)

4. Muslims should not imitate their forebears in interpreting the Qur’an, but must be authentic and true to their own understanding.

5. Reason and reflection should be utilized in interpreting the Qur’an. (Abduh saw the Qur’an as urging people to search and...

New book: The Enlightenment Qur'an: The Politics of Translation and the Construction of Islam by Ziad Elmarsafy

By AY Mol on 14-6-2009 22:06

I have ordered this promising book, which discusses a very important topic; the influence of the Qur'an on the creation of the modern free and tolerant world.

Nowadays it is thought that the Qur'an represents the total opposite of what the free world stands for, but this was not the idea of early Enlightenment thinkers. The contribution of the Islamic culture and the Qur'an for the creation of the Renaissance, Enlightenment and today's modern free world, is enormous. But sadly due to the economical and intellectual decline in the Muslim world after 1500 caused by bad leadership, which caused a wrong direction of Muslim interpretation and thought, and the non-acknowledgement of Western thought of their debt ot Islam; the idea of Islam being the source of the modern world is a strange idea.

But modern academics are starting to acknowledge...

Blogs by DRC researchers

DRC's own researchers discussing and posting on diverse subjects on the Qur'an, the world, human society, interpretation, Muslim world, history, science, philosophy etc.