Holy? Book (Part II - The Qur'an)

Yesterday I talked about how the Old and New Testaments encourage certain acts that are considered immoral in today's society. Some of those acts include slavery and murder. Today we tackle the third "Holy" Book, the Qur'an.

In the Qur'an (as in the other two books), women are treated as second citizens. It is hard for me to believe that a strong intellectual woman would believe in something like this

- Men have authority over women because God has made the one superior to the other, and because they spend their wealth to maintain them. Good women are obedient. They guard their unseen parts because God has guarded them. As for those from whom you fear disobedience, admonish them and send them to beds apart and beat them. Then if they obey you, take no further action against them. Surely God is high, supreme. (Quran 4:34).

I have heard a few justifications to this verse from several Muslims, but none gave me an argument with a straight face, except for those who believe that women who disobey you, should be beaten up.

When the Qur'an was not too busy ordering domestic violence, it was clearly asking Muslims to spread Islam by force if necessary.

- Fight against those who believe not in Allah, nor in the Last Day, nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth among the people of the Scripture, until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued. (Qur'an 9:29).

While spreading the message by force is not an uncommon sighting when it comes to religions (see Crusades, Spanish Inquisition), most religious people deny it.

Passages like those above or the ones I had up yesterday are not rare. If this was not a small daily blog but a paper, I could fill up pages and pages of direct quotation from the "Holy" books that encourage acts that we (civilized society) consider outrageous. That is why when religious scientists attack other religions, they never bring up those passages, because they know that their book is not any more innocent or "Holy."