Quran & Democracy: Are they compatible? by M. Asadi
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Salaam Stillearning,
Please be patient. I will probably not be able to respond for another week. Time is very limited at present
That's no problem at all. The fact that you're actually able to understand what a discussion is (i.e. an exchange of information relevant to the said point as opposed to a cheerleading contest for people who never open the text) is blessing enough. Take all the time you need and I look forward to a nice civilised discussion. You have given me much food for thought.
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SaLaM LT
How can it?
This is what happens when you dont read the previous replies
No chap. I think you don't just get it do you? DIVINE LAW - immutable. Human laws changeable.
Regards,
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Democracy is living just today's life at any cost. In the bargain the democracy becomes a mockery that we witness from time immemorial.
Agreed. Democracy today is merely a slogan to win over the masses. We need to analyse the mechanics of the acquisition of power to understand why. A good look at the current leading contender for the British Conservative Party will help us see the chameleonic nature which democracy demands us to adopt if we're to acquire power. I ask the Tories How much can you change before you stop being a tory?
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SaLaM LT
No chap. I think you don't just get it do you? DIVINE LAW - immutable. Human laws changeable.
So you agree with the way things are being run in Saudi and iran? Or how about this, old chap, why dont you name a country that is running according to Quran?
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SaLaM LT
No chap. I think you don't just get it do you? DIVINE LAW - immutable. Human laws changeable.
So you agree with the way things are being run in Saudi and iran? Or how about this, old chap, why dont you name a country that is running according to Quran?
Jaxal, the crux of the matter is this DIVINE LAW IMMUTABLE. HUMAN LAWS CHANGEABLE. Do you not get this? The rest of your argument is just extraneous words...
Regards,
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SaLaM LT
No one is arguing about changing the word of God. I mean, All the scriptures, Torah, Gospel and Quran, have been changed or altered to some degree. But, The Quran is a book of guidence. Not a 'Dummy 101 how to run a country'. The state and religion should be kept apart. If not, then the result is Saudi or Iran or afghanistan or pakistan.
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SaLaM LT
No one is arguing about changing the word of God. I mean, All the scriptures, Torah, Gospel and Quran, have been changed or altered to some degree. But, The Quran is a book of guidence. Not a 'Dummy 101 how to run a country'. The state and religion should be kept apart. If not, then the result is Saudi or Iran or afghanistan or pakistan.
So you are saying IMMUTABLE DEVINE LAW can be ignored and therefore it is irrelvant? And we can get on with DEMOCRACY?
Regards,
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SaLaM LT
Oh LT. You are smarter than that you know? Again, if you read the previous replies you would have seen that i look at the Quran for the moral code, example no innocent killing or no interest rates . I i asked you to run a country, will you look at the Quran?
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SaLaM LT
Oh LT. You are smarter than that you know? Again, if you read the previous replies you would have seen that i look at the Quran for the moral code, example no innocent killing or no interest rates . I i asked you to run a country, will you look at the Quran?
Answer the question please instead of extraneous words wink
Regards,
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I did. read carefully wink
You can't CHANGE DIVINE IMMUATABLE LAWS, therefore my argument quran is anti-democractic.... but in your case you can just ignore the DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law wink
Regards,
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Salaam all
The discussion is not really about whether democracy is good or not (that can be seprate discussion).
The discussion was initiated by lottree with assumption that the Quran was anti democratic below is his original quote.Quran is anti-democratic. FULLSTOP!
Quran urges people to create a consultative body but its decisions are not binding to the leader.
The whole arguement was based on this elusive consultative body. Am I right that point has ben quitely shelved as no body has been able to give single reference to the Quran stating form a consultative body.
I would have thought heart of any democracy refers to consultative process. Yet this somehow has been construed as being anti democratic because apparently the decisions of consultation are not binding. Where this non binding stuff has come from is again another mystery. If you are going to ignore the decisions reached in consultation then why bother having consultation in the first place?Having individual laws does not make the Quran anti-democratic. Democracy is selection of a governing system. In this selection of a governing body, consultative body, party give it any name you wish. Each side will have policies which if they come into power will become LAW. Let us assume there is a Quran party which has policy that if people choose this party then for adultery there will be 100 lashes. Can someone explain to me how this is undemocratic. I will quote again
If people wish to choose a system which will follow the guidance given by the Quran and implement 100 lashes as advocated that is their choice, it is known as democracy. If on the other hand they decide thay do not wish to follow that path and select a system which does not advocate the above punishment they are free to do so, as there is no compulsion. This is also known as democracy
THE QURAN DOES NOT DICTATE HOW TO FORM A GOVERMENTAL SYSTEM. NO COMPULSION. NO COMPULSION. NO COMPULSION. NO COMPULSION.
I don't believe in last messengers. I believe a messenger is one under inspiration who practises the book, gives information about the book and faciliates growth. He's also the leader of the believers.
It might sound terribly intellectual but it does not takes us very far as how to run a given society or country.
If I understand the crux of your arguement (correct me if I am wrong) you believe that a messenger who practices the book will give us all the laws that are necessary to run a given country. Since even you yourself are having a great difficulty finding this messenger what are the rest of us suppose to do?So a person can, in an islamic domain, commit murder and say 'well, where i come from, we just jail murderers for 10 years and thats my deen and u cant force islam on me'. How would you respond to this guy?
??????? You yourself cannot decide punishment for your crimes, that is determined by the laws of the society you live in. If these laws are based on whatever principles then you will have to be punished accordingly. I do not know of any system, islamic or non islamic, which allows the individuals to have rules that an individual can decide punishment for their own crime.
Regards
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Salaamun alaikum Stilllearning,
The discussion is not really about whether democracy is good or not (that can be seprate discussion).
The discussion was initiated by lottree with assumption that the Quran was anti democratic below is his original quote.Quran is anti-democratic. FULLSTOP!
Quran urges people to create a consultative body but its decisions are not binding to the leader.
If democracy means 'unlimited legislative powers to the people', then LT is correct.
The whole arguement was based on this elusive consultative body. Am I right that point has ben quitely shelved as no body has been able to give single reference to the Quran stating form a consultative body.
I would have thought heart of any democracy refers to consultative process. Yet this somehow has been construed as being anti democratic because apparently the decisions of consultation are not binding. Where this non binding stuff has come from is again another mystery. If you are going to ignore the decisions reached in consultation then why bother having consultation in the first place?No. This is not why I would say al-quraan is anti-democratic. I say it's so because of the fact that our obedience to Allah is through hukumullah, Allah's laws. Allah's laws CANNOT be delegistlated. Therefore, no democracy exists.
Having individual laws does not make the Quran anti-democratic. Democracy is selection of a governing system. In this selection of a governing body, consultative body, party give it any name you wish. Each side will have policies which if they come into power will become LAW. Let us assume there is a Quran party which has policy that if people choose this party then for adultery there will be 100 lashes. Can someone explain to me how this is undemocratic. I will quote again
If people wish to choose a system which will follow the guidance given by the Quran and implement 100 lashes as advocated that is their choice, it is known as democracy. If on the other hand they decide thay do not wish to follow that path and select a system which does not advocate the above punishment they are free to do so, as there is no compulsion. This is also known as democracy
THE QURAN DOES NOT DICTATE HOW TO FORM A GOVERMENTAL SYSTEM. NO COMPULSION. NO COMPULSION. NO COMPULSION. NO COMPULSION.
Presumably this incident takes place within a domain. Lets call that domain 'x'. Can you please point out to me from al-quraan how 'x' should be won over to Islam?
I don't believe in last messengers. I believe a messenger is one under inspiration who practises the book, gives information about the book and faciliates growth. He's also the leader of the believers.
It might sound terribly intellectual but it does not takes us very far as how to run a given society or country.
If I understand the crux of your arguement (correct me if I am wrong) you believe that a messenger who practices the book will give us all the laws that are necessary to run a given country. Since even you yourself are having a great difficulty finding this messenger what are the rest of us suppose to do?The messenger may appoint committees for peripheral laws, its all up to him. You ask a fair question about finding the messenger but at the moment we are this discussing this in theory. How does al-quraan talk about governance. I have quite conclusively shown that al-quraan isn't a 'moral guidance' and it is kufr to seperate politics from religion (since neither domain exists in quranic thought, there is only deen).
So a person can, in an islamic domain, commit murder and say 'well, where i come from, we just jail murderers for 10 years and thats my deen and u cant force islam on me'. How would you respond to this guy?
??????? You yourself cannot decide punishment for your crimes, that is determined by the laws of the society you live in. If these laws are based on whatever principles then you will have to be punished accordingly. I do not know of any system, islamic or non islamic, which allows the individuals to have rules that an individual can decide punishment for their own crime.
So isn't that compulsion? You're telling the perpetrator, I dont care what YOU believe in but when you commit murder in OUR DOMAIN, you get the death penalty. That's what happens in all 'democracies' anyway. If youcome into the system, you live by its rules. If you don't, you pay the price.
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SaLaM LT
Oh LT wink . DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law for what? running a country? building time machine? how about making a ford mustang GT ? What is this DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law for?
Jaxal chap...IMMUTABLE DIVINE LAW means just that - IMMUTABLE. It can't be changed ever - example lashing for Adultery. But you say you can ignore the quran in this case. But you can't have DEMOCRACY and IMMUTABLE DIVINE LAWS...
Regards,
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SaLaM LT
I didnt ask 'What DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law means'. I asked 'What is the DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law for? See the difference? Is it
a] Building a time machine?
b] Running a country?
c] Building Ford Mustang GT Delux 2005 Red leather interior and Black exterior drool Loooolll
d] Finding out the ingredients of KFC?WHAT IS IT FOR?
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SaLaM LT
I didnt ask 'What DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law means'. I asked 'What is the DIVINE IMMUTABLE DIVINE law for? See the difference? Is it
Lashes for adultery for example - Thats a IMMUTABLE DIVINE LAW. You can't change that! But in your case you can just ignore the quran.
In democracy all laws can be changed.
Regards,
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SaLaM LT and KGB
Lashes for adultery for example - Thats a IMMUTABLE DIVINE LAW. You can't change that! But in your case you can just ignore the quran.
And out of everything, THAT is what the word of God is for? lashing? Comon LT you can do much better than that! looooolll you are loosing your touch, old chap wink
Jaxal takes what he likes and ignore rest of the message.
And you follow the Quran TO THE LETTER. Right.