Criticism Of Islam

Criticism of Islam can take many forms, including academic critiques, political criticism, religious criticism, and personal opinions. Subjects of criticism include Islamic beliefs, practices, and doctrines.

Criticism of Islam has been present since its formative stages, and early expressions of disapproval were made by Christians, Jews, and some former Muslims like Ibn al-Rawandi.De Haeresibus by John of Damascus. See Migne. '' Patrologia Graeca'', vol. 94, 1864, cols 763–73. An English translation by the Reverend John W Voorhis appeared in ''The Moslem World'' for October 1954, pp. 392–98. Subsequently, the Muslim world itself faced criticism after the September 11 attacks.Ibn Kammuna, ''Examination of the Three Faiths'', trans. Moshe Perlmann (Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1971), pp. 148–49Mohammed and Mohammedanism
by Gabriel Oussani, ''Catholic Encyclopedia''. Retrieved 16 April 2006.

Criticism of Islam has been aimed at the life of Muhammad, the prophet of Islam, in both his public and personal lives.Ibn Warraq, The Quest for Historical Muhammad (Amherst, Mass.:Prometheus, 2000), 103. Issues relating to the authenticity and morality of the scriptures of Islam, both the Quran and the hadiths, are also discussed by critics.Bible in Mohammedian Literature.
by Kaufmann Kohler Duncan B. McDonald, ''Jewish Encyclopedia''. Retrieved 22 April 2006. Criticisms of Islam have also been directed at historical practices, like the recognition of slavery as an institutionBrunschvig. 'Abd; '' Encyclopedia of Islam'' as well as Islamic imperialism impacting native cultures. More recently, Islamic beliefs regarding human origins, predestination, God's existence, and God's nature have received criticism for perceived philosophical and scientific inconsistencies.

Other criticisms center on the treatment of individuals within modern Muslim-majority countries, including issues which are related to human rights in the Islamic world, particularly in relation to the application of Islamic law. As of 2014, 26% of the world's countries had anti-blasphemy laws, and 13% of them also had anti-apostasy laws. By 2017, 13 Muslim countries imposed the death penalty for apostasy or blasphemy. Amid the contemporary embrace of multiculturalism, there has been criticism regarding how Islam may affect the willingness or ability of Muslim immigrants to assimilate in host nations.

Muslim scholars have historically responded to criticisms through apologetics and theological defenses of Islamic doctrines.

Historical background

Early Christian reactions to Islam, such as those by St. John of Damascus around fifty years after the Hijrah, were shaped by theological opposition and political conflict. According to Norman Daniel, John’s depiction of Islam confused it with pre-Islamic paganism, associating Muslim practices with idol worship at the Ka'bah. Christian polemical writing at the time took an "unusually severe attitude" toward Islam, condemning whatever Muslims believed, even when it was partially correct according to Christian teaching. Daniel notes that the method used against Islam applied established Christian techniques of theological debate, often favoring aggressive refutation over genuine understanding. This early pattern of prejudice, Daniel argues, continued without dilution into later European Orientalist scholarship, influencing views of Islam well into the modern period.
Medieval Muslim society also produced unorthodox voices—such as Ibn al-Rawandī and Abū Bakr al-Rāzī—whose radical critiques of prophecy provoked vigorous rebuttals from both theologians and philosophers, illustrating the period’s lively culture of intellectual debate al-Ma'arri, an eleventh-century antinatalist and critic of all religions. His poetry was known for its "pervasive pessimism." He believed that Islam does not have a monopoly on truth. Apologetic writings, attributed to the philosopher Abd-Allah ibn al-Muqaffa (), include defenses of Manichaeism against Islam and critiques of the Islamic concept of God, characterizing the Quranic deity in highly critical terms. The Jewish philosopher Ibn Kammuna, criticized Islam,Ibn Warraq. ''Why I Am Not a Muslim'', p. 3. Prometheus Books, 1995. reasoning that Shari'a was incompatible with the principles of justice.

At the same time that dissenting voices like Ibn al-Rāwandī appeared, mainstream Muslim scholars were actively strengthening Islamic doctrine against both internal and external critiques. As Hodgson notes, a range of thinkers—including the traditionalist Aṯharīs, the Ashʿarīs, and the Māturīdīs—developed vigorous defenses of revelation, sometimes by strict adherence to transmitted texts, sometimes through rational systematization. Rather than avoiding controversy, they treated public debate as a responsibility, working to articulate an intellectually coherent and resilient Islamic worldview that Hodgson describes as one of the most creatively active climates of medieval history.

During the Middle Ages, Christian church officials commonly represented Islam as a Christian heresy or a form of idolatry.Christian Lange ''Paradise and Hell in Islamic Traditions'' Cambridge University Press, 2015 pp. 18–20 Daniel emphasizes that for much of the medieval period, Christian understanding of Islam was based more on inherited stereotypes and polemical tradition than on direct engagement with Muslim sources. They viewed Islam to be a material, rather than spiritual, religion and often explained it in apocalyptic terms.Christian Lange ''Paradise and Hell in Islamic Traditions'' Cambridge University Press, 2015 pp. 18–20 In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, European academics often portrayed Islam as an exotic Eastern religion distinct from Western religions like Judaism and Christianity, sometimes classifying it as a "Semitic" religion. The term "Mohammedanism" was used by many to criticize Islam by focusing on Muhammad's actions, reducing Islam to merely a derivative of Christianity rather than acknowledging it as a successor of Abrahamic monotheisms. By contrast, many academics nowadays study Islam as an Abrahamic religion in relation to Judaism and Christianity. The Christian apologist G. K. Chesterton criticized Islam as a heresy or parody of Christianity, G. K. Chesterton, '' The Everlasting Man'', 1925, Chapter V, ''The Escape from Paganism''
Online text
/ref> David Hume (), both a naturalist and a sceptic, considered monotheistic religions to be more "comfortable to sound reason" than polytheism but also found Islam to be more "ruthless" than Christianity.

The Greek Orthodox bishop Paul of Antioch accepted Muhammed as a prophet, but did not consider his mission to be universal and regarded Christian law superior to Islamic law. Maimonides, a twelfth-century rabbi, did not question the strict monotheism of Islam, and considered Islam to be a instrument of divine providence for bringing all of humankind to the worship of the one true God, but was critical of the practical politics of Muslim regimes and considered Islamic ethics and politics to be inferior to their Jewish counterparts.The Mind of Maimonides
by David Novak. Retrieved 29 April 2006.

In his essay ''Islam Through Western Eyes'', the cultural critic Edward Said suggests that the Western view of Islam is particularly hostile for a range of religious, psychological and political reasons, all deriving from a sense "that so far as the West is concerned, Islam represents not only a formidable competitor but also a late-coming challenge to Christianity." In his view, the general basis of Orientalist thought forms a study structure in which Islam is placed in an inferior position as an object of study, thus forming a considerable bias in Orientalist writings as a consequence of the scholars' cultural make-up.

Points of criticism

The expansion of Islam

In an alleged dialogue between the Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaiologos () and a Persian scholar, the emperor criticized Islam as a faith spread by the sword. This reflected a common view in Europe during the Enlightenment period about Islam, then synonymous with the Ottoman Empire, as a bloody, ruthless, and intolerant religion. More recently, in 2006, a similar statement of Manuel II, quoted publicly by Pope Benedict XVI, prompted a negative response from Muslim figures who viewed the remarks as an insulting mischaracterization of Islam. In this vein, the Indian social reformer Pandit Lekh Ram () thought that Islam was grown through violence and desire for wealth, while the Nigerian author Wole Soyinka considers Islam as a "superstition" that it is mainly spread with violence and force.

This "conquest by the sword" thesis is opposed by many historians who consider the transregional development of Islam a multi-faceted phenomenon involving a range of political, social, and economic processes. The first wave of expansion, the migration of the early Muslims to Medina to escape persecution in Mecca and the subsequent conversion of Medina, was indeed peaceful. In the years to come, Muslims defended themselves against frequent Meccan incursions until Mecca's peaceful surrender in 630. By the time of Muhammed's death in 632, most Arabian tribes had formed political alliances with him and embraced Islam voluntarily, creating a foundation for future regional expansion. In the centuries that followed, Islam extended beyond Arabia through a combination of military conquests and non-military means. While the early Islamic empires expanded into Syria, Persia, Egypt, and North Africa, Islam often remained a minority religion in those regions for several generations, a pattern that some scholars cite as evidence that political conquest did not inherently produce widespread religious conversion.

In many regions outside the initial imperial sphere, particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia, Islam spread primarily through trade, cultural integration, and missionary activities. Historian Marshall Hodgson writes that Islam became “a mass people’s religion on a wave of economic expansiveness,” as Muslim merchants and missionaries introduced the faith in commercial hubs and rural towns far removed from the centers of military power. These conversions were often voluntary and linked to the appeal of Islam's social order, legal institutions, and communal ethics.

Scripture

In the lifetime of Muhammad, the Qur'an was primarily preserved orally, with various written fragments recorded by his companions. Some revisionist scholars argue that the complete compilation of the Qur'an in its current form occurred much later—possibly between 150 to 300 years after Muhammad’s death. The standard Islamic view holds that the Qur'an was compiled shortly after the death of Muhammad in 632 and canonized during the caliphate of Uthman ibn Affan (r. 644–656). This position has been increasingly supported by manuscript evidence and recent scholarship. The Birmingham Qur'an, radiocarbon-dated to 568–645 CE, led Nicolai Sinai to conclude that a large portion of the Qurʾānic text was already in circulation by the 650s, and that late canonization theories such as Wansbrough’s are now “safely ruled out.” Marijn van Putten likewise finds that early manuscripts share distinctive spelling patterns, indicating they descend from a single written source—likely the Uthmanic codex.

The Qur’an asserts its own inimitability and perfection, a claim that has been disputed by critics. One such criticism is that sentences about God in the Quran are sometimes followed immediately by those in which God is the speaker."Koran"
From the ''Jewish Encyclopedia''. Retrieved 21 January 2008. The Iranian journalist Ali Dashti () criticized the Quran, saying that "the speaker cannot have been God" in certain passages. Similarly, the secular author Ibn Warraq gives Surah al-Fatiha as an example of a passage which is "clearly addressed to God, in the form of a prayer." However, scholars like Mustansir Mir and Michael Sells explain that these sudden shifts in speaker or pronouns—called ''iltifāt'' in Arabic—are a common and deliberate feature of classical Arabic style. They are used to keep the listener engaged, highlight key ideas, or mark a shift in tone. Mir shows how this technique strengthens the Qur’an’s overall structure and rhythm, while Sells argues that it also reflects God’s implied transcendence—by changing how God is referred to, the Qur’an avoids limiting Him to one fixed role or persona.

The Christian theologian Philip Schaff () praises the Quran for its poetic beauty, religious fervor, and wise counsel, but considers this mixed with "absurdities, bombast, unmeaning images, and low sensuality."Schaff, P., & Schaff, D. S. (1910). History of the Christian church. Third edition. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons. Volume 4, Chapter III, section 44 "The Koran, And The Bible" The orientalist Gerd Puin believes that the Quran contains many verses which are incomprehensible, a view rejected by Muslims and many other orientalists. '' Apology of al-Kindy'', a medieval polemical work, describes the narratives in the Quran as "all jumbled together and intermingled," and regards this as "evidence that many different hands have been at work therein." These criticisms often come from reading the Qur’an like a modern book, rather than as a message originally spoken aloud, according to some scholars. Scholars like Angelika Neuwirth explain that its sudden shifts in voice and repetition weren’t mistakes, but ways to hold attention and make meaning clearer to a live audience. Michael Sells points out that the Qur’an’s rhythm and sound patterns were key to how it was understood, especially in the early chapters. And as Mustansir Mir and classical scholars like al-Jurjānī have shown, what may seem like abrupt changes in topic often reflect careful design, helping ideas flow and giving extra weight to key points.

Pre-existing sources

Critics point to various pre-existing sources to argue against the traditional narrative of revelation from God. Some scholars have calculated that one third of the Quran has pre-Islamic Christian origins. Aside from the Bible, the Quran is said to rely on several Apocryphal and sources, like the Protoevangelium of James,Leirvik 2010, pp. 33–34. Gospel of Pseudo-Matthew, and several infancy gospels. Certain narratives also are said to potentially parallel Jewish Midrashic literature, Several narratives rely on Jewish Midrash Tanhuma sources, such as the account of Cain learning to bury the body of Abel in Quran 5:31, which some link to the Midrash Tanhuma. Christian apologist Norman Geisler argues that the dependence of the Quran on preexisting sources is one evidence of a purely human origin. Richard Carrier regards this reliance on pre-Islamic Christian sources as evidence that Islam derived from a Torah-observant sect of Christianity. He also notes that assessing the Qur’an’s origins involves unresolved questions and methodological challenges that continue to divide scholars.

In Islamic belief, the Qur’an’s references to earlier scriptures are not seen as copied from them, but as confirming and correcting them. The Qur’an describes itself as “confirming what came before it and as a safeguard over it” (Q 5:48), invoking the concept of taḥrīf—the belief that previous revelations were divinely revealed but later distorted. Scholar Sidney H. Griffith explains that the Qur’an affirms earlier scripture while correcting beliefs that, from the Islamic perspective, had gone astray. He adds that many of these stories were transmitted orally in Late Antiquity, and describes the Qur’an’s engagement with them as “a re-presentation, not a mere repetition.” Angelika Neuwirth similarly sees the Qur’an as part of a shared scriptural culture, reworking familiar material to create what she calls a “polyphonic, multilayered and highly referential text.” Gabriel Said Reynolds describes the Qur’an as functioning more like a sermon than a historical record—drawing on known narratives to deliver its own theological message rather than replicating earlier texts.

Criticism of the Hadith

It has been suggested that there exists around the Hadith (Muslim traditions relating to the ''Sunnah'' (words and deeds) of Muhammad) three major sources of corruption: political conflicts, sectarian prejudice, and the desire to translate the underlying meaning, rather than the original words verbatim.Brown, Daniel W. "Rethinking Tradition in Modern Islamic Thought", 1999. pp. 113, 134.

Quranists, a theological movement within Islam, reject its authority on the grounds that the Quran itself is sufficient for guidance, as it claims that nothing essential has been omitted. They believe that reliance on the Hadith has caused people to deviate from the original intent of God's revelation to Muhammad, which they see as adherence to the Quran alone. Ghulam Ahmed Pervez was one of these critics and was denounced as a non-believer by thousands of orthodox clerics. In his work ''Maqam-e Hadith'' he considered any hadith that goes against the teachings of Quran to have been falsely attributed to the Prophet. Kassim Ahmad argued that some hadith promote ideas that conflict with science and create sectarian issues.Latif, Abu Ruqayyah Farasat
The Quraniyun of the Twentieth Century
Masters Assertion, September 2006Ahmad, Kassim. "Hadith: A Re-evaluation", 1986. English translation 1997 While this view has attracted attention in some reformist circles, it remains a minority position in Islamic thought.

Mainstream Islamic traditions hold that the Qur’an expects Muslims to follow the Prophet’s example, which is primarily preserved through hadith. Verses like Qur’an 59:7 (“...whatever the Messenger gives you, take it...”) are often cited as support. Scholars such as Jonathan A.C. Brown explain that hadith are seen not as additions to the Qur’an, but as practical explanations of its more general commands, such as how to pray or fast. He also notes that early Muslim scholars created detailed methods to check whether reports about the Prophet were reliable, including analysis of the transmitters ('' isnād'') and the consistency of the content ('' matn''). Fabricated or weak hadith were systematically identified and rejected in dedicated works.

Modern Western scholarship has raised doubts about the historicity and authenticity of hadith, while Joseph Schacht argued that there is no evidence of legal traditions prior to 722. Schacht concluded that the Sunna attributed to the Prophet consists of material from later periods rather than the actual words and deeds of the Prophet. While Schacht’s theory shaped much of 20th-century scholarship, more recent studies using broader evidence and refined methods have significantly revised his conclusions. Scholars such as Harald Motzki have challenged this view by analyzing early legal texts and showing that many hadith can be reliably traced to the late 7th century, suggesting that legal traditions were already forming within the first generations of Muslims, earlier than Schacht proposed. Scholars like Wilferd Madelung have argued that a complete dismissal of hadith as late fiction is "unjustified".

The traditional view of Islam has faced scrutiny due to a lack of consistent supporting evidence, such as limited archaeological finds and some discrepancies with non-Muslim sources.Donner, Fred ''Narratives of Islamic Origins: The Beginnings of Islamic Historical Writing'', Darwin Press, 1998 In the 1970s, a number of scholars began to re-evaluate established Islamic history, proposing that earlier accounts may have been altered over time.Donner, Fred ''Narratives of Islamic Origins: The Beginnings of Islamic Historical Writing'', Darwin Press, 1998 They sought to reconstruct early Islamic history using alternative sources like coins, inscriptions, and non-Islamic texts. Prominent among these scholars was John Wansbrough. Recent scholarship has taken a more cautious view of these revisionist claims. Fred M. Donner argues that the early Muslim community was too decentralized to have invented its religious tradition wholesale, and that early texts reflect sincere belief rather than retrospective construction. He also points to documentary evidence—such as inscriptions and papyri from the 7th century—that aligns with the existence of an identifiable Muslim movement. In addition, Ahmed El Shamsy has shown that early Muslim scholars developed rigorous methods for verifying transmission and preserving texts, creating a critical scholarly culture comparable to, and in some respects more advanced than, that of contemporaneous manuscript traditions.

Criticism of Muhammad

The Christian missionary Sigismund Koelle and the former Muslim Ibn Warraq have criticized Muhammad's actions as immoral. In one instance, the Jewish poet Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf provoked the Meccan tribe of Quraysh to fight Muslims and wrote erotic poetry about their women, and was apparently plotting to assassinate Muhammad.Uri Rubin, The Assassination of Kaʿb b. al-Ashraf, Oriens, Vol. 32. (1990), pp. 65–71. Muhammad called upon his followers to kill Ka'b, and he was consequently assassinated by Muhammad ibn Maslama, an early Muslim. Such criticisms were countered by the historian William M. Watt, who argues on the basis of moral relativism that Muhammad should be judged by the standards and norms of his own time and geography, rather than ours. The fourteenth-century poem ''Divine Comedy'' by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri contains images of Muhammad, picturing him the eighth circle of hell as a Heresiarch, along with his cousin and son-in-law Ali ibn Abi Talib.G. Stone ''Dante's Pluralism and the Islamic Philosophy of Religion'' Springer, 12 May 2006 p. 132Minou Reeves, P. J. Stewart ''Muhammad in Europe: A Thousand Years of Western Myth-Making'' NYU Press, 2003 p. 93–96 Dante does not blame Islam as a whole but accuses Muhammad of schism for establishing another religion after Christianity. Some medieval ecclesiastical writers portrayed Muhammad as possessed by Satan, a "precursor of the Antichrist" or the Antichrist himself. ' Tultusceptru de libro domni Metobii'', an Andalusian manuscript of unknown origins, describes how Muhammad (called Ozim, from Hashim) was tricked by Satan into adulterating an originally pure divine revelation: God was concerned about the spiritual fate of the Arabs and wanted to correct their deviation from the faith. He then sent an angel to the Christian monk Osius who ordered him to preach to the Arabs. Osius, however, was in ill-health and instead ordered a young monk, Ozim, to carry out the angel's orders. Ozim set out to follow his orders, but was stopped by an evil angel on the way. The ignorant Ozim believed him to be the same angel that had spoken to Osius before. The evil angel modified and corrupted the original message given to Ozim by Osius, and renamed Ozim Muhammad. From this followed the erroneous teachings of Islam, according to ''Tultusceptru''.

Islamic ethics

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, while there is much to be admired and affirmed in Islamic ethics, its originality or superiority is rejected.
Critics stated that the Quran 4:34 allows Muslim men to discipline their wives by striking them. There is however evidence from Islamic hadiths and scholars such as Ibn Kathir that demonstrates that only a twig or leaf can be used by a man to "strike" their wife and this is not allowed to cause pain or injure their wife but to show their frustration. Moreover, confusion amongst translations of Quran with the original Arabic term "wadribuhunna" being translated as "to go away from them", "beat", "strike lightly" and "separate". The film '' Submission'' critiqued this and similar verses of the Quran by displaying them painted on the bodies of abused Muslim women.
Some critics argue that the Quran is incompatible with other religious scriptures as it attacks and advocates hate against people of other religions. Sam Harris interprets certain verses of the Quran as sanctioning military action against unbelievers as it said "Fight those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day and who do not consider unlawful what Allah and His Messenger have made unlawful and who do not adopt the religion of truth from those who were given the Scripture – ightuntil they give the jizyah willingly while they are humbled."( Quran 9:29)Sam Harri
Who Are the Moderate Muslims?
/ref> However, the Islamic hadiths and scholars such as Dr Zakir Naik refer to fighting and not to trust "non-believers" and Christians in certain situations or events such as during times of war.

Jizya is a tax for "protection" paid by non-Muslims to a Muslim ruler, for the exemption from military service for non-Muslims, and for the permission to practice a non-Muslim faith with some communal autonomy in a Muslim state.Anver M. Emon, Religious Pluralism and Islamic Law: Dhimmis and Others in the Empire of Law, Oxford University Press, , pp. 99–109.
online

Harris argues that Muslim extremism is simply a consequence of taking the Quran literally, and is skeptical that moderate Islam is possible.
Max I. Dimont interprets that the Houris described in the Quran are specifically dedicated to "male pleasure". According to Pakistani Islamic scholar Maulana Umar Ahmed Usmani "Hur" or "hurun" is the plural of both "ahwaro" which is a masculine form and also "haurao" which is a feminine, meaning both pure males and pure females. Basically, the word 'hurun' means white, he says.

Views on slavery

According to Bernard Lewis, the Islamic injunctions against the enslavement of Muslims led to massive importation of slaves from the outside. Also Patrick Manning believes that Islam seems to have done more to protect and expand slavery than the reverse.
Brockopp, on the other hand believe that the idea of using alms for the manumission of slaves appears to be unique to the Quran ( and ). Similarly, the practice of freeing slaves in atonement for certain sins appears to be introduced by the Quran (but compare Exod 21:26-7). Also the forced prostitution of female slaves, a Near Eastern custom of great antiquity, is condemned in the Quran.John L Esposito (1998) p. 79 According to Brockopp "the placement of slaves in the same category as other weak members of society who deserve protection is unknown outside the Qur'an. Encyclopedia of the Qur'an, ''Slaves and Slavery'' Some slaves had high social status in the Muslim world, such as the Mamluk enslaved mercenaries, who were assigned high-ranking military and administrative duties by the ruling Arab and Ottoman dynasties.

Critics argue unlike Western societies there have been no anti-slavery movements in Muslim societies,
which according to Gordon was due to the fact that it was deeply anchored in Islamic law, thus there was no ideological challenge ever mounted against slavery. According to sociologist Rodney Stark, "the fundamental problem facing Muslim theologians vis-à-vis the morality of slavery" is that Muhammad himself engaged in activities such as purchasing, selling, and owning slaves, and that his followers saw him as the perfect example to emulate. Stark contrasts Islam with Christianity, writing that Christian theologians wouldn't have been able to "work their way around the biblical acceptance of slavery" if Jesus had owned slaves, as Muhammad did.

Only in the early 20th century did slavery gradually became outlawed and suppressed in Muslim lands, with Muslim-majority Mauritania being the last country in the world to formally abolish slavery in 1981.
Murray Gordon characterizes Muhammad's approach to slavery as reformist rather than revolutionary that abolish slavery, but rather improved the conditions of slaves by urging his followers to treat their slaves humanely and free them as a way of expiating one's sins.
In Islamic jurisprudence, slavery was theoretically an exceptional condition under the dictum ''The basic principle is liberty''.
Reports from Sudan and Somalia showing practice of slavery is in border areas as a result of continuing war and not Islamic belief. In recent years, except for some conservative Salafi Islamic scholars,
most Muslim scholars found the practice "inconsistent with Qur'anic morality".

Apostasy

In Islam, apostasy along with heresy and blasphemy (verbal insult to religion) is considered a form of disbelief. The Qur'an states that apostasy would bring punishment in the Afterlife, but takes a relatively lenient view of apostasy in this life (Q 9:74; 2:109).
While Shafi'i interprets verse Quran 2:217 as adducing the main evidence for the death penalty in Quran, the historian W. Heffening states that Quran threatens apostates with punishment in the next world only, the historian Wael Hallaq states the later addition of death penalty "reflects a later reality and does not stand in accord with the deeds of the Prophet."

According to Islamic law, apostasy is identified by a list of actions such as conversion to another religion, denying the existence of God, rejecting the prophets, mocking God or the prophets, idol worship, rejecting the sharia, or permitting behavior that is forbidden by the shari'a, such as adultery or the eating of forbidden foods or drinking of alcoholic beverages. The majority of Muslim scholars hold to the traditional view that apostasy is punishable by death or imprisonment until repentance, at least for adults of sound mind.
Also Sunni and Shi'a scholars, agree on the difference of punishment between male and female.

Some widely held interpretations of Islam are inconsistent with Human Rights conventions that recognize the right to change religion. In particular article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Some contemporary Islamic jurists, such as Hussein-Ali Montazeri have argued or issued fatwas that state that either the changing of religion is not punishable or is only punishable under restricted circumstances.
According to Yohanan Friedmann, "The real predicament facing modern Muslims with liberal convictions is not the existence of stern laws against apostasy in medieval Muslim books of law, but rather the fact that accusations of apostasy and demands to punish it are heard time and again from radical elements in the contemporary Islamic world."Yohanan Friedmann, ''Tolerance and Coercion in Islam'', Cambridge University Press, p. 5

Sadakat Kadri noted that "state officials could not punish an unmanifested belief even if they wanted to".
The kind of apostasy which the jurists generally deemed punishable was of the political kind, although there were considerable legal differences of opinion on this matter. Asma Afsaruddin (2013), ''Striving in the Path of God: Jihad and Martyrdom in Islamic Thought'', p. 242. Oxford University Press. .
Wael Hallaq states that " na culture whose lynchpin is religion, religious principles and religious morality, apostasy is in some way equivalent to high treason in the modern nation-state".
Also Bernard Lewis consider the apostasy as a treason and "a withdrawal, a denial of allegiance as well as of religious belief and loyalty".
The English historian C. E. Bosworth suggests the traditional view of apostasy hampered the development of Islamic learning, like philosophy and natural science, "out of fear that these could evolve into potential toe-holds for kufr, those people who reject God."
While in 13 Muslim-majority countries atheism is punishable by death,
according to legal historian Sadakat Kadri, executions were rare because "it was widely believed" that any accused apostate "who repented by articulating the '' shahada''" (''LA ILAHA ILLALLAH'' "There is no God but God") "had to be forgiven" and their punishment delayed until after Judgement Day.
William Montgomery Watt states that "In Islamic teaching, such penalties may have been suitable for the age in which Muhammad lived."

Islam and violence

Quran's teachings on matters of war and peace have become topics of heated discussion in recent years. On the one hand, some critics claim that certain verses of the Quran sanction military action against unbelievers as a whole both during the lifetime of Muhammad and after.''Warrant for terror: fatwās of radical Islam and the duty of jihād'', p. 68, Shmuel Bar, 2006
Jihad, an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims meaning "striving for the sake of God"., ''Jihad'', p. 571, ''Jihad'', p. 419John Esposito(2005), ''Islam: The Straight Path,'' p. 93
It is perceived in a military sense (not spiritual sense) by Bernard Lewis and David Cook.Cook, David. ''Understanding Jihad''. University of California Press, 2005. Retrieved from Google Books on 27 November 2011. , . Also Fawzy Abdelmalek and Dennis Prager argue against Islam being a religion of peace and not of violence. John R. Neuman, a scholar on religion, describes Islam as "a perfect anti-religion" and "the antithesis of Buddhism". Lawrence Wright argued that role of Wahhabi literature in Saudi schools contributing suspicion and hate violence against non-Muslims as non-believers or infidels and anyone who "disagrees with Wahhabism is either an infidel or a deviant, who should repent or be killed."

Most Muslim scholars, on the other hand, argue that such verses of the Quran are interpreted out of context,Sohail H. Hashmi, David Miller, ''Boundaries and Justice: diverse ethical perspectives'', Princeton University Press, p. 197 and argue that when the verses are read in context it clearly appears that the Quran prohibits aggression,Ali, Maulana Muhammad
The Religion of Islam
(6th Edition), Ch V "Jihad" p. 414 "When shall war cease". Published by '' The Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement'' and allows fighting only in self-defense.The Qur'anic Commandments Regarding War/Jihad
An English rendering of an Urdu article appearing in Basharat-e-Ahmadiyya Vol. I, pp. 228–32, by Dr. Basharat Ahmad; published by the Lahore Ahmadiyya Movement for the Propagation of Islam
Charles Mathewes characterizes the peace verses as saying that "if others want peace, you can accept them as peaceful even if they are not Muslim." As an example, Mathewes cites the second sura, which commands believers not to transgress limits in warfare: "fight in God's cause against those who fight you, but do not transgress limits n aggression God does not love transgressors" (2:190).

Orientalist David Margoliouth described the Battle of Khaybar as the "stage at which Islam became a menace to the whole world". Margoliouth, D. S. (1905). Mohammed and the Rise of Islam (Third Edition., pp. 362–63). New York; London: G. P. Putnam's Sons; The Knickerbocker Press. In the battle reportedly Muslims beheaded Jews. Margoliouth argues that the Jews of Khaybar had done nothing to harm Muhammad or his followers, and ascribes the attack to a desire for plunder
Montgomery Watt on the other hand, believes Jews' intriguing and use of their wealth to incite tribes against Muhammad left him no choice but to attack.
Vaglieri and Shibli Numani concur that one reason for attack was that the Jews of Khaybar were responsible for the Confederates that attacked Muslims during the Battle of the Trench.Veccia Vaglieri, L. "Khaybar", Encyclopaedia of IslamNomani (1979), vol. II, pg. 156Samuel Rosenblatt, ''Essays on Antisemitism: The Jews of Islam'', p. 112 Rabbi Samuel Rosenblatt has said that Muhammad's policies were not directed exclusively against Jews (referring to his conflicts with Jewish tribes) and that Muhammad was more severe with his pagan Arab kinsmen.Samuel Rosenblatt, ''Essays on Antisemitism: The Jews of Islam'', p. 112Pinson; Rosenblatt (1946) pp. 112–119

The September 11 attacks have resulted in many non-Muslims' indictment of Islam as a violent religion.
In the European view, Islam lacked divine authority and regarded the sword as the route to heaven.

Karen Armstrong, tracing what she believes to be the West's long history of hostility toward Islam, finds in Muhammad's teachings a theology of peace and tolerance. Armstrong holds that the "holy war" urged by the Quran alludes to each Muslim's duty to fight for a just, decent society.
According to Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of the 20th-century Indian independence movement, although non-violence is dominant in the Qur'an, thirteen hundred years of imperialist expansion have made Muslims a militant body.

Other self-described Muslim organisations have emerged more recently, and some of them have been associated with jihadist and extreme Islamist groups. Compared to the entire Muslim community, these groups are sparsely populated. They have, however, received more attention from governments, international organisations, and the international media than other Muslim groups. This is as a result of their participation in actions intended to combat alleged enemies of Islam both at home and abroad.

Years later however, Al-Qaeda has yet to succeed in gaining the support of the majority of Muslims and continues to differ from other Islamist organizations in terms of both philosophy and strategy.

Temporary and Contractual Marriages

is a fixed-term or short-term contractual marriage in Shia Islam. The duration of this type of marriage is fixed at its inception and is then automatically dissolved upon completion of its term. For this reason, nikah mut'ah has been widely criticised as the religious cover and legalization of prostitution. Shi'a and Sunnis agree that Mut'ah was legal in early times, but Sunnis consider that it was abrogated. Currently, however, mut'ah is one of the distinctive features of Ja'fari jurisprudence.
Sunnis believe that Muhammad later abolished this type of marriage at several different large event
Bukhari 059.527
Most Sunnis believe that Umar later was merely enforcing a prohibition that was established during Muhammad's time.

Shia contest the criticism that nikah mut'ah is a cover for prostitution, and argue that the unique legal nature of temporary marriage distinguishes Mut'ah ideologically from prostitution.Temporary marriage
''Encyclopædia Iranica''
Children born of temporary marriages are considered legitimate, and have equal status in law with their siblings born of permanent marriages, and do inherit from both parents. Women must observe a period of celibacy (idda) to allow for the identification of a child's legitimate father, and a woman can only be married to one person at a time, be it temporary or permanent. Some Shia scholars also view Mut'ah as a means of eradicating prostitution from society.

Nikah Misyar is a type of Nikah (marriage) in Sunni Islam only carried out through the normal contractual procedure, with the provision that the husband and wife give up several rights by their own free will, such as living together, equal division of nights between wives in cases of polygamy, the wife's rights to housing, and maintenance money (''" nafaqa"''), and the husband's right of homekeeping and access. Essentially the couple continue to live separately from each other, as before their contract, and see each other to fulfil their needs in a legally permissible (halal) manner when they please.
Misyar has been suggested by some western authors to be a comparable marriage with Nikah mut'ah

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