Debunking Islamophobic and Jihadi Myths about 26 Wartime Verses: Part 6 on Verse 5:14
By Kaniz Fatma, New Age Islam
06 February 2023
Removing Misconceptions about 26 Wartime Verses
of the Quran
This verse 5:14 refers to the conflicts and divides within Christianity.
There were originally three Christian sects, Fisturyah,
Yaqubiyah, and Malkaiyah.
Nowhere in verse 5:14 does it state that Muslims must despise Christians or followers of the Book.
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This part will attempt to debunk Islamophobic
myths about the Quranic verse 5:14. Allah Azzawajal says in this
verse:
“And from those who say, "We are
Christians" We took their covenant, but they forgot a portion of that of
which they were reminded. So We caused among them animosity and hatred until
the Day of Resurrection. And Allah is going to inform them about what they used
to do.” (5:14)
Some people seem to think that the aforementioned
verse, which they don't understand the context of, promotes hatred of all
Christians and leads to radicalism. However, when we examine this verse, we see
exactly the contrary of what they assert.
In fact, this verse refers to the conflicts and
divides within Christianity. This happened because they failed to maintain
unity by forgetting a lot of the knowledge they had been instructed to
remember. This verse does not ask Muslims to hate Christians. Instead, in one
place, the Quran says,
“...and nearest among them in love to the
believers with you find those who say, “We are Christians” because among these
are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world and they are
not arrogant” (5:82)
Verse 5:14 discusses conflict and division among
Christians. To provide its explanation, I must cite some well-known Quranic
commentators in order to help the readers grasp the verse and then draw
important conclusions from them.
The author of Tafsir al-Jalaalain writes
under the commentary of this verse:
“And We made a covenant with those who claim to
be Christians (this is semantically related to [what follows]), just as We did
with the Jews and the Children of Israel. However, they have forgotten some of
the things that were brought to their attention in the Gospel in relation to
faith and other issues, and they [also] broke the covenant. Therefore, because
of their divisions and divergent ideologies—each sect accusing the other of
unbelief—, We have incited, We have produced, animosity and hatred among them
until the Day of Resurrection. God will undoubtedly inform them of what they
did in the afterlife and punish them for it.”
The author of Tafsir Maariful Quran writes
under the commentary of verse 5:14:
Verse, 5:13, dealt with the breach of trust by
Jews and their penalty for it. Verse 5:14 refers to Christians. In this
verse, the punishment described for Christians is mutual dissension. Since they
betrayed their trust, this will endure until the Last Day.
Looking at the contemporary scene, one may have
doubts about Christians who seem to be united. The answer is that the present
statement covers genuine Christians, observing and abiding. As for those who
have moved away from their own religion turning into non-conformist, secular,
or atheistic individuals or groups, they are, for all practical purposes, out
of the list of Christians - even though, they may count them as Christians
among the nationalities of a country. If among such people, that religious
dissension and mutual hostility does not exist, it would not be contrary to
this verse - because the conflict was based on religion, once the religion is
not there, conflict too would not be there. As said earlier, this verse
describes people who profess and practice the religion of Christianity - and
their division is well-known.
There were originally three Christian sects,
according to a brief quotation from Taysir in the marginal notes of
commentator al-Baydawi, which is provided below:
1. Fisturyah
(Nestorians) who took Sayyidna ` Isa (Jesus, peace be upon him) as the
son of God.
2. Yaqubiyah
(Jacobites) who believed in Sayyidna ` Isa (Jesus, peace be upon
him) himself as one with God.
3. Malkaiyah
(Malkites) who believed in Sayyidna ` Isa (Jesus, peace be upon
him) as one of the Trinity.
And it goes without saying that in the presence
of such major divisions in matters of belief, mutual malice is inevitable.
(End of quote)
Nearly all of Tafsir's best-selling
books provide the same information. That is, Allah Almighty describes the bad
activities and actions of the Christians, as well as their repulsive traits, in
this verse after explaining the Jews' violation of the covenant and unpleasant
characteristics.
The Jews made a vow to Allah Almighty that they
would obey His commands and have faith in Allah, His Prophets, and Messengers.
But they broke their promise. In addition to killing countless prophets who
followed Moses [peace be upon them], they also rejected them. The Torah
described the virtues and characteristics of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon
him), but they misinterpreted what the Torah said. According to the Torah, Jews
were commanded to believe in the last prophet when he was sent, but they
rejected him. In addition to their denial, they spread a web of secret
intrigues against the Holy Prophet.
Mufti Badruddoja Razvi writes,
“In verse 5:14, Allah Almighty says that the Christians,
like Jews, entered into a covenant with Allah that they would believe in Allah
and His Messenger and would not avoid doing good deeds. One of the
interpretative statements is that Allah Almighty promised them in the Gospel
that they would believe in the last Prophet Muhammad [peace be upon him]. But,
like the Jews, they disregarded this covenant and pursued their own desires.
This resulted in “enmity and hatred among them”, which alludes to factionalism
or sectarianism within the Christian community or to hatred between the Jews
and Christians. That is, Allah created enmity within the Christian community
till the Day of Resurrection or hatred between the Jews and the Christians.
This resulted in “animosity and hatred among them,” a reference to sectarianism
or factionalism within the Christian community, or to hatred between Jews and
Christians. That is, Allah created animosity inside the Christian community, or
hatred between Jews and Christians, until the Day of Resurrection. And at the
end of the verse, Allah Almighty made a strong promise to them and said, “And
Allah will soon inform them of what they were doing”. That is, ‘we will punish
them severely for violating this covenant and for forgetting the advice.’ And
Allah has pointed out at the beginning of the verse [And from those who say,
"We are Christians"] that they will happily call themselves
Christians (Ansarullah) which has nothing to do with reality. Because if
these people had been truthful in their claim, they would have remained steadfast
in obedience to Allah Almighty and obedience to His commands and would not
forget the covenant made with Him, but they disregarded this pact.”
[See, The Verses of Jihad in Quran Meaning,
Reason of Revelation, Context, and Background – Concluding Part 16, published
on newageislam.com]
The conclusion is that nowhere in verse 5:14 does
it state that Muslims must despise Christians or followers of the Book.
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Kaniz Fatma is a classic Islamic scholar and a
regular columnist for New Age Islam.
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URL of Part 5: https://newageislam.com/radical-islamism-jihad/islamophobic-myths-wartime-verses-part-5/d/127315
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