“The eternal and infinite are not qualities of human knowledge, understanding or experience. By definition, not all the scholarship of all the ages, individual and/or collective, can ever be an absolute and permanently fixed reading of the divine word. To accept the Quran as eternal means acknowledging that there is always more to the text than our partial intellect will comprehend, and to begin one’s reading from that premise with humility. The interpretative relationship begins with personal and individual reading, but that does not undermine or obliterate collective consequences. The personal and individual are the necessary precursor and are inclusive of a perspective on communal obligations and responsibilities. Everyone who claims to be a Muslim must struggle with the meaning of the Quran. There is no ‘get out’ clause, no escape. This responsibility is not fulfilled by merely reciting its words; nor by being told by other, more qualified people what it means and should mean. It is something we need to discover for ourselves.”
Posted on: Sat, 01 Feb 2014 18:38:52 +0000
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