Love @NickKristof, but this just goes to show that NOTHING terrifies believers more than someone reading their holy books literally, ie *the way they're actually written.*

Apparently God can't explain himself as articulately as his human interpreters.

/1 https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/11/books/review/the-lost-art-of-scripture-karen-armstrong.html?fbclid=IwAR0mHoIZyZYJZMd53-JCNvnCm_fF1OMf62a7FIpFKdhDk2415jqRl7tJD98

This quote is especially astounding. What really gives Scripture a bad name is the fact that it makes SCIENTIFIC claims—claims about nature, the origin of the universe, the emergence of life, etc—that we know for a fact to be false. And then, it claims to be Absolute Truth.

/2

It is a strange double standard to be charitable to books that blatantly endorse misogyny, slavery, homophobia, and scientific untruths by dismissing them as "metaphorical." Would you give my book that luxury? No, you would hold me accountable for every word I write.

/3

In other words, you would be holding me to a higher standard than God himself. When you're whitewashing verses that allow you to beat your wife (Quran 4:34) or kill gay men (Leviticus 20:13), you're not just "interpreting." You're twisting and mutilating clear language to

/4

make it sound somehow morally palatable to yourself. That means you're not getting your morality from your religion—you ALREADY HAVE IT. Why cling to the middleman then?

Karen Armstrong has a point if she's looking at Scripture as historically fascinating, man-made works.

/5

Indeed, I really enjoy reading the Quran and the Bible now that I don't believe them to be supernaturally inspired writings. They help us learn about our world and its history.

But believers don't read these holy books the same way.

/6

ISIS isn't quoting Karen Armstrong or some reformist Al-Azhar academic. They are quoting the Quran and hadith directly.

For them, Allah's direct word is more clear and credible than the "interpretations" of human beings who say, "Put down your Quran and listen to me."

/end