Calilasseia

Er, educating yourself isn't a compelling enough reason?

I bought a copy of the Koran because I wanted to know what lay behind the thinking of Muslims. I had conjectures about this, but that's all they were - conjectures - until I read the Koran.

Unfortunately, I found the Koran to be a seriously scary book. One that also contains more than its fair share of rampant sexism, spends an inordinate amount of time gloating over the terrible fate that allegedly awaits those who do not believe its contents, and manifests a thinly veiled sadism when describing that fate in fairly gory detail. Bit like chunks of the Old Testament really.

Meanewhile, hat tip to Mung Bean for this:

Wrong. NOT a "religious" text. Except in the television inside your head. It is a work of science. But then, perhaps the rest of us should not be surprised at such elisions and legerdemain, given your oft-stated prejudices.

Dave Hawkins

Can you give some good reasons why I should? Take the Koran for instance. How was early Islam and the Koran propagated? And how does this compare to how early Christianity and the Hebrew Scriptures were propagated? And ... given that this is a forum where REASON prevails ... what REASONABLE arguments can you give for reading one or the other considering these facts?

GenesisNemesis

FAITH. You just HAVE to have FAITH, afdave.

mung bean

Dave, according to your literal view of the Old Testament the propagation of the Hebrew scriptures, and therefore the propagation of the subsequent Christian scriptures, is ultimately reliant on the initial establishment of Israel.
This, according to the OT, involved invasion and mass slaughter.
So, your beloved scriptures relied for their propagation on precisely the same techniques as early Islam. The difference is that early Islam did not slaughter everyone in its path, unlike the Israelites.

Smullyan-esque

Well, I think you should be convinced by YOUR OWN reasoning:
You dare to criticise the Koran without reading it? How can you be so blind to your own hypocrisy?

"None so blind as those who choose not to see"

Silent Dave

Dave, I draw your attention to a pending question for you in the peanut gallery thread.

Dave Hawkins

I didn't criticize the Koran. I have learned recently that people here don't like criticism unless it's them doing the criticizing. So I won't criticize the Koran. Besides that, I don't know enough about it to criticize it.

I asked for some good arguments why I should read it. I have given many good reasons for reading the Bible. I thought maybe someone might have some good reasons for reading the Koran. Does it predict the future accurately? Does it have accurate history? Does it accurately describe the human condition? Does reading it change people's lives for the better? Has it hit the 5 billion mark in distribution? Have people been burned at the stake for translating it? Do people read it then become inspired to start hospitals and orphanages?

Calilasseia

As I said above. Adding to your store of knowledge. Which should be the BEST reason of all for you doing this.

I admit that some of us have limited time, and have to prioritise our reading matter, but you're a man of leisure these days Dave - you have more time than most. Plus, we're asking you to add to your store of knowledge in an area that you yourself claim to be passionately devoted to - religion.

Now I don't know about anyone else, but when I develop a passion for a subject, I go out looking for material and devour it avidly. When I developed a passion for Pre-Raphaelite art, I went to the trouble of buying seven major works on the subject (one of which was so expensive I spent three months on bread and water paying off the credit card bill), visiting five major UK galleries to see many of the original works, and amassed a collection of no less than three thousand images on CD-ROM for my own edification. In fact there's something like seventeen CD-ROMs full of Pre-Raphaelite art scattered around my house as I type this.

So what's the problem Dave? It's not as if you have to spend years learning Arabic to gain an insight into the Koran, there are several high quality English translations available. In fact, there's even a place online in Saudi Arabia that will mail you a free copy.Here you go Dave, this place has handed out nearly 24,000 free copies. You don't even have to pay a penny for your own copy, unlike me, who shelled out £4.99 back in the 1980s.

Plus, Dave, if I could go to the trouble of obtaining textbooks on Classical and New Testament Greek, and spend £20 on my own copy of the Liddell & Scott Greek Lexicon in order to gain a better understanding of the 'ομοσ versus 'ομοιοσ controversy that led to the Nicene Creed, I'm sure you can expend the effort to obtain a free Koran and spend some time reading it.

GenesisNemesis

Oh. My. Science. There are flaws in this one...

No one can predict the future.

If you're talking about archaeological history, perhaps.

Just because something "accurately describes the human condition" it doesn't make it true. And btw, I don't believe it describes the human condition very well at all.

Yup. It certainly changed mine after reading all the bad and unreasonable parts in it. It made me think "Wow, what a horrible book this is. At least I'm more decent than this!"

Popularity does not equal truth, evidence does.

...No comment.

It would inspire me to make an orphanage to protect them from such nonsense.

Sauron

Huh?

That never stopped you from criticizing evolution, or slandering scientists' professional reputation or credentials.

Did you pick up someone else's ethics by accident, Davey? Bad creationist, bad bad bad. Better put them back; they aren't yours and the original owner will surely want them.

Actually, you've given zero good reasons.

The bible doesn't; why should the koran?

The bible is about 50-50. Is that your yardstick for accuracy?

Yes.

Muslims say it does.

1. Why does the size of distribution matter?
2. But to answer your question - yes.

Yes.

Yes.