"Wrong Translations" continued and contested

Submitted by Lactantius Jr. (United Kingdom), Jul 1, 2008 at 11:47

To sTs

You reject my challenge to your assertion that "there is no where in Islam or Quran or Hadith that says don't take non-Musims as friends," by saying I have used Qur'anic citations which are "wrong translations." My previous postings dealing with the English translation of "auliah"/"awliah," used the translation of Hilali-Khan, which rendered it friend/friends, so I have consulted the translation of M.A.S Abdel-Haleem, an Egyptian-born hafiz Qur'an, educated at al-Azhar, and presently Professor of Islamic Studies and Director of the Centre of Islamic Studies, at the School of Oriental and African Studies, at the University of London, and who says of his translation, "The Qur'an, A New Translation," that he intends to "go further than previous works in accuracy, clarity , flow, and currency of language."

Abdel-Haleem does not translate "Auliah/Awliah" as "friend(s)" using instead, "ally" Surah 4:139, "allies" Surah's 5:51; 3:28; 9:23; 60:1-9 & 13: 4:88-89 and "Allies and protectors" 4:114 Merriam Webster Online dictionary rendering "ally"(the singular of "allies") as "form a connection or relation between" (transitive verb) and "to form or enter into an alliance." (intransitive verb). http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ally Looking at some of Abdel-Haleem's other translations, I wonder why he "softens" the Arabic word qital (q-t-l) meaning "warring, killing and slaughtering," by rendering it "fight" at Surah's 4:74; 9:29; 9:111 and 9:123 and why throughout his translation, he renders "Allah" as "God," when the Qur'anic Allah, whoever he is, is not the God revealed in the printed words of the Bible, and supremely revealed in the living, loving Word of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

I take great exception to Surah 9:111, not Abdel- Haleem's translation of it, but the content of it, here's what it says, "God has purchased the persons and possessions of the believers in return for the Garden – they fight in God's way: they kill and are killed – this is a true promise given by Him in the Torah, the Gospel and the Qur'an…………….."

It certainly does say that in the Qur'an, to kill and to be killed for Allah being the ONLY assurance a Muslim can have of being admitted to al janna, but it most certainly does not say that in the Torah and the Gospel, followers of the Lord Jesus Christ are never commanded to go on jihad or to kill for Him. The Gospel saying, "For God loved the world so much that He gave His only Son, so that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

At the time of 9/11, John Ashworth the US Attorney General, showed he knew much more about Islam than his President, by saying "The massive difference between Christianity and Islam is that the God of the Bible sent His Son to die for us, whilst the Qur'anic Allah requires Muslim's sons to die for him." That's a massive difference isn't it?

With kind regards and best wishes Lactantius Jr.

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