An Atheist Explores the Qur'an Part 55: God Says You Kids Get Off My Lawn, Signed, The Prophet (Apartments (al-Hujarat))

Apartments (al-Hujarat) 1-18
God Says You Kids Get Off My Lawn, Signed, The Prophet.

Welcome to the next instalment of An Atheist Explores Sacred Texts (Qur’an version).
In this series I work my way chapter-by-chapter through the Qur’an, commenting on it from the point of view of the text as literature and mythology.

For more detail, see the introductory post https://bit.ly/2ApLDy0
For the online Qur’an that I use, see here http://al-quran.info and http://quran.com

Apartments (al-Hujarat) 1-18
“O you who have faith! Do not raise your voices above the voice of the Prophet, and do not speak aloud to him as you shout to one another, lest your works should fail without your being aware.”

This is a funny chapter – funny as in amusing – because it largely seems to be the Prophet using his authority for personal reasons, by claiming that people that have faith don’t harass him or listen to gossip - “Indeed those who call you from behind the apartments, most of them do not apply reason”. In other words, “Hey you lot, stop shouting outside my house, God doesn’t like it”.

I remember from an earlier surah that there was something similar where people were gossiping about the Prophet’s wives, and I think this one is connected, since “O you who have faith! If a profligate [person] should bring you some news, verify it, lest you should visit [harm] on some people out of ignorance, and then become regretful for what you have done”. This, and other verses about “Let not any people ridicule another people: it may be that they are better than they are; nor let women [ridicule] women: it may be that they are better than they are. And do not defame one another, nor insult one another by [calling] nicknames” seem to be addressing a particular incident.

That’s not to say that in their own way they’re fairly reasonable. The idea of checking facts for yourself rather than accept hearsay, for example, seems a sensible one to me. As for not ridiculing people or calling them nicknames, in some ways, yes, in other ways a bit of political satire is healthy, and this also rules out good-natured banter between friends, which can be fun. So, maybe half a mark for that one.

Note that this chapter actually contains, by dint of those passages, some concrete advice on how to be a Muslim. It promotes harmony within the group rather than suspicion and back-biting, but note that this is within the in-group only, not a general rule for all of humanity. Compare with other parts of the Qur’an, particularly the chapters near the start that complain endlessly about the Jews, and you’ve got a risky combination of in-group/out-group separation.

It also addresses specifically the Bedouins, who have not yet fully converted. “You do not have faith yet; rather say, “We have embraced Islam,” for faith has not yet entered into your hearts”. So there’s a difference between wanting to become a Muslim, and actually being one. The Prophet also warns the Bedouins not to think that they are becoming Muslim to please him, but rather that to do so is for their own good because then Allah will have done them a favour by guiding them.

A short chapter, but an interesting one with an entertaining mix of personal grievance mixed into general guidance.

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