BrightShadow
Active Member
That is a blanket statement! Most crimes viewed as a sin in the medieval era are still viewed as a sin in our era; for example: murder, stealing, rape etc.
Most crimes are not only still viewed as a sin in our era - the same crime has also expanded and branched off in multiple directions! Now one can kill multiple innocent victims with a press of a button with new inventions such as drones or missiles loaded with explosives. Now we also have high power automatic weapons that can do extreme and random destruction , we have heavy equipment such as tank, fighter jets etc. that can do indiscriminate damage. The crimes are just taking new faces with the expansion of technology such as corporate fraud, digital theft, usury practices by huge banking corporations etc. We have telemarketing fraud schemes, hackers attacks etc. etc. All these are new crimes BUT at the end of the day - it is the same sin of murder or theft ! The crimes have just expanded and became more damaging these days. Also it became harder to apprehend these new kinds of offenders and sometimes the offenders are working for the state and just following orders and thus immune to any punishments; such as an military drone expert who with just press of buttons blow up targets without knowing if he is killing any innocent civilians or not. This kind of killers don't even behave like killers because they feel - it is a job for them. They feel they are innocent!
Even though sins are still sins - punishments for the crime may have reshaped in most parts of the world due to evolution of prison systems and creation of rehabilitation programs etc. Now we look at intentions and motives and mental competency of the accused.
Advancements in psychological understanding of criminal behavior and advancement in science and technology in general - has revolutionized crime detection and management and prevention by possible repeat offenders in ways it was not possible before! There were just no easy way to monitor criminals 1400 years ago. So, if you release them then they could just skip town and be bad somewhere else. The burden was on the captors if they just release the criminals without making sure the society is safe from them. There was no good, systematic and organized way to keep people in incarnation. So obviously they had to administer quick, effective and harsh punishments for certain crimes. Even in the good old wild west - Horse theft was a hanging offense in many western states and territories. Barely up to 175 years ago for a simple crime like horse theft was punishable by hanging in the wild west. This example should tell you what kind of world 1400 years ago could have been.
But the need for less severe and more humane punishment and the change in that direction didn't happen just because we became better humans but more due the fact - the science and development (in various fields) allowed us to do so. In other words - the need for such punishments were simply not there, we developed other ways to handle the problem. Our ways now - simply wouldn't have worked back then!
So anyone looking at the punishments carried out in certain communities should allow themselves to be aware of that before pointing out what is this and what is that?
As the technology improved and scenarios changed - it became logical to adjust the punishments to suit the crime. I have no problem with such change and no sane person would have any problem with that either.
Quran does say -
[Quran 8:22] "Indeed, the worst creatures in the sight of Allah are the deaf and dumb who do not use reason".
So, we have to use 'reason' and understand the need for such change. It is important to mention that - the Quran does not mention stoning to death at all.
There is another reason - punishment from medieval era has been adjusted! Now, in many parts of the world - we have a mixed and secular environment where people represent many different religions. So, we cannot use one religion as a basis for rulings; it won't be fair to all. So, separation of state affairs from religion was indeed needed!
That is a superficial outlook!
Look beyond surface and look into more depth! Despite of their isolation - throughout the history of mankind - almost all indigenous societies - always worshipped some sort of deity or deities. It is an inborn inclination to believe in a creator. Every complex material or thing (in our realm) must have a creator behind it. To believe things came into existence from "nothing" is illogical.
There is reason when people converts to Islam are called reverts! Islam teaches that we are born with the inclination to believe in a one God ideology. So, when people convert - they are in fact reverting.
You are speaking like such practices were new and Muslims started it. Some folks simply don't comprehend the fact that - regardless of a prophet being sent by the real creator - it is simply not feasible for any prophet to just ignore every pre-existing wrong practices and forbid all of them from the get-go. Prophets were just messengers - they were humans. No one would even begin to listen to them if they forbid all pre-existing practices in the harshest possible ways. It would be hard to even find the very first believers if the prophets did that. Jesus convinced folks through God given miracles and it kind of backfired. Once Jesus left - some started to convince themselves that Jesus was god or son of god. Muhammad didn't use the same method. Muhammad spread the truth with very little super natural performances because people needed to believe with their hearts.
Muhammad had to progressively restrict people from doing many deadly things they considered as normal practice. This slow and progressive eradication method was the only way people (off the time) would have accepted the change! In a society where many wrong practices were the norm - Islam showed the pathway to complete eradication of such practices by putting restriction here and there. If you acknowledge the restrictions and conditions and follow them then you will end up stop practicing all that we know now as immoral. It is an ingenious method and only a believer can see that because a believer is not caught up in the commotion of all the propaganda.
This is why you see 99.999999% Muslims marrying only one wife and no one have any 'war booties' (as you put it) and no one have slaves or anything else you may complain about that Islam allows! Muslims have realized and acknowledge the restrictions and and realized that in order to maintain the conditions - one is better off staying away from it altogether and that is the correct path forward! That is the beauty of Islamic teachings!
I already explained how she could be hurting someone. If a kid grows an infatuations towards her and then finds ways to watch porn and becomes an addict and wastes his life then the chain may follow back to the instigator or the improper environment the infatuation began! The kid should not have been exposed to such situation even to normalize it because every little head works differently.
You could put a little honey on a fence between two neighbors - ants comes to the eat the honey a bird sees the ants and comes - one neighbor's cat see the bird and comes to attack - the other neighbor's dog attacks the cat - and the next thing you know - is a huge fight between two neighbors. How did it all start? Yes! That little honey you put on the fence! It is a chain reaction!
Are you sure? Are you watching every kid? Even if you were right, keep in mind they have normalized it. It was normal to burn someone accused of practicing witchcraft in the past - so many folks many have ignored looking at it and went about their everyday routines because it was a normal practice. Does it make it right to burn someone in that manner?
You can get the core teaching and believe in a one God ideology even from the translations. That is the minimum one could do! You want to see the beauty - you could learn further.
You learned how to use computer! You could have chosen not to learn how to use any smart devices. If you feel the need you would learn further and what you can. The option is there!
There are rules in every society and threats of arrest and prosecution if you break them. You can't walk naked outside in the city. You cannot play music loud at night if you live in the city. Why would it be any difference when it comes to religion?
If you meant - 'threat' afterlife - then arrive at the airport without passport or ticket! That is your prerogative! See if you can deal with the situation then! It would be too late! imo
What do you call when you parents disciplined you as a kid if you did something wrong? Did you call it oppression?
Look around - there are plenty of examples of oppression in the world without religion to blame. What do you call North Korean citizens' conditions in their own country?
It is natural way ordained by the creator, and creator knows best!
Of course - you have to interpret the doctrine properly and not like the OP or the terrorists.
Basic teachings are not hard to comprehend.
If you rather want to run around like a wild Boar or a wild Hog - then that is your prerogative but the society will not let you run around freely. You are governed by something or someone - just not something divine!
Fight to fix that rather than resorting to cheating. Don't jump from frying pan into fire!
The same people also seek out all the filth and lies spread by disingenuous folks who are basically enemies of Islam and they believe all their propaganda.