Quran's many meanings examined

Duke professor points out the complexity of Islam's sacred text

To some people of faith, whether Christian, Jewish or Muslim, there's only one way to read the holy text -- as a series of straightforward instructions handed down from above.

Bruce Lawrence, in his new book on the Quran, argues that such an approach is as dangerous to the Muslim holy book as it is to the Bible.

The Duke University professor of religion writes in his new book, "The Quran: A Biography," that the sacred text has multiple and often contested meanings. The just-released book is intended as a kind of primer for non-Muslims about the holy and controversial sacred text of Islam and how it has been received through the ages.

The slim volume is part of "Books that Changed the World," a series by Atlantic Monthly Press that provides scholarly examinations of pivotal works through the ages. Other books in the series include Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations," analyzed by P.J. O'Rourke, and a forthcoming volume on the Bible by British scholar Karen Armstrong.

Lawrence's book tells how in 610, the angel Gabriel met Muhammad on an Arabian mountain and gave him a mission. "Recite," the voice commanded, using the ancient Arabic word for recitation, "Quran." The mystically inclined merchant from Mecca soon grew into his role as a prophet.

Trained as an Episcopal priest, Lawrence has been studying Islam for most of his academic career. Though he's well versed in the Hebrew Bible and New Testament, he said he now knows the Quran best. He wrote his current book as an accessible introduction to the content of the holy text, followed by several chapters describing how prominent people have viewed the book from ancient times to today.

As Lawrence points out, Muslims believe the Quran is a compilation of the words of God revealed through recitation. But Lawrence thinks there's no one definitive way of understanding it.

"No Scripture, neither the Torah, the New Testament or the Quran has a single message," he said. "The viewpoint of the interpreter is as important as the text."

For that reason, Lawrence includes two opposing modern-day interpreters: The leader of the African-American Muslim community, Imam W.D. Mohammed; and terrorist mastermind Osama bin Laden. While Mohammed instructs his followers to merge peaceably into the larger worldwide community of Muslim believers, bin Laden incites war against nominal Muslims as well as non-Muslims.

Both interpretations have precedent in the history of Quran interpretation, Lawrence writes. Lawrence, who has written extensively about the rise of fundamentalism and Islam, gained expertise in bin Laden's approach for a previous book, "Messages to the World: The Statements of Osama bin Laden." That book is a collection of 22 speeches and interviews given by the al-Qaeda leader between 1994 and 2004.

In his current work, Lawrence examines the battle cry of bin Laden taken directly out of the Quran: "... then slay the idolaters wherever you find them, and take them captives and besiege them, and lie in wait for them in every ambush," Surah 9:5.

But he points out the passage -- used by militant interpreters such as bin Laden to trump all others -- is taken out of context. There's a long qualifier preceding the passage, which urges Muslims to fulfill the terms of their agreements with non-Muslims. Then the controversial passage ends with the words, "But if they repent and keep up prayer and give alms, then let them go free; for God is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful."

The prophet changes

"You have to work harder to see what are the major themes and recurrent messages," said Lawrence, who gave a reading from his book at the Regulator Bookshop in Durham earlier this week.

Part of the difficulty with the Quran is it spans two distinct periods in the life of the Prophet Muhammad. From 610 to 622, Muhammad lived a peaceful life in Mecca preaching a message that there was only one God. When opposition to his message began to mount, he faced a choice -- stay and be killed, or flee.

Muhammad and his followers escaped to Medina, where the prophet soon became a social, political and military strategist until his death in 632. By necessity, that changed the tone of his message too.

Lawrence said this was his happiest book to write, in part because it allows him to reach readers outside of academia who are curious about Islam. Some may feel that Islam is radically different from the Judeo-Christian tradition, but Lawrence said he wants people to see the themes it evokes as part of a larger Abrahamic tradition.

"There is a common core to Judaism, Christianity and Islam," Lawrence said, especially in its insistence on one God who seeks justice but has compassion for humankind. At 66, Lawrence sees himself as an interfaith champion, and posts his own "Prayer for Peace Among the Children of Abraham" on his Web site: www.bruceblawrence.com.

Lawrence said his hope is that more people will gain understanding through knowledge.

"... there is not a single Quranic message," Lawrence writes. "The Quran -- like all sacred literature-- requires study. The act of studying its form, content and transmission over time is called interpretation. ... Each interpreter must choose."