Q 1. I am a Jew and I am reading the Qur an. I find that the Qur an is
very harsh in its criticism of the Jewish people. For example in chapter
5:60-64 I see that Jewish people are called as those whom Allah has
cursed, is angry with them and has turned them into apes and swine. This
is very offensive and sounds outright anti-Semitic. How do you explain
this? I shall appreciate an answer from you.

A 2. Anti-Semitism means condemning and hating a people because of their
Semitic race. Anti-Semitism is bigotry and racism. It is wrong and it
has no place in Islam or in Islamic scripture. The Qur an does not allow
hate against any race, nationality or color. Throughout the history of
Islam, Muslims have never used passages from the Qur an to justify acts
of anti-Semitism. The ill-effects of racism, including ethnic cleaning,
genocide and Holocaust, which has been suffered by Jews and non-Jews
alike over the past several centuries, has never been done under the
banner of any passages from the Qur an. Jews were among the earliest
converts to Islam (in Medina) and, throughout the Middle Ages, Jews
found sanctuary to practice their own religion under Islamic rule. It is
truly disappointing and naive to ignore 1430 years of history and
learned discourse on the Qur an and argue that the current political
situation in the Middle East has its roots in passages from the Qur an.

As with all scriptures, passages in the Qur an must be read within the
proper context. The Qur an was not just revealed to Muslims, but to all
people, including Jews and Christians. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon
him) was in the line of previous Prophets of God, including Prophets
Abraham, Moses and Jesus, and the Qur an is in the line of previous
scriptures revealed by God. The Qur an does not condemn the Semitic race
and, in fact, accords Jews a special status given their shared prophetic
traditions with Islam. The Qur an instead criticizes those Jews who
turned away from God s authentic message and admonishes those who
scorned and ridiculed Prophet Muhammad and the message of the Qur an.
Such criticism is similar to the criticism against Jews found in other
scriptures, including the Bible, and should be taken by all people as a
reminder and warning against forsaking and straying from the authentic
message of God. Such specific criticism has never been interpreted by
learned scholars of the Qur an to incite hatred against all Jewish
people and should not be confused with anti-Semitism.

The Qur an speaks extensively about the Children of Israel (Bani
Isra il) and recognizes that the Jews (al-Yahud) are, according to
lineage, descendants of Prophet Abraham through his son Isaac and
grandson Jacob. They were chosen by God for a mission (44:32) and God
raised among them many Prophets and bestowed upon them what He had not
bestowed upon many others (5:20). He exalted them over other nations of
the earth (2:47, 122) and granted them many favors.

Passages in the Qur an which criticize the Jews fall primarily into two
categories. First, the Qur an speaks of how some of the Children of
Israel turned away from the authentic message revealed to them. They
disobeyed God and showed ingratitude for God s favors on them. They lost
the original Tawrat and introduced their own words and interpretations
in the divine books. They became arrogant and claimed that they were
God s children and went about vaunting their position as His most chosen
people (4:155; 5:13, 18). They also brazenly committed sins and their
rabbis and priests did not stop them from doing so (5:63, 79). God
raised His Prophet Jesus among them so that he might show them several
miracles and thereby guide them to the right path, but they rejected
him, attempted to kill him, and even claimed that they had indeed killed
him although they had not been able to do so (4:157, 158). God
specifically addresses the Children of Israel in many of these passages.
This is important, because it shows that the message of the Qur an was
intended for all people, including the Jews, and the criticism was
directed against a specific group of people for their specific actions.
This criticism should be distinguished from cursing a people merely
because of their race.

The second type of criticism of the Jews is found in passages including
those you referenced from Surah al-Ma idah (5:60-64). These verses
criticize the Jews and Christians who ridiculed Prophet Muhammad and his
message. They made mockery and sport of his call to prayer, and they
rebuked him even though he was calling them to believe in what God
revealed to him and to what was revealed before him through their own
Prophets. They became spiteful towards him and rejected him since he did
not belong to the Children of Israel (2:109; 4:54).

The Qur an specifically notes that such criticism is not directed
against all Jews. Even when the Qur an criticizes the Jews it always
notes that among them there are some... who are pious and righteous
people, who command what is right and forbid what is wrong and try to
excel each other in acts of charity and goodness. The Qur an says that
such people are assured that whatever good they will do will not be
denied them and they shall receive their reward with God (3:113-115).

Taking a few passages from the Qur an out of proper historical and
textual context will not give a proper understanding of the religious
scripture. This is not only true of the Qur an but also of the Bible.
Many passages from the Bible also criticize the Jews. Read the Hebrew
Bible, particularly Micah (Chapter 3:1-12) and Hosea (Chapter 8:1-14),
in which these prophets condemned the Jews who abhor justice and
pervert all equity and who build Zion with blood and Jerusalem with
wrong. These prophets cursed Israel as a useless vessel among
nations, and called for the curse of God to send a fire upon [Judah s]
cities and to make Jerusalem a heap of ruins. Similarly, in the Book
of Deuteronomy (Verses 16-68), Moses warns the Jews that God will send
upon you curses, confusion, and frustration, in all that you undertake
to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly, on account of the
evil of your doings, because you have forsaken me (28:20). In Matthew
(Chapter 23:13-39), Jesus repeatedly admonishes the Jews for their
hypocrisy and injustice, and condemns them for the killing of past
prophets. Jesus says, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, killing the prophets and
stoning those who are sent to you! How often would I have gathered your
children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you
would not! Behold, your house is forsaken and desolate. It would indeed
seem strange if, based on these passages, one were to argue that the
Bible and the Hebrew Prophets were anti-Semitic and called for the
destruction of present-day Israel. Yet, questioning passages from the
Qur an as anti-Semitic is similarly without merit.