My answers repectively
A. Religious duty of whom? who is qualified to do that? For me the person preaching should be a model himself foremost.
B. What I have stated, is the original angle and is historically accurate. Application for today is another topic but we must not use the verse as is then because we know circumstances have changed.
C. I hope you can see, that saying "Hadith are not laws" is not misinformation. They are not laws, period. Many sharia laws base their authenticity in the hadith. That is the correct statement. And there is the difference, not all Hadith is applied, nor everyone agrees to each hadith, plenty of disagreement on that front and has been since ages in Islam.
D. Yes some Islamic laws are/should be applicable in modern times, some not.
While I have never seen a good source of the quote you mentioned of shaw so not sure if its authentic, here is one which is quite authentic of Shaw and what he held all his life:
And here is another which is an eyeopener about shaw:
Letter to the Reverend Ensor Walters (1933), as quoted in Bernard Shaw : Collected Letters, 1926-1950 (1988) by Dan H. Laurence, p. 305
I don't think shaw is a very good source for praising Islam.
1. ofcourse and thats what I have been saying all along. Advise if someone does not listen leave them be, its between them and God.
3. No, the greeks also gave women rights. Islam gave rights to middle-eastern and Bedouin women, women who lived in a culture where daughters were discarded upon birth. So no, Islam was not the first religion to gave women rights, it was the first to give rights to middle-eastern women. The rest of the world is not among those.
A. I fail to see how someone needs to be properly qualified . If for example you see someone innocent being attacked, would you not try to stop it? Right and wrong only need clear definition to those who are morally corrupt/ sociopathic. Islam has extended this concept to include all issues. Hence promoting a communal effort to stop evil , even smaller evils like lying , cheating corruption etc. I agree that a morally corrupt person should not be preaching. But that does not mean something i plainly see to be wrong , i should not atleast try to stop it from happening.
B.You have not given any source for this "historical background". Till which point it is merely conjecture or someone's opinions. It may be someones analysis. Does not make it relevant since the ayat was sent by Allah. He alone knows the "historical background". I would refrain from speculating as far as islamic laws is concerned. I believe the Lord to be more than enough to decide for us whats good and what's not. And He has.Whether you shun that law in the name of being "modern" is entirely up to you. Does not make it irrelevant in modern times.
C. Hadith IS islamic law. Kindly reconfirm from learned people. You are just nitpicking. Many things have been defined by Hadith as being allowed or prohibited. E.g nikah mutah (according to sahih bukhari & muslim) , prohibition of wearing silk for men,prohibition of music etc. Hence it is part of Shariah and Islamic law. What you say is merely saying it differently. Being based in hadith and derived from hadith and hadith being law is the same thing. Merely word play.
D. My quote from him was to show that even an atheist would not be put off by islam , due it being archaic . Period. He was an atheist. I dont hold him in high regard for his views on islam. Merely an example of the western tilt towards islam.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it."
Aristotle
The moment i mentioned Shaw and all hell breaks loose.
1. Agreed.
3. No , the greeks weren't. They were notorious for mistreatment of women not necessarily physical, but demeaning in general.
I could give you hundreds of articles on this.Here are two papers as an example.
http://webpage.pace.edu/nreagin/F2004WS267/AnnaCho/finalHISTORY.html
http:/www.academia.edu/1169194/Domestic_Abuse_and_Violence_Against_Women_in_Ancient_Greece
There are many books and articles on the subject.I would advise you to go and read again the treatment of women in ancient greece. Islam was and still is the only religion promoting equality of rights for women in all fields of life.
For all those arguing that we shouldnt "shove" islam down your throats , the reverse is also true. You are shoving liberal and antireligious arguments down our throats. Both should not happen. The moment Islam is mentioned , two cliques are formed. Both should allow the other to speak. That is what education should teach us. Sadly it hasnt. For Muslims, Islam IS everything. Maybe you dont feel that way. That doesnt invalidate the way muslims in general feel nor are those feelings in anyway misguided.
"And our duty is only to convey plainly (the Message)."
(Surah Yasin Verse 17)
Whether you believe it is up to you. The message has been conveyed.
Sent from my LG-E975