Hey Craig: I think we’re talking past each other.

It is a fact that Muslims, unlike Christians, by definition believe that the Koran is literally true. That’s because they, by definition, believe it to be the word of God. That is, the words in the Koran are God speaking. That is why calling someone a fundamentalist Muslim is misleading – the term “fundamentalist” being used originally in the Protestant context to denote those who believed the Bible to be literally (rather than merely allegorically) true. In this “the Koran is literally true” sense, all Muslims are fundamentalists.

Now, this fact doesn’t preclude Muslims from, as you put it, “dissent[ing] when a holy text is (mis-)used and abused as justification for the prejudices of the beholder”. Of course Muslims can dissent in this way, but this isn’t because they believe the Koran to be any less literally true, but because they believe those who seek to interpret it are doing so in fallacious ways. The fallability here is in the individual’s interpretation not the Koran’s veracity, if you get my drift.

So, a Muslim would struggle to say, “yes, I disagree with the Koran when it says…”; however, Muslims do, as you point out, say all the time “I disagree with how that Muslim is interpreting Allah’s words in the Koran”.

The problem isn’t with God (or Allah), or His messages, but with the fallibility of the human condition.

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You wrote: “As a Muslim, he couldn’t agree that the Koran was wrong about anything (Muslims, by definition, believe the Koran to be the literal word of God)”. Um, I think you should take your own advice and try and get a little more informed about Islam before making statements like that.

Muslims, like Christians or Jews, CAN – and DO – strongly dissent when a holy text is (mis-)used and abused as justification for the prejudices of the beholder. Much as Zain Ali tries to fudge the point, there are too many Muslims who do cite scriptual authority (truthfully or not) for the vilest acts of homophobia, misogyny, harassment, intimidation and, yes, terrorism. As a Christian, I have to say The Bible is similarly abused. It’s just a cop out to use The Koran – or The Bible or The Talmud – as cover. I don’t accept that from Christians, and don’t see why I should accept any such rhetoric double dutch from Muslims.

BTW, I find it interesting that Ali cites lesbian advocate of “a liberal reformation of Islam” Ishard Manji as a “gay activist”. As she has written very little about gays issues – and most of that in the context of the homophobia and misogyny of Islamic fundamentalism – I rather miss the point of that label, especially when he’s complaining about the stereotyping of Muslims. Surely her views on Islam stand or fall on their merits, not her sexuality?

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