Why I Believe in The Qur’an

I have been asked, many times, what makes me believe that The Qur’an is actually the word of God. There are many reasons, but two stand out above all else, for me:

First, The Qur’an is the only (yes, only) religious scripture that places men and women on equal ground, in that, The Qur’an requires and expects the utmost from both men and women, and furthermore, The Qur’an is the only scripture which includes women, specifically, and the only scripture that addresses women directly.

The Qur’an puts the highest of expectations upon both men and women, and refers, constantly to “believing men and believing women,” in which they are afforded the same level of rights, responsibilities, and expectations which are placed upon both men and women within The Qur’an. This illustrates a revolutionary change that we Muslims today, still, have yet to fully understand. The Qur’an demands that women read The Word of God, and this injunction is unique to any religion on this Earth.

The Bible is a book written by men, for men. In the original Orthodox conception of Talmudic Law, women were not permitted to touch the Torah. While there is no single Buddhist scripture, the Sukhavati-vyuha Sutra, has verses which underline that women must reincarnate into men, before they can attain Nirvanna.

Even when you put aside the fact that men and women share equal punishment under the law, or that the word “men” and “women” are mentioned an equal 23 times, and that a woman’s testimony regarding her honor overrides a man’s accusation, the simple fact of the matter is that The Qur’an empowers women in a way that I will never be able to fully understand, because I am not a woman, but when I look at the women in my family, who are lawyers, engineers, doctors, and directors of investment banks, who all cite Islam as the method of their empowerment, how can you expect me, or anyone, to even question the impact of The Qur’an upon the betterment of women?

Second, The Qur’an is the only scripture which acknowledges and accepts other religions as The Will of God, and not some source of deviancy.

I know of no other religion, whose scripture does this. No other scripture underlines this commonality in man, and no other religion specifically incorporates other religions as part of its teachings: to not just “tolerate” but to protect those who have different faith, but also to realize that all who submit to God are worthy of the title “Muslim,” and that God, and God alone, determines who is worthy of such a title. The Qur’an is the most direct path towards being a Muslim, but, it is a title to be earned not simply adopted.

The Qur’an is clear in that who goes to heaven is up for God to determine, alone, and it is within The Qur’an that God’s unlimited capacity is underlined, because to constrain God to one religion is not God’s work, rather, it is man’s desire. Islam is a religion that people of all faiths practice, they might not call it Islam, but they are acting as Muslims, and it is The Qur’an that stands alone in affirming this.

These two aspects are so distinct, and to me, they are the ultimate proof of God, because no other religion exhibits these two aspects, rather, other religions have had to figure out ways to justify these two aspects, if they have tried at all.