Page 10 - Communication and Argument in the Qur'an

INTRODUCTION

In the Qur’an, Allah reveals that one of the believers’
most important acts of worship is proclaiming, in the sense
of communicating, the truths revealed in the Qur’an and
inviting people to faith. This act of worship encompasses
every area of life, namely, one’s words, attitude, and
behavior, for they are responsible for telling others about
the Qur’an’s moral teachings and representing Islam. In
fact, their conversations among themselves are mutual
communications, for they invite each other to obey the
Qur’an’s precepts and to reflect the Qur’anic morality. In
short, they are generally engaged in proclaiming the truth.
On the other hand, one of the characteristics of the
unbelievers, as revealed in the Qur’an, is disputation or
argument. This has been the case ever since Allah com-

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manded satan to “prostrate to Adam” (Surat al-Isra’: 61).
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Upon hearing this, he began to argue with Allah - and sure-
ly, Allah is beyond that. Unlike communication, argumen-
tativeness arises from selfishness and brings a person no
good. Therefore, believers must always be ready to com-
municate Allah’s message and avoid the unbelievers’ tend-
ency to argue and dispute. In the Qur’an, Allah joins the
avoidance of disputation and readiness for communication