Koran tagging Non-Muslims along with cattle and animals is merely an insult? (Part 1)

Islam & Hindu Initiative ( IHI ) is an Islamic organization.

They have a website and also a facebook page. On their facebook page, one will read:

The website is aimed at introducing Islam as it is to the Hindus, removing prevalent misconceptions about Islam and respond to attacks against Islam by some radical Hindu groups.

How do they go about doing it? By removing posts from their pages when proved they are wrong or blocking people from commenting on their page.

The latest post, whose title is 'Does the Quran insult all non Muslims by calling them 'worst of creatures'?', from them circulating on facebook is addressed to answering a certain question asked by some Muslim.

Question: "Many Islam haters claim that Islam preaches hatred of non Muslims by quoting the Quran, Surah 98 verse 6, which says
"Those who reject (Truth), among the People of the Book and among the Polytheists, will be in Hell-Fire, to dwell therein (for aye). They are the worst of creatures."
How to respond to this allegation?"

Look at the clever wording as they use the word 'insult' ! Because Koran does not just insult Non-Muslims by calling them as the worst of creatures but it tells Muslims to treat them as such.

That is precisely, we see all Muslim majority nations legalizing discrimination against Non-Muslims in their constitutions. In all these Islamic nations, Non-Muslims have fewer rights compared to Muslims. In some countries discrimination is so horrible that it can only be called as extreme dehumanization of Non-Muslims.

3 examples with regard to this kind of dehumanization:

1. In Saudi Arabia, the value of life of a Muslim is twice that of a Christian and 40 times that of a Hindu. And of course testimony of Non-Muslims is not accepted in its courts or carries lesser weight. Can be there more dehumanization than this? ( Read the 9th paragraph from HERE )

2. In Iran, unequal treatment meted out to Non-Muslims can be read from HERE. If one does read, they will find that life of a Non-Muslim has no value in Iran.

3. In Pakistan, Muslims and Non-Muslims are never equal, and this can be seen from the fact in Pakistan's courts the testimony of a Muslim man is equal to testimony of two Non-Muslim men or 4 Non-Muslim women. ( HERE )

Then we have usual ( very common and basic ) laws that say a Muslim man can marry a Non-Muslim girl but a Non-Muslim man can not marry a Muslim woman. Muslims can convert Non-Muslims to Islam but Non-Muslims can not proselytize their religion nor can convert Muslims to their religion. These two laws are seen in all Islamic countries.

Lets apply little common sense to all this.

In every society, criminals are restricted in their movement and have fewer rights compared to ordinary people. Testimony of criminals is not accepted in courts. And it is not considered bad nor morally wrong to suppress or kill worst people, in fact oppressing or killing bad people is considered as a virtue. 

Similarly, people might be kind to cattle but no society treats cattle on par with humans. Lives of humans are much more worth than that of cattle or beasts or wild animals.

Now, everything makes sense i.e. Koran labeling Non-Muslims as worst of creatures, perverted people explains why Islamic nations treat Non-Muslims so horribly. All those discriminatory laws against Non-Muslims are made because Non-Muslims are invariably considered as bad, inferior and are worse than cattle.

All this must clear the doubts about whether Koran insults Non-Muslims by calling them as worst of creatures or tells Muslims to treat them as such. Now, we can go further and see what esteemed Islamic scholars have said with respect to this kind of verses in Koran tagging Non-Muslims along with animals.

(98.06) Verily, those who disbelieve (in the religion of Islâm, the Qur'ân and Prophet Muhammad SAW) from among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) and Al-Mushrikûn will abide in the Fire of Hell. They are the worst of creatures. (This is the same verse IHI referred to.)

Abdul Ala Maududi, founder of Jamaat-e-Islaami, the most popular Islamic scholar in the South Asia, explains this verse in the following manner ( HERE ):

8. Disbelieved: Refused to acknowledge the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as Allah’s Messenger. The meaning is that the end of those from among the mushriks and the followers of the Book, who have not acknowledged the Messenger whose emergence by itself is a clear evidence, and who is reciting to them hallowed pages containing sound and correct teachings, will be as is being described below.
9. That is, they are worse than all creatures of God, even animals, for the animals do not possess reason and power, but these people reject the truth in spite of having reason and authority. 

Ibn Kathir, a classical Islamic scholar, says ( HERE ):

Mentioning the Worse and Best of Creation and Their Recompense  
Allah informs of what will happen to the wicked disbelievers among the People of the Scripture and the idolators who oppose the Allah's divinely revealed Books and the Prophets whom He sent. He says that they will be in the fire of Hell on the Day of Judgement and they will abide therein forever. This means that they will remain in it and they will have no way out of it and they will not cease being in it.
(They are the worst of creatures.) meaning, they are the worst creation that Allah has fashioned and created. 

(Verse 25.44) Or do you think that most of them hear or understand? They are only like cattle; nay, they are even farther astray from the Path. (i.e. even worst than cattle).

Ibn Kathir on this verse ( HERE ):

They (i.e. Non-Muslims) are worse than grazing cattle. Cattle only do what they were created to do, but these people were created to worship Allah Alone without associating partners with Him, but they worship others with Him, even though evidence has been established against them and Messengers have been sent to them.

Abdul Ala Maududi on this verse ( HERE ):

They (Non-Muslims) are only like the cattle because they follow their lusts blindly. Just as the sheep and cattle do not know where their driver is taking them, to the meadow or to the slaughter house, so are these people also following their leaders blindly without knowing or judging where they are being led, to success or to destruction. The only difference between the two is that the cattle have no intelligence and will not be accountable as to the place where they are being taken by the driver. But it is a pity that human beings who are endowed with reason, should behave like cattle; therefore their condition is worse than that of cattle.
Incidentally it should be noted that this passage (verses 43, 44) is not meant to dissuade the Prophet (peace be upon him) from conveying the message to such people, but it is an indirect warning to the disbelievers of the consequences if they continued to behave like cattle . 

Before one looks in to similar verses in Koran, it is worth recalling what The Reliance of Traveller, Classical Sharia Manual of Shafi'i school of Islam says on disbelief in Islam and testimony of Non-Muslims in Islamic courts. This manual was approved by Al-Azhar University of Cairo, highest authority in Sunni Islam.

Under the section 'o' and chapter 24 with the title 'Witnessing and Testifying', one will read:

@O24.2
Legal testimony is only acceptable from a witness who:
(a) is free;
(b) is fully legally responsible (mukallaf, def: c8.1) (O: as testimony is not accepted from a child or insane person, even when the child's testimony regards injuries among children that occurred at play); 
(c) is able to speak;
(d) it mentally awake;
(e) is religious (O: meaning upright (o24.4) (A: and Muslim), for Allah Most High says,
"Let those of rectitude among you testify" (Koran 65:2), 
and unbelief is the vilest form of corruption, as goes without saying);
which means Non-Muslims can not give any testimony in Islamic courts. And try to digest that, according to Islam and Muslims, disbelief in Islam is the vilest form of corruption implying, all Non-Muslims are criminals and are the worst people. 

(To be cont.)