Abstract / DOI
Violence in the Holy Scriptures of Islam and Christianity. The Bible and the Qur’an can be misused to legitimize violence. Thus, the exegesis in both religions needs strategies to deal with this problem. The author argues that the theologies of both religions should not try to defend the own religion at the expense of the other. In discussing two concrete examples (Dtn 7:1–3 and Q 9:5) he tries to show that three strategies can be most successful as means of pacification in both religions: First of all textual, historical and archeological evidence can be used to proof the fictional character of violence in the Holy texts which leads to a first helpful shift of the problem. But still a mere fictional violence is problematic. Hence we need as a second step an analysis of the function of the fiction or the threat of violence. In the examined examples this threat is used to shape the identity of the believer’s movement towards more egalitarian and participative features. Finally texts have to be read holistically with respect to other parts of the Holy Scripture. All these strategies will not change the ambivalent nature of violence in the Bible and the Qur’an. But they can lead to first steps of their pacification.