New Quranists: What Should You Expect?

So now you’ve decided: I am no longer a Sunni or Shia. I am a Quranist. I only accept Quran as revelation from Allah to the Prophet. You may see hadith as a body of humanly authored literature or at worst, a conspiracy against the Prophet and so, you’ve decided to give it up. Where does that leave you?

Well now, you have to start afresh. Everything you knew about Islam (except the fact that God is one, maybe) is up for grabs because lets face it: Hadith and Sunnah makes up most of what constitutes Islam. This is how it is for most people in the world. In fact, a famous scholar in this video says that if you are stranded on a desert island with the Quran, you are lost because you simply cannot practise Islam. That’s how disempowered the Quran is!

But anyhow back to you, the new Quranist. As a new Quranist, you should know what to expect.

First and foremost, unless you are 100% purified as Allah expects, expect not to understand the Quran fully on your first read. Most new Quranists tend to read much of their previous ideas of Islam into their reading of the Quran. That’s why the first question new Quranists almost invariably ask each other is ‘what’s your opinion on salat’. This is the result of a previous mindset carried into our new reading. These preconceptions will gradually disappear if you keep reading and keep adding to your notes. This is a lifetime journey after all.

Secondly, expect a vast difference between various Quranist groups and individuals. Not small differences but vast ones. This is no exaggeration, believe me. Why does this happen? Because once free of the dogmatism of Traditional Islam, our capacities to think freely are allowed to express themselves fully. This is a good thing so don’t let it scare you. Instead, please remember this. Whatever the case, you will be facing God all by yourself. So worry about your own interpretation. Learn from the others, sure but ultimately verify everything for yourself.

Thirdly, do not expect gloss. Let me explain: Quranist literature rarely, if ever, appears on high quality print or in mainstream media. At the moment, that simply isn’t our lot in life. Perhaps that is Allah’s test on the Quranist: Whether or not he can see past the very misleading sparseness of Quranist presence. Our books may not have the material quality and we may not be as public as scholars of Traditional Islam but we need to ask ourselves, do we have it where it counts and that is the quality of our discourse.

Fourthly, expect to see a lot of shocking revelations. The extent of which Islam differs from what the Quran teaches is bound to shock anyone. After all, if we were from a Traditional Islamic background, we would have expected the Quran to be actually supporting what Traditional Islam teaches but it does not. All Quranists would agree that much:  That Islam has been distorted although there is no agreement as to exactly how much distortion has taken place. So don’t let the distortions shock you into questioning Quranism. Just ensure that whatever  you believe about what Allah teaches comes from the Quran and you’ll be fine.

Being a Quranist is a very exciting journey indeed. A Quranist has the ability to do something which no other Muslim has: the ability to challenge even the highest authorities. While our association isn’t as visible or well known as other Muslims, we have the opportunity to make Quranism a democratic and progressive version of Islam which is very much in line with the Quran itself.

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