Islam Quote by Martin Gilbert
““Bernard Lewis, a lifelong student of Jews and Islam and himself a Jew, reflected on the fourteen centuries of Jewish life under Islamic rule, eight centuries after Maimonides’ damning verdict. Lewis wrote: ‘The Jews were never free from discrimination, but only rarely subject to persecution.’ He noted that the situation of Jews living under Islamic rulers was ‘never as bad as in Christendom at its worst, nor ever as good as in Christendom at its best.’ Lewis observed that ‘there is nothing in Islamic history to parallel the Spanish expulsion and Inquisition, the Russian pogroms, or the Nazi Holocaust.’ But he also commented that, on the other hand, there was nothing in the history of Jews under Islam ‘to compare with the progressive emancipation and acceptance accorded to Jews in the democratic West during the last three centuries.’11””
About This Quote
Source Book: The History of Jews under Islam, Martin Gilbert, 2005
Jewish life under Islamic rule faced discrimination but rarely persecution, contrasting with both worse and better periods in Christendom and the modern West.
In simple terms: Jews were discriminated against but not heavily persecuted under Islam.
Key Takeaway
Recognize nuanced historical contexts.
Themes
discrimination
historical comparison
religion
Mood
thoughtful
analytical
Type
historical
educational
When to use this quote
- academic study
- cultural relations
Key Concepts
minority rights
historical analysis
Questions to Reflect On
- How do we balance acknowledging both oppression and tolerance?
A Different Perspective
Historical nuance may be oversimplified.
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![“[T]he people who are close to Allah worry so much about wasting time that they call themselves to account for every breath they spend - how many of us wonder about how we spend our day, let alone each breath?” quote by Ethar El- Katatney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/a43/ethar-el-katatney-236694_allah_t-he-people-who-are-close-to-allah-worry_3003.jpg)
