Protect, Not Possess: Restoring Integrity to Quranic Care for Orphans By Paigham Mustafa A poor translation of the Quran often reveals clear bias, as the concept as a whole is not taken into account and only an isolated verse is rendered in a way that favours those in positions of influence or manipulation. This is why within Quran NME verse 4:3, the rendering “marry them off” is not a casual deviation but a deliberate ethical clarification anchored in the surrounding discour

By Paigham Mustafa Ramadan is commonly understood to be founded upon the belief that saum means fasting, namely abstaining from food and drink from dawn to dusk for one lunar month each year. Yet this inherited understanding raises a number of significant theological and ethical questions when examined directly in light of the Quran. The first concerns the narrative of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Quran recounts that she ate and drank to her satisfaction while nevertheless

Paigham Mustafa Critics of Islam frequently raise the issue of child marriage to discredit Muhammad, arguing that his marriage to Aisha—reportedly at the age of six, with consummation at nine—marks him as a paedophile. Neither Sunni nor Shia scholars have offered a convincing defence against this accusation, largely because certain well-known hadiths, or supplementary texts, appear to support it. Even prominent preachers such as India’s Dr Zakir Naik have attempted to justify

BEYOND ORIGINS How Free Will Defines What We Become By Paigham Mustafa When a student once ask[1]ed Noam Chomsky, “Is there free will?”’, he replied, “Did anyone compel you to ask this question?” “No.” said the student. “There,” replied Chomsky, “you have your answer.” The exchange captures a simple yet powerful truth: freedom feels self-evident. We question, deliberate and act with an immediate awareness that our choices, in some meaningful sense, belong to us. Yet this

Deen–Islam: A Dynamic System of Life Beyond Ritual and Abstraction The Deen-Islam as preserved in the Quran is the most rational means of improving the human condition in an enduring manner. Unlike religion, it is not about an individual’s quest for personal salvation but a collective system for universal welfare and progress. It is understandable that many readers of the Quran—particularly those who regard themselves as progressive thinkers—seek to reinterpret or expand its

The Real Problem Behind Anti-Islamic Rhetoric – and Why Muslims Keep Handing Their Critics the Weapons By Paigham Mustafa Anti-Islamic sentiment is nothing new. It has existed in one form or another throughout history. But the current wave of hostility sweeping through parts of America and Europe feels especially venomous — more organised, more far-reaching, and amplified by a digital echo chamber that thrives on outrage. This new generation of agitators may be few in number,