Actually, Andy, I know very well what devout Muslims believe about the authorship of the Koran. Many Muslims may indeed think that the Koran is the word of God. I, however, do not, so, being less politically correct than you, I’ll stick with my reference to the “writings of Mohammed”. Contrary to what you suggest, I made no comment at all to what Muslims themselves believe in respect of those writings other than to refer to them as “sacred” and “holy writ”, which to Muslims, obviously, they are.

Now let’s turn to the 1,400 years that have elapsed since Mohammed. To say those are irrelevant to Muslims because the Koran is, to them, the immutable word of God, is to fly in the face of both historical fact and commonsense. The key, and this is something that you and I, with our shared background in the legal profession should have no problem in understanding, is interpretation. As you and I both know, an “interpretation” of a supposedly immutable text can be used to totally transform its meaning. You will also know, of course, that one of the differences between the Shia and Sunnis is their differing attitude to the whole process of interpreting that immutable word of God.

Finally, as you also well know (but I’ll make allowance for your deft use of prosecutorial rhetoric) I have never made any excuses for those who persist in sticking with an ancient interpretation of an ancient text. On the contrary. What’s more, in what I wrote yesterday (and have written before), I made clear that I have no truck with those who would deny either the more savage passages in the Koran or, for that matter, Islamic history. The history is what it is. The words are what they are. At the same time, I think it’s important to understand that humans, all humans, are very selective in the way they interpret their sacred texts. Contrary to their assertions, Islamic “fundamentalists” are, in reality, anything but.

So, as a practical matter what does all this mean? Well, by all means let’s get to the truth behind Islam’s sacred texts (one of the problems in this field is that, unlike in the case of the Bible, there is been very little critical textual analysis of Mohammed’s writings), and let’s do so as a matter of urgency. I think it will insert far more doubt into a faith that could do with a great deal more of it. At the same time, while I have no time for the naïve, empty-headed, and dangerous, banality of those who persist in describing Islam solely as “a religion of peace”, I also reckon that if you, and others like you, continue to put too much emphasis on some of the darker sections of the Koran and thereby imply that Islam must principally be seen through this particular perspective, the only effect will be to reinforce the influence of those Islamic believers who, ironically, see their faith in much the same way as you, apparently, do. That would be a shame.