sardab wrote:Convincingly? Thats self-consolation man! Read through 5:12 to 5:16. It clearly says both Jews and Christians corrupted their books. And when Qur'an refers to OT and NT with respect, those definitely are not the books you hold today, but original Messages of God. Again, save your time.
Let's look at the verses you stated:
[5.12] And certainly Allah made a covenant with the children of Israel, and We raised up among them twelve chieftains; and Allah said: Surely I am with you; if you keep up prayer and pay the poor-rate and believe in My apostles and asslst them and offer to Allah a goodly gift, I will most certainly cover your evil deeds, and I will most certainly cause you to enter into gardens beneath which rivers flow, but whoever disbelieves from among you after that, he indeed shall lose the right way.
[5.13] But on account of their breaking their covenant We cursed them and made their hearts hard; they altered the words from their places and they neglected a portion of what they were reminded of; and you shall always discover treachery in them excepting a few of them; so pardon them and turn away; surely Allah loves those who do good (to others).
[5.14] And with those who say, We are Christians, We made a covenant, but they neglected a portion of what they were reminded of, therefore We excited among them enmity and hatred to the day of resurrection; and Allah will inform them of what they did.
[5.15] O followers of the Book! indeed Our Apostle has come to you making clear to you much of what you concealed of the Book and passing over much; indeed, there has come to you light and a clear Book from Allah;
[5.16] With it Allah guides him who will follow His pleasure into the ways of safety and brings them out of utter darkness into light by His will and guides them to the right path.
I see nowhere it proclaims the Torah and Injil were textually corrupted but instead it says that those who learn from the Torah and Injil corrupted it's teachings. This is no difference how some corrupt the teachings of the Bible today (such as ursus137) but that doesn't mean the Word itself has been corrupted.
The biggest problem the Qur'an has was that it proclaimed the Book as being true and uncorrupted. Now if you believe your beloved Qur'an, then you should believe the other verses (about 40 or so) that clarifies the truth of the Book.
In the very same chapter, you Qur'an says:
5:68-71
"If only the People of the Book had believed and been righteous, we should have blotted out their sins and admitted them to gardens of bliss." "If only they had performed the Torah and the Gospel and all that was revealed to them from their Lord, they would have eaten from above and from under their feet. Among them is a People (umma) on the right course, but evil is that which many of them do..." "Say, O People of the Book! You are not (founded) on anything until you PERFORM the Torah and the Gospel, and what was revealed to you from your Lord."
The Book was indeed present at the time of Muhammad and if you read the other verses (over 40) that speaks of the Torah and Injil (the BooK), then you will understand what is meant by Sura 5:12-16. And maybe you already know these verses but rather abrogate them for this one passage you gave me. If that is the case, then you have no desires to really know the truth.