The Quran is considered to be the speech of God to humankind — word for word — explains Imam Johari Abdul-Malik.
"The traditional way of disposing of used or damaged copies of the text of the Quran is by burning it," he says.
But Malik, the director of outreach for the Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center in Falls Church, Va., says that doesn't include burning it with the trash. That's what U.S. officials say mistakenly happened with the Qurans in Afghanistan. The burning of Qurans at a NATO airbase near Kabul led to days of rioting by Muslims who say it was a desecration of their holy book and an affront to Islam. President Obama has since apologized for the incident.
Islam certainly isn't the only religion that has rules about how to handle its sacred text. Many faiths prescribe specific rituals for disposing of them, and the bottom line is respect for the words on the page.
Malik, who spent time in Afghanistan in November 2010, says the troops should have asked for guidance.
"If one said, 'Well, we're burning some Qurans today,' that wouldn't incite riots in Afghanistan," he says. "The problem is when one puts a malicious intent as part of the burning."
