I often hear that Islamic scripture, which in reality teaches peaceful coexistence, has been twisted into a call for war.
What I never hear is an explanation of how that works. I've spent the better part of two decades reading the Qur'an and history books, and I have yet to find the peaceful coexistence bit. So, please. Someone tell me, using specific passages and in detail, how such a gross misinterpretation has occurred.
This is going to end up hugely argumentative, these conversations always do, but any ideology in the right hands can become really whatever the 'authority' at the time wants that text to mean. Moreover all of the text from the period ending up in all the abrahamic religions have passages that are more outwardly of 'peace' and others that are calls for violence.
Since we are picking on Islam and the Qur'an, there are plenty of passages of making **** up, violence, misogyny, and absolute lunacy.
Qur'an 2:106 - "We never nullify a verse, nor cause it to be forgotten, unless We bring one better than it, or similar to it. Do you not know that Allah is capable of all things?"
Qur'an 3:151 - "We will throw terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve, because they attribute to God partners for which He revealed no sanction. Their lodging is the Fire. Miserable is the lodging of the evildoers."
Qur'an 4:3 - "If you fear you cannot act fairly towards the orphans—then marry the women you like—two, or three, or four. But if you fear you will not be fair, then one, or what you already have. That makes it more likely that you avoid bias."
Quran 4:11 - "Allah instructs you regarding your children: The male receives the equivalent of the share of two females..."
Qur'an 4:89 - "They would love to see you disbelieve, just as they disbelieve, so you would become equal. So do not befriend any of them, unless they emigrate in the way of God. If they turn away, seize them and execute them wherever you may find them; and do not take from among them allies or supporters."
Qur'an 25:52 - "Therefore listen not to the Unbelievers, but strive against them with the utmost strenuousness with it."
Tabari 9:69 - "Killing unbelievers is a small matter to us." (listed as a quote from Muhammad, and considered words of Jihad.)
Then you get **** like...
Qur'an 8:59-61 - "Let not the disbelievers assume that they are ahead. They will not escape. And prepare against them all the power you can muster, and all the cavalry you can mobilize, to terrify thereby Allah's enemies and your enemies, and others besides them whom you do not know, but Allah knows them. Whatever you spend in Allah's way will be repaid to you in full, and you will not be wronged. But if they incline towards peace, then incline towards it, and put your trust in Allah. He is the Hearer, the Knower." (Peace... but with a qualifier.)
Text from the period is riddled with statements like this, and historians tend to agree that earlier passages and interpretations were written more towards timidity when followers of the faith were in small numbers whereas later passages and interpretations more aggressive were put in place once the prevalence of the faith started to dominate key areas of the region. In the Qur'an specifically are literally hundreds of passages with all sorts of interpretation value as applied to whatever condition. Up to and including baked into the text methodologies of governance and arguably law where theocracy is the end goal with no such thing as tolerance of competition ideologies.
That is not coexistence, that is not peace... as most text from the period is designed for, it is all about submission to ideology and a reason to take the life of someone who disagrees.