The fact that a copy of the Qur'an was burned in Florida is now public knowledge. The result - predictably - has been riots and even deaths in the Muslim world, and attacks on Christians who have no connection at all with the burning of the Qur'an.
Burning books is an activity that is rightly regarded with disgust in the West - we connect it with Hitler's intolerance and oppression. But the question we have to ask is - what does book-burning actually accomplish? In Hitler's case it was a public demonstration of a regime's banning of the books in question. In the Florida case it can only be a demonstration of opposition to the Qur'an's teaching. In other words, a book-burning is for the folk at home, to rally support. We should not forget that some King James Only pastors have held burnings of other Bible translations as a mark of their dislike of these translations. Book-burning is a tool for encouraging the troops, not a means of influencing those with whom we disagree.
But as Christians we should be trying to reach out to Muslims with the truth of the Bible rather than alienating them with publicity stunts like Qur'an burnings. The offence of the Gospel is enough. Now, someone may object, 'What about the burning of the magic books in Ephesus?' First of all, the books were brought by converts who had given up the practice of magic, and therfore wanted to get rid of the books. Secondly, these were magic books containing spells. The Qur'an is not. In many cases magical powers were supposed to reside within the books as physical objects. Because of these facts, it was appropriate to destroy magical books. But the Qur'an that was burned was not burned by a convert from Islam.
The destruction of magical books in Ephesus was not going to create a barrier to the Gospel. In fact it was declaring plainly that the Gospel is a incompatible with magic. The destruction of a Qur'an is in and of itself a barrier, and worse, it has been used as a pretext for anti-Christian violence. No doubt this violence is whipped up by leaders who are making false claims and associating this act with all Christians. To kill a man for burning a book is criminal. To kill a man for an act in which that person had no part at all is just evil.
To burn a book is not a Christian act, and I therefore unequivocally condemn this foolish act, just as I condemn the violence that has occurred in retaliation. Peaceful protest is a right. To destroy the property, much more the person, of another is a crime.
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