Koran More Feminist Than Bible: Scholar

Certain passages in the Koran give women more freedoms than the Bible, a Dutch philosopher tells Radio Free Netherlands. On the site bibleandkoran.net, Marlies ter Borg compares texts on economic independence, marriage, and divorce from both books to dispel what she calls misconceptions about the Islamic faith. "In many ways, the Koran is more modern than the Bible," she says.

Ter Borg cites dowries and divorce procedures that favor women as evidence of the Koran's progressive outlook. "Many people think the Koran is anti-women," she says. "But there's nothing in the Koran to suggest this. Christians, on the other hand, often think they are more tolerant towards women. But Bible texts can be worse on that point." (More Netherlands stories.)