"Ye have indeed in the Messenger of Allah a beautiful pattern of conduct"
A few years ago Khaleel Mohammed, a professor at San Diego State University and a popular "moderate Muslim," said this about me: "He misquotes verses of the Qur'an, takes things out of context, and shamelessly lies." Since I do not misquote verses of the Qur'an, take things out of context, or shamelessly lie, I contacted him and asked for either documentation of his charges or a retraction. He responded: "As for shameless lies, I stand by my assertion, especially after received material in which you claim Muhammad married his daughter in law etc."
As it happens, on Friday at FreedomFest I debated Professor Daniel C. Peterson, author of Muhammad: Prophet of God. Dr. Peterson is a good man and a careful scholar, and picking up a copy of his book I noticed that on pages 167-168 he tells the story of Muhammad and his daughter-in-law Zaynab in much the way I have told it in this week's Blogging the Qur'an installment, as well as in my book The Truth About Muhammad: Muhammad "was in love with" Zaynab; his adopted son Zayd offered "to yield up his wife to the Prophet if the Prophet so desired," but Muhammad refused; Muhammad then received a divine revelation and announced, "Who will go to Zaynab, and tell her of the good news that God has given her to me in marriage?"; and now "Zayd, despite Muhammad's formal adoption of him, was not to be considered Muhammad's son."
So apparently Professor Peterson has descended with me to the level of "shameless lies."
The author of the Foreword to Professor Peterson's book says that he "has approached his work as the consummate academic." He says that the book itself is "admirable" and is a "welcome addition to the field of religious and Islamic studies," and concludes: "I recommend this work most highly."
The author of those words? Khaleel Mohammed.
Here now is this week's installment of the Blogging the Qur'an series, which discusses in full the notorious incident of Muhammad's marriage to his former daughter-in-law Zaynab -- which, far from being a "shameless lie," is a well-known and much-discussed element of Islamic tradition.
During the Battle of the Trench, Muhammad’s trust in Allah when things looked bleak for the Muslims stood him in good stead. Allah tells the Muslims to imitate him, for in him is “a beautiful pattern” of conduct (v. 21). This is the foundation of Muhammad’s singular position in Islam as the supreme example for behavior. Muqtedar Khan of the Center for the Study of Islam and Democracy explains:
No religious leader has as much influence on his followers as does Muhammad (Peace be upon him) the last Prophet of Islam….And Muhammad as the final messenger of God enjoys preeminence when it comes to revelation – the Qur’an – and traditions. So much so that the words, deeds and silences (that which he saw and did not forbid) of Muhammad became an independent source of Islamic law. Muslims, as a part of religious observance, not only obey, but also seek to emulate and imitate their Prophet in every aspect of life. Thus Muhammad is the medium as well as a source of the divine law.
Allah sometimes seem anxious to grant his prophet his heart’s desires. In verses 28-35 Allah addresses Muhammad’s wives, enjoining upon them modesty and piety; then verses 36-37 refer obliquely to one of the most notorious incidents of Muhammad’s prophetic career. Zaynab bint Jahsh had been married to Muhammad’s adopted son Zayd bin Haritha. According to the Tafsir al-Jalalayn, Muhammad asked for Zaynab’s hand on behalf of Zayd; Zaynab and her brother “were loathe” to agree, “for they had thought that the Prophet (s) wanted to marry her himself.” But they ultimately agreed because of the admonition that “it is not fitting for a Believer, man or woman, when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Messenger to have any option about their decision: if any one disobeys Allah and His Messenger, he is indeed on a clearly wrong Path” (v. 36).
The Tafsir al-Jalalayn says that Muhammad “caught sight” of Zaynab “and felt love for her,” while Zayd “lost his affection for her” and told Muhammad, “I want to part with her.” But Muhammad told him: “Keep thy wife to thyself, and fear Allah” (v. 37). Aisha later remarked, “If Allah’s Apostle were to conceal anything (of the Quran) he would have concealed this Verse” – because it shows him unwilling to accept Allah’s will, which was that he marry Zaynab. Then one day, according to Tabari, an esteemed, if not the most esteemed, historian and expositor of the Qur’an, Muhammad went to Zayd’s house and found her wearing only a chemise. Muhammad hastened away, murmuring, “Glory be to God the Almighty! Glory be to God, who causes hearts to turn!”
Soon afterward, according to Tabari, Muhammad was talking with Aisha when “a fainting overcame him.” Then he smiled and asked, “Who will go to Zaynab to tell her the good news, saying that God has married her to me?” He then recited the revelation Allah had just given him, scolding him for being concerned about what people might think and thus refusing to marry Zaynab (v. 37). The Tafsir al-Jalalayn explains what Allah is telling Muhammad here: “But you had hidden in your heart what God was to disclose, [what] He was to manifest of your love for her and of [the fact] that should Zayd part with her you would marry her, and you feared people, would say, ‘He has married his son’s wife!’, though God is worthier that you should fear Him, in all things, so take her in marriage and do not be concerned with what people say.”
According to Tabari, Aisha said: “I became very uneasy because of what we heard about her beauty and another thing, the greatest and loftiest of matters—what God had done for her by giving her in marriage. I said that she would boast of it over us.” Zaynab did, saying to Muhammad’s other wives: “You were given in marriage by your families, while I was married (to the Prophet) by Allah from over seven Heavens.”
Verses 38-48 continue defending Muhammad. Muhammad cannot be criticized for doing what Allah has given him as a duty (v. 38). Muhammad is the seal of the prophets (v. 40); as he himself explained, “Messengership and Prophethood have come to an end, and there will be no more Messengers or Prophets.” Muhammad is a witness, a bearer of good news, and a warner (v. 45), and should not obey the unbelievers (v. 48) – such as those who say he did wrong in marrying Zaynab.
Then follow (verses 49-52) regulations concerning marriage. A man may divorce a woman before consummating the marriage (v. 49). Muhammad may marry women who offer themselves to him; believers do not share this privilege (v. 50). ‘Ikrimah explained: “This means, it is not permissible for anyone else to marry a woman who offers herself to him; if a woman offers herself to a man, it is not permissible for him (to marry her) unless he gives her something.” Muhammad may go to his wives in any order he chooses, and may postpone the turn of any of them if he wishes (v. 51). When this verse was revealed, Aisha said acidly to Muhammad: “I feel that your Lord hastens in fulfilling your wishes and desires.”
Verses 53-59 reinforce Muhammad’s exalted position. Allah tells believers to be circumspect about barging into Muhammad’s house or staying there too long after dinner, for such behavior “annoys the Prophet”; they should also only speak to his wives from behind screens (v. 53). Allah and his angels bless Muhammad, and the believers should also (v. 56), while those who annoy him are cursed in this world and the next (v. 57). It is also a serious sin to annoy the believers (v. 58). Muhammad’s wives and daughters should cover themselves when in public (v. 59).
Verses 60-73 return to familiar themes. Allah has cursed the hypocrites (v. 61) and unbelievers (v. 64). Men scornfully ask when the Day of Judgment will come (v. 63); in hell they will regret that they disobeyed Muhammad (v. 66) and will ask Allah to give their leaders a double penalty (v. 68). The believers should not be like those who insulted Moses (v. 69). Ibn Kathir explains that Moses “was a shy and modest man who would never show anything of his skin because of his shyness,” which led some of Jews to claim: “He only keeps himself covered because of some defect in his skin, either leprosy or scrotal hernia or some other defect.” So Allah, wanting to clear Moses, did so one day when Moses “was alone, so he took off his garment and put it on a rock, then he took a bath. When he had finished, he turned back to pick up his garment, but the rock moved away, taking his garment with it.” Moses chased the rock “until he reached a group of the Children of Israel, who saw him naked and found that he was the best of those whom Allah had created. Thus he was cleared of what they had said about him.”
Allah offered the al-amanah, the obedience of created things, to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused it. Man took it, but performed badly – so now Allah must punish the hypocrites and unbelievers (vv. 72-73).
Next week: Sura 34, “Sheba”: the unbelievers ridicule Muhammad’s message.
(Here you can find links to all the earlier "Blogging the Qur'an" segments. Here is a good Arabic Qur’an, with English translations available; here are two popular Muslim translations, those of Abdullah Yusuf Ali and Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall, along with a third by M. H. Shakir. Here is another popular translation, that of Muhammad Asad. And here is an omnibus of ten Qur’an translations.)
Robert,
I'm not sure you can show someone up any better than you just did. To use the modern vernacular, Mr. Khaleel Mohammed, you just got
OWNED!
Hilarious (how stupid/hypocritical people can be)
What makes Khaleel Mohammed so accepting of Professor Daniel C. Peterson's writing and why does he deny you the same honor, Robert?
Any idea?
Sheik:
I suspect it has to do with the fact that Dr. Peterson's book, while scholarly and accurate, is -- as Khaleel Mohammed describes it -- an "irenic piece of scholarship," while my book on Muhammad tells essentially the same story but with a view toward awakening non-Muslims to the destructive power of some of the elements of that story in the Islamic world today.
Yrs
Robert
&
It is as sport to a fool to do mischief: but a man of understanding hath wisdom.
- Bible, Proverbs (ch. X, v. 23)
Bet that quote went clear over the meshuga prophet's comprehension. . . as it will with his followers & especially those like Khaleel Mohammed who willingly play the taqyyia fool.
Talk sense to a fool and he calls you foolish.
- Euripides
Just checked the good professor's website:
more of the same taqiyya spin and blame-game which all these 'defenders of Islam' employ: "hate, racism, 'stereotyping'of Muslims and all of this 'hatemongering' comes from people like us who shine a light on the murderous cult. Khaleel invokes (Matt 7.16)"Ye shall know them by their fruits" which makes you wonder why he doesn't use something from the Koran. This gem here is especially precious: "a professor of religion should not seek learned discussion with those whose views are clouded by faith."
Yep, professore, why don't you clear the smoke from your faith and get real..?
Here's the link:
http://www-rohan.sdsu.edu/~khaleel/
I have been bombarded with several queries regarding my "discussion" on frontpagemag.com, and the subsequent inimical webpostings on Jihadwatch etc. Most of the queries have addressed my apparent silence in the face of attacks on my position regarding Islamic reformation, and my alleged lack of coming to terms with certain aspects of Islamic "truths."
I consider myself a scholar and therefore prefer to engage in discussion where facts, rather than fictions and prejudgments are presented. When therefore I am told that the pope apologised for the Crusades, or that Jihad only means war, or that I have to accept interpretations of the Quran that non-Muslims (with no good intentions or knowledge of Islam) seek to force upon me, I see a certain agendum developing: one that is based on hate, and I refuse to be part of such an intellectual crime.
Hopefully more and more people will begin to understand how Muhammad used the Quran to accomplish his own purposes. Here is a recent blog I did on how he did that in Sura 66 when wife Hafsah caught him with Mary the Copt:
Poetry in Motion
Muslims believe that one of the "miracles" of the Quran is its poetry. How could an illiterate man, they ask, write such exquisite poetry unless he was inspired by God?
The grammatical structure of Arabic lends itself to being a poetic language. Many nouns or adjectives, for example, end with the syllable "....eem". Muhammad could create a few lines each ending with one of these words that would be poetry to his listeners. As an example, Sura 66 is called "The Prohibition". The title as well as the final or penultimate words of the first few lines are "tahreem...raheem...aleem...hakeem." The English translation of these words, "prohibition...merciful...all-knowing...wise", of course do not rhyme at all.
The "story behind the story" is often more interesting than the story itself. Muhammad often created Quranic suras to get himself out of a tight spot. In the case of sura 66, he had literally been caught with his pants down. While visiting one of his wives, 20 year old Hafsah, he noticed her beautiful Egyptian Christian slave Mary. Muhammad had already legitimized sex with slaves for his followers, and told Hafsah that her father wanted to see her. As soon as Hafsah left the house, Muhammad had intercourse with Mary. When Hafsah realized her father had not called her and returned home to a locked door, she suspected the worst. Muhammad admitted what he had done, but promised Hafsah he would not sleep with Mary again. Hafsah was still upset, and told another of Muhammad's wives, Aisha, what had happened. Muhammad then claimed that Allah had revealed to him that Hafsah had complained to Aisha, and that Allah had also told him that he was free of his promise not to sleep with Mary again.
Now read the entire sura carefully. Notice who is at fault, who is to blame, who is threatened, and who is exonerated by Allah.
Robert -
Do you have a theory as to why Mohammed seems to be two different men (or two different prophets) depending on the period of his "ministry"? In Mecca, he is only married to one woman, not very war-like and even open to compromise. In Medina, even the crack of dawn had to be careful, he was always waging war and he never accommodated anyone.
Just curious
tanstaafl:
Some would say it's because he was two different men: some European scholars have posited that Muhammad as we know him in the Islamic traditions was cobbled together from two or more people as part of an effort to supply the Arab conquerors of the seventh century with a religion to replace the religions of the people in the territories they had conquered.
Or, less radically, one could surmise that in Medina he was finally in a position to act the way he had always wanted to act -- the final hindrances to such actions were removed with the death of Khadija and the departure from Mecca.
Cordially
Robert Spencer
I used to be amazed at how opportunistic many of the "revelations" were.
Mr. Spencer,
In reference to 'Spencer Blogging the Qur’an: Sura 33, “The Confederates,” verses 21-73' I would like to comment on the following:
I have done quite a bit of reading of quran suras and verses in my study of islam over the past couple years. The text you posted on the subject above, seems similar in many respects to other verses and Suras that I read regarding the personal desires of this alleged "prophet." It seems to me that whenever Mohammed wanted something, be it a wife (or wives), or to boff with the latest good looking woman he came across, or to murder or kill or steal from enemies and rivals, it seems that "allah" was always quite accomodating to his most carnal desires.
In my opinion, it is no surprise that this was the case given that the man who's carnal desires would be satiated by "allah's" acquiesence was the very same man to whom "allah" would provide the "revelation" (and hence permission) to do just what he wanted.
This is the best evidence indeed that the so-called "revelations" in the quran are little more than the written record of what a conquering, over-sexed, power-mad dictator and terrorist desired as opposed to any true "revelation" from God.
It is beyond me that the alleged billion and a half muslims cannot see that just in reading some of the suras and hadiths. Its as obvious and the nose on someone's face....
Robert
I am suprised that a "scholar"of your caliber would have not have looked up this verse more carefully. You bring out a statement in tafsir jalalayn but you did not bother to see if this story was authentic or not. But this is not the first time you made this same error. You did this also about the story about Muhammad (peace be upon him) wanting to commit suicide. You never bothered to look at why Bukhari put this hadith in his book and you did not know why its not authentic.
I see now why you won't debate a muslim face to face because you would not know how to reply in a scholarly manner. You want to do it in written form because you need your research team like raymond and hugh to search for a comeback.
Keep up the scholarly work.