Warning – Reader’s discretion advised.
Ever since I agreed to debate Jalal Abualrub he has gone into a rampage of personal attacks, which I take it to mean that he is scared and is now trying to intimidate me by his bullying tactics. He thinks that this will somehow discourage me from debating him. Unfortunately for him this will not work but will only backfire against him. I warn the readers that what I am about to say will be harsh since I am only adopting the language that Jalal uses in his articles (1, 2) in order to show what happens when someone applies his stupidity and assaults on the Holy Bible to his false scripture and his false prophet.
{Note: A couple of days after Abualrub saw our first response (*) which was sent to him via email before publishing it online, those particular articles disappeared from his site.}
The Bible says that it is necessary at times to answer a fool according to his own stupidity in order to expose him for the fool that he is:
"Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes." Proverbs 26:5
Abualrub is such a fool whose stupidity needs to be addressed and whose vicious arguments need to be silenced once and for all.
Jalal has a problem with the Biblical doctrine of the Original sin:
And we are not talking about the Original Sin, Christianity’s biggest sin where they claim that we all are doomed because Adam made a mistake.
It seems that Muhammad was a Christian (a heretical one at that!) since he believed in this "biggest sin." For example, Muhammad in his false scripture believed that the disobedience of Adam and Eve affected their descendants and even corrupted them:
But the Satan made them both fall from it, and caused them to depart from that (state) in which they were; and We said: Get forth, some of YOU being the enemies of others, and there is for you in the earth an abode and a provision for a time. Then Adam received from his Lord words (of revelation), and He relented toward him. Lo! He is the relenting, the Merciful. We said: Go down, ALL OF YOU, from hence; but verily there cometh unto you from Me a guidance; and whoso followeth My guidance, there shall no fear come upon them neither shall they grieve. S. 2:36-38
The above expressly demonstrates that Adam’s fall had a negative impact on all future generations of mankind since in Arabic the YOU in both 2:36 and 38 is plural (referring to more than two), as opposed to the dual. Lest Jalal tries to squirm his way out of this point by asserting that the reason why the plural is used is because Satan is included, Q. 2:38 soundly refutes this since it speaks of Allah sending guidance to those who are expelled. This definitely excludes Satan since he stands condemned to hell and will not follow the guidance, and proves that the plural is addressed to all of mankind, e.g. all humanity suffered expulsion due to their federal head Adam, a point which the Quran reiterates elsewhere:
God said, ‘Go forth, some of you will be enemies of others. And for you there is an abode on the earth and a provision for a time.’ S. 7:24
Here is how renowned Sunni exegete Ibn Kathir explained Q. 2:38-39:
Allah informs of His warning to Adam, his wife and Satan, THEIR OFFSPRING, when he ordered THEM to descend from Paradise. He says he will send messengers with Scriptures, signs and proofs… (Tafsir Ibn Kathir, Part 1, Surah Al-Fatiah Surah Al-Baqarah, ayat 1 to 141, Abridged by Sheikh Nasib Ar-Rafa‘i [Al-Firdous Ltd., London: Second Edition 1998], pp. 109-110; capital emphasis ours)
The late Abdullah Yusuf Ali said something similar in reference to Q. 2:36:
… Note the transition in Arabic from the singular number in ii. 33, to the dual in ii. 35, and the plural here [2:36], which I have indicated in English by "All ye people." Evidently Adam is the type of all mankind, and the sexes go together in all spiritual matters. Moreover, the expulsion applied to Adam, Eve, and Satan, and the Arabic plural is appropriate for any number greater than two. (Bold and underline emphasis ours)
Ibn Kathir further wrote concerning Q. 2:34 that:
This Ayah mentions the great honor that Allah granted Adam, and Allah reminded Adam's offspring of this fact. Allah commanded the angels to prostrate before Adam, as this Ayah and many Hadiths testify, such as the Hadith about the intercession that we discussed. There is a Hadith about the supplication of Musa, "O my Lord! Show me Adam who caused us and himself to be thrown out of Paradise." When Musa met Adam, he said to him, "Are you Adam whom Allah created with His Own Hands, blew life into and commanded the angels to prostrate before?" (Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged) (Surat Al-Fatihah to Verse 252 of Surat Al-Baqarah), abridged by a group of scholars under the supervision of Shaykh Safiur-Rahman Al-Mubarakpuri [Darussalam Publishers & Distributors, Riyadh, Houston, New York, Lahore; First Edition: January 2000], Parts 1 and 2, Volume 1, p. 193; source; bold and underline emphasis ours)
Ibn Kathir also made some rather interesting comments, specifically in reference to Q. 7:172, which are quite relevant to our discussion:
… Commenting on this Ayah (7:172), At-Tirmidhi recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said, …
((… So Adam denied that and HIS OFFSPRING FOLLOWED SUIT (denying Allah's covenant), Adam forgot and HIS OFFSPRING FORGOT, Adam made a mistake and HIS OFFSPRING MADE MISTAKES.))
At-Tirmidhi said, "This Hadith is Hasan Sahih, and it was reported from various chains of narration through Abu Hurayrah from the Prophet. Al-Hakim also recorded it in his Mustadrak, and said; Sahih according to the criteria of Muslim, and they did not record it."
These and similar Hadiths testify that Allah, the Exalted and Most Honored, brought forth Adam's offspring from his loins and separated between the inhabitants of Paradise and those of the Fire… (Tafsir Ibn Kathir (Abridged) (Surat Al-A‘raf to the end of Surah Yunus), First Edition: May 2000, Volume 4, pp. 201-203; source; bold and capital emphasis ours)
Here are the specific narratives from at-Tirmidhi which Ibn Kathir referenced:
Narrated AbuHurayrah
Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said: When Allah created Adam, He touched his back, and there fell from his back every soul that He would create from his offspring till the Day of Resurrection and He created between the two eyes of every person a gleam of light. Then He presented them to Adam who said: My Lord who are they? He (the Lord) said: They are your offspring. He (Adam) saw a person from amongst them and he felt attracted towards him and the sparkle of light between his two eyes. He said: My Lord, who is he? (The Lord) said: It is David. He (Adam) said: My Lord, what span of life have you allotted to him? He replied: Sixty years. He said: My Lord, enhance his age from my age (to the extent of forty years). Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said: When Adam completed his age life-span with only forty years remaining, there came to him the angel of death. Thereupon Adam said: Are there not forty years left in my life-span? The angel said: Did you not confer your son (forty years). Adam denied it and so did his offspring. Adam forgot and ate (the fruit) of the tree and so his offspring also forgot and he (Adam) committed an error and so did his offspring commit an error.
Transmitted by Tirmidhi. (Al-Tirmidhi Hadith, Number 37; ALIM CD ROM Version)Narrated AbuHurayrah
Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said: When Allah created Adam and breathed the spirit into him he sneezed and said, "Praise be to Allah." So he praised Allah by His permission and his Lord said to him, "Allah have mercy on you, Adam. Go to those angels (i.e. a company of them who were seated) and say, 'Peace be upon you'." He said, "Peace be upon you," and they replied, "Upon you be peace and Allah's mercy." Then he returned to his Lord who said, "This is your salutation and the salutation of your descendants to one another." Then Allah said to him, keeping His hands closed, "Choose which of them you wish." He said, "I choose my Lord's right hand, and both of my Lord's hands are Right and Blessed." Then He opened it and it contained Adam and his descendants. He asked, "My Lord, what are these?" He replied, "These are your descendants." Now every man's period of life was written on his forehead, and among them there was a man who was the brightest of them (or, one of the brightest of them). He said, "My Lord, who is this?" He replied, "This is your descendant David, and I have recorded his period of life for him as forty years." He said, "My Lord, increase his life." But He replied, "That is what I have recorded for him." He said, "My Lord, I have appointed him sixty years of my life." He replied, "That is as you wish." He then lived in Paradise as long as Allah wished, after which he was sent down from it. Now Adam was reckoning for himself, and when the angel of death came to him, Adam said to him, "You have come before your time. A thousand years have been recorded for me." He replied, "Certainly, but you appointed sixty years for your descendant David." Then he denied, and his descendants denied; and he forgot, and his descendants forgot. The Prophet said that from that day orders were given that a document be drawn up and witnesses be produced.
Transmitted by Tirmidhi. (Al-Tirmidhi Hadith, Number 1214; ALIM CD ROM Version)
The hadith literature further says that Allah actually predestined that Adam would sin and cause his offspring to be expelled from paradise!
Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet said, "Adam and Moses argued with each other. Moses said to Adam. 'O Adam! You are our father WHO DISAPPOINTED US AND TURNED US OUT OF PARADISE.' Then Adam said to him, 'O Moses! Allah favored you with His talk (talked to you directly) and He wrote (the Torah) for you with His Own Hand. Do you blame me for action WHICH ALLAH HAD WRITTEN IN MY FATE forty years before my creation?' So Adam confuted Moses, Adam confuted Moses," the Prophet added, repeating the Statement three times. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 8, Book 77, Number 611)
This tradition is found in other hadith collections such as the following:
It is narrated on the authority of Abu Huraira and Hudhaifa that the Messenger of Allah (may peace be upon him) said: Allah, the Blessed and Exalted, would gather people. The believers would stand till the Paradise would be brought near them. They would come to Adam and say: O our father, open for us the Paradise. He would say: What turned you out from the Paradise WAS THE SIN OF YOUR FATHER ADAM. I am not in a position to do that… (Sahih Muslim, Book 001, Number 0380)
Abu Huraira reported that God’s messenger told of Adam and Moses holding a disputation in their Lord’s presence and of Adam getting the better of Moses in argument. Moses said, "You are Adam whom God created with His hand, into whom He breathed of His spirit, to whom He made the angels do obeisance, and whom He caused to dwell in his garden; then BECAUSE OF YOUR SIN caused MANKIND to come down to the earth." Adam replied, "And you are Moses whom God chose to deliver His messages and to address, to whom He gave the tablets on which everything was explained, and whom He brought near as a confidant. How long before I was created did you find that God has written the Torah? Moses said, "Forty years." Adam asked, "Did you find in it, ‘And Adam disobeyed his Lord and erred’?" On being told that he did, he said, "Do you then blame me for doing a deed WHICH GOD HAD DECREED THAT I SHOULD DO forty years before He created me?" God’s messenger said, "So Adam got the better of Moses n the argument." Muslim transmitted it. (Mishkat Al-Masabih English Translation With Explanatory Notes by Dr. James Robson, Volume I [Sh. Muhammad Ahsraf Publishers, Booksellers & Exporters, Lahore-Pakistan, Reprint 1990], p. 23; bold and capital emphasis ours)
Finally:
Yahya related to me from Malik from Abu'z-Zinad from al-Araj from Abu Hurayra that the Messenger of Allah, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said, "Adam and Musa argued and Adam got the better of Musa. Musa rebuked Adam, 'You are Adam WHO LED PEOPLE ASTRAY and brought them out of the Garden.' Adam said to him, 'You are Musa to whom Allah gave knowledge of everything and whom he chose above people with His message.' He said, 'Yes.' He said, 'Do you then censure me for a matter WHICH WAS DECREED FOR ME BEFORE I WAS CREATED?'" (Malik's Muwatta, Book 46, Number 46.1.1)
Islamic tradition even holds Eve personally responsible for causing God's curse to fall on all future generations of women:
Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet said, "Were it not for Bani Israel, meat would not decay; and were it not FOR EVE, no woman would ever betray her husband." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 55, Number 611)Hammam b. Munabbih said: These are some of the ahadith which Abu Huraira (Allah be pleased with him) narrated to us from Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him), and one of these (this one): Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Had it not been for Bani Isra'il, food would not have become stale, and meal would not have gone bad; and had it not been FOR Eve, a woman would never have acted unfaithfully toward her husband. (Sahih Muslim, Book 008, Number 3472)
Another renowned exegete and commentator named al-Tabari narrated that Eve’s sin caused women to become stupid!
According to Yunus - Ibn Wahb - Ibn Zayd (commenting on God's word: "And he whispered"): Satan whispered to Eve about the tree and succeeded in taking her to it; then he made it seem good to Adam. He continued. When Adam felt a need for her and called her, she said: No! unless you go there. When he went, she said again: No! unless you eat from this tree. He continued. They both ate from it, and their secret parts became apparent to them. He continued. Adam then went about in Paradise in flight. His Lord called out to him: Adam, is it from Me that you are fleeing? Adam replied: No, my Lord, but I feel shame before You. When God asked what had caused his trouble, he replied: Eve, my Lord. Whereupon God said: Now it is My obligation to make her bleed once every month, as she made this tree bleed. I ALSO MAKE HER STUPID, although I had created her intelligent (halimah), and must make her suffer pregnancy and birth with difficulty, although I made it easy for her to be pregnant and give birth. Ibn Zayd said: Were it not for the affliction that affected Eve, the women of this world would not menstruate, AND THEY WOULD BE INTELLIGENT and, when pregnant, give birth easily. (The History of Al-Tabari: General Introduction and From the Creation to the Flood, translated by Franz Rosenthal [State University of New York Press (SUNY), Albany 1989], Volume 1, pp. 280-281; bold and capital emphasis ours)
Moreover, Cain is blamed whenever a person is murdered:
Narrated 'Abdullah:
The Prophet said, "None is killed unjustly, but the first son of Adam will have a part of its burden." Sufyan said, "… a part of its blood because he was the first to establish the tradition of murdering." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 92, Number 423)
It is abundantly clear from the foregoing that the sin of Adam and Eve impacted both themselves and their descendants as well. This means that we would and should expect to find the Quran teaching that man is born sinful, evil, corrupt etc., as a result of the first or original sin. Lo and behold, this is precisely what the Quran teaches! Yet in order to prevent this response from becoming rather lengthy by quoting all of those references we suggest consulting the following articles and rebuttals instead:
http://answering-islam.org/Responses/Osama/zawadi_original_sin.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/suffer_for_sin.html
http://answering-islam.org/Quran/Contra/astray.html
http://answering-islam.org/Hahn/fall.html
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/sacrifice.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/ransom.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Responses/Menj/consequences_of_sin.htm
http://www.tektonics.org/lp/paydaddy.html
Jalal continues:
We are talking about,
The Original Chin.
Jalal seems to be rather confused here since he must have meant the Original Shin, the Shin which existed before all shins, which happens to be the Shin of his false god who on the Day of Judgment will flash it before everyone:
"(Remember) the Day when the Shin shall be laid bare (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) and they shall be called to prostrate (to Allah), but they (hypocrites) shall not be able to do so," S. 68:42
According to the so-called sound hadith this verse is speaking of Allah’s shin!
Narrated Abu Sa’id Al-Khudri…
Then the Almighty will come to them in a shape other than the one which they saw the first time, and He will say, ‘I am your Lord,’ and they will say, ‘You are not our Lord.’ And none will speak: to Him then but the Prophets, and then it will be said to them, ‘Do you know any sign by which you can recognize Him?’ They will say. ‘The Shin,’ and so Allah will then uncover His Shin whereupon every believer will prostrate before Him and there will remain those who used to prostrate before Him just for showing off and for gaining good reputation. These people will try to prostrate but their backs will be rigid like one piece of a wood (and they will not be able to prostrate). (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 9, Book 93, Number 532s)
Seeing that Allah has a shin it would follow that he would also have feet, precisely what the traditions claim!
Narrated Abu Huraira:
The Prophet said, "Paradise and the Fire (Hell) argued, and the Fire (Hell) said, "I have been given the privilege of receiving the arrogant and the tyrants.’ Paradise said, ‘What is the matter with me? Why do only the weak and the humble among the people enter me?’ On that, Allah said to Paradise. ‘You are My Mercy which I bestow on whoever I wish of my servants.’ Then Allah said to the (Hell) Fire, ‘You are my (means of) punishment by which I punish whoever I wish of my slaves. And each of you will have its fill.’ As for the Fire (Hell), it will not be filled till Allah puts His Foot over it whereupon it will say, ‘Qati! Qati!’ At that time it will be filled, and its different parts will come closer to each other; and Allah will not wrong any of His created beings. As regards Paradise, Allah will create a new creation to fill it with." (Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 6, Book 60, Number 373)
Now we would like Jalal to inform us whether Allah’s shin is hairy, and if it is will he shave it before he uncovers it on the Day of Judgement? Or is it part of the punishment of the unbelievers to see Allah’s hairy and coarse legs?
For more on Allah’s scary legs and on the stupidity of Jalal’s salafi beliefs, which teach that the Islamic deity has a body unlike any other body, we recommend the following articles:
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/allah_as_man.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/allah_location.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Responses/Osama/zawadi_allahs_face.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/muslim_god_criteria.htm
http://khalas.wordpress.com/2007/03/02/allah-evidence-of-an-anthropomorphic-deity/
http://www.islam-watch.org/AbulKasem/BismiAllah/1a.htm
http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/allahs_selfannihilation.htm
Jalal attacks Christianity for the plundering of lands by so-called Christians:
We are told that Christianity is a religion of peace. Or is it a religion of ‘piece’, i.e., a piece from Iraq and a piece from Palestine and a piece from Afghanistan.
Let us ignore for the moment that some of these lands were taken in battles against Muslim villains and tyrants who were oppressing the people. What Jalal has chosen to do is to attack the Christian faith by the actions of those who profess to be believers as opposed to turning to the NT to see what Jesus’ and his followers’ stance was concerning conquering lands by physical weapons in order to determine whether such acts are sanctioned by the teachings of Christ:
"Jesus said, ‘My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place.’" John 18:36
"For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. And we will be ready to punish every act of disobedience, once your obedience is complete." 2 Corinthians 10:3-6
And yet Jalal whines and condemns "neocons" whenever they equate Islam with terrorism because of terrorist acts of Muslims such as the nineteen hijackers or Osama bin Laden and his demonic thugs like Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Talk about being a liar and hypocrite.
Moreover, Jalal fails to tell his readers that it is Islam that is a religion of pieces since it stole the lands of others, i.e. Mecca, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Spain etc., and in so doing murdered individuals, enslaved people, raped women (both married and unmarried), and pillaged the property of others.
In fact, as Islam spread, Muslim barbarism extended all throughout Arabia and non-Arab territories as well. The people who had the misfortunate of being on the other end of the Islamic sword saw how evil Muslims were, that they were barbaric butchers and that their religion was nothing but evil:
Among them were many Christians who had accepted Islam, but when dissension had developed in Islam had said, "By God, our religion (din) from which we have departed is better and more correct than that which these people follow. Their religion does not stop them from shedding blood, terrifying the roads, and seizing properties." And they returned to their former religion. Al-Khirrit met them and said to them, "Woe unto you! Do you know the precept (hukm) of Ali regarding any Christian who accepts Islam and then reverts to Christianity? By God he will not hear anything they say, he will not consider any excuse, he will not accept any repentance, and he will not summon them to it. His precept regarding them is immediate CUTTING OFF THE HEAD when he gets hold of them." Al-Khirrit continued thus until he had united them and duped them (into following him). Those of the Banu Najiyah and others who were in that district came to him, and many men joined him.
According to ‘Ali b. al-Hasan al-Azdi- ‘Abd al-Rahman b. Sulayman- ‘Abd al-Malik b. Sa‘id- Abu Janab- al-Hurr- ‘Ammar al-Duhni- Abu al-Tufayl: I was in the army that ‘Ali b. Abi Talib sent against the Banu Najiyah. We came to them and found them split in three groups. Our commander said to one of these groups, "What are you?" and they replied, "We are a Christian people who do not consider any religion to better than ours, and we hold fast to it." Our commander said to them, "Be off with you (i‘tazilu)!" He said to another band, "What are you?" and they said, "We were Christians, but we accepted Islam and we hold fast to our Islam." He said to them, "Be off with you!" Then he said to the third group, "What are you?" and they said, "We are a people who were Christians. We accepted Islam but we do not think, that any religion is better than our previous one." He said to them, "Accept Islam!" but they refused. He said to his men, "When I rub my head three times, attack them and kill the fighting men and make captive the dependents." (The History of Al-Tabari: The First Civil War, translated by G. R. Hawting [State University of New York Press, Albany 1996], volume XVII, pp. 187-188; bold emphasis ours)
And:
Of his [al-Khirrit] men, 170 were killed in the battle, and the remainder fled in all directions. Ma‘qil b. Qays sent the cavalry after them to the baggage camp and took prisoner those he caught up with. He captured a large number of men, women, and children and examined them. The Muslims he let go after taking the oath of allegiance from them, and he allowed them to keep their families. To the apostates he offered (reacceptance of) Islam, and they came back to it and he let them go together with their families. But there was AN OLD MAN among them, a Christian called al-Rumahis b. Mansur, who said, "By God, the only error I have made since attaining reason was abandoning my religion, the religion of truth, for yours, THE RELIGION OF WICKEDNESS. No by God, I will not leave my religion and I will not accept yours so long as I live." Ma‘qil brought him forward AND CUT OFF HIS HEAD.
Ma‘qil gathered the (defeated) people together and told them, "Bring with you the sadaqah you owe for these years," and he took two years’ payment (‘iqlayan) from the Muslims (among them). He turned to the Christians and their dependents and immediately dragged them away. The Muslims (among those who had supported al-Khirrit) came with them, to accompany them, but Ma‘qil ordered that the Muslims should be sent back. When they turned away, they clasped their hands and wept, and the men and women wept with each other.
(‘Abdallah b. Fuqaym said:) I bear witness that I never felt such compassion for anyone before or after.
Ma‘qil b. Qays wrote to ‘Ali:
I inform the Commander of the Faithful about his army and his enemies. We pushed on to our enemy on the seashore and found there tribes strong in number, violent and earnest. They had been gathered against us and made common cause against us. We summoned them to obedience and community, to the authority (hukm) of the Book and of the precedent (sunnah), we read out loud to them the letter of the Commander of the Faithful, and we raised aloft to them a flag of safe-conduct. A group of them inclined toward us, while another group remained hostile. We accepted those who came forward and we fought against those who turned away. God put them to flight and gave his oath of allegiance to the Commander of the Faithful, and took possession of the sadaqah that was due from them. For anyone who had apostatized, we offered return to Islam or else death. They all returned apart from one man, WHOM WE KILLED. As for the Christians, we made them captive and led them off so that they might be a warning for those of the protected peoples who come after them not refuse the jizyah and not to make bold against our religion and community, FOR THE PROTECTED PEOPLE ARE OF LITTLE ACCOUNT AND LOWLY IN STATUS. May God have mercy upon you, Commander of the Faithful, and award to you gardens of delight. Peace be upon you.
(Ibid., pp. 191-192; capital emphasis ours)
Thus, it is Muhammad and his band of thugs who were the real terrorists and took a piece of this and a piece of that. But to Jalal, his false prophet and his band of murderers and rapists weren’t carrying out the work of Lucifer (Jalal’s father), but were implementing the orders of his false god Allah.
Proof: Sam Shamoun, Lucifer’s cousin, is a liar and a hypocrite. He invents false accusations against Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, such as in his article on, "Muhammad and the Meccans: Who Antagonized Whom? Examining Muslims’ Justification for Muhammad’s Atrocities."
Indeed, we are left in suspense, "Who antagonized whom?" Lucifer, don’t be silly! You know Quraish antagonized Muslims, expelled them, tortured them, killed some of them, tried to kill the Prophet, expelled him, stole Muslims’ properties in Makkah, and waged war against Islam and Muslims for more than 18 years…
I guess Ibn Ishaq and al-Tabari were also related to Lucifer, and must have been liars and hypocrites as well. Here is what the latter said concerning the fight between Muhammad and the Meccans:
Ibn Humayd - Salamah - Ibn Ishaq: The Messenger of God proclaimed God’s message openly and declared Islam publicly to his tribesmen. When he did so, they did not withdraw from him or reject him in anyway, as far as I had heard, UNTIL he spoke of their gods and denounced them. When he did this, they took exception to it and united in opposition and hostility to him, except for those of them whom God had protected from error by means of Islam. The latter were few in number and practiced their faith in secret. His uncle Abu Talib was friendly to him, however, and protected him and shielded him from them. The Messenger of God continued to do God’s work and to proclaim his message, undeterred by anything. When Quraysh saw that he would not give them any satisfaction, they objected to his departing from their ways and denouncing their gods, and seeing that Abu Talib protected him, shielded him from harm, and would not hand him over to them, a number of the nobles of Quraysh, consisting of such men as ‘Utbah b. Rabi‘ah, Shaybah b. Rabi‘ah, Abu al-Bakhtari b. Hisham, al-Aswad b. al-Muttalib, al-Walid b. al-Mughirah, Abu Jahl b. Hisham, al-‘As b. Wa’il and Nubayh and Munabbih, the sons of al-Hajjaj, went to Abu Talib and said, "Abu Talib, your nephew has reviled our gods, denounced our religion, derided our traditional values and told us that our forefathers were misguided. Either curb his attacks on us or give us a free hand to deal with him, for you are just as opposed to him as we are, and we will deal with him for you." Abu Talib gave them a mild answer and declined courteously, and they left him. The Messenger of God continued as before, proclaiming the faith of God and summoning people to it.
After this, Muhammad was estranged from the Quraysh, and they withdrew from him and harbored a secret hatred for him. They talked about him frequently amongst themselves and urged one another against him. Eventually they went to Abu Talib once again. "Abu Talib," they said, "we hold you in respect among us on account of your age, your nobility and your standing. We asked you to forbid your nephew TO ATTACK US, but you did not do so. By God, we can no longer endure this vilification of our forefathers, this derision of our traditional values and this abuse of our gods. Either you restrain him or we shall fight both of you over this until one side or the other is destroyed," or words to that effect. Then they left. This breach and enmity with his tribe weighed heavily on Abu Talib, but he could not reconcile himself to surrendering the Messenger of God to them or deserting him.
Muhammad b. al-Husayn- Ahmad b. al-Mufaddal- Asbat- al-Suddi: A number of men of the Quraysh gathered together with a number of other shaykhs of the Quraysh, and said to one another, "Let us go to Abu Talib and speak to him about Muhammad, so that he will give us justice against him and order him to desist from reviling our gods and we will leave him to the god whom he worships for we fear that this old man may die and we may do something which the Arabs will reproach us for and say, ‘They let him alone until his uncle died, and then they laid hands on him.’"
They sent one of their number, whose name was al-Muttalib, to Abu Talib to ask permission for them to enter. He said, "Here are the shaykhs and nobles of your tribe asking permission to visit you." He told him to ask them to come in, and when they had done so they said, "Abu Talib, you are our elder and our chief, so give us justice against your nephew and order him to desist from reviling our gods, and we will leave him to his god."
Abu Talib sent for the Messenger of God, and when he came in he said, "Nephew, here are the shaykhs and nobles of your tribe. They have asked for justice against you, that you should desist from reviling their gods and they will leave you to your god." "Uncle," he said, "shall I not summon them to something which is better for them than their gods?" "What do you summon them to?" he asked. He replied, "I summon them to utter a saying through which the Arabs will submit to them and they will rule over the non-Arabs." Abu Jahl said from among the gathering, "What is it, by your father? We would give you it and ten like it." He answered, "That you should say, ‘There is no deity but God.’" They took fright at that and said, "Ask for anything rather than that!" But he said, "If you were to bring me the sun and put it into my hand, I would not ask you for anything other than this."
They rose up to leave in anger and said, "By God, we shall revile you and your god who commands you to do this!" "The chiefs among them hurried about, exhorting; Go and be staunch to your gods! This is a thing designed…" to the words "naught but an invention." (The History of al-Tabari: Muhammad at Mecca, translated and annotated by W. Montgomery Watt and M. V. McDonald [State University of New York Press, Albany 1988], Volume VI, pp. 93-95; bold, capital and underline emphasis ours)
Notice that the Meccans literally begged Muhammad to stop harassing and assaulting them, but to no avail. To make matters worse, he further antagonized them after he had migrated to Medina by sending Muslim thugs to rob their caravans:
After his companions had left, the apostle stayed in Mecca waiting for permission to migrate. Except for Abu Bakr and ‘Ali, none of his supporters were left but those under restraint and those who had been forced to apostatize. The former kept asking the apostle for permission to emigrate and he would answer, ‘Don’t be in a hurry; it may be that God will give you a companion.’ Abu Bakr hoped that it would be Muhammad himself.
When the Quraysh saw that the apostle had a party and companions not of their tribe and outside their territory, and that his companions had migrated to join them, and knew that they had settled in a new home and had gained protectors, they feared that the apostle might join them, SINCE THEY KNEW THAT HE HAD DECIDED TO FIGHT THEM. So they assembled in their council chamber, the house of Qusayy b. Kilab where all their important business was conducted, to take counsel what they should do in regard to the apostle, FOR THEY WERE NOW IN FEAR OF HIM. (The Life of Muhammad: A Translation of Ibn Ishaq’s Sirat Rasul Allah, with introduction and notes by Alfred Guillaume [Oxford University Press, Karachi, tenth impression 1995], p. 221; capital emphasis ours)
And:
Then the apostle prepared for war in pursuance of God’s command to fight his enemies and to fight those polytheists who were near at hand whom God commanded him to fight. This was thirteen years after his call. (Ibid., p. 280)
The Meccans were thoroughly justified in being afraid of Muhammad since not long after this the raids on their caravans began:
According to Musa b. Harun - ‘Amr b. Hammad - Asbat- al-Suddi: "They question thee with regard to warfare in the sacred month. Say: Warfare therein is a great (transgression), but to turn (man) from the path of Allah…." This was revealed because the Messenger of God sent a detachment of seven men under the command of ‘Abd Allah B. Jahsh al-Asadi, consisting of ‘Ammar b. Yasir, Abu Hudhayfah b. ‘Utbah b. Rabi‘ah, Sa‘d b. Abi Waqqas, ‘Utbah b. Ghazwan al-Sulami the confederate of the Banu Nawfal, Suhayl b. Bayda’, ‘Amir b. Fuhayrah and Waqid b. ‘Abd Allah al-Yarbu‘i the confederate of ‘Umar b. al-Khattab. He wrote a letter (which he gave) to Ibn Jahsh, ordering him not to read it until he halted at Batn Malal. When he halted at Batn Malal, he opened the letter, which read, "March until you halt at Batn Nakhlah." He said to his companions, "Whoever desires death, let him go on and make his will; I am making my will and acting on the orders of the Messenger of God." He went on, and Sa‘d b. Abi Waqqas and ‘Utbah b. Ghazwan, who had lost their riding-camel, stayed behind. They went to Buhran in search of it, while Ibn Jahsh went to Batn Nakhlah. Suddenly he encountered al-Hakam b. Kaysan, ‘Abd Allah b. Mughirah, al-Mughirah b. ‘Uhtman, and ‘Amr b. al-Hadrami. They fought and took al-Hakam b. Kaysan and ‘Abdallah b. al-Mughirah captive, while al-Mughirah escaped and ‘Amr b. al-Hadrami was killed by Waqid b. ‘Abd Allah. This was the first booty taken by the companions of Muhammad. When they returned to Medina with the two captives and the property they had taken, the people of Mecca wanted to ransom the two captives. The Prophet said, "Let us see how our two companions fare." When Sa‘d and his companion returned, he released the two captives on payment of a ransom. The polytheists spread lying slander concerning him, saying, "Muhammad claims that he is following obedience to God, yet he is the first to violate the holy month and to kill our companion in Rajab." The Muslims said, "We killed him (in the previous month) Jumada." Some say it was on the first night of Rajab, and some say it was on the last night of Jumada and that the Muslims sheathed their swords when Rajab began. God revealed in rebuke of the Meccans, "They question thee with regard to warfare in the sacred month. Say: Warfare therein is a great (transgression)…"
… They met Ibn al-Hadrami and killed him, not knowing whether that day was in Rajab or Jumada. The polytheists said to the Muslims, "You have done such-and-such in the sacred month." They came to the Prophet and told him the story, and God revealed: "They question thee with regard warfare in the sacred month…." up to "…. for fitnah is worse than killing." The word fitnah here means polytheism. (The History of Al-Tabari: The Foundation of the Community, translated by M. V. McDonald, annotated by W. Montgomery Watt [State University of New York Press, Albany 1987], Volume VII, pp. 21-23; bold emphasis ours)
According to ‘Ali b. Nasr b. ‘Ali and ‘Abd al-Warith b. ‘Abd al-Samad b. ‘Abd al-Warith- ‘Abd al-Samad b. ‘Abd al-Warith- his father- Aban al-‘Attar- Hisham b. ‘Urwah: ‘Urwah wrote to ‘Abd al-Malik b. Marwan as follows:
You have written to me asking about Abu Sufyan and the circumstances of his expedition. Abu Sufyan b. Harb came from Syria at the head of nearly seventy horsemen from all the clans of Quraysh. They had been trading in Syria and they all came together with their money and their merchandise. The Messenger of God and his companions were informed about them. This was after fighting had broken out between them and people had been killed, including Ibn al-Hadrami at Nakhlah, and some of Quraysh had been taken captive, including one of the sons of al-Mughirah and their mawla, Ibn Kaysan. Those responsible were ‘Abd Allah b. Jash and Waqid, the confederate of the Banu ‘Adi b. Ka‘b, together with other companions of the Messenger of God whom he had sent out with ‘Abd Allah b. Jash. This incident had provoked (a state of) war between the Messenger of God and Quraysh and was the beginning of the fighting in which they inflicted casualties upon one another; it took place before Abu Sufyan and his companions had set out for Syria.
Subsequently Abu Sufyan and the horsemen of Quraysh who were with him returned from Syria, following the coastal road. When the Messenger of God heard about them he called together his companions and told them of the wealth they had with them and the fewness of their numbers. The Muslims set out with no other object than Abu Sufyan and the horsemen with him. They did not think that these were anything but (easy) booty and did not suppose that there would be a great battle when they met them. It is concerning this that God revealed, "And ye longed that other than the armed one might be yours."
When Abu Sufyan heard that the companions of the messenger of God were on their way to intercept him, he sent to Quraysh (saying), "Muhammad and his companions are going to intercept your caravan, so protect your merchandise ..." (Ibid., pp. 28-29; bold emphasis ours)
To read more details on what really happened and to see who actually started the fight we recommend the following material (1, 2).
We are not surprised that Jalal would cover up the truth since he has proven himself to be a shameless liar who follows the father of Lies, Lucifer, the real founder of Islam.
Lord Jesus willing, we will respond to the rest of Jalal’s points in a future rebuttal.
Responses to Jalal Abualrub
Articles by Sam Shamoun
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