A Look of Faith at the Qur’an

1. The litigation points

In this chapter, we examine the most important litigation points, the objects of discussion between the different confessions. The latter tackle the pursuit for the unity of the Biblical-Quranic Inspiration with no sincere effort. We regret to find, that there are religious leaders who are zealous to speak of the revealed truths without knowledge from their part, in an infantile and superficial manner, and devoid of any modesty or spiritual maturity.

The principal arguments and prejudices to which some fanatic Christians refer, to reject the Qur’an and its noble Prophet are the following:

1. The Qur’an contradicts certain evangelical truths
2. The life of Muhammad (Polygamy and wars) demonstrates that he is not a prophet.

We are going to demonstrate that the Qur’an does not attack a single evangelical doctrine. A great number of Christians have been led to believe these errors, because of the false interpretation of certain Qur’anic texts presented by some Muslims.

Starting from the principles of interpretation mentioned in the first chapter, we will demonstrate in the pages to follow, the full agreement and unity of the Biblical and Qur’anic Inspirations. Christians therefore, do not have any justifiable reason to refuse the Qur’an, just as Muslims do not in scorning the Bible. We will then present the great moments of Prophet Muhammad’s life, exonerating him of all the false accusations conveyed against him.

We have briefly mentioned the reasons which drew away a good number of Christians from the Qur’an. Here now, are the prominent points to which certain Muslims base themselves on, to attack Christianity:

1. The Divine Trinity, the three aspects of the One and Only God
2. The title of Son of God attributed to the Messiah
3. The Divinity of the Messiah
4. The crucifixion and putting to death of the Messiah
5. The falsification of the Bible (Old and New Testaments)

What is important in these points, is to know what Divine Inspiration says about them, as our discussion rests on the solid base of an “Enlightened Book”, as the Qur’an advises. If we come across these points again in the Inspired Books, we will believe in them, otherwise, we reject them. After having responded to each one of these points, we will have, by this fact, refuted the arguments presented by certain Christians to refuse the Qur’an, as well as the arguments of certain Muslims to reject the Bible and its teachings.

1.1. The Divine Trinity, the three Aspects of the One and Only God

God revealed Himself in the Torah, in the Old Testament, as the unique Creator, no other god but Him. The Gospel confirms this truth by adding a nuance that is even more profound. God is unique, and yet is not, so far as being isolated from Himself, or in solitude. In company of His Own Person, He unveils Himself as One-in-Three “Aspects”: The Father, his Word or the Son, and his Spirit. In fact, Saint John says in the beginning of his Gospel:

“In the beginning was the Word: the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things came into being, not one thing came into being except through Him… The Word became flesh, He lived among us.” (John 1,1-14)

Such are the words of the Evangelical Inspiration. They inform us that God has a Word, which is God Himself. God and His Word are therefore one and the same essence, just as man and his word are one person. The Word that became flesh is Jesus the Messiah, known in the Qur’an as the “Word of God”.
In the Gospel, the Messiah recommends his Apostles to baptize believers in the Name of the Father, the Son (the Word of God) and Holy Spirit:

“Go, therefore, make disciples of all nations; baptize them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” (Matthew 28,19)

Remark that the Messiah did not say to baptize “in the names” in the plural, but in the singular, “in the Name”. God is unique and his Name is mentioned in the singular, not in the plural. Any believer concludes from these words, that God is Father-Son-Holy Spirit, or in other terms: God-His Word-His Spirit.

The Messiah, before leaving this world, seeing his Apostles turn gloomy in thinking of this separation, tells them that He will send the Consoler Spirit, who will replace Him as a permanent Companion:

“I shall ask the Father, and he will give you another Consoler to be with you for ever, that Spirit of Truth (the Holy Spirit) … I will not leave you orphans; I will come back to you.” (John 14,16-18)

The believers understood by these words that the Consoler that should come, after Jesus’ Ascension, was the Spirit of God, who is also the Spirit of Jesus: God Himself. It is why the Messiah had said: “I will not leave you orphans; I will come back to you”, which is to say, under the form of his Consoler Spirit. He wanted to make them understand that this Spirit and Himself are one. This is why the Messiah is recognized in Islam as the “Word of God”, and the “Spirit of God”:

“The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, is the Apostle of God and His Word, which He cast to Mary: a Spirit from Him.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,171)

Some believers think that this Consoler Spirit promised by the Messiah to his Apostles is none other than the prophet Muhammad. This interpretation is in disagreement with the Qur’an and the Gospel. In fact, the Evangelical Inspiration says that ten days after His Ascension, Jesus sent the Holy Spirit onto the Apostles, and “they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak foreign languages…” (Acts 2,4)

This verse and the rest of the evangelical and Qur’anic verses concerned with the Holy Spirit, cannot be applied to the prophet Muhammad. Moreover, the Gospels and Qur’an reveal that the Holy Spirit came upon Mary, the Virgin, so that she becomes pregnant with the Messiah:

“The angel answered (to Mary), ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will cover you with Its shadow.” (Luke 1,35)

“The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was God’ Apostle, and His Word which He cast to Mary: a Spirit from Him.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,171)

“We sent her (Mary) Our Spirit, which appeared before her as an immaculate human.” (Qur’an XIX; Mary,17)

This Spirit cannot be Muhammad who was not born yet. This false interpretation, without any scriptural foundation, cannot be accepted.

In the Old Testament, God revealed the Trinity in a manner which could only be understood together with the Evangelical Revelation. The Book of Genesis relates the apparition of God to Abraham in the form of Three Persons:

“Yahweh appeared to him at the Oak of Mamre while he was sitting by the entrance of the tent during the hottest part of the day. He looked up, and there he saw three men standing near him. As soon as he saw them he ran from the entrance of the tent to meet them, and bowed to the ground. ‘My Lord’, he said, ‘if I find favor with You, kindly do not pass your servant by. A little water shall be brought; You shall wash your feet and lie down under the tree…’” (Genesis 18,1-15)

The strange fact in this Biblical story is that Abraham speaks to these three “Persons”, sometimes in the singular, and sometimes in plural, and appears confused in front of this Trinitarian vision of God. Many Christians created some confusion, at the dawn of Christianity, between “Trinity” (one God in three “Persons”) and tritheism (three gods).

God invites us, by the Evangelical Inspiration, to discern between his Word and his Spirit in his Divine Essence. The Divine Being is God or the Father, the Word which emanates (or born) from Him and in Him –spiritually of course– is the Son, and God’s Mentality –or His state of Mind– is the Holy Spirit. This Word and this Spirit are the Word and Spirit of God, not the word and spirit of other gods. This is the Holy Trinity, the one and only God in three “Persons”. These Persons can be distinguished but not separated.

Some people wonder why there all these discernments and complicated terms? Our answer to them: “It is God who takes the initiative to make Himself known, to inform us of what He deems useful about his Divine Being. Our duty is to make an effort to understand, in order to recognize indeed, that it is not as complicated as we might think.”

As for tritheism, it is a doctrine which totally differs from the Trinity, since it teaches the existence of three gods, in three different divine essences, each god having its own essence: such is the god of good, the god of evil, the god of punishment, the three gods being eternal, and separate of one another. This is, of course, a heresy condemned by the Apostles, by the Christian leaders of the first centuries and by the Qur’an. The Mormons as well as certain Hindu sects believe in tritheism.

Some ill-intentioned Jews fought Christianity from the start, by dividing its ranks with heresies of the likes of tritheism. Others have even claimed that Mary, the Mother of the Messiah, was one of the three divinities. This tritheism, an amalgam of corrupt Christianity and paganism, spread during the first centuries of our era. This is why the Qur’an condemns this apostasy by saying:

“It is blasphemy they utter, those who say that God is the third of three! There is no God except the One God.” (Qur’an V; The Table,73)

(Interpretation of “Al Jalalein”: “God is one of these three, the two others are Jesus and His Mother. Some Christians think this”.)

Notice that only some of the Christians are mentioned by the Qur’an. The Qur’an further explains that the three gods worshiped by this Christian sect are God, Jesus and Mary:

“Remember when God said to Jesus Son of Mary: Did you really say to people: ‘Take Me and My Mother as two gods instead of God?’ He said: ‘Glory be to You! What right have I to assert what does not in truth belong to me.’” (Qur’an V; The Table,116)

“O People of the Book (the Bible), do not be excessive in your religion. Do not say anything about God but the truth. The Messiah, Jesus Son of Mary, is indeed God’s Apostle and His Word which He cast into Mary and a Spirit from Him. So believe in God and His Apostles and do not say: ‘Three!’ (God, Jesus and Mary: ‘Al Jalalein’). Desist (saying this), for this would be best for you. God in truth is One…” (Qur’an IV; The Women,171)

Today, no Christian confession believes that Mary is a goddess, or that “God is third of three”. These words are heresy. The Gospel has never said these, as there is but one God whose quintessence is God, His Word, and His Spirit. This does not mean three gods, but one God in three “Persons”. All those who are able to differentiate between the Trinity and tritheism demonstrate that they have attained a great maturity in reflection, as every Christian agrees with the Qur’an to say:

“It is blasphemy they utter, those who say that God is the third of three! There is no God except the One God.” (Qur’an V; The Table,73)

No Christian worthy of this name can say heretic words such as these. On the contrary, he must reject such thoughts. God is neither “third”, nor “second”, nor “first of three”: God is One, there is none other but Thee, holy be thy Name! We are all with the Qur’an in rejecting tritheism. If the Qur’an had the intention of denying the Trinity, it would have said: “Infidels are all those who say: God is one in three”. Let Christians know today that the Qur’an does not accuse them of blasphemy because of their faith, nor does it refer to them in the above-mentioned verses. That Muslims also know this of the Qur’an, and of their Christian brothers. Why then, is there this mutual repulsion when there is agreement among the Holy Scriptures?

Here is a simple clarification on the Trinity: a man and his word are one and the same essence, like a man and his spirit are. So, a man, his word and his spirit are one and the same essence. In a similar way God, His Word and His Spirit are One. The man who gives his word, gives himself, his whole self: his word, his soul, and his spirit. In adding a man to his word and to his spirit, we do not obtain three men, but one man in his three aspects. A man is thus, he too, a trinity and a lesser image of the Holy Trinity. This is not surprising since God created man in his Image.

There exists in man, a vital spiritual movement between him and himself. He consults himself, he examines his spirit and interrogates himself through reasoning. He agrees with his actions or rejects them; man is not isolated from his thoughts, unless he is in conflict with himself, suffering from psychological diseases which divide his personality, revealing symptoms of the imbalance. Man is a trinity. This spiritual movement related in man is perfectly harmonious in God.

Another example of the Holy Trinity: the Sun, its Light and its Heat are three aspects of the same Entity. The Sun represents God the Father, its Light represents His living and vivifying Word sent to enlighten the World, and its Heat represents His living Holy Spirit, felt in us. Those who profit not from the Sun nor from Life are those who willingly close the shutters in their homes.

The Evangelical Inspiration has taught us that the Creator is One, but not separate of His Personality. Open unto Himself, He is in company of His own Person, perfectly in peace with Himself, fully conscience of His Being. God loves Himself knowing that He is Beauty without blemish. All those who meditate on God with a purity of heart can feel the infinite harmony of the Divine Being, and discover the triple movement of His unique and infinitely lovable Essence.

God, the Thought that He has of Himself, and the Love of His Perfect Being are called in the Gospels: the Father (God), the Son (His Word or his Thought expressed in Himself), and His Spirit (the atmosphere of Love in which God bathes).

The Qur’an invites us to discern between the Trinity and tritheism. Those who respond to this call with dispossession, take a giant spiritual and psychological step forward, making them apt of adjoining themselves eternally to God, taking part in His Love and endless Life.

1.2. The Messiah and his Title of Son of God

Many are shocked by the title “Son of God” attributed to Jesus as, they say, God begets no children as men do. And yet, the quality of Son of God associated with the Messiah means that He has no human father. To the question: “Who is the mother of the Messiah?” The response is: “Mary”. And “Who is his father?”, the Bible and Qur’an agree on the fact that no man had known Mary; no one has the right to claim physical paternity of Jesus. The Gospel and Qur’an agree on this fact. Such is the intention of the Gospel in giving Jesus the qualification of Son of God, Joseph being his adoptive father.
This truth is confirmed in the Old Testament and by several prophecies. In the Xth century before our era, God sent the prophet Nathan to king David to announce him the birth of the Messiah from his lineage. God says of Him:

“I shall be a father to him and He a Son to Me.” (2 Samuel 7,14)

In the VIIIth century BC, the prophet Isaiah announced:

“The young woman (virgin) is with child and will give birth to a son.” (Isaiah 7,14)

These prophecies were only understood at the birth of the Messiah, Jesus, of the young Virgin Mary. The Gospel reports that the Angel Gabriel announced to Mary that she would give birth to a son. She was astonished and asked him:

“‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’. ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you,’ the angel answered, ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God.’” (Luke 1,34-35)

We must pay close attention to the words of the Angel who reveals the reason for which the Messiah is called “Son of God”, explaining that “the Holy Spirit” will come upon Mary “so he will be called the Son of God”, no man being his father.

The Gospel of Matthew also reveals to us that the Angel appears afterward to Joseph to confirm Mary’s virginity, as he had doubt. The Angel says to him:

“‘Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because she has conceived what is in her by the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you must name him Jesus…’ Now all this took place to fulfill the words spoken by the Lord through the prophet (Isaiah): The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son.” (Matthew 1,20-23)

God also inspires this fact in the Qur’an, attesting this miraculous birth of the Messiah from the Virgin Mary through a divine act, non-human. Mary responds to the Angel:

“‘How can I have a son when no man has ever touched me, nor am I an adulteress?’ He (the Angel) said: ‘Thus did your Lord speak’, ‘It is a matter easy for Me. We shall make him a wonder to mankind and a mercy from Us - a decree ordained.’ So she conceived him and retired with him to a distant place.” (Qur’an XIX; Mary,20-22)

Thus, the Qur’an certifies to the Arabs that the mother of the Messiah is virgin, as she begot to the world a son without human intervention, but through a divine initiative and intervention. This unique case in human history earned the Messiah, and He alone, the title of “Son of God”; as every other man has a father and a mother. Unlike Adam, Jesus had a mother, whilst the former was created, says the Bible, from clay (or dust). Adam neither had a father, nor a mother.

How do we understand what the Qur’an reveals in the following Sura on the Unity of God:

“Say: ‘He is God, Unique, God, Lord Supreme! Neither begetting nor begotten, and none can be His peer.’” (Qur’an CXII; True Devotion,1-4)

Our response: These words are addressed to the Pagans of Mecca regarding their mythological gods, and not to Christians regarding the Messiah. In fact, these pagans believed that their gods ate, married, and procreated children. The Qur’an came to tell them that God is not like their idols, but that He is eternal, not begotten, nor does He beget another god with the aid of a companion goddess, like him, who shares his divinity, as is the case in mythology.

The Qur’an itself spurs us to explain these verses as we have done: God has no concubines with whom he sleeps with to get children, as was the case with Meccan gods:

“Marvelous Creator of the heavens and the earth! How can He have a son when He has no spouse and created all things? He is Omniscient” (Qur’an VI; Cattle,101)

This verse does not point to Jesus, but those who:

“assigned to God the Jinn as partners, though He created them, and (who are in error) fabricated for Him (mythological) sons and daughters mindlessly. Glory be to Him! May He be far above what they recount!” (Qur’an VI; Cattle,100)

It is in the same way that we should interpret the following verses:

“And yet they say: ‘The All-Merciful has taken to Himself a son!’ (by partnering with a companion) You have uttered a thing most terrible…” (Qur’an XIX; Mary,88)

For this reason, Muhammad also says in the Qur’an:

“Say: ‘If the All-Merciful had a child, I would be the first to worship.’” (Qur’an XLIII; Ornament,81)

God’s evident intention in this verse points to the children of these “Jinns” (spirits and gods of Arabian mythology), not the Messiah born from the Word of this Unique God, whom Muhammad was “the first to worship”, thus being the “first Muslim” of the Arabian Peninsula as the Qur’an explains.

It was difficult for the Arabs of the pre-Islamic period to understand the spiritual evangelical truths. They were drowned in sensual pleasures and believed that their gods married, and had concubines and “sons and daughters” like themselves, as the Sura of “Cattle” reveals. The Qur’an came to explain them, in their language and mentality, by placing itself at their level, about the existence of a unique God who created all things. This God has no need of a consort to beget a son through a sexual act, as His spiritual power is such that, with one word, He creates whatever He wants.

The Arabs were not prepared to understand and accept a creation made by divine order. God came to present this fact through the Qur’an, explaining to them the difference between the behavior of their mythological gods and that of the unique true God Creator:

“It is not for God to take a child (by a physical act like the gods of Mecca) - Glory be to Him! When He determines any matter, He merely says to it: ‘Be!’ and it is.” (Qur’an XIX; Mary,35)

The Qur’an also says in the Sura “The Groups”:

“Had God wanted to take a child, He would have selected whom He wished from His Creation.” (Qur’an XXXIX; The Groups,4)

Indeed, the Qur’an reveals that God did, in fact, choose Mary with the purpose of having a son:

“Remember when the Angels said: ‘God has chosen you, made you pure and chosen you above all women in the world.’” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,42)

The angel said to Mary: “‘I am but a messenger from your Lord, to bestow upon you a son most pure.’ She said: ‘How can I have a son when no man has touched me, nor am I an adulteress?’ He said: ‘Thus did your Lord speak’. ‘It is a matter easy for Me. We shall make him a wonder to mankind and a mercy from Us - a decree ordained’. So she conceived him, and withdrew with him to a far-off place.” (Qur’an XIX; Mary,19-20)

This is exactly what arrived with the Messiah. The Qur’an declares, in fact, as we have seen, that God chose the Virgin Mary in order to create, in her womb, and by His divine Word, His Holy Messiah. It is here thus, in the womb of Mary, that God tells the Messiah: “Be!” and He was. On the spot, the chosen Virgin was pregnant with the Word of God, as the Sura of “The Family of Imran” reveals:

“Remember when the Angels said: ‘O Mary, God gives you glad tidings of a Word from Him. His name is the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary…’” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,45)

The Qur’an thus confirms the evangelical revelation with regards to the Messiah:

“… The Word became flesh, he lived among us, and we saw his glory, the glory that he has from the Father as only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.” (John 1,14)

Let us finally report this final Qur’anic verse:

“The Jews say Ezra is son of God while the Christians say Christ is the son of God. This is what they say, from their very mouths, thereby agreeing with the speech of the unbelievers who came before. May God strike them down! How they pervert the truth.” (Qur’an IX; Repentance,30)

We must understand this verse taking into consideration the fact that the Qur’an comes to confirm the Bible, and not to invalidate it. To do otherwise, would be to let oneself deviate towards the worst of arguments, and not orient oneself towards the best of arguments, which is “the Straight Path” prescribed by the Qur’an. In this illuminated Path, we understand this verse in the following manner. They say: “Christ is the son of God. This is what they say, from their very mouths”: it is not deeply rooted in their hearts and entails no positive spiritual consequence in their daily behaviors. They continue to live as pagans. If this word gushed from the heart, it would have changed their lives. And yet, they still behave in all things like these polytheistic pagans. They “repeat”, alas, and use Christ’s Name just as unbelievers did before them, regarding their deities who bore sons and daughters. These “stupid” pagans thus resemble each other in all things, and will suffer the same condemnation. Even today, we cannot but notice the moral decadence of the greater majority of the so-called Christians who “say from their mouths the Christ is Son of God”, yet themselves behave, as children of the devil. The Christ had good reason to say:

“Hypocrites! How rightly Isaiah prophesied about you when he said: This people honor Me only with lip-service, while their hearts are far from Me. Their reverence of Me is worthless.” (Matthew 15,7-9)

The Qur’an reproduces in its own tongue, the Messiah’s words addressed to the false believers.

The intention of Divine Inspiration, in giving the Messiah the title of Son of God, is thus clear: it means that He has no human father. Such is the veritable spiritual meaning confirmed by the Bible and Qur’an. Whoever wishes to discuss this in an extremist way, divides the ranks amidst believers and bear full responsibility before the Throne of God. As for us, committed to the “Straight Path”, we have demonstrated, grace to the Scriptures, the veritable divine intention, and the unity of the Biblical-Qur’anic Inspiration, thus employing the “best” of arguments and unite the believers’ ranks.

1.3. The Divinity of the Messiah

No one imagined that God would lower himself to the point of taking on human form, appearing in this world and speaking to the man He created, within man. A human being, a prey to pride, often refuses to believe that his Holy Majesty would lower himself to the level of the created being.

What does the Biblical-Qur’anic Inspiration say about the Divine Incarnation?

The Old Testament gradually prepared believers of this truth in two stages. In the first stage, the Torah revealed the truth of the existence of the Unique God. In the second stage, God spoke to the prophets of the Messiah that He would send, presenting Him with exceptional supernatural traits.

1.3.1. In the first stage

Mankind before the Bible worshiped dictatorial mythological gods with fear and apprehension. The Bible presents a unique, kind, merciful God, Who forgives the sins of those who repent (Exodus 34,5-7). He appeared speaking to Abraham, Moses and the Prophets, whilst men who worshiped idols trembled before their gods in fear and crushed themselves before them in order to manifest their submission. In the Bible, to the contrary, God teaches man to love Him like a father who watches over his children; just as He teaches them that there is no need to fear Him, save the unjust:

“Yahweh, Yahweh, God of tenderness and compassion, slow to anger, rich in faithful love and constancy, maintaining his faithful love to thousands, forgiving fault, crime and sin, yet letting nothing go unchecked…” (Exodus 34,5-7)

The Qur’an, at its turn, confirms this truth, revealing:

“God the Compassionate, the Merciful.” (Qur’an I; Al-Fatiha,1)

1.3.2. In the second stage

In the Bible, God promised to send the Messiah as a Sign of His Mercy, to pull out humanity from infernal ignorance, fanaticism, egoism, and pride. He announced to his prophets the coming of a humble Messiah; and yet in this humbleness his grandeur lies. God attributed symbolic names to the Messiah, revealing his true divine nature, and his exceptional human personality. Isaiah (VIIIth Century BC) describes him so:

“The Lord will give you a sign in any case. It is this: the young woman (virgin) is with child and will give birth to a son, whom she will call Immanuel.” (Isaiah 7,14)

The name “Immanuel” means “God with us” (Matthew 1,23). Thus, with the Messiah, it is God Himself who is with us. Isaiah also attributes other exceptional names to this child:

“For there is a child born for us, a son given to us and dominion is laid on his shoulders; and this is the name they give him: ‘Wonder Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace’.” (Isaiah 9,5)

God has never given the names of “Mighty-God” or “Eternal-Father” to any other prophet. No reasonable man would dare to bear them. On the contrary, we find names in the Arab world such as: Abdallah ie “God’s Slave”, Abdul-Massih ie “Messiah’s Slave”, Abdul-Nabi ie “Prophet’s Slave”. By the divine names given to the Messiah, God reveals through the Old Testament, his personal coming in the person of the Messiah.

The necessity for God’s incarnation appears in Isaiah’s heartbreaking cry which he addressed to Him, inviting Him to come to earth Himself to earth:

“Oh, that You would tear the Heavens open and come down!” (Isaiah 63,19)

Other prophecies, notably those of the Prophet Micah (VIIIth Century BC), announce the birth of the Messiah in Bethlehem. Micah even predicted that his origins are eternal:

“But you, (Bethlehem) Ephrathah, the least of the clans of Judah, out of you will be born for me the one who is to rule over Israel; his origin goes back to the distant past, to the days of Eternity.” (Micah 5,1)

How can the Messiah, born 750 years after Micah, have eternal origins? This prophecy cannot be understood but at its accomplishment. In fact, in a heated diatribe between Jesus and the Jews, He declares:

“I tell you most solemnly, before Abraham ever was, I Am.” (John 8,58)

We know that Abraham precedes the Messiah by two thousand years on our earth. How then, can He assert that He exists before Abraham, if not, as Micah says, that His origins are eternal? This eternity appears equivalently, when Jesus was praying openly in the presence of his Apostles, telling his Holy Father:

“I have glorified You on earth… Now, Father, it is time for you to glorify me with that glory I had with You before ever the world was.” (John 17,4-5)

Jesus addresses himself to his Father in an elevated voice, in order to teach in which spirit, one should resort to God: with tenderness and delicacy. At the same time, He reveals his divine essence, He who existed with God “before ever the world was”. In the Evangelical Inspiration, several verses mention the eternity of the Messiah’s Spirit, not of his human body of course, which, like all flesh, was created in the world.

Some people are startled by the Divine Incarnation, and question themselves in a totally materialistic mentality: “Since God has incarnated in the Messiah on earth, how can he then, manage the world and the stars from heaven?!” This is a naïve, childish, and limited view of God’s Omnipotence. God has no need of leaving Heaven to appear on earth.

In our epoch, this fact is more understandable than it was in the past. In fact, psychology has discovered the unsuspecting and unknown powers of the human spirit. A spiritual person can passage with his spirit, and appear some thousands of kilometers away of his body. Likewise, certain persons can control, from a distance, other’s thoughts, even guiding individuals and collectives from a distance. If such is the power of the human spirit, created, which has not yet discovered all its faculties, what then can we say of the Creator’s Spirit, whose infinite Power we do not yet realize? God can, indeed, incarnate himself on earth without actually leaving heaven.

However, what interests us in the Inspiration is not what people say, but what God Himself revealed to his Prophets. We believe in the plan of God revealed by God, even if it is shocking to those who have a materialistic faith and dull spirit, preventing them of understanding the divine plans.

What does the Qur’an say about the Messiah? That He is the Word of God and His Spirit:

“The Angels said to Mary: ‘God bids you rejoice in a Word from Him: His name is the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary’.” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,45)

Notice that the name of this Divine Word is “the Messiah Jesus”, which comes back to say that the Messiah is the Word of God. The Word of God is permanently with Him, being of his Divine Essence, as this is revealed by St John’s Gospel:

“In the beginning was the Word: the Word was with God, and the Word was God… The Word became flesh.” (John 1,1-14)

The Qur’an also reveals us that the Messiah is also the Spirit of God:

“The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary was God’s Apostle and His Word, which He cast to Mary: a Spirit proceeding from Him.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,171)

As we cannot separate a person from his word, we also cannot separate him from his spirit. The Word of God is God Himself, the Spirit of God is also God, it is the Holy Trinity reported in the Evangelical Inspiration.

Some interlocutors regarding these topics resort to futile arguments, saying for example, that we can find some religious leaders who carry the title of “Spirit of God” (Ruh-Allah) without having the divine essence. The response is that it is human traditions which have attributed such titles to men; Divine Inspiration has nothing to do with it. The Heavenly Books have never said of a prophet, however great they may have been, the Word of God or the Spirit of God. Here appears the deviance of human traditions, which we denounce.
God utilized the best means to gradually reveal to the Arabs the truth about the Messiah’s nature, using, as is his habit, a wise pedagogy. Those who wish to delve deep into the inspired truths must recur to the Bible. They should read it, arming themselves with the Spirit of God, so as to not interpret it in a purely human or philosophical spirit, which clouds the spiritual truths. What is important is not to simply read the Inspired Books, but in the spirit which these Heavenly Books are read.

If the Qur’an does not deny the Messiah’s Divinity, how then, do we interpret the following verse?

“It is blasphemy they utter, those who say that God is Christ the son of Mary! For Christ had said: ‘O Children of Israel, worship God, my Lord and your Lord’. Whoso ascribes partners to God, God proscribes the Garden to him, and his final refuge is the Fire. Wrongdoers shall have no champions.” (Qur’an V; The Table,72)

The Qur’anic points, here, considered a certain category of Christians as infidels because of their injustices. Notice that the verse does not say: “It is blasphemy they utter, all those who say that God is Christ”, but “Blasphemers are those who say that God is Christ”, that is, the known Christians like those who say “God, is Christ”. The phrase should be understood as so: The Christians have blasphemed.

But why have they blasphemed? Is it for saying that God is the Messiah? If such was the Divine Intention, then the verse would have been inspired under an indisputable form, dissipating all misinterpretation, like: “All those who say that God is Christ blaspheme”, or, more so, “whoever says that the Messiah is God, blasphemes”.

But the Qur’an does not consider all Christians as blasphemers. Well to the contrary, it praises the virtues of many Christians, knowing those who say: “God, is the Messiah”. God also inspired Muhammad the following verse:

“You will surely find that the nearest in amity towards the believers (in the Qur’an, Muslims) are those who say: ‘We are Christians’. That is because there are priests and monks among them; and they do not grow proud.” (Qur’an V; The Table,82)

We should note that these priests and monks believe that God is the Messiah, and at the same time, the Qur’an praises them.

“As for the believers, for the Jews, the Christians, and the Sabaeans who believe in God and the Last Day, and who do righteous deeds – these have their wage with their Lord. No fear shall fall upon them, nor shall they grieve.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,62)

“They to whom We brought the Book (The Bible) before this present Revelation (the Qur’an) believe in it (the Qur’an). And when it is recited to them, they say: ‘We believe in it; it is the truth (that comes) from our Lord. We had indeed been Muslims (submitted to God) before it!’ These shall be paid their wages twice for their steadfastness; they ward off evil by doing good, and expend from what We provided them. If they hear idle talk they turn away from it…” (Qur’an XXVIII; The Narrative,52-55)

We deduct that the Qur’an does not condemn, globally, all those who say “God, is the Messiah” for having said these words. Otherwise, God would have condemned, as one block, all Christians. God’s real intention in these verses is to condemn a category of Christians who, because of their evil actions, have blasphemed and become infidels. Other Qur’anic verses where God praises faithful Christians for their good deeds, applies this interpretation. He reassures them in saying:

“No fear shall fall upon them, nor shall they grieve… because among them are priests and monks, and they do not grow proud.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,62 / Qur’an V; The Table,82-85)

The Qur’an distinguishes between two categories of Christians: those who follow the “Straight Path”, and those who go astray. The latter are rightly accused, by the Qur’an, of being constituted as blasphemers.

The Qur’an says:

“They are not all alike. Among the People of the Book is a group upstanding. They recite the revelations of God through the hours of the night and prostrate themselves. They believe in God and the Last Day; they command virtue and forbid vice; they hasten to do good works. These are among the righteous. What good they do will not be denied them; and God knows full well those who are pious.” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,113-115)

“A group among the People of the Book longs to lead you astray, but it is only themselves they lead astray, and they know it not!” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,69)

“Among the People of the Book is one who, if you entrust him with a hoard of money, will give it back to you; and among them is one who, if you entrust him with a dinar, will give it back to you only if you keep standing over him.” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,75)

The distinction made by the Qur’an between the two categories of people of the Book clearly emerges from these verses. The category of those who are led astray is denounced by the Qur’an, not because of their belief in the Messiah’s Divinity, but because of their evil deeds, especially the theft of other’s possessions. For the Qur’an praises on the one hand priests and monks, while it castigates others:

“O believers, many rabbis and monks consume the wealth of people unjustly…” (Qur’an IX; Repentance,34)

Now, to “consume the wealth of people unjustly” equivocates, according to the Evangelical Inspiration, to idolatry. Likewise, all evil action is considered by the Gospels as idolatry. And Jesus, the Messiah had said:

“No one can be slave of two masters: he will either hate the first and love the second, or treat the first with respect and the second with scorn. You cannot be the slave both of God and of money.” (Matthew 6,24)

Saint Paul also says:

“For you can be quite certain that nobody who actually indulges in fornication or impurity or greed—which is worshiping a false god—can inherit anything of the Kingdom of God.” (Ephesians 5,5)

In spite of this, many Christians claim to belong to the Messiah, while they are, in reality, nothing but idolaters who associate the worship of God with that of money and pleasures.

It is therefore not strange that the Qur’an, after the Gospel, denounces the impious category of Christians who say that God is the Messiah. These Christians are thus accused of idolatry because of their love for money and pleasures, and not because they say that God is the Messiah. Such is our interpretation.

Yes, we too, with the Qur’an, affirm: “Blasphemers are those who say, ‘God is the Messiah’”. Nonetheless, we are amongst those who say that “God, is the Messiah”. We affirm it without apprehension, confident of “having nothing to fear or grieve” (Qur’an II; The Cow,62), knowing that our good deeds will classify us amongst the blessed, not amongst those who disbelieve.

However -and to be more clear- we affirm: “Blasphemers are those who say that Muhammad is Prophet of God”. Yet, we believe that Muhammad is a worthy Prophet of God. And we hope not to be classified, because of evil deeds, among the blasphemers. Many of those who say that Muhammad is Prophet of God have themselves, indeed, gone astray from the principles and noble commandments of the Qur’an, rejecting the spirit of openness of the Qur’an. They are counted as blasphemers. We refer our readers to what the Prophet Muhammad and late Sheikh Muhammad Abdo said about this subject in our introduction.

Likewise, we say: “Blasphemers are those who say that Moses is prophet of God”. Yet, we believe that Moses is Prophet of God. But we denounce Zionism and its criminal followers who say that Moses is prophet of God.

The Divine Incarnation is the answer to an absolute necessity, seeing the profuse darkness which humanity has been plunged into. The Prophets themselves were incapable of saving man. This incapacity is reflected in the words of the Prophet Isaiah:

“We had all gone astray…” (Isaiah 53,6)

Only God never goes astray. He alone is capable of freeing man from darkness. It is why:

“The Word became flesh, he lived among us.” (John 1,14)

God had answered the heartbreaking cry of the Prophet Isaiah:

“Oh, that You would tear the Heavens open and come down!” (Isaiah 63,19)

1.4. The crucifixion of the Messiah

The Bible, in the Old Testament, announces that the Messiah will be despised and put to death by the Jews. The prophet Isaiah (VIIIth century BC) had said of the Messiah:

“… a thing despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering, a man to make people screen their faces… And yet ours were the sufferings He bore, ours the sorrows he carried. But we, we thought of Him as someone punished, struck by God, and brought low. Yet He was pierced through for our faults, crushed for our sins. On him lies a punishment that brings us peace, and through his wounds, we are healed. We had all gone astray like sheep, each taking his own way, and Yahweh burdened him with the sins of all of us. Harshly dealt with, he bore it humbly, He never opened His mouth… Yes, He was torn away from the land of the living; for our faults struck down in death. They gave him a grave with the wicked, a tomb with the rich, though He had done no wrong and there had been no perjury in his mouth. Yahweh has been pleased to crush Him with suffering. If He offers His life in atonement, He shall see His heirs, He shall have a long life and through Him what Yahweh wishes will be done.” (Isaiah 53,1-10)

Such is the Old Testament’s description of the Messiah’s calamity and putting to death, eight centuries before its accomplishment. If, today, we were to describe the sufferings of the Messiah, we could not have done it better than Isaiah.

What is the meaning of this divine prophecy: “He was pierced through for our faults. And we had all gone astray!” What are these faults, and how did the Jews go astray? It is about the crimes of Zionism and of its perdition. Indeed, the Zionist spirit had infiltrated among the Jewish people in the last centuries, and this spirit was strongly condemned by the prophets of the Old Testament and by the Messiah. “We had all gone astray”, said the prophet Isaiah. This perdition lies in the politicization of Judaism. In fact, Zionists conceived Judaism as an Israeli State. On the contrary, God desires faith and repentance for all humanity. Here is why the Messiah had declared:

“My Kingdom (spiritual and universal) is not a Kingdom of this world (political and restricted).” (John 18,36)

The Zionist Jews of today follow the steps of their ancestors and drive astray in the illusion of Zionism. After having occupied Palestine, most Israelis still dream of Greater Israel, an Israeli empire that extends from the Nile to the Euphrates. The tragedy of the Middle East is because of Zionism, and reproduces in the 20th century, the tragedy of Jesus, the Messiah, who denounced Zionism up to the Cross.

The Zionist evil had equally contaminated Jesus’ Apostles themselves. They expected -like all the other Jews- a military Messiah who would lead a Zionist movement of liberation. They awaited that Jesus would engage in a violent and armed expansionist campaign against the Romans and neighboring countries of Palestine. The aim of this messianic military movement would have been the establishment of the Zionist empire. It is the reason for which the Messiah, far from speaking to them of military glory, gradually prepared them to the thought of him being put to death, thus substituting their political and racial ambitions, with a spiritual vision of Salvation.

In fact, Jesus, after being assured that his Apostles believed in Him as the Messiah, revealed to them his spiritual and non-political Messianism, by Him being put to death:

“From that time Jesus began to make it clear to His disciples that He was destined to go to Jerusalem and suffer grievously at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, to be put to death and to be raised up on the third day.” (Matthew 16,21)

The spontaneous reaction of the Apostles was disappointment; Peter rejected this non-political vision and was pressed to say:

“Heaven preserve You, Lord, this must not happen to You!” (Matthew 16,22)

But Jesus rebuked him and went on repeating to the Apostles that He must be crucified and be put to death (Matthew 16,23 and Luke 9,22 / 9,44-45).

The Zionist spirit had so consumed the Jewish mentality, that the Apostles themselves felt an immense difficulty in getting rid of it. The Gospel mentions that Jesus, even after His death and resurrection, was to appear to two of His disciples in order to explain to them the prophecies of the Old Testament concerning His suffering. He said to them:

“‘You foolish men! So slow to believe all that the prophets have said! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer before entering into His glory?’ Then starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, He explained to them the passages throughout the Scriptures that were about Himself.” (Luke 24,25-27)

The Messiah has entered into His own Glory -a spiritual one, neither worldly nor political- through the door of martyrdom. The martyrdom for Justice is in the eyes of God, glory and dignity, not shame as certain people think. The Messiah did not despise martyrdom; and whoever considers it a shame is not guided by God’s Holy Spirit. It took the Apostles quite a long time to understand this manner of thinking; some were even ashamed of what St. Paul, in his letter, calls “the scandal of the Cross” (Galatians 5,11).

Many have scorned Jesus because of His crucifixion. On the other hand, the Apostles did not blush with shame in him being put to death, as the Messiah, after His resurrection, explained to them the deep meaning of the Cross. They then understood God’s intention and wisdom and thus submitted themselves. St Paul writes in his first letter to the Corinthians:

“Here are we preaching a crucified Christ; to the Jews an obstacle that they cannot get over, to the pagans madness.” (1 Corinthians 1,23)

God wanted, by the Messiah being put to death, to establish a criterion of faith, to separate true believers from Zionists. The latter refused to follow Him because of their attachment to politics and earthly glory. The Qur’an alludes to this latter who, after having believed in Him as the Zionist messiah, refused to follow Him after His death, having understood that He would not satisfy their dream of hegemony:

“Among the People of the Book (the Jews) none there are but shall believe in Him (the Messiah) before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection He shall be a witness against them.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,159)

This Qur’anic verse clearly demonstrates that the Messiah was veritably put to death.

If such was the attitude of the people of the Bible -the Jews, scribes and Pharisees who were already introduced to the death of the Messiah by biblical prophecy- how much more could God have managed the Arabs of the time, incapable of assimilating the fact of the Cross? The Arabs of the pre-Islamic era, could not have conceived nor accepted, an apparently defeated Messiah, hanging on a cross and killed by men, the Jews, supposed to be his witnesses.

Why did the Messiah have to be put to death? To abolish the Zionist spirit from its followers’ mentality. These, seeing Jesus in whom they believed as the political Messiah hanging on a cross, realized that Zionism was a mistake and an illusion which had to be given up definitively.

If the Messiah was not crucified, his disciples would have never understood their error and would have went on asking for the establishment of the Israeli Zionist kingdom. By the cross, the Messiah put an end to the concept of Zionism.

Jesus is Savior because He saves all those who believe in Him, not only from the chains of Zionism, but from all similar illusory ideals, from all materialistic mentalities, even when this conceals itself under a religious appearance. Such is the case of political and nationalist Islam and Christianity. All attempts to politicize religion -all religions- is another Zionism under the guise of another name. The Vatican, in proclaiming itself “State” in 1929, similar to other states, has fallen into the same trap as Zionists did.

As already mentioned, it was impossible for the pre-Islamic Arabs to understand the message of a seemingly defeated Messiah. It is why the Qur’an -a good pedagogy- gradually presents them the truths and evangelical facts. One must also hold count of the fact that at that time, Arabs evaluated a man by his physical strength, courage and skill in handling a sword, and not by qualities like tenderness, humility and the martyrdom for Justice.

This mentality still prevails today in many societies; the greater number have learnt nothing from Divine Inspiration and continue to scorn the meek and the kind, treating them as weaklings. Such behavior defines the Zionist spirit, vanquished by Jesus, on a humble cross.

The Qur’an has prepared the Arabs, with a lot of delicacy and finesse, to the comprehension of the wisdom behind the Messiah’s martyrdom. This cannot be discovered, except by a meticulous and well-intentioned researcher. Because the Qur’an says of the Jews and condemns them:

“Therefore, by renouncing their Covenant, by blaspheming against the revelations of God, by killing prophets unjustly… So also by their blasphemy and their terrible words of slander against Mary, and their saying: ‘It is we who killed the Christ Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of God’ - they killed him not, nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them… but God raised Him up to Him.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,155-158)

Certain superficial believers are pressed to think that these Qur’anic verses deny the crucifixion and physical death of the Messiah. Carried away in their enthusiasm, they embark on a fully-fledged campaign against the Gospels, claiming that they -which report the crucifixion of Jesus- are falsified. By their hasty conclusions, they contradict the Qur’an that attests to the Gospels. By taking a step back and calmly consulting the Qur’an, without any fanaticism, they would discover that it speaks -in another verse- of the putting to death of the Messiah.

Here lies the importance in searching for the unity of the Inspiration, and the need to study the Qur’an in depth to reach the divine purpose. Thus, guided by an “Enlightened Book”, we can avoid the trap of literal interpretation, which draws us away from the divine intention. The Qur’an Itself encourages us to follow this itinerary by a forthright declaration on the Messiah’s death, where He, as a child, says:

“Peace be upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am resurrected, alive!” (Qur’an XIX; Mary,33)

The Qur’an speaks therefore, of the Messiah’s death and his resurrection, attesting by this the Gospels. Certain superficial believers think that these verses speak of the Messiah’s return at the End of Times. Only then would the Messiah be -according to them- put to death. The Divine Inspiration provides no foundation for these rants. We do not understand the reasons for which these “believers” accept the idea of the death of the Messiah at the End of Times, and totally refuse it at his first coming. The Qur’an equally mentions the Messiah’s death in the following verse, where Jesus, speaking to God after His death, says of the Jews who renounced Him after His death:

“I was a witness to them while I lived among them, but when You caused me to die, it was You who kept Watch over them. You are a witness over all things.” (Qur’an V; The Table,117)

We have already seen that the Qur’an condemns the people of the Book (the Jews) who ceased to believe in Jesus after His death:

“Among the People of the Book none there are but shall believe in Him (Jesus) before his death, and on the Day of Resurrection He shall be a witness against them.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,159)

The Messiah’s death is also reported in the following Qur’anic verse, referring to the incredulous Jews:

“They schemed (against Jesus, to kill Him). But God schemed; and God is the best of schemers. Remember when God said: ‘O Jesus, I shall cause You to die (moutawaffica) and make You ascend to Me. I shall purify you from those who blasphemed (the Jews who denied you), and I shall raise those who followed you (the believing Jews) above those who blasphemed until the Day of Resurrection.’” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,54-55)

NB: Here also, the word “moutawaffica”, which means, “I will cause You to die”, is badly translated by “I will take You”. This is false. In fact, this word designates a deceased, physically, a putting to death, corporally.

How do we reconcile between the Qur’anic verses where God Himself declares the putting to death of Jesus, and those where Jesus Himself declares his proper death, with the verse of Qur’an IV; The Women,157, which says:

“They killed him not, nor did they crucify him, but so it was made to appear to them!”

Does the Qur’anic Inspiration contradict Itself? Certainly not!

Those who stop at the literal interpretation, stumble and, as says the Qur’an of those who worship God to the letter:

“They turn their faces about, losing this world and the next. This is the most manifest bereavement!” (Qur’an, XXII; The Pilgrimage,11)

In elevating ourselves to the level of the Divine Intention in the Inspiration -to understand according to the Spirit and not the letter- we will not see in verse 157 of chapter Women (Qur’an IV), any negation of the crucifixion or the physical killing of the Messiah. The Divine Intention is to make us understand that the Jews, in putting the Messiah to death, did not put an end to the Messiah’s message. “But so it was made to appear to them”, that in killing him, they could abort his mission in its cradle. Yet His message, after His death, spread like wildfire, up to the confines of the earth.

The Jews feared the message of Jesus, opposed to Zionism, even more than his Person. And yet, his message, which they had in their sights by killing Him, is widespread in the world, because of the same reason: this crucifixion. Thus, God, “the best schemer”, triumphed over the cunning of the Jews (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,54-55).

Some think that God’s shrewdness bested that of the Zionist Jews because He raised the Messiah up to Him, evading Him of being put to death. But this interpretation contradicts the Biblical-Qur’anic Inspiration. Therefore, we cannot accept it. We believe that God’s shrewdness triumphed over that of the unbelievers, because the Messiah’s death caused Zionism’s defeat. God, after the Messiah’s death, resurrected Him and elevated Him to Him, whereas the Jews thought that they had precipitated Him to the deepest confines of hell. Divine victory over the Jews does not stop at the elevation of the Messiah: The Creator confounds the Jews further still, by raising above them eternally, His Messiah’s disciples:

“I shall raise those who followed you (the believing Jews) above those who blasphemed (the Zionist Jews) until the Day of Resurrection.” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,55)

Nothing can justify those who deny the Messiah’s crucifixion on the pretext of glorifying Him. The martyr for the cause of God is not shameful. Also, God responds in the Qur’an, to all those who think of glorifying the Messiah by denying His crucifixion:

“Say (Muhammad): Who can do anything against God’s will should he wish to extirpate the Christ son of Mary and his mother, indeed all that is on earth?” (Qur’an V; The Table,17)

As we have already seen previously, the Bible reveals to us through the prophet Isaiah, eight centuries before Jesus, that God had already decided of destroying the Messiah:

“… He has been cut off from the land of the living, He has been struck dead… It was Yahweh’s good pleasure to crush Him with pain.” (Isaiah 53,8-10)

Our conviction is firm: No one can stop the arm of God Who acts according to His plan and His wisdom, so often misunderstood by men. God really physically destroyed the Messiah as was prophesied in the Old Testament, and as the Messiah Himself taught in the Gospels. The Qur’an only certifies it. Nevertheless, if God wanted to extirpate the Christ corporally, it was for the purpose of glorifying Him spiritually and eternally. This will be realized with the near and final destruction of Zionism, incarnate today in the State of Israel.

To believe that the Messiah was not put to death, means to believe in a political and military Messiah. This is another form of Zionism. The Messiah had to pass through death to change the mentality of good-intentioned men, who fall into the nets of materialism.

Following these reflections, a simple and true conclusion imposes itself: belief in the Messiah’s crucifixion does not contradict the Qur’an when its verses are interpreted spiritually, according to our principles and is valid for all the inspired Books. On the contrary, the negation of the Messiah’s crucifixion pushes interpreters of the Qur’an to look for contorted explanations, to adapt them to Qur’anic verses which speak of Him being put to death. They thus end up by contradicting the Gospel, instead of confirming it as the Qur’an intends. This culpable behavior is neither “the best of arguments”, nor “the Straight Path” prescribed by the Qur’an.

To die as a martyr for God is an infinite glory: no one can take it away from the Messiah Jesus, the First of the martyrs. He who has grasped this truth will cease of wanting to remove from the Messiah the “shame” of the cross. To die for God, is to live eternally, as is revealed in the Qur’an:

“Do not say about those who are killed in the cause of God that they are dead; they are indeed alive, but you do not perceive them.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,154)

The Qur’an is logical with itself. It does not consider the martyrs of God as dead, but alive. It is why, respecting its own principles, it does not stop at the Messiah being put to death, but as a martyr, declaring Him alive forever. The Jews had not put Him to death because God, “the supreme Contriver”, brought Him back to life eternally, but “they are not aware of it”. The Qur’an also says on this subject:

“Do not imagine those killed in the path of God to be dead. Rather, they are alive with their Lord, enjoying His bounty.” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,169)

We say, we who believe in the crucifixion, death and resurrection of the Messiah: The Messiah is alive, “they did not kill Him, nor did they crucify Him, but they thought they did”.

1.5. The falsification of the Bible

1.5.1. The Qur’anic proofs of the Bible’s authenticity

Along the centuries, some Jews spread rumors of the Bible’s falsification, and the Gospels in particular, by Christians. Their goal was to convince the people that the prophecies on which the Christians rely on for believing in Jesus as the Messiah are falsified, and do not exist in the Old Testament, at least in the form presented by the Christians. Also, that the latter had manipulated the Biblical texts and adapted them to Jesus.

Many believed in this calumny and spread it up until our days, scorning the Bible, especially the Gospels. Some Arabs go so far as preventing the introduction of the Gospels into their countries and their homes when paradoxically, their doors are open to immoral books and reviews.

To claim that the Bible is falsified is a heresy inspired by the Devil who, as the Qur’an says:

“whispers and recoils… in the hearts of mankind.” (Qur’an CXIV; Mankind,4-5).

We find no verse in the Qur’an that warns believers against the falsification of the Bible. To the contrary, the Qur’an says that it comes to certify the Bible (Qur’an IV; The Women,47). Would the Qur’an authenticate a falsified Biblical text?

How can the Qur’an warn against the Bible, when the Inspiration is one? God is Almighty to protect His Inspiration, and would not allow the falsification of a Book which He has inspired. Otherwise, how could we ever recur to a “Luminous Book” to guide us in the right path? And what reference would we have? Whoever defames the Bible by claiming that it is falsified, defames by the same fact the Qur’an as well, which confirms its authenticity.

One of the fundamental differences between the Qur’anic Inspiration and the many traditional Muslims is the fact that the Qur’an attests the Bible; whereas they slander it. The Qur’an says:

“Those to whom We (God) revealed the Book (the Bible) recite it as it should rightly be recited. They believe in it. But those who repudiate it, they are truly lost.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,121)

The explanation given by “Al Jalalein” for the expression “read it as it ought to be read” is the following: “They read it as It was inspired”. We adopt this correct interpretation, which has the merit of expressing the Lord’s Intention.

The Qur’an’s witness in favor of the authenticity of the Old and New Testaments, makes all discussion futile to us. We ask ourselves how do some claim to believe in the Qur’an, while they assert the Bible’s falsification. In slandering the Bible, they demonstrate that they do not believe in the Qur’an, since it explicitly says of the Bible:

“those who repudiate it, they are truly lost.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,121)

The Qur’an bears witness to the Gospel by saying, again:

“So let those who follow the Gospel judge in accordance with what God revealed in it. Whoso judges not in accordance with what God revealed, these are the dissolute.” (Qur’an V; The Table,47)

The Qur’an therefore urges the people of the Gospel to judge in virtue of what God has inspired to guide them. Is not this Qur’anic attestation in favor of the Gospel, a sure witness of its authenticity and of one’s duty to recur to it? Despite this, Jews, Muslims and Christians, in their great number affirm the contrary. What will the judgement of these “infidels” be, as the Qur’an qualifies them?

Those who claim that the Gospels are “falsified” do not manifest absolute faith in the Qur’an, but blind fanaticism. In fact, such people hide their hatred behind a mask regarding the whole Divine Inspiration. The same can be said of those who despise the Qur’an under the pretext that they believe in the Gospels.

Any Muslim who thinks that the Gospel is falsified is against the Qur’an. And any Christian who attacks the Qur’an, is against the Spirit of the Gospels. Whoever has really understood the Gospel’s Spirit cannot but embrace the Qur’an.

The Qur’an incessantly applies itself on the Bible as its assured and faithful reference. In fact, God advises Muhammad to refer to the readers of the Bible if he doubted the divine words that were inspired to him:

“If you are in doubt concerning what We revealed to you, ask those who have read the Book before you.” (Qur’an X; Jonah,94)

We would have liked to see every Muslim put into practice, the spirit of the Qur’an, and every Christian put into practice the spirit of the Gospels, so to break the chains of extremism that lead to perdition. May every Muslim therefore imitate the Prophet of Islam, who occupied his heart with words of piousness and respect for the Bible:

“We (God) have revealed the Torah in which there is guidance and light. Prophets who surrendered to God were to judge… Following upon their tracks We sent Jesus son of Mary, confirming what he already possessed of the Torah. To Him We revealed the Gospel in which there is guidance and light, confirming what was in his hands of the Torah a guidance and homily to the pious. So let those who follow the Gospel judge in accordance with what God revealed in it.” (Qur’an V; The Table,44-47)

Is there a single Qur’anic verse that a believer in the Gospels can reject, under the pretext that it attacks the Gospels? No. Not one verse can be found in the Qur’an which contradicts the Gospels and its teachings, on condition, however, that the interpretation takes into consideration the “Best of Arguments”, ie the one which attests to the Gospels, not which contradict it.

Any Qur’anic interpretation contrary to the Gospels is false testimony given against the Qur’an. We are dismayed by those who present false Qur’anic interpretations, then justify their erroneous assertions by claiming that it is the Gospels which is falsified. This justification is even more condemnable than the error itself. The Qur’an Itself denounces and judges such persons.

We are likewise dismayed with those who refuse the Qur’an on the pretext that it is contrary to the Gospels. This assertion is false, as the Qur’an attests the Gospel and confirms it. Why reject it then, under false pretext? On the contrary, is it not more sincere and simpler to believe in the Qur’an because it testifies in favor of the Gospels? In fact, the Qur’an says to the people of the Bible:

“O People to whom the Book (Bible) has been revealed, believe in what We have revealed (the Qur’an), confirming the truth of that which you already have (Bible).” (Qur’an IV; The Women,47)

It is why the people of the Bible must strive to seek the Qur’anic interpretation that confirms the Bible, “which they already have”. By acting with love and wisdom, they will unite the ranks and put an end to denominational hatred.

The Qur’an also addresses its commandments to the Muslims in saying:

“O believers, believe in God and in His messenger (Muhammad), and in the Book (Qur’an) He revealed to His messenger, and the Book He revealed before (Bible). Whoso disbelieves in God, His angels, His Books (the Old, the New Testament, and the Qur’an), His messengers, and in the Last Day has strayed far in error.” (Qur’an IV; The Women,136)

It is not our business to judge those who do not believe in the Holy Books of the Old and New Testaments in their current text, nor to condemn them more resolutely than God himself declares in the Qur’an: They “strayed far”. We therefore exhort to believe the current text of the Bible, because it is the text that the Prophet Muhammad knew. The Divine Inspiration in the Qur’an designates this text because the evidence, even scientific, of its authenticity is manifold and destroys any dispute to the contrary.

There is however, no scientific proof of the falsification of the Bible. If a person who is convinced of this falsification succeeds to present scientific proof of what he is advancing, I will be grateful to him and become his disciple.

1.5.2. The scientific evidence of the Bible’s authenticity

God did not inspire the Bible so to leave it to men’s whims and malice. Here are the principal scientific proofs -results of modern archaeology- which, with the Qur’an, attest the Bible’s authenticity:

1. The “Dead Sea” scrolls discovered in 1947 in Qumran (near the Dead Sea), demonstrate the authenticity of the Old Testament. Scholars have compared this text to those that we possess and were found to be authentic. These texts of the IInd century B.C. are inscribed on goats’ leather. These rolls are found at the Rockefeller Museum of Jerusalem. International museums have copies of them.
2. The “Ryland” papyrus, that dates to the year 125 A.D., contains a part of chapter 18 of St John’s Gospel. It conforms with the current text.
3. The “Chester Beatty” papyrus carries a large chunk of the New Testament. It dates to the IIIrd century A.D. This text also conforms with the current one and is found in the Museum of Michigan (U.S.A.)
4. The so-called Vaticanus Bible dates back to the IVth century A.D., and consists of the whole Bible in Latin. It is found in the Vatican Museum.
5. The so-called Sinaiticus Bible, discovered in the convent of St Catherine in Sinai, is found in the British Museum. It is the Bible in Greek; it also dates back to the IVth century A.D. It was discovered by a Russian prince at the end of the XIXth century.
6. A logical proof of the Bible’s authenticity: the wide range of Christian denominations have the same Biblical text. This text exists in different languages and all conform to the original text.
7. Many of the Muslim scholars deny the falsification of the Bible. The principal ones are the two grand well-known sheikhs (deceased): Afghani and Muhammad Abdo.

According to a fable propagated by certain “believers”, the Gospel was taken up to Heaven with the Messiah and could no longer be found on earth. To these people, we pose the following question: What weight of truth do these words entail, since the Qur’an says of “those who recite the Bible, given they recite it correctly?” How could they read it correctly, if it is no longer on earth?

These rantings are even more ridiculous, that the Qur’an recommends the people of the Gospel to judge according to what God has inspired therein. Can God, in the Qur’an, recommend us to judge from a book which no longer exists?

We have demonstrated that the Qur’an is an Arabic reading of the Bible which, at the time of Arab paganism, only existed in three languages: Hebrew, Greek, and Latin. This is irrefutable proof, supported by modern-day archaeological discoveries, of the presence of the Bible on the earth at that time. It was therefore not taken up to Heaven with the Messiah! The archaeological discoveries already mentioned demonstrate that.

The official Islamic tradition equally reports in the “Noble Discussions”, of the Prophet Muhammad, an extremely important fact.
(These discussions (Hadith, in Arabic) are reported by the scholar Bokhari)

After the apparition of the Angel Gabriel to Muhammad, the Prophet was troubled by the revelation of his mission. He immediately left his habitual place of meditation and reported this happening to Khadija, his wife. To calm him, she took him directly to Waraka-Ibn-Nofal, Khadija’s cousin and Muhammad’s uncle. Bokhari reports that Waraka was an Arab scribe -a Christian convert- who drafted “the Gospel in Hebrew”. The Bible existed, therefore, “on earth”, at Muhammad’s time, within the Arabian Peninsula.

The scientific and scriptural evidence presented here demonstrate the Bible’s authenticity. It shows the immense abyss between, on the one hand, the words of the Qur’an and its Prophet concerning the Bible, and on the other, the calumnies of certain traditionalist believers. For our part, we confide in the testimony of the Qur’an and its Prophet in favor of the Bible. And this testimony is satisfactory for us.

Some believe that the Bible was falsified after the Qur’anic Inspiration. This is the worst of all arguments, and reveals a depraved faith. As we have presented irrefutable scientific evidence of the current evangelical text’s authenticity, which is identical to the one inspired in the past before Muhammad. It is in favor of this same text that the Qur’an witnesses.

The “gospel” of Barnabas

Many persons in the East believe in the pseudo gospel of Barnabas. This “gospel” is a parody of the Messiah’s life, accepted, unfortunately by many Muslims. But every Muslim who is worthy of this name, cannot but reject this “gospel” for the simple reason that it presents Jesus not as the Messiah, but as the predecessor of the Messiah. According to this false “gospel”, Muhammad would be the Messiah.
Here are some extracts of this “gospel”:

“The priest says to Jesus: Stand up Jesus, as we must know from you who you are: it is written in the Book of Moses that God will send us the Messiah who will inform us about God’s will. Therefore, I want you to tell us the truth. Are you God’s Messiah whom we are waiting for? Jesus answered: it is true that God did promise us this, but I am not the Messiah, because he was created before me and he will come after me.” (chapter 96,1-5)

Chapter 97,13-17 also reports:
“The priest then said: what will be the name of the Messiah? Jesus answered: the name of the Messiah is admirable because God Himself gave him a name when He created his soul and placed him in a heavenly glory. God said: Wait, O Muhammad! His blessed name is Muhammad.”

These verses are a flagrant contradiction with Divine Inspiration in the Gospels and the Qur’an, which testify, all two, that Jesus is truly the Messiah.

Furthermore, Muhammad never claimed to be the Messiah, neither did he say that Jesus was not so. He never declared that he was created before Jesus. The Qur’an’s teachings are contrary to the vulgar lies of the “gospel” of Barnabas, and strongly confirm that Jesus is indeed, the Messiah of God.

The purpose of the authors of this “gospel” -which badly conceals Zionism’s hand- was to spark a separation between Christians and Muslims, applying the principle of “divide and conquer”. They played on the affection of Muslims for Muhammad, presenting him as greater than Jesus. Superficial believers have blindly fallen into this trap, without grasping the depth of the problem. They do not realize that, denying Jesus’ Messianism and attributing it to Muhammad, transforms them into counter-witnesses of the Qur’anic message, to which they nonetheless claim to belong.

Does the Qur’an speak of falsification?

The propagators of the rumors of the Bible’s falsification, recur to certain Qur’anic verses. They forget that the Qur’an presents itself as a witness to the Bible. We will mention certain Qur’anic verses to which adepts of the falsification refer, and demonstrate that the Qur’an’s intention is to denounce those who falsify the interpretation of Biblical verses. The Qur’an does not refer to Biblical verses, but to the bad faith of the interpreters. The Qur’an says:

“Do you (Muslims) really expect them (Jews) to believe in the message sent to you, when a group among them would hear the Word of God (in the Bible), and then pervert it, knowingly, after having grasped its meaning?” (Qur’an II; The Cow,75)

“Those to whom We brought the Book (Bible) know it as well as they know their own children. Some of them suppress the truth knowingly.” (Qur’an II; The Cow,146)

Those ill-intended interpreters knowingly altered, with full knowledge of the facts, the meaning of the Biblical verses, “although they understood its meaning”. This is a falsification in the interpretation of the word of God. Elsewhere, the Qur’an also reveals:

“Among them is a group who twist their tongues while reading the Book, so that you might suppose it to be part of the Book, but it is no part of the Book. They claim it is from God, but it is not from God. They utter falsehood in God’s name, and they know it.” (Qur’an III; The Family of Imran,78)

Remark that this group “twist their tongue”; they do not falsify the Biblical texts. By “twisting their tongue”, they present false interpretations -which are convenient to them- to make believe that what they say comes from God, “whereas it is not from God”.

Such is our interpretation of the above-mentioned verses, verses which some ill-intentioned people want “to twist”, to slander the Gospels. The Qur’an accuses the Jews in particular of having recourse to this type of practice:

“Among Jews are some who distort the Words of revelation from their contexts. They say…” (Qur’an IV; Women,46)

Those who “distort the Words from their contexts”, digress them from the meaning intended by God, in presenting a false interpretation. The Qur’an also says on this matter:

“For violating their (the Jews) Covenant We cursed them, and hardened their hearts. They twist words (of the Bible) from their context, and have forgotten a portion of what they were asked to remember…” (Qur’an V; The Table,13 and 15)

It is clear that to “twist words”, points to here, the false interpretations of the Divine Intention.

Yet the Qur’an is not alone in denouncing the Jewish scribes. In the Old Testament, the prophet Jeremiah had already rebelled against them for the same reason:

“How dare you say: ‘We are wise, and we possess the Law of Yahweh?’ But look how it has been falsified by the lying pen of the scribes!” (Jeremiah 8,8)

It is important to meditate these words of inspiration by Jeremiah to grasp the divine Intention that is being revealed: unmask the Jewish scribes who disfigure the Biblical message with their false interpretations.

We have demonstrated that the Biblical text is authentic. The current text in our hands, thus perfectly corresponds to the known text before the Messiah. This text is confirmed by the “Dead Sea” Scrolls. It is this text, which the Messiah and the Prophet Muhammad knew. No falsification is found therein; no human hand can falsify it because God, in His Infinite Wisdom, desires that the whole text of the Divine Inspiration reaches us. The reason is that God wants to inform us of His plan of salvation in favor of all mankind, and about the fatal influence of the Zionist spirit of the Jewish leaders and scribes.

Indeed, the scribes when transcribing the Bible, added, in favor of the Zionist plan, many false texts attributed to God, as the Qur’an rightly points out. These texts can still be found today in the Bible. God, in His Wisdom, allowed them to endure therein to reveal the Zionist hand that introduced them to justify, in the name of God, the human, unwanted traditions of God. These verses resemble parasites, easily detectable by any wise person.

Jesus did not fail to denounce these “hypocrite” scribes and Pharisees:

“‘Why do you break away from the commandment of God for the sake your tradition?’ … ‘In this way you have made God’s word null and void by means of your tradition. Hypocrites! It was you Isaiah meant when he so rightly prophesied: This people honors Me only with lip-service, while their hearts are far from me. The worship they offer me is worthless; the doctrines they teach are only human regulations’.” (Matthew 15,3-9)

It must therefore be stressed, that the Bible itself invites us to discern between Divine Inspiration and the Zionist interpretations therein. A believer must not move away from the Bible because of this Zionist infiltration. On the contrary, this state of affairs must incite strong and valiant hearts to scrutinize the Bible in order to extract the treasures, despite the obstacles. This is how Jeremiah, Jesus, and Muhammad acted.

Moreover, the Prophet Muhammad’s respect of the Bible is a sufficient and supplemental guarantee for all Muslims who wish to consult it. Because God says to Him in the Qur’an:

“Say (to the Arabs who scorn the Bible): ‘Bring a Book from God, more conductive to guidance than both (Torah and the Gospel), and I shall follow it, if you speak the truth’.” (Qur’an XXVIII; The Narrative,49)

What better testimony in favor of the Bible can we ask from this noble Arab prophet? It is clear that in the Prophet of Islam’s mentality, the Bible is indeed inspired by God. We want to be precise: The Bible in its current text, since it is this same text which Muhammad knew.

From the above-mentioned verse, God not only makes Muhammad an Apostle of the Qur’an, but of the Bible too, as the Qur’an is an Arab Inspiration of the Bible. It is the reason for which God, in the Qur’an, asks Muhammad not to demand from the people of the Bible to recur to him as judge, because they have the word of God in the Bible:

“How is it that they elect you to judge between them when they already possess the Torah, in which is found the judgement of God…” (Qur’an V; The Table,43)

“So let those who follow the Gospel judge in accordance with what God revealed in it. Whoso judges in accordance with what God revealed, these are the dissolute.” (Qur’an V; The Table,47)

The Prophet Muhammad invites all Arab believers to follow the path of “those who came before them” in the faith, the Jewish and Christian faithful, matured by the Spiritual Waters of the Bible. The Qur’an says:

“God wishes to make clear to you and to guide you concerning the laws of those who came before you…” (Qur’an IV; Women,26)

“O believers (Arabs), believe in God and in His Apostle (Muhammad), and in the Book (Qur’an) He revealed to His Apostle, and the Book (Bible) He revealed before. Whoso disbelieves in God, His angels, His Books, His messengers, and in the Last Day has strayed far in error.” (Qur’an IV; Women,136).

Such is the Qur’an’s commandment: to believe not only in Muhammad and in the Qur’an, but also in the Scriptures inspired by God before the Qur’an: the Torah and the Gospel in their current text. Any true believer, Jew, Christian, or Muslim, cannot but believe in the totality of the Biblical-Qur’anic Inspiration.

May God Almighty gather His elect, all sincere hearts, all those of good faith, around His one and indivisible Inspiration, in order that they form one unit to face the evil powers who seek to divide them.

1.6. The life of the Prophet Muhammad

Some Orientalists blame Prophet Muhammad for his multiple wives and many wars. We will outline the reasons that justify his behavior which, in our times, appear unacceptable and incompatible with a prophet.

1.6.1. The marriages of Muhammad

One reproach concerns Muhammad’s marriage to Zaynab, daughter of Jahsh. Zaynab was the wife of Zayd, Muhammad’s adopted son. After his divorce, Muhammad had to marry her. Muslims make no effort whatsoever to present the best explanation of this marriage. The explanation we will give further down, adapts perfectly to the character and integrity of the Prophet Muhammad. In effect, some official Islamic interpretations of this marriage, had distanced many Orientalists -and many Christians- from the Qur’an and the Prophet Muhammad as a consequence. The Muslim scholars interpret it so: “After Zaynab’s marriage to Zayd, the Prophet’s gaze fell upon Zaynab and love for her took over his heart”.

This explanation is neither certain, nor conclusive: it is the fruit of a particular mentality of the Arab interpreters of the time. Now, research in the field of interpretation remains open; it is better known in Islam as “Ijtihad”, which means “effort”, because one must do an effort to find, as prescribed by the Qur’an, the best interpretation. It is what we have done, and we think we have found it. We shall explain further, after having briefly outlined the life of the Prophet.

Muhammad was born in Mecca, in the year 570 of our era. He died on June 8, 632. His father, Abdallah, died a few months before his birth, and his mother Amena, died when he was only about five. An orphan, his grandfather Abd-el-Muttaleb took charge of him. He died three years later, leaving him under the care of his son Abi-Taleb, Muhammad’s paternal uncle, who loved him very much because of the uprightness of his morals. Abi-Taleb is the father of Ali, Muhammad’s beloved cousin and faithful friend for life. Ali later married Fatima, Muhammad’s beloved daughter. Abd-el-Muttaleb, Muhammad’s grandfather, was a noble of the Bani-Hashim House of the Meccan tribe of Quraish. He had ten sons including Abdallah (Muhammad’s father), Abi-Taleb (the uncle who adopted and sheltered him), Hamza (who believed in Muhammad), and Abu-Lahab (who fought him).
Amena, Muhammad’s mother, was the sister of Waraka-Ibn-Nofal, whom we have already mentioned. He was the cousin of Khadija, Muhammad’s first wife. Muhammad spent his youth in Mecca and was known for his integrity, chastity, and moral uprightness. He liked isolation and meditation, and did not share the tastes of worldly life with other young men of his age. The inhabitants of Mecca called him “The Honest One” (in Arabic: “El-Amine”) because of his faithfulness and honesty. His love for prayer and meditation often led him to the mountain caves that overlooked Mecca. There, he fled the city’s tumult, to deepen his research of the spiritual.

This did not prevent him from taking part in Mecca’s commercial life. He attended to the commercial caravans in transit between Yemen and Syria. Muhammad was employed at his cousin Khadija -widow of a rich Meccan merchant- where he managed caravans towards Syria, for commerce. She was attracted by his honesty in transactions, and sent him Abi-Taleb (Muhammad’s uncle who sheltered him) to talk to him about marriage. Muhammad accepted. He was 25 years old then, and Khadija 40.

It was a happy marriage until the end. They had three boys, who died very young, and four daughters: Rokaya, Zeinab, Umm-Kalthoum and Fatima, the beloved of Muhammad.

During his many trips to Syria, Muhammad met several Christian monks, including the famous monk Bohaira, to whom Muhammad was bound by a deep friendship. Bohaira had admired Muhammad’s high morality, and often spoke to him of the prophets and the Messiah. Thus, God was already preparing him, without his knowledge, for a great mission.

When the soul of Muhammad reached maturity through contemplation, at the age of 40, Heaven manifested itself to him. The Angel Gabriel appeared to him while in solitude in a cave near Mecca named “Harra”. The Prophet, and the vision over, hurries to Khadija his wife, and tells her what occured. These verses are found in the Qur’an XCVI; The Blood Clot,1-3. We reproduce the story as related by Bokhari:

“Gabriel presented himself to me and tells me: Read! (the Bible) I responded: I cannot read (Muhammad was illiterate). The Angel took me and covered me until I calmed down, then he said: Read. I answered: I cannot read. He took me and covered me a second time until I calmed down, then he said: ‘Read!’ I answered: ‘I cannot read’. He took me and covered me a third time and sent me saying: ‘Read, in the Name of God who created! He created men from a blood clot. Read! For God is generous’. And the prophet returned with these words engraved in him, heart trembling, to Khadija daughter of Khowaylid, and reported to her all what had happened. He tells her: ‘I feared for my person’.”

Such was Muhammad’s first vision. He trembled just as Moses, Jeremiah, Daniel and other prophets did before him. Khadija decided to go with Muhammad to see her cousin, Waraka-Ibn-Nofal. He was a Christian and transcribed Biblical text. Waraka reassured them in saying that this corresponded to the message of Moses, the Biblical message. Bokhari reports the story as follows:

“Muhammad therefore went with Khadija to Waraka-Ibn-Nofal who had become old and blind. Khadija told him: ‘Cousin, listen to what your nephew (Muhammad) wants to tell you’. Waraka answered: ‘What is it, my nephew?’ The prophet then informed him about his vision. Waraka told him: ‘This is the Law of Moses that God has descended upon him. Oh! How I wish to remain alive and take part to this mission. I wish I could stay alive when your people will deny you’. And the prophet Muhammad exclaimed: ‘Will they deny me?’ He answered: ‘Yes! No man is given what you have received, without having enemies. And should this be granted to me, I would support you up to your victory’. Waraka died soon after.”

Thus, Waraka confirmed the authenticity of the vision and certified to him that his message was Biblical. The Message then, is one, and the mission is the same. It is important that this fact is raised.
Waraka’s prophecy was accomplished because the inhabitants of Mecca, whose main tribe is the tribe of Quraish, fiercely fought the Prophet.

In the beginning, and for a long time, only a small group believed in Muhammad. Khadija, his wife, was the first of the believers. The new religion that began to dawn in Mecca, worried the idol merchants and those in power of the city who collected taxes and who profited from the pagan pilgrimages that they held. Monotheism represented a serious danger to their trade, power and hegemony. They thus transformed into mortal enemies of Muhammad and his disciples, and strongly persecuted them.

The Prophet courageously endured the painful burden of his mission and waited patiently, even though it cost him his money and his rest. He refused to oppose his armed enemies with weapons, even abstaining from carrying a sword for self-protection. He advised his disciples to flee Mecca and seek refuge in Ethiopia, a Christian country. Amongst his disciples, twelve of them went to the Negus, the emperor of Ethiopia. He greeted them and granted them the right of refuge, assuring them a peaceful stay.

For ten years, Muhammad endured persecution in Mecca, preaching monotheism in vain, having around him only a small number of faithful. The opposition of the tribe of Quraish increased in violence to the point of threatening Muhammad’s life and his followers. There was more than one attempt on his life. Muhammad finally relinquished and fled Mecca for Yathreb, later named “Al Madina”, which in Arabic means “The City”, ie the City of the Prophet.

Muhammad left Mecca secretly during the night, having been warned of a plot to kill him. That same night, Ali, his cousin, took his place in his house, in his bed even, to simulate his presence, thus saving his life. In Yathreb, many adepts protected him, and solely the Jews of this city constituted a threat to him.

Before the flight of Yathreb, two painful events struck the Prophet: the death of his uncle and protector Abi-Taleb (this precipitated the plots against him), and that of his beloved wife Khadija, the faithful life and mission companion. She was his spiritual support, having affirmed him in his faith, and had given him confidence in himself. The year of the death of these two dear persons to Muhammad, was called “the Year of Sadness”.

The people of the Quraish tribe, led by the notable Abi-Sifian, tried to seduce Muhammad. They delegated a committee to his uncle Abi-Taleb, shortly before his death, whilst lying sick in bed, so to obtain his intervention with Muhammad. They proposed Muhammad money, glory, even royalty, under condition that he renounces monotheism. They said to him: “If your intention in preaching is money, we will give it to you. We will gather from our own wealth so that you would be the richest amongst us. If you desire honor, we shall establish you as leader, and nothing will be decided without your consent. If you want the kingdom, we shall make you our king; but, as for the Unique God, no!”

In hearing these words, the Prophet clung even tighter to his mission and said: “By God! Should you give me the sun in my right, and the moon in my left to make me renounce this affair, I will not renounce it.” On the death of his uncle Abi-Taleb, who sought to temper between the people of Quraish and Muhammad, the tension was at its peak.

Shortly before his flight to “Yathreb”, Muhammad experiences the miracle of the Mystical Journey related in Sura XVII, called “The Night Journey”. This mystical and historical fact is very important in Muhammad’s life and his followers; it constitutes a turning point in his mission. During this night, Muhammad was at his cousin Hind, sister of Ali, son of Abi-Taleb. He saw the Angel Gabriel present himself to him to transport him in vision on a horse named “Al Bouraq” (Lightening) towards Mount Sinai, where God spoke to Moses. He then took him to Bethlehem, the Messiah’s birthplace, followed by Jerusalem, to the site of the Temple. From there, he raised him to Heaven, then returned him to Jerusalem, where he re-took his horse to return to his cousin Hind. “The Night Journey” begins so:

“Glory be to Him Who carried His Servant by night from the Sacred Mosque to the furthest Mosque, whose precincts We have blessed, to show him of Our wonders!” (Qur’an XVII; The Night Journey,1)

The inhabitants of Quraish refused to believe in this vision. Many of his followers refused to believe him and ceased to follow him. After this experience, Mecca’s hostility still augmented towards him and the Prophet’s isolation became almost total. On September 24, 622, Muhammad decided to flee Mecca for Yathreb, “Al Madina”. This flight marks the debut of the Islamic calendar of Hijra (Hijra: departure, flight, emigration).
After his departure, Muhammad married several women, not for the love of women, as several Orientalists think, but to unite the Arab tribes by a parental link. Muhammad’s first wife, Sawda, was the widow of one of his twelve disciples who went to Ethiopia at the Prophet’s demand, in order to flee persecution. Sawda was no longer young, and mother to several children. Muhammad married her in recognition, to protect her and provide for the children, because she and her husband were among his first disciples.

He also married Aicha, the daughter of one of his first disciples, Abu-Bakr, to strengthen the links between this faithful friend and himself. Aicha was only seven years, but remained two years in her father’s house before integrating to the Prophet’s house. It was during those two years that he married Sawda. Muhammad also married Hafsa, daughter of Omar Ibn-El-Khattab, the second of the four Caliphs who succeeded him after his death.

With the same desire of unifying the Arab ranks, he gave his daughters to men chosen in marriage. Osman-Ibn-Affan, one of his faithful disciples who became the third of the Caliphs, married his daughters Rokaya and Oum-Kalthoum. Ali, his cousin, married Fatima, his beloved daughter. He gave his daughter Zeinab in marriage to Khaled Ibn-el-Walid, an enemy officer who he had defeated at the battle of Uhud, but who later became a follower. Muhammad himself in return, married Khaled’s aunt, to reinforce, through matrimony, the community of the first believers. Muhammad also married two older women, Zaynab and Salma, because they were widows of two martyrs who had fallen during the fighting.

As for Muhammad’s marriage to Zaynab, Jahsh’s daughter, previously the wife of his adopted son Zayd, the Muslim interpreters have erred, in our opinion, in presenting this fact as a bond of human love.

We will cite below, the Qur’anic verses on this subject, and add the official commentary of “Al Jalalein”, which is accepted in general, but that we disapprove of. We shall then present our interpretation, which demonstrates the nobility of the Prophet’s intention in marrying Zaynab. The Qur’an says in this regard:

“It is not for any believer -man or woman- if God and His Prophet decide some matter, to have liberty of choice in action. Whoso disobeys God and His Prophet strayed far in manifest error.” (Qur’an XXXIII; The Confederate Troops,36)

The interpretation of “Al Jalalein”:

This verse was inspired with regards to Abdallah Ibn-Jahsh and his sister Zaynab. The Prophet had the intention to give Zaynab as a bride to Zayd, his adopted son. But when they arrived at the Prophet’s house, Zaynab and Abdallah were disappointed when they learned of Muhammad’s intention, believing that Muhammad himself wanted to marry Zaynab and not give her to his adopted son. They submitted nevertheless, to the judgment of the Prophet, after this inspired verse: “Whoever disobeys God and His Apostle strays far”.

The Prophet gave Zaynab in marriage to Zayd, but later, his gaze stopped upon her and his heart was enflamed with love for her. Zayd took her in hatred. He says to the Prophet: “I want to divorce her”. But the Prophet tells him: “Guard your wife beside you”.

Our interpretation:

Prophet Muhammad did not experience a passionate love for Zaynab. This is the reason for which he refused Zayd his divorce. Even more so, Muhammad himself had invited Zaynab and her brother to come to the celebration of the marriage of Zaynab and Zayd. This had taken place despite the initial objections of Zaynab and her brother. They accepted nothing but the Prophet’s inspiration. Subsequently, Zayd’s intention to divorce put the Prophet in an embarrassing situation, and exposed Zaynab to dishonor and disgrace. The people would have said: “The Prophet’s son has repudiated her”, which meant her banishment from society as a result, and an animosity between the Prophet Muhammad and the people of Jahsh’s House. Only one option remained to Muhammad: reluctantly, marry Zaynab himself as it was said, “Muhammad has married her.” It was to raise her dignity instead of degrading her.

Muhammad feared society’s miscomprehension nonetheless. Many would have said that he took the wife of his son having been seduced by her. This is the reason why he insisted on Zayd not to go ahead with this divorce. If Muhammad was in love with her, he would have looked forward to, even desired the divorce.

Zayd was a slave before knowing Muhammad. The latter had set him free before the start of his mission, and Zayd subsequently, believed in Islam. A double grace was thus granted to him: that of emancipation, and that of faith. This is the reason for which God, after verse 36, continues in telling Muhammad:

“Remember when you said to him (Zayd) to whom God had been generous (by Islam) and your had been generous (in setting him free): ‘Retain your wife, and be pious before God’ - all the while hiding within yourself what God was to reveal…” (Qur’an XXXIII; The Confederate Troops,37)

The interpretation of “Al-Jalalein”:

“You sought to hide in your heart” your love for Zaynab and intention to marry, should Zayd leave her.

Our interpretation:

The Prophet did not conceal his love for Zaynab in his heart, but his concern, conscience of the gravity of the situation. He realized that, in case of Zayd’s divorce, he would be obliged to marry her himself, to not dishonor her. On the other hand, people would not had understood his deep intentions and would have misinterpreted his actions; they would think, moreover, that he married her out of love, and which some people think still today. This is the reason for which God prompted Muhammad to act according to his own conscience, regardless of what people may think: “And you fear men (for they would say that he married his son’s wife). It is God rather, that you have to fear.”

The interpretation of “Al-Jalalein” with regards to this verse:

“Take her in marriage without worrying about what people would say”.

Our interpretation:

The Prophet must act wisely before God, ignoring people’s allegations. Muhammad must model his behavior in function of what is better, not to search for ways to please men, even if they slander him in saying that he married Zaynab because of passion. The Prophet must take into account God’s Judgement, Who knows his hidden intention: wed Zaynab to save her from dishonor and to avoid the dangerous discord between the Arabs.
Our interpretation is in complete harmony with the Prophet’s entire life, especially in what concerns the noble and deep motivations for his marriages.

1.6.2. The main battles of the Prophet Muhammad

In “Al Medina”, the “Prophet’s City”, the “Enlightened City”, as it was named later, Muhammad had several disciples from the two tribes of “Al Aws” and “Al Khazraj”. His only enemies there were the Jews who allied themselves with Mecca’s idol worshipers. It is why the Qur’an says:

“You will surely find that the most hostile of men to the believers are the Jews and those who ascribe partners to God (pagans of Mecca). And you will surely find that the nearest in amity towards the believers (to the Qur’an) are those who say: ‘We are Christians’, and that is because among them are priests and monks, and they do not grow proud.” (Qur’an V; The Table,82)

After his flight to Al Medina, the Jews of this city incited the idolaters of Mecca to keep on fighting Muhammad. The Prophet had, till that moment, refused to carry arms, but this pursuit forced him to resort to it in self-defense. He had to defend his followers, the first community of believers, and his own life against the enemies who attacked Al Medina. They had already invaded the homes of his followers in Mecca and obliged them to go into exile. The Qur’an alludes to this in the following verse:

“Those who were driven out of their homes without just cause, only because they said: ‘Our Lord is God’.” (Qur’an XXII; The Pilgrimage,40)

It is the reason why Muhammad decided that he must defend himself in Al Medina. Legitimate defense is not only a right, but one’s duty too. God therefore allowed the Prophet to fight:

“Leave is granted (by God to take up arms) to those who are being attacked, for they were wronged, and God is assuredly capable of sending them victory.” (Qur’an XXII; The Pilgrimage,39)

“Therefore, fight them so that there will be no discord and the whole of religion belongs to God.” (Qur’an VIII; Booty,39)

Before addressing the topic of wars, it is important to stress that Muhammad, according to the cited Qur’anic verses, never took the initiative of war, but always found himself in the position of self-defense. In certain circumstances, Muhammad was accused of taking the initiative, but it was a pursuit of the enemy, a battle that completed another.

The invasion of Badr

During this first battle, the Muslims, only 300 in number, confronted 1000 idolaters of the Quraish tribe of Mecca. Despite their small numbers, the Muslims triumphed over the idolaters and this was a great joy and sign to them. This battle took place in the second year of Hijra.

The invasion of Uhud

The idolaters of the tribe of Quraish in Mecca, incited by the Jews of Al Medina, attacked Muhammad at Uhud, a suburb of Al Madina. The Quraishites, in a secret alliance with the Jews, were led by the army chief, Khaled Ibn-El-Walid who, later, converted to Islam and married Zaynab, Muhammad’s daughter. This battle ended with the defeat of the Muslims and the death of Hamza, Muhammad’s beloved uncle. During this invasion, the Prophet became aware of the secret alliance between the Jews of Al Medina and the idolaters of Quraish, and decided to put an end to the Jewish power.

The invasion of the “Trenches”

This invasion was named so, because a trench was dug around Al Medina to prevent access to the Quraishites. The Jews, once again, motivated the idolaters of Mecca to fight the Muslims. The Meccans then encircled Al Medina with a considerable army of 10,000 men. Muhammad had an ex-Persian soldier named Salman by his side. A Christian, and well-advised in military combat, he advised Muhammad to dig a trench around Al Medina and the Meccan horses were not able to invade the city. This saved Muhammad and his followers. This battle took place in the fifth year of Hijra (627 AD). The Meccans believed in an easy victory, but were stuck in the desert with diminishing provisions and the freezing cold. They were thus forced to withdraw.

The invasion of Beni-Qorayza

The invasion of the Jewish village of Beni-Qoraiza followed the invasion of the Trenches. In the meantime, Muhammad discovered the Jewish plot concocted against him, and the Jews’ defining role in the invasion of the Trenches. Muhammad decided to pursue them. The Jews had fled into the village of Beni-Qoraiza, where he attacked and annihilated them. The survivors sought their last refuge in the Arabian Peninsula, a Jewish fortress in the city of Khaybar. It was later in this place, that Muhammad’s last battle against the Jews followed suit.

After the invasions of the Trenches and Beni-Qoraiza, the bases of Islam in the Arabian Peninsula were consolidated, and Muhammad had a period of peace. The Arabs began to fear him, and sought to establish peaceful links with him.

The pact of Hudaybiyya

Six years after the Prophet and his followers exited Mecca, the latter wanted to return in pilgrimage. The Prophet headed a peaceful march towards Mecca. They stopped in a place on the outskirts of Mecca called Hudaybiyya. The people of Quraish denied Muslims permission to enter pilgrims into Mecca. Talks were held and culminated in the “Hudaybiyya Pact” under which a ten-year truce was proclaimed. This pact allowed Muslims to make a pilgrimage to Mecca the following year and for a period of only three days.

The pilgrims and Muhammad thus returned three weeks later to Al Medina. The pact of Hudaybyya allowed Muhammad to spread his message all over the Arabian Peninsula, and contributed in manifesting the peaceful aspect of Islam. A good number of Arabs embraced the monotheistic religion and joined the Prophet. At that time, the great officer Khaled Ibn-El-Walid converted to Islam, married Zaynab, the Prophet’s daughter, after having fought the Muslims in Uhud. In return, Muhammad took Maymouna as wife, Khaled’s aunt, and thus consolidating the union between them.

Muhammad’s Emissaries to the Kings

As the situation calmed down in the Arabian Peninsula, Muhammad sent emissaries in charge of a letter to the chief kings, asking them to adhere to the Islamic faith and its message. The solicited Kings were Heraclius, the Byzantine King, Xerxes, the Persian king, the Negus “Ahmassa” of Ethiopia, and finally, the Head of the Coptic community in Egypt. In chapter VI, we reproduce the contents of the letter sent to King Heraclius.

The invasion of Khaybar

As peace spread in the Arabian Peninsula, only one threat remained to Muhammad: the Jews entrenched in Khaybar. One month after the pact of Hudaybyya, Muhammad went out himself and headed an Islamic army, and surrounded the city and the fortress. The Muslims valiantly launched their campaign without fear of death, and triumphed after a fierce and ferocious fight. It was the 7th year of Hijra, 629 AD.

Ten years after Hijra, the light of Islam had totally spread throughout the Arabian Peninsula, where Muslims and Christians lived in peace. Muhammad made a peaceful, triumphant entrance into Mecca, and met no resistance. He entered the “Qaaba” and destroyed all the idols therein. He then pronounced these words:

“Say: ‘The Truth has come and Falsehood is stifled. Falsehood shall ever be stifled’.” (Qur’an XVII; The Night Journey,81)

Muhammad generously pardoned his enemies -Abi Sifyan and all those who had led the resistance against him- and did not seek vengeance.

This noble Prophet died in the 11th year of Hijra, the year 632 of our era, in Al Medina, where his tomb currently lies.