Islam and Wife-Beating: Muslim Scholars Speak

According to the Qur'an, men are permitted to beat their wives in certain situations:

Qur'an 4:34--Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret what Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High Exalted, Great. (Pickthall)

There are, of course, two extremes that should be avoided when we attempt to interpret this verse. On one extreme, some men may hold that they are free to beat their wives as often and as brutally as they like. This is not the case. On the other extreme, Muslim apologists often claim that Islamic wife-beatings are to be painless. This is simply absurd, given what the Muslim sources plainly declare.

In this post, we will observe the claims of Muslim scholars on the issue of wife-beating. We will then look at what some Muslim sources have to say on this issue, and why there have always been violent wife-beatings in Islam.

MUSLIM SCHOLARS ON WIFE-BEATING

This Muslim scholar tells Muslims that they shouldn't be ashamed about the Islamic practice of wife-beating. He declares that there are three types of women that a man can only live with if he carries a rod on his shoulder: (1) women who are accustomed to beating because their parents constantly beat them, (2) women who are condescending towards their husbands, and (3) women who will not obey their husbands.



According to the next Muslim scholar, the restrictions on beating one's wife are: (1) he must not do it in front of the children; (2) he must not cause bleeding, bruising, or broken bones; and (3) he should not hit her in the face.



According our next scholar, (1) a man should not beat his wife in the face, (2) he should not beat her where the beating will leave marks, (3) he should not beat her on her hands, and (4) "he should not beat her like he would beat an animal or a child--smacking them right and left."



The following scholar agrees with much of the above discussion. He adds that "beatings are indispensable."



So far we can see (1) that Muslim scholars rightly acknowledge that Islam permits wife-beating, and (2) that Muslims should follow certain rules when they beat their wives.

MUSLIM SOURCES ON WIFE-BEATING

The problem I have with some of the comments made by these Muslim scholars is that I can't find much of what they say in reliable Muslim sources. Indeed, the Muslim sources often indicate a quite different position from the ones we've seen.

For instance, consider the occasion on which Surah 4:34 was revealed. According to al-Tabari:

It was said that this verse was revealed because a man hit his wife on her face, so she came to the prophet (saw). The prophet then wanted to judge in her favor. But Allah revealed {Men are the maintainers of women because Allah has made some of them to excel others}. Then the prophet called on the man and recited this verse to him and said: "I wanted one thing, but Allah wanted another."

So a man hit his wife in the face, and she went to Muhammad for justice. Muhammad was about to judge in her favor, but Allah defended the man with Surah 4:34. How, then, can Muslims say that men may not hit their wives in the face, when 4:34 was revealed to defend a man who had hit his wife in the face? (Note: There is some support in Muslim sources for the claim that men shouldn't hit their wives in the face. However, as we've seen, the evidence is far from conclusive on this point.)

It's also difficult to see how Muslims can so confidently claim that men may not leave marks when they beat their wives, especially when we read about a man leaving a mark on his wife in Sahih al-Bukhari!

Sahih al-Bukhari 5825—Narrated Ikrima: Rifaa divorced his wife whereupon Abdur-Rahman married her. Aisha said that the lady came wearing a green veil and complained to her (Aisha) and showed her a green spot on her skin caused by beating. It was the habit of ladies to support each other, so when Allah’s messenger came, Aisha said, “I have not seen any woman suffering as much as the believing women. Look! Her skin is greener than her clothes!” When Abdur-Rahman heard that his wife had gone to the prophet, he came with his two sons from another wife. She said, “By Allah! I have done no wrong to him, but he is impotent and is as useless to me as this,” holding and showing the fringe of her garment. Abdur-Rahman said, “By Allah, O Allah’s messenger! She has told a lie. I am very strong and can satisfy her, but she is disobedient and wants to go back to Rifaa.” Allah's messenger said to her, “If that is your intention, then know that it is unlawful for you to remarry Rifaa unless Abdur-Rahman has had sexual intercourse with you.” The prophet saw two boys with Abdur-Rahman and asked (him), “Are these your sons?” On that Abdur-Rahman said, “Yes.” The prophet said, “You claim what you claim (that he is impotent)? But by Allah, these boys resemble him as a crow resembles a crow.”

(Notice Aisha's claim that Muslim women were suffering more than pagan women.)

Even more disturbing is the fact that there are situations where a man may murder the mother of his own children!

Sunan Abu Dawud 4348— Narrated Abdullah Ibn Abbas: A blind man had a slave-mother who used to abuse the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and disparage him. He forbade her but she did not stop. He rebuked her but she did not give up her habit. One night she began to slander the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and abuse him. So he took a dagger, placed it on her belly, pressed it, and killed her. A child who came between her legs was smeared with the blood that was there. When the morning came, the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) was informed about it.

He assembled the people and said: I adjure by Allah the man who has done this action and I adjure him by my right to him that he should stand up. Jumping over the necks of the people and trembling the man stood up.

He sat before the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) and said: Apostle of Allah! I am her master; she used to abuse you and disparage you. I forbade her, but she did not stop, and I rebuked her, but she did not abandon her habit. I have two sons like pearls from her, and she was my companion. Last night she began to abuse and disparage you. So I took a dagger, put it on her belly and pressed it till I killed her.

Thereupon the Prophet (peace_be_upon_him) said: Oh be witness, no retaliation is payable for her blood.

So men may rest assured that murdering one's "companion" is acceptable in certain situations (though this was his slave-girl, not his wife).

Some of the Muslim sources agree with the scholar above who said that beatings are indispensable. For example, beatings are necessary because, without them, women will become emboldened towards their husbands.

Sunan Abu Dawud 2141—Iyas b. Abd Allah b. Abi Dhubab reported the Apostle of Allah (may peace be upon him) as saying: Do not beat Allah’s handmaidens, but when Umar came to the Apostle of Allah and said: Women have become emboldened towards their husbands, he (the Prophet) gave permission to beat them. Then many women came round the family of the Apostle of Allah complaining against their husbands. So the Apostle of Allah said: Many women have gone round Muhammad’s family complaining against their husbands. They are not the best among you.

Beyond this, we know that Muhammad, Abu Bakr, and Umar would not hesitate to hurt women.

Sunan Ibn Majah 1986—Ash’ath b. Qais is reported to have said, “One night Umar arranged a feast. When it was midnight, he got up and went towards his wife to beat her. I separated them both. When he went to bed, he said to me, ‘O Ash’ath, preserve from me a thing that I heard from Allah’s messenger. (These things are): A man will not be taken to task for beating his wife (for valid reasons) and do not sleep without observing witr prayer.’ I forgot the third (exhortation).”

Sahih Muslim 2127— . . . When it was my turn for Allah's Messenger to spend the night with me, he turned his side, put on his mantle and took off his shoes and placed them near his feet, and spread the corner of his shawl on his bed and then lay down till he thought that I had gone to sleep. He took hold of his mantle slowly and put on the shoes slowly, and opened the door and went out and then closed it lightly. I covered my head, put on my veil and tightened my waist wrapper, and then went out following his steps till he reached Baqi'. He stood there and he stood for a long time. He then lifted his hands three times, and then returned and I also returned. He hastened his steps and I also hastened my steps. He ran and I too ran. He came (to the house) and I also came (to the house). I, however, preceded him and I entered (the house), and as I lay down in the bed, he (the Holy Prophet) entered the (house), and said: Why is it, O 'Aisha, that you are out of breath? I said: There is nothing. He said: Tell me or the Subtle and the Aware would inform me. I said: Messenger of Allah, may my father and mother be ransom for you, and then I told him (the whole story). He said: Was it the darkness (of your shadow) that I saw in front of me? I said: Yes. He struck me on the chest which caused me pain, and then said: Did you think that Allah and His Apostle would deal unjustly with you?…

Sahih Muslim 3506—Jabir b. 'Abdullah reported: Abu Bakr came and sought permission to see Allah's Messenger. He found people sitting at his door and none amongst them had been granted permission, but it was granted to Abu Bakr and he went in. Then came 'Umar and he sought permission and it was granted to him, and he found Allah's Apostle sitting sad and silent with his wives around him. He (Hadrat 'Umar) said: I would say something which would make the Holy Prophet laugh, so he said: Messenger of Allah, I wish you had seen (the treatment meted out to) the daughter of Kharija when she asked me some money, and I got up and slapped her on her neck. Allah's Messenger laughed and said: They are around me as you see, asking for extra money. Abu Bakr then got up went to 'Aisha and slapped her on the neck, and 'Umar stood up before Hafsa and slapped her saying: You ask Allah's Messenger which he does not possess. They said: By Allah, we do not ask Allah's Messenger for anything he does not possess. . . .

Sahih al-Bukhari 6845—Narrated Aisha: Abu Bakr came to towards me and struck me violently with his fist and said, "You have detained the people because of your necklace." But I remained motionless as if I was dead lest I should awake Allah's Apostle although that hit was very painful.

Putting all of this together, what do we have? The Qur'an is quite unclear as to how beatings should be performed, and most of the world's Muslims don't have copies of the necessary commentaries lying around. The result is that many Muslims are only aware of the fact that they may beat their wives, not of the fact that there are certain limitations. The result is awful. Let's consider a few examples.

WIFE-BEATING IN THE REAL WORLD

In this debate on wife-beating, a woman reports her research on wife-beating practices.



In our next video, Rania al-Baz discusses a beating her husband gave her. (Note: Her husband did not follow the advice of the scholars above.)



The husband of the twelve-year-old girl in the following video obviously doesn't follow the rules either:



Many are already familiar with the story of ten-year-old Nujood Ali, whose husband beat and raped her.



In this next video, two women discuss an instance of wife-beating, and they compare women in the West with women in the Muslim world.



I'm not sure how Muslims can offer a remotely compelling response to the facts here. In the book that would spread around the world as the heart of Islam, Allah declared that men may beat their wives. Unfortunately, he didn't clarify how this is to be done in his perfect book. Women have been suffering ever since.

In defense of Islam, here's a video by Khalid Yasin (though I wonder whether he is in touch with reality--the reality of Islamic teachings, and the reality of women in the Muslim world).



Obviously, Khalid must reject Aisha's claim from Sahih al-Bukhari: “I have not seen any woman suffering as much as the believing women."

To conclude, let's see how one former Muslim woman responds to the claim that Muslim women love the treatment they receive under Islam.



(Note: There may be some important videos or texts I should add to this post. If anyone, Christian or Muslim, has anything significant to add, I'm open to suggestions.)

The FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists

Muslims often point out the fact that there have been many non-Muslim terrorists throughout history. This is entirely true. However, it's quite interesting to see how many non-Muslim terrorists are on the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list. Click on the following link and start counting.

"Most Wanted Terrorists"

Pakistan on the Brink

Here's a link to an excellent video on the situation in Pakistan, where the Taliban is gaining momentum.

"Pakistan on the Brink"

Is It Safe to Drink Water Polluted by a Dead Donkey?

We're all familiar with this scientific error from Sunan Abu Dawud, which I often use in my debates:

Sunan Abu Dawud 67--I heard that the people asked the Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him): Water is brought for you from the well of Buda’ah. It is a well in which dead dogs, menstrual cloths and excrement of people are thrown. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) replied: Verily water is pure and is not defiled by anything.

Things get worse, however. In the following passage from Ibn Majah, we learn that it's okay to drink water with a dead donkey carcass floating in it!

Sunan Ibn Majah 520--It was narrated that Jabir bin Abdullah said: "We came to a pond in which there was the carcass of a donkey, so we refrained from using the water until the Messenger of Allah came to us and said: 'Water is not made impure by anything.' Then we drank from it and gave it to our animals to drink, and we carried some with us."

And let's not forget this gem:

Sunan Ibn Majah 521--It was narrated that Abu Umamah Al-Bahili said: "The Messenger of Allah said: 'Water is not made impure by anything except that which changes its smell, taste and color.'"

This is, of course, totally false. Water can be filled with deadly germs that do not affect smell, taste, or color.

Let's conclude with a classic:

Sahih al-Bukhari 5782--Allah’s Messenger said, “If a fly falls in the vessel of any of you, let him dip all of it (into the vessel) and then throw it [i.e. the fly] away, for in one of its wings there is a disease and in the other there is healing (antidote for it) i.e. the treatment for that disease.”

If I were a Muslim looking for something miraculous to justify Islam, I would argue that it was a miracle that Muhammad's followers didn't all die from the germs and diseases he exposed them to with his horribly unsanitary rulings!

Which Mosque Was Built First?

According to Muhammad, the first mosque was the mosque in Mecca. Then second "mosque" was in Jerusalem. Interestingly, Muhammad believed that the two were built only forty years apart, despite his belief that the original mosque was built by Adam and rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael. This would make the "mosque" in Jerusalem quite early indeed!

Sunan Ibn Majah 753--It was narrated that Abu Dharr Al-Ghifari said: "I said: 'O Messenger of Allah! Which mosque was built first?' He said: 'Al-Masjid Al-Haram (in Makkah).' I said: 'Then which?' He said: 'Then Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa (in Jerusalem).' I said: 'How many years between them?' He said: 'Forty years, but the whole earth is a mosque for you, so pray wherever you are when the time for prayer comes.'"

Abused Girl Returned to Her Abusive Family after Converting to Christianity

This is wild stuff. Follow the chain of events.

(1) Girl suffers abuse by her Muslim family.
(2) State places the girl in foster care.
(3) Girl converts to Christianity.
(4) State fires the foster care worker for failing to preserve the girl's religion.
(5) Girl is given back to her abusive family.

What's going on in the UK? And what's going to happen to this girl when her family finds out she converted?

The foster mother struck off for allowing a Muslim girl to convert to Christianity took the child in after she was threatened with an arranged marriage.

The woman, a devout Christian, was asked to care for the teenager after the authorities learned of her abusive family background.

Her father beat her just for chatting to boys and warned he would haul her off to Pakistan to marry against her will, a friend claimed.

But council officials were angered when the girl chose to be baptised. They insist the foster mother failed in her duty to preserve the girl's original religion. Read more.

Four out of Ten Turkish Women Are Victims of Physical Abuse by Their Husbands

ANKARA, FEBRUARY 12 - Four out of ten Turkish women are victims of physical abuse by their husbands and only a fraction report it to authorities, according to an official survey released today and published by daily Hurriyet website. The poll, conducted among 12,795 women in summer of 2008, found that 39% of those were "slapped, pushed, punched, choked, burnt or threatened or attacked with a weapon such as a knife or gun". Fifteen percent said they were victims of sexual abuse, described by the survey as being physically forced to have sex, having sex out of fear or being forced to engage in degrading or humiliating sexual acts. One in four women was injured as a result of physical or sexual violence. The poll, released by the governments office on the status of women, said that 48.5% of the victims did not tell anyone about the abuse while only 4% sought help from police and a mere one percent sought refuge in state-run shelters. Source.

Winner of C.A.I.R. Award Stabbed Wife Repeatedly before Beheading Her

This just gets sicker and sicker.

Police revealed the decapitated wife of a Muslim TV network founder in New York was stabbed several times with hunting knives and may have been alive as her killer beheaded her – and, despite the brutal slaying, her husband will only face charges of second-degree murder.

As WND previously reported, Muzzammil Hassan, 44, who has been charged with beheading his wife, Aasiya Hassan, 37, was the recipient of an award from the controversial Council on American-Islamic Relations, the self-described Muslim civil rights group that boasts of its influence on U.S. government policy.

The Hassans founded Bridges TV in November 2004. They described it as a satellite news and opinion channel aimed at portraying Muslims in a positive light following the Sept. 11 attacks.

Hassan is accused of cutting off his wife's head at his Buffalo, N.Y., station Feb. 12. However, sources have now confirmed that the woman was gouged with hunting knives before she was decapitated, the Buffalo News reports. Read More.

And here's a photo of Hassan receiving an award from the Council on American-Islamic Relations:

Beheaded Muslim Woman Called a "Martyr" for Islam

Remember the Muslim woman who was recently beheaded by her husband in an honor-killing? In an extraordinarily strange turn of events, Muslim leaders are claiming that she is a martyr for Islam's image.

Buffalo News--The lives of Muzzammil and Aasiya Hassan were quite different from their public image in the local Muslim and broadcast communities.

In the public eye, they were a dynamic couple, building their — actually her — dream of a Muslim-lifestyle TV channel in the United States.

But police reports compiled for much of their marriage tell another story:

Their home life was a nightmare. Aasiya was repeatedly subjected to controlling and sometimes violent acts by her ambitious but troubled husband.

To protect herself, she went to the police in two states. Yet for years she stopped short of pressing charges — thus preserving Muzzammil’s reputation and the venture they built together.

On Feb. 6, she filed for divorce and obtained an order of protection, barring him from their home in Orchard Park. A week later, she lay dead in their television offices — stabbed and decapitated. Muzzammil was charged with her murder.

“I think of Aasiya as a martyr,” said Faizan Haq, a local professor who helped launch Bridges TV, the station in Orchard Park that the Hassans started in 2004. “She has given her life to protect the image of American Muslims. And as an American Muslim community, we owe it to her not to let this happen again.” Read More.

I'm sorry, but Muslims don't get to claim this woman as a martyr. If she's a martyr, she's a martyr for women who take a stand against their violent husbands.

Muhammad's Wives Speak out against Sex with Slave Girls (and Are Promptly Silenced by Allah)

Muslim men take it for granted that they are allowed to have sex with their slave-girls. After all, the Qur'an grants them this right (see, e.g., Surah 4:24), and Muhammad himself had sex with his slave-girls. What often gets overlooked is the impact such adulterous affairs have on the wives of Muslims. Can we even imagine how a woman must feel when her husband goes to a slave girl for sex instead of to his his own wife? We see Muhammad's wives going through this very struggle.

Sunan An-Nasa'i 3411--It was narrated from Anas, that the Messenger of Allah had a female slave with whom he had intercourse, but Aishah and Hafsah would not leave him alone until he said that she was forbidden for him. Then Allah, the Mighty and Sublime, revealed: "O Prophet! Why do you forbid (for yourself) that which Allah has allowed to you" [66:1] until the end of the verse.

So let's follow the chain of events.

(1) Surah 4:3 declares that Muslims may have up to four wives.
(2) Muhammad receives Surah 33:50, which gives him (and him alone) the right to have even more wives.
(3) Various verses in the Qur'an declare that Muslim men may have sex with their slave-girls and female captives.
(4) Muhammad (who already had nine wives who were incredibly jealous of one another) chooses to have sex with his slave girl.
(5) Two of his favorite wives were extremely upset by this, and they compel him to stop his adulterous affair.
(6) Allah tells Muhammad, in effect, "Why are you listening to your wives? Didn't I tell you that you are free to have sex with your slave girls?"

Thus, Muhammad's wives simply had to accept the fact that he was free to have sex with his beautiful slave girl (just as they had to accept the fact that he was free to show favoritism among his wives). If Allah has no concern for the feelings of the Mothers of Believers, should we expect him to be concerned about the feelings of other women?

Will Muhammad Be Leaning in Paradise?

According to Muhammad, a man must not favor one wife over the other. If he does, he will be leaning on the Day of Resurrection:

Sunan An-Nasa'i 3394--It was narrated from Abu Hurairah that the Prophet said: "Whoever has two wives and is inclined to favor one of them over the other, he will come on the Day of Resurrection with half of his body leaning."

Amazingly, Muhammad favored Aisha over his other wives, and all of his wives knew it. Indeed, Muhammad's wives practically begged him to treat them equitably. But he simply wouldn't. (Note: In the following Hadith, the phrase "daughter of Abu Quhafah" is a derogatory reference to Aisha.)

Sunan An-Nasa'i 3396--Aishah said: "The wives of the Prophet sent Fatimah, the daughter of the Messenger of Allah, to the Messenger of Allah. She asked permission to enter when he was lying with me under my cover. He gave her permission to enter, and she said: 'O Messenger of Allah, your wives have sent me to you to ask you to be equitable with regard to the matter of the daughter of Abu Quhafah.' I (Aishah) kept quiet and the Messenger of Allah said to her: 'O my daughter! Do you not love the one whom I love?' She said: 'Yes.' He said: 'Then love this one.' Fatimah stood up when she heard this and left the Messenger of Allah, and went back to the wives of the Prophet. She told them what she had said, and what he had said to her. They said to her: 'We do not think that you have been of any avail to us. Go back to the Messenger of Allah and say to him: Your wives are urging you to be equitable with regard to the matter of the daughter of Abu Quhafah.' Fatimah said: 'No, by Allah; I will never speak to him about her again.'" Aishah said: "So the wives of the Prophet sent Zainab bint Jahsh to the Messenger of Allah; she was one who was somewhat equal to me in rank in the eyes of the Messenger of Allah. And I have never seen a woman who was better in religious commitment than Zainab, more fearing of Allah, more honest in speech, more dutiful in upholding the ties of kinship, more generous in giving charity, and devoted in giving herself in acts of charity, by means of which she sought to draw closer to Allah. But she was quick-tempered; however, she was also quick to calm down. She asked permission to enter upon the Messenger of Allah when he was with Aishah under her cover, in the same situation as when Fatimah had entered. The Messenger of Allah gave her permission to enter and she said: 'O Messenger of Allah, your wives have sent me to ask you to be equitable with regard to the daughter of Abu Quhafah.' Then she verbally abused me at length, and I was watching the Messenger of Allah to see if he would allow me to respond. Zainab went on until I realized that the Messenger of Allah would not disapprove if I responded. Then I spoke back to her in such a way, until I silenced her. Then the Messenger of Allah said: 'She is the daughter of Abu Bakr.'"

So Muhammad favored Aisha above all his other wives, and Zainab was his second favorite. This means that Muhammad will be leaning on the Day of Resurrection.

Beat her for not covering her hands...

Sometimes I just shake my head and wonder in sadness... how is it getting to this? People are just too blind to see that women the world over are being oppressed by Islam.

Here's yet another example: a man is turning to this Muslim website to ask what should be done about his disobedient wife. He has asked her repeatedly to cover her hands, but she does not listen (perhaps she likes using them?) This site, Islam Q&A, has delivered what it's name promises: Islamic judgement. Verdict? Beat her if you must. While you're at it, threaten her with divorce.

President Obama and Durban II

Israel faces the nightmare scenario that it now stands alone -- and against America. Whether through naivety, ideology or rank malice, there is now a fifth columnist in the White House, delivering (however unwittingly) the agenda of the enemies of the west and undermining the cause of the free world. The vast majority of Americans who staunchly support Israel's struggle to exist in the face of genocidal attack, and understand only too well its role as the front line of defence for the free world, need to become aware of what is being done in their name. Read more.

"Miracles of the Qur'an" Part 2: The Numerical Miracle

An astounding number of Muslim websites propose that the Qur'an is demonstrably miraculous due to its "Numerical Miracles".

For the uninitiated, I will provide an example of the general form of this argument: Muslim X provides the number of verses of some chapter, divides or multiplies it by another number, and compares the result to some third number (which is ascribed significance by some means or another).

Here is an example posted by Muslim apologist Osama Abdallah in response to a recent blog:

The sum of the Noble Chapters (Surahs) in the Holy Quran is 6555 (1+2+3+....+114= 6555). The total number of Noble Verses in the Holy Quran is 6236. When we added each Chapter's number with its Noble Verses' total, we found out that the SUM of the ODD results = 6555. And When we added each Chapter's number with its Noble Verses' total, we found out that the SUM of the EVEN results = 6236

Now, I don't know what these numbers mean. But I do know that such amazing accuracy is ABNORMAL, and could not have been done by a human, especially 1,400 years ago.

This is not the only "numerical miracle" that Muslims provide. It is one of many similar examples, which you can find here, here, here, here, here, and here.

Now that we have seen what the "numerical miracles" are, let's examine the flaws of these assertions.

Problems with The "Numerical Miracles" Argument

1 - Non-Sequitur Logic

The gist of the logic can be seen in the last two sentences of Osama's post. It's basically: "These numbers work together so well that there must be a miracle here!" But this is simply false; interesting numerical patterns in no way whatsoever necessitate a miracle! It may be true that extreme improbabilities require an explanation other than chance, but even this form of soft evidence does not vindicate this Muslim argument, as we shall see in the next point.

2 - The Widespread Existence of "Miraculous" Patterns in Texts

Interesting numerical patterns exist in many instances of media, and searching for patterns will often yield results similar to the Quran's "miracles". Searching for numerical patterns in books such as Moby Dick have been demonstrated to actually provide accurate prophecies of the future! In fact, the article which mentions this was written specifically to show that one can often find word patterns if he simply looks for them. Read that article here.

3 - The Existence of Similar "Numerical Miracles" in the Bible

Finally, countless "numerical miracles" have also been proposed from within the Bible. If the argument used by Muslims were applied to the Bible, they would have to accept it as equally divine in origin as the Qur'an!

In an effort to explain this problem to Osama Abdallah, I provided a link to this site and summarized their "numerical miracle" as follows:

The number 153 is a special number, since it is the only number associated with a miracle after Jesus' resurrection.

It just so happens that if you sum up all the numbers from 1 to 17, you get 153! And 17 is important, because it's the date of Jesus' resurrection (not to mention Noah's ark!) 

On top of that, the Greek word that's used for "fish" in that verse is used exactly 17 times in the Bible! 

Not only that, but if you apply the trinity to these verses, then we see the numbers are even more miraculous! 3 x 3 x 17 = 153!!

BUT WAIT, THERE'S MORE! The trinity is present again if you raise each of the THREE digits in "153" to the THIRD power, including the number THREE!!! Look, there are three three's, so much emphasis on trinity!
1x1x1 + 5x5x5 + 3x3x3 = 153!

Trinity in the digits, trinity in the math, trinity in the miracle itself!!! So much trinity!

Clearly, the Muslim standard of "Numerical Miracle" is met here in this exploitation of John 21:11. Must they not then conclude that the Bible is equally inspired? They must, unless they are being inconsistent in their methodology. Which leads me to the last problem.

4 - Inconsistency in the Application of the "Numerical Miracle" Argument

Any Muslim who espouses this argument must necessarily be inconsistent in his application, because the same argument would prove the Bible to be divinely inspired.

In summary, the first argument for the miraculous nature of the Qur'an is about as abysmal as any argument can be. It's non-sequitur, it ignores similar phenomena in countless other books, and it would even necessitate a divine origin for the Bible! To top it off, the last problem means that Muslims who espouse this "miracle" must be inconsistent if they are providing this argument against the Bible.

Hopefully there will be good dialogue between Muslims and non-Muslims in the comment section of this post. Upon conclusion of the discussion, keep your eyes open for the next blog in this series: examining the alleged "Literary Miracle" of the Qur'an.

"Miracles of the Qur'an" Part 1: An Introduction

In Christianity, there is one miracle upon which we hinge the truth of our faith: the Resurrection. If it did not happen, then Christianity is false. If it happened, and if Jesus truly is the Risen Lord, then Christianity is true.

In Islam, there is not one concrete miracle or event which determines the truth of the faith. If there is something that comes close, though, it's the Qur'an. Though not as objectively testable, a basic principle applies: if the Qur'an is from God, then Islam is true. If the Qur'an is not from God, then Islam is false. Thus, an examination of the Qur'an is certainly merited. What better place to start than to examine the Muslims' positive case?

The Positive Case for the Qur'an

The mainstay of the Muslim positive case is the stipulated "miraculous nature" of the Qur'an. Muslims argue that the miracles of the Qur'an prove it's divine origin. Here are the five miracles I have heard them use the most (in no particular order):

1 - The Numerical Miracle

2 - The Literary Miracle

3 - The Preservation Miracle

4 - The Prophetic Miracles

5 - The Scientific Miracles

Interspersed in our blogs throughout the next few weeks, we will examine these claims to varying degrees. The hope is to systematically address the positive case for the Qur'an. The deeper our investigation, the better, but depth will most likely be a function of the dialogue within the comments.

I pray that we will glorify God in this endeavour, keeping his glory at the center of our purpose.

The Ibn Masud Problem: Muslims' Flawed Responses

If you've been reading this blog for the past few months, you must be very familiar with Ibn Masud and the arguments that issue forth from him against the modern Quran (i.e. the Zaid Standard Version, or ZSV). If you are new to this blog, welcome! Allow me to recap some of the information for you.

Ibn Masud and the Corruption of the ZSV

Ibn Masud is Muhammad's first choice of Quran teachers for his people:

Narrated Masruq: Abdullah bin Mas'ud was mentioned before Abdullah bin Amr who said, "That is a man I still love, as I heard the Prophet (saw) saying, 'Learn the recitation of the Qur'an from four: from Abdullah bin Mas'ud - he started with him - Salim, the freed slave of Abu Hudhaifa, Mu'adh bin Jabal and Ubai bin Ka'b". (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 5, p.96).

Notice Muhammad starts by naming Ibn Masud, and the narrator emphasizes this fact. Indeed, the narrator goes on to say that he loves Ibn Masud. We can safely infer that this hadith intends to convey Ibn Masud as the best teacher of the Quran.

Being a proud expert of the Quran, Ibn Masud would agree that his mastery of the Quran was unrivaled. Of his own prowess, he says:

''Narrated Abdullah (bin Mas'ud) (ra): By Allah other than Whom none has the right to be worshipped! There is no Sura revealed in Allah's Book but I know at what place it was revealed; and there is no verse revealed in Allah's Book but I know about whom it was revealed. And if I know that there is somebody who knows Allah's Book better than I, and he is at a place that camels can reach, I would go to him. (Sahih al-Bukhari, Vol. 6, p.488). ''

However, Ibn Masud does not think highly of today's Quran, the one collected by Zaid. In comparing himself to Zaid, he says:

''The people have been guilty of deceit in the reading of the Qur'an. I like it better to read according to the recitation of him (Prophet) whom I love more than that of Zayd Ibn Thabit. By Him besides Whom there is no god! I learnt more than seventy surahs from the lips of the Apostle of Allah, may Allah bless him, while Zayd Ibn Thabit was a youth, having two locks and playing with the youth". (Ibn Sa'd, Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir, Vol. 2, p.444)

As we can see, the differences between Ibn Masud's Quran and Zaid's Quran were not minor. Before even examining them, we can know that they were big enough for Ibn Masud to call the reading of Zaid's Quran "deceit". But when we examine the evidence, we find out why. 

According to Ibn Abi Daud's Kitab al-Masahif, we find out that Ibn Masud only includes 111 surahs in his Quran (as opposed to the ZSV's 114). In addition, chapters that were found in both codices often had many variants; within surat al-Baqara alone, 101 variants exist. Not all of these variants are differences in spelling. For example:

Surah 2:275 begins with the words Allathiina yaakuluunar-ribaa laa yaquumuuna - "those who devour usury will not stand". Ibn Mas'ud's text had the same introduction but after the last word there was added the expression yawmal qiyaamati, that is, they would not be able to stand on the "Day of Resurrection".

Naturally, since Muhammad told people to go to Ibn Masud if they wanted to learn the Quran, many Muslims studied under Ibn Masud. Ibn Masud's version of the Quran was thus perpetuated to his students. The aforementioned variant, for example, was included in the codex of Talha ibn Musarrif, one of Ibn Masud's students in Kufa.

The Muslim Responses

So far, there have been three Muslim responses on this blog to the above case.

1 - "Ibn Masud's codex was his own personal notebook; it is not to be taken as a variant codex of the Quran!"

The desperate nature of this response is so obvious I am amazed anyone would even utter it. But alas, this is the most common response I have seen so far.

The main problem with this is that it is demonstrably false! We know historically that Ibn Masud taught his version of the Quran to his students (as mentioned above). Therefore, we cannot possibly say that he just considered it his own personal notebook.

Another problem with this response is that it goes against the supporting evidence; we know that Ibn Masud did not want to give up his codex when it came time to burn the variants. Why would Uthman want a notebook to be burnt when everything else he was burning were manuscripts? Clearly, if Quranic manuscripts were what was being burnt, and Uthman wanted Ibn Masud's book burnt, it was probably not just a notebook!

But let's give the Muslim response the benefit of the doubt. We may just happen to find something like this in an archaeological dig:

Uthman's List of Things to Burn 

1 - All Quranic manuscripts

2 - Ibn Masud's notebook, which is definitely not a manuscript...

Even after finding such a chit, the Muslim response still has a huge problem: why on earth would Ibn Masud be so hesitant to give up his "notebook", even resisting the command of the khalifa? I doubt he would do so without good reason.

And this brings me to my final point: the supporting evidence from Kitab al-Tabaqat al-Kabir makes the pieces fit. Ibn Masud must have considered Zaid's Quran such a deceit that he was willing to resist the command of the khalifa. Not only does this supporting evidence pass the historial method's criterion of embarrassing admission, it also makes all the pieces fit (i.e. the criterion of illumination). The Muslim response, on the other hand, makes no sense, ignores the criteria of historical investigation, and indeed just throws out historical evidence on a whim.

2 - "Ibn Masud was just one of many teachers of the Quran!"

This is true, but it's a distortion. At the very least, he was one of the top four teachers of the Quran. But if we are to trust Masruq (which we should, since he must be trustworthy if he is capable of transmitting a hadith graded sahih) then we would conclude that Ibn Masud is the best teacher of the Quran.

But again, for argument's sake, let's pretend he's just as good as the other 3 that Muhammad mentioned. We know that at least one of those other 3 teachers also had many variants in his Quran (Ubay ibn Kab)! So at least half of Muhammad's top 4 teachers of the Quran disagree with Zaid! And it's quite possible that the other 2 did as well, we just can't verify their codices since the variants were all burnt by Uthman.

Best case scenario? Even if the implications of the hadith are wrong and Ibn Masud is just one of the four best teachers of the Quran, we can be certain that half of Muhammad's top teachers of the Quran disagree with the ZSV. These disagreements include different whole chapters as well as different verses and different words.

3 - "The 'variants' in Ibn Masud's codex were no variants at all! They were part of the 7 ahruf, or perhaps just differences in qirrat!"

This, too, is a horridly desperate effort to save the Quran from having variants. No reasonable definition of ahruf or qirrat, no matter how broad, can encompass whole missing chapters! Ibn Masud had 111 chapters in his Quran, leaving out chapters 1, 113, and 114. He considered these to be prayers revealed by God for the benefit of Muslims, but not surahs intended for the Quran. (As a side note, Ubay ibn Kab included these 3 surahs in his codex, along with 2 others. The additional 2 surahs are prayers recited by Muslims even today which many believe to be divinely revealed, but not part of the Quran).

If Muslims continue providing this as a response to the Ibn Masud problem, I would simply have to ask "What is the definition of ahruf or qirrat?" Even while ignoring the abysmal failure of anyone in history to ever provide a good definition of ahruf, (a fact that even Muslim theologians have noted) there simply can be no reasonable definition which can include missing chapters.

As it stands, all Muslim responses to the Ibn Masud problem fail, and fail miserably. There is no solid Muslim response. If you think you have one, my Muslim friends, I'd love to hear it.

British Muslim Student Kills Many in Suicide Attack in Somalia

I say here at the beginning that this has absolutely nothing at all to do with Islam, and that Western governments should focus their attention on keeping Geert Wilders out of their countries.

EVENING STANDARD--A British university student who became a suicide bomber in Somalia is believed to be the first in an outbreak of Islamic terrorism.

The 21-year-old from Ealing reportedly blew himself up at a military checkpoint killing up to 20 soldiers in the southern Somali town of Baidoa.

Raised in Britain, the bomber dropped out of a business studies course at Oxford Brookes University to travel to his country of origin in October 2007.

A member of al-Shabaab, a youth militia fighting to impose Islamic Sharia law, the man recorded a martyrdom video before his trip imploring fellow British Somalis to follow his example.

In the video he says: "Oh my people, know that I am doing this martyrdom operation for the sake of Allah. I advise you to migrate to Somalia and wage war against your enemies. Death in honour is better than life in humiliation." Read More.

Afghan Diplomat Charged in All-Day Wife Beating

As the Qur'an declares: "Men are in charge of women, because Allah hath made the one of them to excel the other, and because they spend of their property (for the support of women). So good women are the obedient, guarding in secret what Allah hath guarded. As for those from whom ye fear rebellion, admonish them and banish them to beds apart, and scourge them. Then if they obey you, seek not a way against them. Lo! Allah is ever High Exalted, Great." (Surah 4:34).

NY DAILY NEWS--An Afghan diplomat was charged Friday with beating his wife "like a dog" for more than 15 hours in their Queens home, prosecutors said.

Mohammed Fagirad, 30, a vice consul at the Afghanistan Consulate, brutalized his wife inside their Flushing home from about 8:30 a.m. Wednesday until nearly midnight, Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said.

During the attack, Fagirad bit, slapped, choked and beat the 22-year-old woman with a belt, pushed her down a flight of stairs and sat on her chest, prosecutors said.

At one point, prosecutors said, Fagirad threw his wife up against a wall, held her there by the neck and then let her drop to the floor, where he beat her with a belt.

Fagirad told police his "wife was a dog and he was going to treat her like a dog," prosecutors said. Read More.

U.S. Muslim Charged with Beheading His Wife (after She Filed for Divorce)

Orchard Park police are investigating a particularly gruesome killing, the beheading of a woman, after her husband — an influential member of the local Muslim community — reported her death to police Thursday.

Police identified the victim as Aasiya Z. Hassan, 37. Detectives have charged her husband, Muzzammil Hassan, 44, with second-degree murder. . . .

Muzzammil Hassan is the founder and chief executive officer of Bridges TV, which he launched in 2004, amid hopes that it would help portray Muslims in a more positive light. Read More.