Far from Islam having been born in the full light of history, its birth was shrouded in an almost impenetrable darkness. Assertions regarding the origins of the Moslem faith end up being primarily dependent upon the credibility and reputation of Muhammed himself. The existence of the Islamic founder and prophet Muhammad seems to be established by some historical records of his day. However, attempts to make a distinction between reliable historical accounts and the doubtful claims concerning Muhammad have not been very successful. Consequently, facts surrounding the details of his life, aside from his basic existence, are debated.
Much of the available history about Muhammad is disputed by most highly regarded historians. Muslim sources maintain that everything he did and said was recorded. And yet, academic researchers claim that almost all the available information about Muhammad's life, apart from the fact of his existence, is not historically credible.
These facts, compared to the reliable historical records detailing the lives of other historical figures, let alone religious leaders, make it difficult to realistically chronicle the life of Muhammed. Subsequently, the foundations of the religion he established are likewise suspect.
Biographical narratives about Muhammad are only found in texts dating from the 8th or 9th century, or even later. These are hundreds of years after his death. This raises the question of how confident one can be in Islamic literature’s claim to relay accurate historical information.
Moreover, many of the narratives in question are clearly adaptations of known biblical themes designed to present Muhammad as equal or superior to earlier prophetic figures such as Moses and Jesus. These figures, along with others also used, had great credibility as spiritual leaders in the minds of 6th century people. (This same strategy was used hundreds of years later by Joseph Smith to support his claims about the Mormon faith.) For example, before Muhammad’s emigration to Medina he is said to have received an oath of allegiance from twelve inhabitants of the city, an obvious parallel to the Twelve Apostles.
During the digging of a defensive trench around Medina, Muhammad is said to have miraculously fed all the workers from a handful of dates, recalling Jesus’ feeding of the multitude. Finally, it is distinctly probable that some reports about events in Muhammad’s life emerged not from historical memory but from speculation and embellishment of particular verses in the Koran.
Such tactics were employed by many chroniclers in the early centuries of the Christian church desiring to bolster the claims of the Gospels. Later councils and scholars meticulously sought to distinguish fact from fiction and these apocryphal accounts were stricken from the Canon. This scrutinizing of Islamic scriptures was a process that not only was never begun, but later attempts to do so were regarded as blasphemous,
This new faith quickly spread in the regions of Arabia but was soon met by rejection and the hostility of local leaders in Mecca, forcing Muhammed to leave his hometown and move to Medina. Islam, which means submission, was seen as a unifying religion promoting the dignity and brotherhood of Arab people. The historical identity of Arabs asserted they were the descendants of banished Ishmael, in contrast to Jews, who were the descendants of the promised Isaac. A shared sense of inferiority and rejection proved to be fertile soil for this new faith. Just one hundred years after the death of Muhammed, Islamic leaders promoted Jihad, which means holy war, throughout the region and surrounding countries. The existing Jews and Christians they confronted were called “people of the Book” and so were unmolested. However, pagans were taxed and then given the choice to convert or die. Given such options, the Islamic faith spread rapidly.
This kind of history makes the Islamic culture a difficult one to deal with. Its aggressive nature and tactics promote growth not based on the truth of its doctrines, but rather on the vulnerabilities and fears of its converts, adherents and enemies. Questions about history, inconsistencies and tactics are rebuffed and forbidden as “self-fulfilling prophecies” and expressions of oppression, discrimination and blasphemy.
The Islamic faith, born in the cradle of a region settled by Abraham was able to spread as the region became dominated by polytheism and idolatry. A healthy Judeo/Christian climate would have been able to withstand the advances of Islamic doctrines as evidenced numerous times in early centuries with sound teaching and stable communities of faith. However, a weak or non-existent Judeo/Christian presence allowed Islam advances into the void of a dark and pagan Arabia. And we know the rest of the story -
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