The doctrine and the problem The Immaculate Conception is the Catholic teaching that Mary was preserved from original sin from the first moment of her existence. It is often confused with the Virgin Birth, which concerns Jesus. The Immaculate Conception concerns Mary herself, and it was one of the most contested questions in medieval theology. … Continue reading The Prophet as Witness: How European Painters Enlisted Muhammad in Defense of the Immaculate Conception
The Bible & Slavery
The Bible contains a good deal of law about slavery, and most readers have never seen it, because it sits in the legal sections of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy rather than in the stories people know. A more useful question than whether the Bible "supports" slavery is what the texts actually do: describe it as … Continue reading The Bible & Slavery
The Quran Is a Genre of Its Own
Every reader approaches a new text with a question, usually unspoken: What kind of thing is this? Genre is the first act of interpretation. We read a legal code differently from a love poem, a chronicle differently from a prophecy. Misjudge the genre and everything downstream goes wrong. Readers coming to the Quran from the … Continue reading The Quran Is a Genre of Its Own
The Moral Problems of Deuteronomy: A Reference Guide
Deuteronomy is the fifth book of the Torah, the Pentateuch traditionally attributed to Moses. It is presented as a series of farewell speeches delivered on the plains of Moab, east of the Jordan, as Israel prepares to enter Canaan after forty years in the wilderness. Moses recounts the journey so far, restates the law given … Continue reading The Moral Problems of Deuteronomy: A Reference Guide
Fishermen’s Greek: The Literary Blemish at the Heart of Early Christianity
Imagine picking up a book that presents itself as the inspired word of God and finding it written in "Ebonics." He was teachin' the folk down by the water, and he tell 'em, "Don't be worryin' 'bout tomorrow." For a reader raised to equate seriousness with "proper" English, the instinct is to flinch before the … Continue reading Fishermen’s Greek: The Literary Blemish at the Heart of Early Christianity
Is Arabic an Essential Attribute of the Quran?
Abstract The Quran repeatedly calls itself an "Arabic Quran," but it also describes that Arabic as something done: revealed (anzala), inspired (awḥā), made easy (yassara), articulated (faṣṣala), and rendered (jaʿala). This article asks if Arabic is an essential attribute of the Quran, or if the Quran distinguishes between itself as it exists with God and … Continue reading Is Arabic an Essential Attribute of the Quran?
Child Marriage and the Quran: Why 4:6 Must Come Before 65:4
The Argument to End All Arguments The debate over child marriage and the Quran often begins with 65:4, a verse concerning divorce. But that is the wrong place to start. Before asking what happens when a marriage ends, we must first establish who is eligible to enter one. Consider a simple analogy. Suppose one law … Continue reading Child Marriage and the Quran: Why 4:6 Must Come Before 65:4
Can the Quran Explain Itself Without Hadith? The Pregnant Widow Dilemma (2:234 & 65:4)
When a woman's marriage ends, the Quran requires her to observe a waiting period, which it calls an interim, before she may marry again. The length depends on her situation. For a widow, the rule appears in the second sura: [2:234] Those who die and leave wives, their widows shall wait four months and ten … Continue reading Can the Quran Explain Itself Without Hadith? The Pregnant Widow Dilemma (2:234 & 65:4)
Does Quran 9:29 Command Muslims to Impose Jizya on Jews and Christians?
In a recent debate on the morality of the Quran, the Christian Apologist, GodLogic (Avery), built his case on one verse: 9:29. His argument ran as follows. Sura 9 begins with declaring war on the pagan Arabs, then at verse 29 turns on the Jews and Christians. They are fought for disbelief alone, with no … Continue reading Does Quran 9:29 Command Muslims to Impose Jizya on Jews and Christians?
The Unspecified Challenge: How the Quran’s Taunt Becomes a Mirror
The Quran issues a dare, and it issues it more than once. Produce a chapter like this. Produce ten. Produce a discourse. Bring whatever help you can find. What is striking, on a close reading, is what the dare leaves out: it never tells us how the entry will be judged. There is no rubric, … Continue reading The Unspecified Challenge: How the Quran’s Taunt Becomes a Mirror
