When the armies of Islam emerged from Arabia in the seventh century, the first Christians they encountered were not the Greek-speaking Byzantines of Constantinople nor the Latin Christians of Rome, but the Syriac-speaking Christian communities of the Middle East. These Christians—centered in Mesopotamia, Syria, Palestine, and Persia—spoke Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic closely related to … Continue reading The Slow Birth of Islam: How Syriac Christians Watched a Religion Take Shape
The Many Incoherencies of Ibn Hanbal
Few figures in Islamic history embody incoherency as completely as Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal (780 – 855 CE). He is venerated as the purest defender of prophetic tradition, a martyr of the Mihna who resisted the Abbasid Caliph al-Maʾmūn’s demand to declare the Quran “created.” Yet beneath that saintly veneer lies a theology built on suspicion … Continue reading The Many Incoherencies of Ibn Hanbal
Why Sunnis Perpetuate the Myth of Aisha’s Age
The hadith of ʿĀʾishah’s marital age—claiming that the Prophet Muhammad married her at six and consummated the marriage at nine—has long stood as one of the most disturbing reports within the Sunnī hadith corpus. In his groundbreaking Oxford PhD thesis, The Hadith of ʿĀʾishah’s Marital Age: A Study in the Evolution of Early Islamic Historical … Continue reading Why Sunnis Perpetuate the Myth of Aisha’s Age
Why Don’t Sunnis Advocate Mass Illiteracy?
A standard narrative among traditionalists is that the Prophet Muhammad was illiterate. They claim he could not read or write during the ~63 years he was on this planet. In other words, over the span of twenty years, he was delivering the Quran; he either never took the time to learn to read or write, … Continue reading Why Don’t Sunnis Advocate Mass Illiteracy?
Cultivate Your Garden: Lessons from Voltaire and the Quran
In 1759, at the height of the Enlightenment—when European philosophers preached that reason would perfect humanity and history marched inevitably toward paradise—Voltaire published a novel called Candide to serve as a scathing critique of this naive optimism. In this book, the hero is dragged through every conceivable horror—war, plague, earthquakes, and executions—yet ends not with … Continue reading Cultivate Your Garden: Lessons from Voltaire and the Quran
Companion Hypocrisy and the Hadith & Sunnah House of Cards
For centuries, Hadith has been the bedrock of Sunni Islamic law and theology. But what happens when one of Sunni Islam’s most prominent voices admits that this foundation doesn’t stand up to scrutiny? In a recent interview on the Sképsislamica podcast, promoting his new book “Understanding Salafism,” Yasir Qadhi made a startling admission: “Nobody in the academy affirms … Continue reading Companion Hypocrisy and the Hadith & Sunnah House of Cards
Why Marriage?
A recent tweet exchange between Andrew Tate and Richard Cooper lit up social media. It was brief, smug, and resonated with a growing number of disillusioned men: “What’s the benefit of marriage for a man?”“There is none.” This sentiment has become increasingly common in certain circles: marriage is framed as a raw deal, a trap, … Continue reading Why Marriage?
<1% of Companions Are Cited as Sources of Hadith
The prophet was said to have had over 100,000 companions (ṣaḥābī) according to sources like Abū Zurʿa al-Rāzī, with some sources indicating that 114,000 companions performed the pilgrimage with the Prophet after their conquest of Mecca. Despite their large number, most companions did not transmit hadith, even though prophetic Hadith could be simply observing something … Continue reading <1% of Companions Are Cited as Sources of Hadith
Fidelity to God Alone
What does guarding your chastity have to do with guarding your prayers? At first glance, these might seem like separate aspects of personal conduct—one physical, the other spiritual. Yet twice in the Quran, God places them side by side in His portrait of the ideal believer. In both Surah 23 and Surah 70, we are … Continue reading Fidelity to God Alone
God’s Ayat Through Nature (Natural Theology)
In modern Arabic, the term "āyah" (plural: "āyāt") is often understood as “verse,” referring to the Quranic text. However, in the Quran, the word carries a much broader and deeper meaning, signifying a sign, miracle, proof, or evidence. While many occurrences in the Quran pertain directly to written revelation or the miracles of the past … Continue reading God’s Ayat Through Nature (Natural Theology)
Quran Talk Blog 