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Message: <blockquote data-quote="saharaz" data-source="post: 3757795" data-attributes="member: 99166">A CASE STUDY IN BIBLICAL MORALITY  Now that we've taken an detailed look at an alleged moral difficulty in the life of Muhammad PBUH for the sake of balance, let's take a look at a moral difficulty in the Bible. We've already made statements above concerning the nature of Biblical morality, but many readers may be unaware of some of its "difficulties". For better or for worse, in Sunday school they generally skip the verses which we are going to deal with below. However, these verses certainly are useful tools in putting intellectually honest Christians in the same "moral dilemna" that they think Muslims should be in due to Muhammad's PBUH young marriage to 'Aishah, may God be pleased with her. It should be kept in mind that the purpose of this discussion is the basis for morality, not the inspiration of the Bible (or lack thereof). For the purposes of this discussion, we accept the Bible "as is". However, this should not be interpretted to mean that we are endorsing it as the "Word of God" in toto. On the other hand, it should not be interpreted to mean that we are attacking the "Word of God", since we are discussing it simply because Christians consider it to be the "Word of God" (whatever their particular definition might be). For those wanting more detailed information on the Muslim view of the Bible, please click <a href="http://www.muslim-answers.org/m-answer.htm#MUSLIM-VIEW-OF-THE-BIBLE" target="_blank">here</a>.  The portion of the Bible that we want to look at begins with the Book of Numbers, Chapter 31, verses 17 and 18. Here, Moses, following the Lord's command, orders the Israelites to kill all the Midianite male children. The order continues with the following: ". . . kill every woman who has known man by lying with him,but all the female children, that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves." One can only guess how the Israelites determined who the virgins were. Most probably, they did it based on age and maturity, assuming that all of the female "children" who had not reached puberty were virgins. Keep in mind that this was done, according to the Bible, on God's command to "Avenge the Israelites on the Midianites". Later, God gives Moses instructions on how to divide up the booty, "whether persons, oxen, donkeys, sheeps or goats". Based on this command, "thirty-two thousand persons in all, women who had not known a man by lying with him" were divided up. This was done so that the Israelite soldiers could have these young girls "for themselves". I do not suspect that anyone reading this is either so naive or ignorant of King James English to not know what this means!  Moving along to another great example of Biblical morality, . . . in Deuteronomy 21:10-14 the Biblical "God of Love" gives the following command:  "When thou goest forth to war against thine enemies, and the Lord thy God hath delivered them into thine hands and thoust has taken them captive, and seest among the captives a beautiful woman, and have a desire unto her, that though would have her to be thy wife, then though shalt bring her home to thine house . . . and after that you may go into her and be her husband, and she shall be your wife. But if though have no delight in her, then thou shalt let her go".  This should serve as sufficient proof that the morality that is taught in the Bible often is not what Christians make it out to be. In spite of what they teach in Sunday school, the above mentioned verses demonstrate the following: Almighty God, at least according to the Bible:* Ordered innocent babies to be killed; and * He allowed young women to be forced into sex against their will. Before moving on, it should be noted that killing women and children in war is never permitted under Islamic Law (the actions of some ignorant Muslims around the world notwithstanding). Some Christians may take issue with the words "innocent babies" above, since they believe that even babies are tainted with "Original Sin". However, this is not the topic of the discussion at hand. Suffice it to say that Biblical support for the Doctrine of Original Sin is contradictory at best. There are some verses that seem to support it, but there are others that seem to clearly deny it. One strike against "Original Sin", besides the fact that it's simply unjust, is the fact that the Jews—who read the Old Testament—never belived in it the way Chrisitnas do. But anyway . . . when faced with the problematic parts of the Old Testatment, Christians react in various ways. Many offer up the ill thoughtout "Well-That's-in-the-Old-Testament" defense. In spite of the fact that they usually don't brush the Old Testament aside so quickly when they are being shown alleged prophecies which match Jesus, a few other thoughts can be presented. Some of the things that make brushing aside the Old Tesament a bit more difficult (at least for Christians who want to remain intellectually honest) are: 1) the same God that "inspired" the Old Testament "inspired" the New Testament; 2) this same God is "unchanging" according to the Bible; 3) Jesus in the New Testament endorses the "Law and the prophets" (i.e. the Old Testament) in several places; and 4) without the Old Testament there is no basis for Christianity. When put in this predicament, Christians, have one of two choices: 1) stop thinking about it and fall back on a liberal "pick-and-choose" religion that just makes them "feel good" but does not answer any of life's more difficult questions; or 2) accept the (allegedly) Divinely Revealed morality of the Bible "as is" and en toto. There are Christians out there who claim to accept the Divinely Revealed morality of the Bible. They understand what's at stake and the issues at hand. If people are allowed to whimsically decide what is right and what is wrong, there would be chaos. Just as importantly, if people decide what is "God's Word" and what is not His word based on their preconceived notions and "modern" sensibilities, nothing would be left of the Bible. As such, there are Christians who, in principle, say that killing babies is "moral" as long as God clearly commands it. For someone who understands the nature of Divinely Revealed morality, we would have to agree in principle but with certain reservations. As mentioned above, Almighty God—according to Islam—never commands the killing of innocent children. That is one "difficulty" that I am glad that Muslims don't have to explain their way out of! Killing babies is okay as long as God commands it!?! So much for having Christians as baby-sitters!The bottom line is that morality comes from Almighty God and from Him alone. However, if ones studies the Bible, it is plain to see that it is not a foundation for morality. The examples above are just a few that can be provided from both the Old and the New Testament. The people who promote "Biblical morality" pick and choose from the text as they please. Only in Islam can one with good conscience accept "the whole package" without ignorantly or hypocritically denying things that they don't like. This is how true internal peace and balance are achieved. If one belongs to a religions without accepting everything in its scripture (real or alleged) one is not only bearing false witness againt themself but against God Himself. With all the false ideas in the modern age, it's easy to be lead astray. The liberal Westeran morality that has now touched all corners of the globe is, culturally speaking, something like an eight-hundred pound gorilla. It's very hard to stand in its way or speak out against it. However, being encouraged by others to follow "vain desires" has been an eternal problem for mankind, as Almighty God makes clear in the Qur'an: "Say: 'I will not follow your vain desires: if I did I would stray from the path and be not of the company of those who receive guidance.'" Qur'an - Surah al-An'aam - 6:56  GUIDEPOSTS TO BE THANKFUL FOR  The Prophet Muhammad PBUH was a great example for all of humanity and peoples of different cultures (from "modern" Europeans to the aborigines of Australia). Not only was he a great Prophet and Messenger, but he was also a statesman, military leader, ruler, teacher, neighbor and friend. Family life was one of the most important areas where he was a great example, since he was both a husband and a father. Due to God's wisdom, His last and final prophet experienced a wide array of marriages and family situations. Due to this, he is an example for people who are monogamous, for those who are polygamous, for those wishing to marry those older than themselves and for those wondering how early someone can rightfully marry. Muhammad PBUH reestablished the Religion of Abraham so that it would continue to the Last Day.As Muslims, we should be thankful for these guideposts in our moral journey through life. Reflecting on them aids us in avoiding being led astray into "moral relativism". This is a very dangerous thing, since it can lead to the worst of all sins—associating others with Almighty God in worship, belief and/or Lordship. By knowing the Prophet's PBUH life we can see how to stay within the boundaries laid by Almighty God and stay on the Natural Religion of Islam which was made to suit the natural disposition (fitrah) of mankind. I pray that we, as Muslims, make Almighty God's limits our limits, and that we are not influenced by other societies and cultures. If it was good enough for Abraham and Moses, then it's good enough for me . . . That's the way I see it, but God knows best . . . FOOTNOTES <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#1A" target="_blank">1</a> W. Montgomery Watt, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0195773071/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Muhammad at Medina</a>, Oxford University Press, 1956. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#2A" target="_blank">2</a> "Rites and Ceremonies", <a href="http://www.eb.com/" target="_blank">The New Encyclopaedia Britannica</a>, 15th Edition (1987), Volume 26, page 850. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#3A" target="_blank">3</a> Gerald Sigal, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0870688863/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">The Jew and the Christian Missionary</a>, Ktav Publishing House,1981, page 28. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#4A" target="_blank">4</a> "Central Africa", <a href="http://www.eb.com/" target="_blank">The New Encyclopaedia Britannica</a>, 15th Edition (1987), Volume 15, page 646. See also "Aboriginal Australia", <a href="http://www.eb.com/" target="_blank">The New Encyclopaedia Britannica</a>, 15th Edition (1987), Volume 14, page 425. For additional references to the marriage customs in Biblical times, see <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=1555406432/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Israel: Its Life and Culture</a>, by Johannes Pedersen, Volume 1, page 60ff. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#5A" target="_blank">5</a> Herman H. Ploss, Max Bartels and Paul Bartels, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0006730426/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Woman</a>, Volume I, Lord & Bransby, 1988, page 563. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#6A" target="_blank">6</a> English-translation of <a href="http://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/fundamentals/hadithsunnah/muslim/" target="_blank">Sahih Muslim</a>, Volume 2, International Islamic Publishing House, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, page 715. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#7A" target="_blank">7</a> Theodor H. Vandevelde, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0313224420/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Ideal Marriage : Its Physiology and Technique</a>, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1980, p. 243.  <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#8A" target="_blank">8</a> Nabia Abbott, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0405053185/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Aishah-The Beloved of Mohammed</a>, Al-Saqi Books, London, 1985, page 7. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#9A" target="_blank">9</a>Karen Armstrong, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0062508865/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet</a>, Harper San Francisco, 1992, page 157.  <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#10A" target="_blank">10</a>W. Montgomery Watt, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0198810784/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">Muhammad: Prophet and Statesman</a>, Oxford University Press, 1961, page 229. <a href="http://www.alharamain.org/english/articles/youngmarriage.htm#11A" target="_blank">11</a> John Hick, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0664255035/muslimanswersA/" target="_blank">The Metaphor of God Incarnate</a>, Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993, page 87.  Used With Permission FromMUSLIM ANSWERS © 1998, 1999, 2000 - All Rights Reserved P. O. Box 1227, Windermere, FL 34786-1227, U.S.A. <a href="http://www.muslim-answers.org/" target="_blank">http://www.muslim-answers.org/</a> </blockquote>

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