About 3500 years ago in Egypt, Moses began to preach the religion that calls for submission to God, which he inherited from his forefather Abraham. According to the belief in that era, the ruler was considered a son of God, even a god on earth.

The Pharaoh said (to his chiefs): “Let me kill Moses, and let him call upon his Lord! I fear lest he alter your religion (replacing it with his), or lest he provoke disorder in the land” (Mu’min 40:26). What is meant by “religion” as mentioned in the verse refers to the civilization, i.e. the overall social order, of that society. The pharaoh was rather concerned about his own reign, like many other tyrants, but he professed as if he was concerned about his people and that he wanted to get rid of Moses for their good.

The following verse expresses this fact: “They said: ‘These two men are surely sorcerers intent on driving you out of your land with their sorcery, and doing away with your exemplary way of life’” (Taha 20:63).

Then the Pharaoh increased his torment to the believers and closed up their temple. In that case, God commanded Moses and his brother to take their houses as places of worship (a center of learning) (10:87). The essential judgment on worship was to be observed in the temple, but the command to pray at home was a special judgment to be implemented during this period of torment.

We are currently facing another crisis, though entirely different from the persecution that Moses and his followers endured, that is requiring us to temporarily close our houses of worship and instead pray at home. In these days of Coronavirus, all faith communities, including Muslims, Jews, and Christians, abide by this special judgment. For Muslims even the congregational Friday Prayer, which all males without valid excuse must strictly attend, is suspended. Everybody prays at home instead for the same reason of protection from harm. Whether they observe prayers or not, most people are at an obligatory retreat.

From a believer’s perspective, these days are offering us some serious food for thought. Is Coronavirus on a mission sent by God to warn people who exceed in wrongdoing? Are we being told to come to our senses, to make up our minds, step back from wrong, act in accordance with our purpose of creation, not neglect our families for the sake of greedy pursuits, and live in a way to be eligible for eternal happiness?

Two thousand years ago, Jesus Christ, peace be upon him, taught his people about belief in God. He was able to preach for only a very short amount of time, only to be accepted by a limited number of people around him all of whom suffered and were exterminated under the cruel Roman Empire. Yet, his message was not silenced; by the third century after he was gone, a great majority of people ruled by Roman Empire accepted his invitation. Muslims believe Jesus Christ was ascended to the heavens to be sent back to complete his mission as a renovator of faith in God in the Latter Times in the way of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, who, according to some Muslim scholars, is the “advocate” (Paraclete – or Parakletos, the Praised One) mentioned in John 14:16. It is believed that Jesus Christ will lead his followers – now dispersed in many denominations more so than any other tradition has [1] – and will unite them back in worship. Coronavirus has struck at a time that is most special to the Christian community, and thus giving them an opportunity to reflect on faith. It was the time of Lent, a six-week period which ended on April 11. Observing Christians have sought closeness to God by observing different forms of worship such as fasting, praying, and supporting the needy while hoping to be more receptive to the call of revival by COVID-19. Taking this opportunity, it is my hope that Christians, who are adorned with these lofty qualities, had a happy Easter holiday, which was on April 12 this year. I also celebrate the Passover holiday of the Jewish community, which was on April 8.

As a matter of fact, even the timing of this global retreat is worthy of attention; similar to Christian Lent and Easter, Muslims are in the midst of the holy three months of Rajab, Shaban, and Ramadan, while the Jewish community have been celebrating Passover within these days of retreat. Surely the followers of other traditions such as Buddhism and Hinduism will evaluate this period in meaningful retrospect. The indigenous people of Canada pray as follows:

 “O our exalted Creator! We wish you to be with us. We wish you to help our diseased ones and our friends who are far away. When we lose hope, please remind us to be thankful for the blessings of water which gives life and the earth which bears us. O God, please help us know that all people are our relatives!”

Muslims have not undergone as huge a diversification as has been the case in Christianity in terms of the essentials of faith. However, many Muslim nations have failed to duly understand the true message of the religion, could not interpret its commandments, nor could they practice it properly. As those in power did not govern them well for a very long time, many countries of the Muslim world have lagged behind with regards to civilization, ethics, culture, and public administration. In a way, they have alienated themselves to the essence of their own values. Interestingly, social studies indices that conduct research on which countries perform better on establishing institutions that reflect Islamic values and principles, there is not a single Muslim country among the first thirty [2]. There are countries like Ireland, Finland, Sweden, Denmark, New Zealand, and Canada among the first ten. The brilliant face of Islam entered a period of eclipse in the Muslim world, and then the eclipse got to be constant. Accordingly, Corona is virtually making the following call to Muslims: “You did not thoroughly understand and practice religion God revealed to you by means of His Messenger. Come back home, you need a revival. Make up your mind to make wise use of this opportunity. Evaluate the oncoming opportunity of Ramadan well in your home. Try to make up for things you neglected for years. Make self-criticism, come to grips with yourself! Become repentant and ask forgiveness!”

May this holy Ramadan, the month of the Holy Qur’an, be a means of God’s good pleasure and happiness for all Muslims.

With Coronavirus, and for that matter with all such tribulations, perhaps God Almighty makes us realize that He has not ceased to care for the humanity He created: “Shall We take away this Reminder from you (and leave you to your own devices), because you are a people wasteful (of your God-given faculties and committing excesses)?” (Zukhruf 43:5). Thus, He gives an opportunity to people before the Day of Judgment to repent and experience a “revival” now, so that we can be absolved “there.”

Notes

1. De Glasenapp. 1954. Les cinq grandes religions, Paris, Payot, 1954, p. 415.
2. http://islamicity-index.org/wp

Of all the faculties and senses that man is endowed with, moderation is one of the most essential virtues. Moderation concerns all people within society, and can become an unattainable virtue unless all members of society have gained a sufficient level of straightforwardness in their thoughts and actions. That straightness of conduct can only be sustained if a sufficient number of people in that society understand, desire and practice the virtue of moderation.

John B. Watson and his colleague conducted an experiment if an emotion could be generalized from one subject to another subject similar to the first. He targeted a baby, called Little Albert, who had no fear of small furry animals like white rats at that time. To carry out their hypothesis, Watson and colleague presented a white rat for Little Albert to play with. But after a while, the researchers made a very loud disturbing noise whenever Little Albert attempted at reaching for the white rat. After several times the researchers paired the loud noise with Little Albert’s attempts at reaching that white rat, a time came to the point where Little Albert was scared of the animal on its own—without the loud sound. From that on, Little Albert generalized his fear to anything furry, including non-white rabbits and dogs. (Watson & Rayner, 1920)

From early years of childhood, we have directly and indirectly learnt how an excess and shortage of anything could be undesirable. No matter who an individual is or where he or she comes from, that individual knows that eating too much can cause a bloated feeling, eating too less can harm health, talking too much could hurt others, and so does not talking at all. Moderation is such a universal virtue that every individual from every religion, ethnicity, and background knows that a life lived in moderation always reaps the most benefits.

Not just on trivial daily matters, moderation can address any issue that has significant relations to human life. Moderation is related to healthy lifestyles, satisfactory life outcomes, healthy relationships, and many more. But one aspect of humankind that is faced everyday—yet it seems to be ignored most of the time—is the mindset, way of thinking, or the cognition. We can have times when there is a “shortage” of the mindset, but more problematic is the instances when some individuals choose to adopt an extreme way of thinking.

Consider the case of Little Albert above, because of one tragedy Little Albert generalized his feelings and fear that anything furry was scary. Probably because that white furry rat seemed to produce such a loud scary noise, Little Albert thought, “so, anything furry MUST be scary too…” This is one example where way of thinking can be extreme. Moderation does not seek to moderate this extreme way of thinking, rather it seeks to moderate way of thinking generally so it is not as extreme.

How moderation is related to prejudice

As mentioned above, moderation can address many issues, and this includes prejudice. Prejudice is defined as the way we see others—the social orientation that is based on a membership of a particular group (Brown, 2010). To understand prejudice, one has to note that prejudice comes from a generalized attribution or characterization (or what is commonly known as a stereotype). Prejudice is the emotional aspect of stereotypical thinking. Like Little Albert, the infant generalized his prejudice to anything furry, and although Albert’s reaction to those furry objects was dramatic, our modern prejudicial reaction is usually more subtle and hidden.

In relation to the issue of prejudice, moderation is synonymized to being fair-minded—a way of thinking that employs the middle point between two extremes. Prejudice is, in its basic form, a way of thinking that is located in one extreme. The extremity comes from the aspect of generalization of prejudicial mindset in its beholder’s way of thinking. But where do these thoughts come from? People’s tendency to generalize their observation of a trait of a person to his or her group members always comes from the external sources.

One study supported the notion that people obtain prejudicial thinking from external sources (Aboud, 1976). The research method involved asking participants to seek information on three fictitious groups. Prior to seeking information, the participants were shown statistics of certain traits related to these groups. This was done to “set” the minds of the participants on the traits that were more likely to be shown by the members of these groups. Consequently, when seeking information on the groups after shown the statistics of the groups, the participants were more likely to “confirm” what they had been told from the statistics, allowing a generalization to occur in their mindset.

Availability heuristics and their role in prejudicial thinking

Why do humans generalize more than they should, or at all? Perhaps it is because of the information they can readily and superficially obtain from the target of their prejudicial thinking. Stereotypes are always something people can see directly, such as weight, skin color, and intelligence shown through behavior and many other characteristics. These sets of readily available information seem to be more important because there is one type of heuristics, availability heuristics that is present in the human mind to help them judge on frequency or probability (Tversky & Kahneman, 1973).

To understand heuristics, consider the two images below that we come across very often. How do you know which gender is which symbol? The existence of heuristics allows us to manage this world in a more simplified and helpful way. Society uses symbols that represent certain group of people to give certain information. No matter where we are, our brain is integrated with the understanding that “skirts” are something only women would wear—it is how, by using that heuristic, we know that the first symbol tells us that it is a women’s place, or belongs to women, or can only be used by women—depending on where we see the symbol.

Heuristics are tools to help people make a cognitive decision on something such as deciding who someone is, if he or she is a righteous person, or what leads to a particular event, or how a certain event happens. Availability heuristics is the tool used to make a judgment when it comes to the frequency of probability that something occurs to that particular target. For example, one may judge the traits of people in community A, after seeing the behavior of a few members of community A. Availability heuristics help people simplify judgment to the most simplified information they can get in mind, and that information can come from various sources, such as a personal experience like the one in the Little Albert case, and others like the statistics given in the study described above.

Availability heuristics can be useful in some situations, such as estimating voting behavior in an election period, or predicting divorce cases for a particular year, but sometimes it has a negative consequence. Prejudice partly comes from the use of availability heuristics and blind “compliance” to such judgment. In this case, availability heuristics are a form of excess of the use of limited information offered to the human mind prior to judgment because blind belief to such heuristics can lead them to generalize. This is an extreme way of thinking that would go against the very nature of moderation itself.

Labeling and availability heuristics

Availability heuristics can be so powerful that sometimes people do not even realize that it is affecting their way of thinking. This is due to the excess use of labeling to simplify and categorize objects. Labeling affects human judgment and interpretation toward something or someone (Jussim, Nelson, Manis, & Soffin, 1995). Labeling is one of the sources of availability heuristics because labeling comes from the traits of physical attributes that people see from the individuals that they label. For example, individuals are labeled as doctors after they are seen wearing a white coat with a stethoscope around their neck, or a man is labeled as dangerous when walking in the dark with a hooded jumper on. Once labeling happens, individuals who conform to the traits and physical attributes that resemble the labels are stereotyped and these stereotypes become the readily available information to serve as a tool to form availability heuristics.

Labeling is not all inaccurate, but the negative consequence of labeling happens because people are too focused on the external traits of a target of the label. People seem to readily judge that a person in a white coat is a doctor, or that a man who has a hood on while walking in the dark is dangerous. These are all the external qualities of the person in a white coat and the man with a hood that people focus on to make a judgment, and eventually they have prejudicial thinking against these targets.

When discussing the topic of faith, Benjamin Franklin said, “Faith is confirmed by the heart, confessed by the tongue, and acted upon by the body.” This definition of faith is in parallel with the definition given by various religions. It emphasizes the importance of both external (confessing and acting upon) and internal aspects (believing) of spirituality. One cannot have one aspect without the other. Moderation involves professing your faith internally, such as believing and keeping your motivation, and externally, such as taking care of your appearance in line with your faith, and being concerned about what you say and do. This means that you do not just focus on either one aspect alone, but prove your stand by maintaining your faith, internally and externally.

In relation to prejudice, labeling happens due to focusing more on the external aspects of traits, like the group members’ appearance, behavior, and even intelligence (as it can be seen from their way of thinking and speaking). But we often neglect to remember that there are interior aspects of those individuals—the aspects that are dismissed from the factors of being labeled. These interior aspects can be different across individuals, thus labels alone could not make an entirely accurate judgment on an individual.

Conceptual frameworks of the relationship between moderation and prejudice

As discussed, prejudice comes from many factors that are not in line with the concept of moderation and this can be prevented by allowing the right way of thinking to be our habit. Moderation is a middle pathway to prevent prejudice. One way to do so is by understanding that while the outside of a person can tell something about him or her, the inside parts can be important too. Figure 1 illustrates the conceptual framework on how moderation can address prejudicial thinking.

Figure 1 shows a continuum of the way of thinking with moderation in the middle and “indifference” and “prejudicial thinking” on each extreme end. Prejudicial thinking, in one extreme, focuses only on the external aspects of a group of people, by which the aspects are used to make a judgment if the group is “good” or “bad.” These judgments are then used to make a generalization. On the other hand, indifference is shown when people have a neutral attitude; too much of it that they do not care about what is happening around them.

Moderation is located in the middle. It is neither prejudicial nor indifferent. People with a moderate way of thinking consider both the external and internal qualities of individuals to make a fair judgment. Each judgment is different across individuals because he or she knows that even if an individual belongs to a certain group, that individual does not have to be the same as the other members of that group. People with a moderate way of thinking know that tolerance needs to be exercised whenever needed, without any unfairness to any individuals who belong to a certain group of people.

Conclusion and a suggestion

When making a judgment or decision on a target’s attribution, it is important to examine the extent to which heuristics or the person’s dependence on readily available information—also known as availability heuristics—affects their judgment. Heuristics can be useful to help people organize, manage, and simplify their thoughts, but it should be supervised so that it is only used in moderate levels. Whenever one feels the need to make a quick judgment, he or she should break it by “educating” the self. Educating the self in its simplest form can be to ask, “What if I am judged that way? Would I like it?” By educating yourself, you make a psychological and mental reminder that to quickly judge means to unfairly treat that individual, which is something you would not want happen to you.

Another way to hinder the potential formation of prejudice is to empathize. By putting yourself in the target’s own shoes, you will be able to see how unfair stereotypes can be to a particular individual. Self-serving bias is a social cognitive error in which you are more likely to view positive events as a result of your own doing and negative events as the consequence of an external factor (Miller & Ross, 1975). This is viewed by psychologists as an error in thinking about other people, but interestingly, this can actually help in reducing prejudice. Prejudice can occur because you fail to attribute a person’s behavior or trait fairly, because he or she is simply another person you cannot relate to. Therefore, by empathizing with a person, you would more likely start to view that behavior through your own lens. By doing that, “self-serving bias” can begin and that is equipped with the ability to also consider your own internal attributes. Therefore, there will be a balance between focusing on internal aspects because it is you, and focusing on external aspects, because it is others.

Moderation is indeed a virtue that can help us develop and grow as a well-adjusting human being. By employing moderation in every aspect of our lives, we can see that moderation can address almost any issue, including prejudice. Moderation is the middle and the most proper pathway of thinking.

Taufik Mohammad, PhD, is a senior lecturer in Universiti Sains Malaysia.

References

• Aboud, F. E. 1976. The effect of stereotype generalization on information seeking. Canadian Journal of Behavioral Science , 8, 178-188.
• Brown, R. 2010. Prejudice: Its social psychology. Oxford: John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
• Jussim, L., Nelson, T. E., Manis, M., & Soffin, S. 1995. Prejudice, stereotypes, and labeling effects: Sources of bias in person perception. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 228-246.
• Miller, D. T., & Ross, M. 1975. Self-serving biases in the attribution of causality: Fact or fiction? Psychological Bulletin, 82, 213-225.
• Tversky, A., & Kahneman, D. 1973. Availability: A heuristic for judging frequency and probability. Cognitive Psychology, 4, 207-232.
• Watson, J. B., & Rayner, R. 1920. Conditioned emotional reactions. Journal

When the sky is cleft asunder; And when the planets are dispersed, and when the oceans are poured forth. (Infitar 82:1-3)

The events that are to occur on the Day of Judgment are clearly depicted in the Qur’an. The relevant verses emphasize that the Day of Judgment is not an ending that will only involve the Earth, but one which will also incorporate other planets on a universal scale.

Insofar as causes are concerned, what could be the force that will be able to disperse a robust system, rendering all forces including gravity obsolete and forcing planets and stars out of their orbits?

The following verses seem to imply that this force will also affect “lustrous” heavenly bodies:

When the sun is folded up, and when the stars fall losing their luster; and when the mountains are set moving. (Takwir 81:1-3)

For the word kuwwirat (folded up) in the verse “When the sun is folded up,” the famous scholar Fakhreddin Razi, in concordance with a narration from the third Caliph Umar, interprets this word to mean “to darken by expunging light.” Now, how could Divine Predestination operate on the physical world, in the folding and collection of light? In the past few years, scientists have been pondering the possibility of the gravitational power of black holes in accomplishing such a role. As we know, even light, alongside matter, cannot resist the irrepressible gravitation of the black hole.

The events depicted in the verses given above may be, with the will of the Creator, dependent on the gravitational power of black holes.

It is a fact that we’re sitting on a sphere of fire, as we speak, and the gases that constitute the atmosphere are held above the Earth by the force of gravity. With the impact of the strong force of gravity however, the air we breathe will be the first thing to vanish from the Earth’s atmosphere. Thus, with the disappearance of external pressure on such an occasion, internal pressure will gain ascendance in all creatures, who are composed predominantly of water (70%), causing them to shatter into pieces.

Along with other planets, the gravitational bonds of billions of stars (asteroids, meteors and comets) found on the two asteroid zones of the Solar System, all of which are sustained by Divine Power, will perhaps be torn apart with the force of black holes.

The geometrical gravity balances could perhaps also play a role in setting the Day of Judgment in motion. As can be observed in the General Theory of Relativity, the space-time levelness of the universe could, to quote the Qur’an, be folded and scrunched akin to a piece of paper, in which case, the stars, having been moved out of their places, will plummet from their positions.

Similar to how a cloth or net is elongated or pulled down under the impact of heavy objects, the universe (the net of space-time) will also stretch and yield, and in fact rip and crack, or more precisely be punctured, from the dense objects placed inside it, that is the black holes. The puncture, in this case, denotes the invalidation of physical laws.

It can be assumed that the black holes, placed at the center of the universe, will gradually expand, until the entire galaxy virtually becomes a black hole, and with the unification of every black hole, the whole universe will effectively be rendered a black hole itself.

When the camel goes through the eye of the needle…

Those who deny our revelations and scorn them, for them the gates of heaven will not be opened nor will they enter the Garden until the camel goes through the eye of the needle. Such is how we penalize the guilty! (A’raf 7:40)

A camel going through the eye of a needle calls to mind how the universal bodies will be passed through the singularity, the tiny openings of black holes. This comparison is reminiscent of how a giant sphere that comes within the swallowing vicinity of the black hole, may become stretched out to the point of becoming a virtual string, eventually becoming ingested by an object much smaller than itself.

A star, hundreds of thousands times bigger than the sun, could be reduced to the head of a needle once it begins to be warped by the black holes, phenomena in which space and time themselves are compelled to twist and turn.

The central area where the gravity force of the black hole is at its peak is described as “the event horizon.” The black holes could in fact be passages that allow us to enter other universes. In such a situation, we can hypothetically evaluate what will become of an astronaut who falls into a black hole.

We align our watches in correspondence with the astronaut’s, and bid him farewell towards the event horizon. As the astronaut approaches the event horizon where gravity gradually increases, we notice his watch is starting to operate more slowly. In the vicinity of the event horizon of a black hole the size of our sun, while our watches indicate that 1 second has passed, the astronaut’s watch will show that 3.3 seconds have passed, as time, where he is, flows much slower.

As our astronaut draws near to the event horizon, the 33 seconds indicated by his watch (10 times slower than before) will be equivalent again to our 1 second, and when he eventually and completely enters the event horizon, time will have frozen, halting the disparity between each second.

How would the space traveler perceive this hypothetical journey?

Not only will the space traveler become cognizant of the slower elapse of time, he may also witness an elongation of his body as he draws nearer to the event horizon. Since the force of gravity will take more of a toll on the extremities, that is the head and the feet, by the time the astronaut asks the question “What is happening?” he would already have begun to be extended like a string. The passing second for the astronaut progressively approaching the event horizon, will begin to become one month or one year later in the Universe. A pace away from the horizon the entire future of the Universe will fit into a single second of the astronaut, who, by now, is swiftly being pulled in to the point of singularity, finding himself on the other side. In this area, the Special Relativity Theory, essentially based on the thesis that the velocity of light is absolute velocity, i.e. the greatest velocity in the Universe, loses its validity, in that, as one approaches the singularity, the gravitational force affecting the astronaut or space ship will become so intense that the actual speed will surpass the velocity of light itself. Thus, the tangibility of a velocity greater than that of light will render all principles of causality obsolete, during which a regressive journey in time becomes practically possible. The interpretations of this issue are as such: A person plummeting into the well of singularity may live the whole history of the universe in the blink of an eye. They now have become a time traveler; the present, past, and future are all presented to their vision. As if passing through the eye of a needle, they may have passed through to another universe.

Imam Ghazzali, while interpreting the verses concerning the Day of Judgment, in his epistle Kashf al-Ulum al-Akhirah, puts the accent on Universal cessation:

“When God wills the commencement of the Judgment with the blowing of the Horn, you will see the mountains flying and moving about like clouds, seas amalgamating with one another, the Sun folded and being blacked out, the stars scattering around like beads disengaged from their strings, the sky rotating ferociously like a millstone, the ground trembling terrifyingly, stretching and expanding like leather. In that God will decree the dismissal of the orbits and no living thing will remain alive on earth or in the heavens. The spirited will surrender their spirits. The Earth and Heavens will be availed of their inhabitants.”

Said Nursi, alternatively, lays emphasis on the deterioration of the finely tuned connections, such as gravity, electromagnetic and nuclear forces, etc., attaching universal entities together, depicting the Day of Judgment in the following words:

“Consider the Qur’anic description of the minute and precise interrelationship of the universe’s constituent parts. Consider their sublime and delicate organization into a system. If any heavenly body were told to leave its axis, the universe would be thrown into the throes of death. Stars would collide, planets would be scattered, and the sound of exploding spheres would fill space. Mountains would begin to move, and Earth would be flattened. Eternal Power will bring about the next life in just this way, and the elements of Paradise and Hell will be separated from each other.”1

Regardless of how the Armageddon occurs, Nursi asserts that what has been repeatedly highlighted by the Qur’an will be realized:

“If the universe is not destroyed by an external destructive event, with the Eternal Will’s permission, it eventually will begin to die. Even scientists say this. According to the Qur’an, it will give a sharp cry, and then the following things will happen:

When the sun is folded up, and when the stars fall losing their luster; and when the mountains are set moving. (Takwir, 81:1-3)

When the sky is cleft asunder; and when the planets are dispersed, and when the oceans are poured forth. (Infitar 82:1-3)”2

Our aim here is to evaluate the incredible events miraculously foretold by the Qur’an from the cognitive perspective bestowed upon us by God through contemporary sciences and to gain broader points of view. Only God, however, can know the exact form of present and future events.

Notes

1. Nursi, Said. The Words, The Light, Inc., New Jersey: 2005, p. 546.

2. Ibid, p. 545.

The Prophet Muhammad is like the core of all the good deeds, prosperity and divine blessing. He is the unfailing, unerring guide, the exemplar to be taken as a model by all, and the one who leads to the Right Path, who establishes the best methods to serve God and mankind and thus ushers a new era to enable human beings to live humanely.

He is the means, appointed by God, to take people out of darkness to the light. Accordingly, he will be given the equal of the reward earned by the good deeds of his community. In accordance with the principle “one who causes is like the doer,”¹ the same amount of reward for the good and righteous deeds done by his people will go on being written in his book of reward till the Day of Judgment.

To the Prophet belongs the Maqam al-Mahmud, the praised position or rank assigned to him as intercessor in the Day of Judgment. His book of reward will not be closed from the time of his death. Rather, abundance of good works and pious deeds will be added to it, his rank will increase ever higher, the scope of his intercession will expand further,² and thus, as God wills, he will have a right to intercede for greater numbers, masses, of the people of his community. For this reason, we will look at this question from two different angles:

First, by uttering the formula calling God’s benediction on the Prophet, we renew our oath to the Prophet and the desire to belong among his community. That is, we say: “We remembered and thought of you as our Prophet and prayed God to increase your worth and degree, and we join and relate ourselves to you.” Since our prayer is made with the intention that God will increase the degree of esteem of the owner of the Maqam al-Mahmud, his sphere of intercession will expand and thus many more people will be able to benefit from his intercession on the Day of Judgment.

Secondly, one’s prayer to God that the Prophet’s rank be increased is a means to be taken under the protection of the Prophet and thus one’s hope of intercession is enlarged. That is why it is we, rather than the Prophet, who are in need of invoking God’s blessings and peace upon him. By doing so we acknowledge the Prophet as the Prophet, his greatness and authority, and, at the same time we acknowledge our smallness, our nothingness, our need for belonging to his community. Just as a person can regard the state of which he is a subject or citizen as potent to assist him in case of need or danger, so do we stand in need, on account of our incompetence, poverty, and the anxiety of a terrible Day of Reckoning-even now, in advance, we can feel the oncoming, shock of that Day- of the refuge and safety of the Prophet, and we seek that refuge through our invocations, inform him of our present state and give him a petition to be remembered.

May God honor us with the intercession of His Prophet, the one who has by God’s leave, the widest right of intercession on the Day of Reckoning. Reflect, too, on the good news that God allows to every Prophet something that he may pass on to his people. When the other Prophets were granted the right to ask something for their peoples, they all asked for something in this world. But the Prophet said: “I left what I would give to my people to the Hereafter, and that is my intercession.”³

Notes

1. Muslim, Imara, 133; Tirmidhi, Ilm, 14; Abu Dawud, Adab, 115.
2. Bukhari, Adhan, 8; Abu Dawud, Salat, 38.
3. Bukhari, Tafsir al-Sura, (17) 5, Tayammum, 1; Muslim, Iman, 326-327, Masajid, 3

According to Islam, the eschatological descent of Jesus is one such manifestation. Jesus, along with Adam, Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, John, and Muhammad, is considered one of the elite Prophets. Muslims believe that Jesus received a Divinely revealed book (the Injil [Gospel]), was born of a virgin, had no human father, and was sinless. He is given titles of honor, and pictured as a wandering preacher who performed miracles and spoke beautiful words. Many Sufis use his words in their prayers. The Qur’an states that Jesus’ people did not crucify him, for someone took His place on the cross. He then ascended to the heavens, after promising to send a comforter (Muhammad).

Muslims have surrounded Jesus with many pious legends. Some believe he will return and marry in the distant future. A grave site has been reserved for him. Others say he will judge the world at the end of time, help Muhammad rule, be Muhammad’s last Companion, or that he will appear at the eastern white minaret of the Damascus mosque or in Jerusalem. He will pursue the Antichrist (Dajjal) and, overtaking him at the gate of Lydda (a town near Jerusalem), will slay him.

Islamic scholars interpret some Qur’anic verses and hadith pointing to the second coming as a significant pre-Day of Judgment event.(2) The earliest Muslim scholars believed this so strongly that they attached it to the eminence of the Day of Judgment. At times, .expectations ran so high that commoners prepared a white horse and brought it to the white minaret in Damascus where they believed Jesus would reappear. Reputable texts give no credence to such details, although they have been dramatized by interpreters of lesser reputation. Jesus appears in the horizon at dawn and leads the people against the Antichrist who, helpless before such power, dissolves into nothingness.

Will this eschatological event occur? Is there any truth to this belief? How has the subject been treated in kalam (Islamic theology) literature? The starting point in seeking answers is the Qur’an.

Much of what the Qur’an teaches about Jesus is acceptable to Christians: the virgin birth, his sinlessness and ascension, and his miracles. The Qur’anic evidence for Jesus’ descent is somewhat obscure and ambigious, but later Muslim traditions took up the idea eagerly. According to them, Jesus is still alive in the heavens and will return to signal the Last Days.(3) The Qur’an, which considers Jesus a great Prophet, mentions him as ‘Isa (25 places),(4) al-Masih (Annointed One, Messiah), al-Nabi (Prophet), al-Rasul (Messenger), Min al-Muqarrabin (of those close to God), Mubarak (Sacred One), Qawl al-Haq (True Word), ‘Abd Allah (Servant of God), and in 33 places as Ibn Maryam (Son of Mary).

Before delving into this subject further, we will examine the events leading up to it. For example, his second coming necessarily implies his ascension to the heavens alive. This begs the question: Did Jesus die on the cross?

THE QUESTION OF JESUS’ DEATH

This very contentious question has engendered several schools of thought. Some claim that Roman soldiers charged into a cottage where Jesus was believed to be with twelve of his disciples. During the attack, one person disappeared. Soldiers took one of the twelve remaining men and crucified him. Others believe that when the soldiers entered the cottage, they could not identify him, as everyone had taken on his physical attributes, and so picked and crucified someone at random.(5)

While the Qur’an offers no details on this point, it clearly states that Jesus was neither killed nor crucified. Moreover, his ‘killers’ were never sure if they had killed him or not (4:157-58). We know that someone-but not who-was crucified. Jewish and Christian sources say it was Jesus, an assertion rejected outright by the Qur’an.

THE QUR’ANIC ACCOUNT

And remember when Allah said: “0 Jesus. I will take you and raise you to Myself and clear you of those who disbelieve” (3:55). In other words, Jesus was not executed. A perusal of the classical and more modern literature on this verse will clarify matters.

According to Ragheb al-Isphahani (d. 1696), mutawaffika (I will take you) here does not mean death in the sense we understand it, even though he mentions that the noted Companion Ibn ‘Abbas understood this literal meaning.(6) Al-Tabari (d. 922), a well-known Qur’anic scholar, states that mutawaffika means “to take and raise him to the heavens.” After offering several interpretations, he expresses his own preference: “In my opinion, a healthier view on the meaning of mutawaffika is ‘to take from earth and raise to the heavens.'”(7) Moreover, the verse as a whole points to Jesus’ eschatological descent and a war against the nonbelievers that ends in a great victory for the believers.

The noted Islamic theologian al-Maturidi (d. 944) mentions several views, one of which is that even though the verse first mentions Jesus’ death and then his ascension, his death is postponed until after the second coming. God says: “I will take you and raise you to myself … to the day of resurrection: Then shall you all return unto me…” However, the probable meaning of literal death cannot be dismissed.(8) Al-Maturidi does not state his own view. If, however, mentioning one view before another amounts to a personal preference, one can argue that he believes Jesus was not killed before his ascension. This uncertainty, however, does not apply to his second coming, as al-Maturidi cites several relevant hadiths and the subsequent slaying of the Antichrist.(9)

Al-Zamakhshari (d. 1143), a Mu’tazilite scholar and Arabic linguist, argues that Jesus “will die a natural death after his victory over the Antichrist, not at the hands of the nonbelievers.”(10) The famous Qur’anic interpreter Ibn ‘Atiyya (d. 1152) writes that Jesus “will die a second time after descending to the Earth and slaying the Antichrist.”(11) Based on this, he seems to accept that Jesus ascended after his death, whereas he claims that Jesus is still alive.

Abu al-Faraj al-Jawzi (d. 1200), who defines mutawaffika as “to take something completely,” writes that Jesus was raised to the heavens by God. And he does not rule out a normal death: “Jesus’ real death shall occur after his second coming.”(12) The noted Muslim theologian al-Razi (d. 1209) gives what he calls a “sensible” interpretation: “I will complete your life and then take your soul. I shall not leave you in their hands to kill you. I will raise you to My heavens and place you next to my angels. They will not have the chance to kill you, for I will protect you.(13)

Ibn Kathir (d. 1372), a prominent Qur’anic interpreter offering the same explanation, interprets mutawaffika as “sleep” and provides several supporting verses.(14) A similar explanation, that Jesus ascended and will return before the Day of Judgment, is held by many people, among them Jalal al-Din al-Suyuti, who uses the pertinent hadith literature to verify the meaning mutawaffa as “sleep.”(15)

Other respected Qur’anic scholars interpret tawaffa as “death as applied to Jesus.” However, as this death will occur after the second coming and the Antichrist’s subsequent defeat, Jesus is currently alive. Upon his second coming, Jesus will effect various social reforms and refute some established Christian beliefs.(16)

The Ottoman mystic scholar Bursevi accepts the traditional explanation and gives additional details: “When Jesus witnessed the virtuosity of the Prophet Muhammad’s community in the Preserved Tablet (al-Lawh al-Mahfuz), he asked God to count him as one of Ummah of Muhammad. God accepted this sincere supplication….”(17) The Qur’anic scholar al-Alusi (d. 1854) offers a different hypothesis: Jesus ascended alive and awake, stripped of all human needs and attributes.(18) In fact, he now lives in a world unknown to us.

Some contemporary Turkish and Egyptian scholars hold different views. Omer Riza Dogrul asserts that as Jesus could not have been killed, he must have died naturally.(19) According to the Egyptian Islamic scholar al-Qasimi, both literal and metaphorical interpretations are possible, although he appears to favor an idiomatic meaning for tawaffa.(20) The Pakistani scholar Abul Ala Maududi writes: “Mutawaffika in the Arabic text is from tawaffa, which literally means ‘to take and to receive,’ and ‘to seize the soul’ is not its lexical but rather its metaphorical meaning. Here it means ‘to recall from mission.'”(21) He castigates those who adopt the literal meaning (death) for tawaffa, accusing them of saying God cannot express Himself clearly.

Kawthari, who lived during the last phase of the Ottoman Empire, also emphasizes a metaphorical meaning based on historical analysis of the word’s meaning and more Qur’anic examples. During the Qur’an’s revelation, its audience would not necessarily have understood this word to mean “death,” for then the Qur’anic usage of mawt elsewhere would lose its significance as “death.” The Qur’an contains several words whose true meanings would be distorted if their contemporary meanings were ascribed to them. For example, today risalah means “letter,” while its original Qur’anic meaning is “Prophethood.”(22)

The Egyptian reformers Muhammad ‘Abduh and Rashid Rida accept the lexical meaning of “death.” Rida says Jesus literally died and his soul ascended. In conversation, it is not unusual to signify “soul” when a person’s name is mentioned, for the soul is the individual’s essence. Therefore when the Qur’an talks about Jesus in this verse, it means his soul.(23)

Mahmood Shaltut, a more contemporary Egyptian scholar, is certain of Jesus’ literal death. He cites two verses that mention Jesus’ forthcoming death and report his death (4:157 and 3:5, respectively). Several contemporary interpreters posit an energy-matter relationship, but provide no supporting evidence. According to them, Jesus had such a strong spiritual stature that his physical body became energy (spirit) and ascended to the heavens, similar to Muhammad’s Ascension. Mutawaffika naturally would refer to his death as tawaffa, “to call in a loan at the end of its term,” and is commonly used in that sense. But the verb also is used for nightly slumber. Therefore we cannot be certain that actual death is implied here.

QUR’ANIC VERSES and CRUCIFIXION

And because of their saying: We killed the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah,’ but they hilled him not nor crucified him, but the resemblance of Jesus was put over another man, and those who differ therein are full of doubts. They have no knowledge, they follow nothing but conjecture. For surely; they killed him not. But Allah raised him up unto himself And Allah is ever AU-Powerful, All-Wise (4:157-58).

These verses have been interpreted in two ways: Jesus did not die but ascended, or he really died. Early Qur’anic scholars offered various interpretations. The scholar Mujahid ibn Jabr (d.0722) claimed “they crucified someone other than Jesus, whom they mistook for Jesus,” and “Jesus ascended to the heavens alive.”24 According to Ibn Hazm (d. 1064), a famous Muslim theologian, Jesus did not die and is alive in the heavens, as the above verses clearly indicate.25 Once again, these verses remind us that Jesus has not died, will return before the Day of Judgment, and eventually will die a natural death. In fact, Jesus is known to have said: So peace is upon me the day I was born, the day that I die… (19 which shows that he is still alive. It mus remembered, however, that since he said this while still in his cradle, this verse does not prove that he is still alive.

The Qur’an tells us that faith always triumphs over evil. If Jesus’ enemies crucified him, evil would be triumphant, It also states clearly that God defends the faithful (22:38). Therefore, Jesus could not have been crucified.26

Arguments against Jesus’ crucifixion are considerably more convincing than those favoring it. But both groups have asked: If he is not dead, why is his second coming delayed until soon before Day of Judgment? Those v ‘ say he has died already dt^-y the second coming.

Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, the best-known Turkish interpreter of the Qur’an, concurs with the majority view, basing himself on the hadith: “Jesus has not died and will reappear shortly before the Day of Judgment.”‘7 Most Muslims believe that as Jesus has not yet completed his appointed task, he this verse, it means his soul.23

Mahmood Shaltut, a more contemporary Egyptian scholar, is certain of Jesus’ literal death. He cites two verses that mention Jesus’ forthcoming death and report his death (4:157 and 3:5, respectively). Several contemporary interpreters posit an energy-matter relationship, but provide no supporting evidence. According to them, Jesus had such a strong spiritual stature that his physical body became energy [spirit) and ascended to the heavens, similar to Muhammad’s Ascension. Mutawaffika naturally would refer to his death as tawaffa, “to call in a loan at the end of its term,” and is commonly used in that sense. But the verb also is used for nightly slumber. Therefore we cannot be certain that actual death is implied here.

QUR’ANIC VERSES AND CRUCIFIXION

And because of their saying: ‘We killed the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah,’ but they killed him not nor crucified him, but the resemblance of Jesus was put over another man, and those who differ therein are full of doubts. They have no knowledge, they follow nothing but conjecture. For surely; they killed him not. But Allah raised him up unto himself. And Allah is ever All-Powerful, All-Wise (4:157-58).

These verses have been interpreted in two ways; Jesus did not die but ascended, or he really died. Early Qur’anic scholars offered various interpretations. The scholar Mujahid ibn Jabr (d.722) claimed “they crucified someone other than Jesus, whom they mistook for Jesus,” and “Jesus ascended to the heavens alive.”(24) According to Ibn Hazm (d. 1064), a famous Muslim theologian, Jesus did not die and is alive in the heavens, as the above verses clearly indicate.(25) Once again, these verses remind us that Jesus has not died, will return before the Day of Judgment, and eventually will die a natural death. In fact, Jesus is known to have said: So peace is upon me the day I was born, the day that I die… (19:33), which shows that he is still alive. It must be remembered, however, that since he said this while still in his cradle, this verse does not prove that he is still alive.

The Qur’an tells us that faith always triumphs over evil. If Jesus’ enemies crucified him, evil would be triumphant. It also states clearly that God defends the faithful (22:38). Therefore, Jesus could not have been crucified.(26)

Arguments against Jesus’ crucifixion are considerably more convincing than those favoring it. But both groups have asked: If he is not dead, why is his second coming delayed until soon before the Day of Judgment? Those who say he has died already deny the second coming.

Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, the best-known Turkish interpreter of the Qur’an, concurs with the majority view, basing himself on the hadith: “Jesus has not died and will reappear shortly before the Day of Judgment.”(27) Most Muslims believe that as Jesus has not yet completed his appointed task, he will return to complete it and then die.(28) Relying on: Every soul shall taste death (3:185) and We granted not to any man before the permanent life (21:34), Ismail Fenni Ertugrul, a contemporary Turkish scholar, accuses Elmalili of hiding his real opinion. According to him, the above verses clearly presuppose Jesus’ death.(29) But such criticism is groundless; Elmalili does not contradict these verses, as all Islamic scholars agree that Jesus eventually will die and be resurrected.

Bediuzzaman Said Nursi (d. 1960), the most influential twentieth-century Muslim scholar, has defined five distinct levels of life, and places Jesus in the third level (along with the angels). The first level, that of humanity, is very restricted. The second level, that of Khidi and Ilyas (Elias), is free to some extent and allows its inhabitants to be present in numerous places at once. The third level is that of Idris (Enoch) and Jesus who, removed from human requirements, enter an angelic life and acquire a luminous fineness. Quite simply, they are in the heavens with their earthly bodies. In this life, Jesus is more like an angel than a man. The fourth level is for martyrs, and the fifth level is for the spirits of the dead in their graves.(30)

QURANIC VERSES INFERRING THE ESCHATOLOGICAL DESCENT OF JESUS

Whether the Qur’an addresses Jesus’ second coming has been a matter of contention.

Three Qur’anic verses have been advanced as evidence. The first refers to what Jesus said. Some classical interpreters, with the exception of the Mu’tazilite al-Zamakhshari, based themselves on hadith literature and inferred the second coming from: He shall speak to the people in childhood and in maturity… (3:45). According to them, the verb’s future tense implies the unfinished nature of Jesus’ mission. So, he will have to speak to people after his second coming.(31) Some contemporary scholars agree, notably al-Ghumari, who says that this verse refers to an extraordinary event, as he spoke while still in his crib. Before his ascension, Jesus preached among his kinsmen. However, the verse contains the word al-nas, indicating that he will speak to humanity. This necessitates his second coming. (32)

What is actually emphasized here, and in 19:29-31, is the miracle of Jesus speaking when still an infant. The verse also suggests that Jesus will speak to people. Of course he spoke to people as an adult before his ascension. So we cannot infer from the verse’s context that such an event will occur after his second coming. Those who assert this offer no concrete supporting evidence. The verse’s implied meaning of the second coming, I believe, appears at best to be forced, probably to provide additional support for hadith dealing with the subject.

The second relevant verse is: And there is none of the People of the Book but must believe in Him before his death (4:159). Again, their argument is weak. Al-Zamakhshari assigns the pronoun bihi (in him) to Jesus, and infers the second coming in the verse’s context. Al-Suyuti and al-Qari (d. 1605) infer a similar meaning.(33) According to al-Baydawi, if both bihi and mawtihi refer to Jesus, his death can be considered real only after his second coming.(34) ‘Abd al-Hamid, an al-Azhar scholar, puts forward this verse to those who claim that the Qur’an does not mention clearly or even hint about the second coming.(35) The best interpreters of the verse are the Prophet’s Companions. Al-Ghumari points out that Ibn ‘Abbas and Abu Hurayra, two Companions with an outstanding command of Arabic grammar and knowledge of the Qur’anic mission, interpreted it in a way that infers the descent of Jesus.(36) The Prophet’s grandson Hasan agrees with this interpretation.(37) Therefore the majority of Muslim scholars believe that Jesus will return.

The verse: And he (Jesus) shall be a sign of the Judgment Day… (43:61), according to various classical and contemporary Qur’anic scholars, refers to his eschatological descent.(38) In this verse, la ‘ilmun can be recited in three variations: la ‘ilmun, refers to knowledge of the Day of Judgment; la ‘alamun, points to a sign of the Day of Judgment; and la dhikr, as a warning of the Day of Judgment.(39) Al-Azhar’s official fatwa on the second coming offers this verse as evidence.(40) There will be a second coming, because it has been foretold to be a sign of the Hour of Resurrection. Moreover, such Western scholars as Parrinder, also point to this verse as evidence when speaking of the second coming.(41)

Shaltut does not accept the second and third verses as indisputable evidence, but rather prefers al-Tabari’s interpretation that Jesus’ virgin birth is itself a sign of the Hour of Judgment.(42) This verse addresses those who deny the Hereafter. This miraculous birth is offered to provide evidence of the Hereafter to unbelievers. According to al-Kawthari, who diametrically opposes Shaltut, pertinent Qur’anic verses and traditions necessitate a belief in the second coming. He does not respond directly to Shaltut’s views; rather, he accepts the majority view by faith without insisting on concrete evidence. The contemporary scholar Ibn ‘Ashur, who also opposes the majority view, fails to offer any convincing supporting evidence.(43)

In the context, the pronoun hu naturally refers to Jesus, meaning that Jesus is a sign of the coming of the Hour. Then the return of Jesus is, of course, one of the signs of the only Qur’anic passage supporting this view. But others say this pronoun refers to the Qur’an, or to Muhammad. In my opinion, these two latter interpretations are not credible, for these verses are generally about Jesus. Therefore the meaning would be “Jesus is the sign of the Day of Judgment.” As the exact aspect of Jesus that supposedly is a sign of the Day of Judgment is not mentioned, many interpretations are possible.

For example, some scholars imply that Jesus’ virgin birth is a sign: God is showing us His power. Therefore, the All-Powerful God Who created Jesus without a father can create the Hereafter and the Day of Judgment. The verse compares Jesus’ creation with, that of Adam, presenting both as evidence of God’s infinite power. When God mentions Jesus as a sign of the Hour, the first meaning that logically comes to mind is his miraculous birth. According to others, the verse indicates the second coming because there is a close relation between Jesus and the Hour. Therefore, as Jesus is mentioned as a sign of the Hour, his descent must be meant.

The fourth verse cited as evidence is: And ice be upon me the day I was born and the day 1die and the day I shall be raised alive (19:33). The resurrection mentioned here signifies his second coming, according to those who claim it proves this event. They base this on the fact that the same verse also mentions his future death. In other words, Jesus did not die on the cross.(44)

Another indirect proof is: He (Muhammad) does not speak of his own desire. It is only an inspiration that is inspired (53:3-4). This verse literally explains that whatever Prophet Muhammad says is an inspiration from God. It is narrated, with a strong chain of transmitters, that the Prophet was talking to his Companions about the second coming. Therefore this verse is a proof that Prophet Muhammad was inspired about the second coming.(45)

Unlike most interpreters, Shaltut opines that all such proofs violate the verses’ literal meaning, and that interpreters devised such meanings to avoid conflict with some second-coming traditions narrated by such famous Companions as Abu Hurayra. Therefore, he believes that the Qur’an and the Sunnah provide no trustworthy evidence for this event. The Syrian scholar al-Buty claims that Shaltut changed his view, adopted the majority view during his last illness, and then buried all documents connected with his old views.(46)

But why did Shaltut deny the second coming despite all the proofs mentioned above? It seems to me that he viewed the majority interpretation as unreasonable and against general Islamic principles. He thinks that a person cannot come from heaven, and therefore denies such statements. They based their evidence on God’s power, saying: He is able to do all things (67:1) and therefore He can bring Jesus. They think of bodily descent. Is the descent of Jesus from heaven to be considered materially? 

In semantic terms, nuzul (descending) does not necessitate a material descent, for other verses treat this descent as a manifestation of God’s bounty. For example: He sent down for you eight pairs of cattle (39:6}.(47) We cannot say that the animals descended from the heavens, but we can say that they descended to us from God’s Mercy. Moreover, in some hadiths nuzul is used in relation to God: “God descends every night to the first heaven, the heaven of the world…”(48) Of course it is not a physical descend. Therefore, in this sense, the descend of Jesus in his second coming can be spiritual, meaning that God will send him from His Mercy to be a mercy to humanity.

There is another, more spiritual approach: His descent means that Christian spiritual leaders will purify Christianity and return it to the original religion of Jesus. Meanwhile, they do not deny the possibility of Jesus’ physical descent. Because of his strong spirituality, Jesus can come and go and appear in different human forms. But the focal point, according to this opinion, is his spiritual domination of the Earth in alliance with Islam. The true religion, seen in the togetherness of Islam and Christianity, will defeat materialism, communism, and atheism. This view is shared by the prominent Turkish scholar Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, the Indian scholar Siddik Hasan Khan, and partly by ‘Abduh. Therefore, the second coming can be a strong means for Muslim-Christians dialogue.

To clarify this matter, we cite Qur’an 30:1-5, which discusses the Muslims’ hope that the Roman Christians would defeat the pagan Persians. The Qur’an clearly mentions that Muslims shall rejoice over that victory. If we apply this historical event to today’s life, what can we say? In general, when one asks a Muslim about a possible war, for example, between the United States and China, Muslims must support the former, for it believes in God and religious values, and China does not. In fact, as far as I know, many Muslims are very upset over China’s persecution of its Muslims and Christians. Since Prophet Muhammad stated in many traditions that some Qur’anic verses hint of Jesus’ second coming, the concept of Muslim-Christian dialogue is readily understandable. To sum up, the huge restoration of the Last Days will witness true Christianity (the spirit of Jesus) working hand in hand with true Islam (the spirit of Muhammad) for the benefit of humanity. 

* Zeki Saritoprak is an Associate Faculty Member of the Department of Semitics at The Catholic University of America, and a Research Associate at Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding of Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. The author wishes to thank Seyyid Hussein Nasr, Sidney Griffith, Theresa Ann-Druart, and Monica Blanchard.

FOOTNOTES

1. See ‘Abd al-Baqi, Muhammad Fuad, Al-Mu’jam al-Mufahras li Alfazi’l-Qur’an al-Karim, (Istanbul: 1982), 370-1, 581-2, 775-80.
2. Abu ‘Abd Allah al-Husayn b. Hasan al-Halimi, Al-Minhaj fi Shu’ab al-Iman, (Cairo: 1979), 1:142; Muhammad b. Ahmad b. Abi Sahi al-Sarakhsi, Sifatu Ashrat al-Sa’ah (Paris: Bibliotheque Nationale, n.d.), nr. 1800; ed. by Zeki Saritoprak, (Cairo: 1993), 35; Abu al-‘Abbas Ahmad b. Hajar al-Haythami, Al-Qawl al-Mukhtasar fi al-Mahdi al-Muntazar, ed. by Muhammad Zaynuhum-Muhammad ‘Azab (Cairo: 1986), 84; Abu al-Tayyib Muhammad Ashraf b. Amir b. ‘Ali al-Azemabadi, ‘Anmu’l-Ma’bud Sharhu Sunani Abi Dawud (Madina: 1989), 11:424-5; ‘Ali al-Maliki al-Manshalili, Risale fi ‘Ashrati’s-Sa’ah wa Ahvali Yawmi’l-Qiyama, nis. (Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya, nr. B-19690) fol. la-3b; Ahmad ibn al-Faqih al-Shafi’i, ‘Ashratu’s-Sa’ah, ms. (Cairo: Dar al-Kutub al-Misriyya, Tasawwuf, nr. 2191), fol. 3a-6b; ‘Ali b. Sultan al-Harawi al-Qari, Sharh al-Fiqhi’l-Akbar (Cairo: 1323 CE), 112; Al-Mashrab al-Wardifi Haqiqati’l-Mahdi, ms. (Istanbul: Koprulu, nr. 1509), fol. 200a-200b; Kamal al-Din Ahmad al-Bayadi, Isharat al-Maram min ‘Ibarati al-Imam, ed. by. Yusuf Abd al-Razzak (Cairo: 1949), 67; Kamal al-Din al-Tai, Risale fi al-Tawhid wa al-Firaq al-Mu’asira (Beirut: n.d), 106; Muhammad Anwar Shah al-Hindi al-Kash-miri, Al-Tasrih bima Tawatara fi Nuzul al-Masih, ed. by Abd al-Fattah ‘Abu Ghudda (Aleppo: 1965), 9-11.
3. See F. E. Peters, Allah’s Commomwealth: A Histoiy of Islam in the Near East (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1973), 51.
4. ‘Abd al-Baqi, Al-Mu’jam, 494-5.
5. See Muhammad b. Umar Fakhr al-Din al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb (Beirut: n.d), 11:100.
6. Ragheb al-Isfahani, Al-Mufradat fi Alfaz al-Qur’an (Istanbul: 1986), 830.
7. Abu Ja’far Muhammad b. Jarir al-Tabari, Jami’ al-Bayan an Ta’wili al-Qur’an (Beirut, 1984); ed. by Muhammad Mahmud Shakir (Cairo: n.d) 3:290-1.
8. Abu Mansur Muhammad b. Muhammad b. Mahmud al-Maturidi, Ta’wilat al-Qur’an, ms. Haci Selim Aga (Istanbul: n.d.) nr. 40 fol. 80 a-80b.
9. Ibid., fol. 239 a.
10. Abu al-Qasim Jarullah Mahmud ibn ‘Umar al-Zamakhshari, Al-Kashshaf ‘an Haqaiqi al-Tanzil wa Uyuni’l-Aqawil fi Wujuh al-Ta’wil, (Beirut: n.d.), 1:432-3.
11. Abu Muhammad ‘Abd al-Khaliq b. Ghalib b. ‘Atiyya al-Andalusi Ibn ‘Atiyya, Al-Muharrar al-Wajiz fi Tafsir al-Kitab al-‘Aziz, (Fez: 1977), 3:105,13:255.
12. ‘Abd al-Rahman b ‘Ali ibn Muhammad Ibn al-Jawzi, Zad al-Mathir fi ‘Ilm al-Tafsir (Beirut: 1964), 1:396-7.
13. Al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 2:100, 8:67.
14. ‘Imad al-Din Abu al-Fida ‘Ismail b. Umar Ibn Kathir, Tafsir al-Qur’an al-Azim(Beirut: 1969),1:575.
15. Jalal al-Din ‘Abdarrahman al-Suyuti, Al-Durr al-Manthur fi al-Tafsir bi al-Ma’thur (Beirut: n.d.), 2:225-7.
16. Abu Hayyan Muhammad b.Yusuf al-Andalusi, Tafsir al-Bahr al-Muhit (Beirut: 1983), 2:473.
17. ‘Isma’il Haqqi Bursawi, Ruh al-Bayan (Istanbul: 1389), 2:41.
18. Abu al-Fadl Shihab al-Din Sayyid Mahmud al-Alusi, Ruh al-Ma’ani fi Tafsir al-Qur’an al- ‘Azim wa Sab’i al-Mathani, (Beirut: n.d.), 3:179.
19. Omar Riza Dogrul, Tanri Buyrugu (Istanbul: 1980), 97.
20. Muhammad Jalal al-Din al-Qasimi, Mahasin al-Ta’wil, ed. by M. Fuad ‘Abd al-Baqi (Beirut: 1978), 4:107.
21. S. Abul A’la Maududi, The Meaning of the Qur’an (Lahore: Islamic Publications, 1985), 2:34.
22. Muhammad Zahid al-Kawthari, Nazra ‘Abire fi Maza’imi man Yunkir Nuzula ‘Isa qabla al-Akhira (Cairo: 1987), 99-100.
23. Rashid Rida, Tafsir al-Manar (Cairo: 1954), 3:169.
24. Ibn Jabr Abu al-Hajjaj Mujahid, Tafsiru Mujahid, ed. by ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Tahir (Qatar: 1976), 180-1.
25. Abu Muhammad ‘Ali b. Ahmad al-Zahiri Ibn Hazm, ‘Ilm al-Kalam ‘ala Mazhabi Ahli al-Sunna wa al-Jama’ah, ed. by Ahmad Hijazi al-Saqa (Cairo: 1989), 56-7.
26. See George Anawati, “Isa”, Encyclopedia of Islam, 2d ed. (Leiden: 1978), 4:84.
27. See Al-Bukhari, “Mazalim,” 31; “Buyu’,” 102; Muslim, “Iman,” 242; Ibn Maja, “Fitan,” 33.
28. Elmalili Hamdi Yazir, Hak Dini Kur’an Dili (Istanbul: 1992), 2:372-3.
29. Ismail Fenni Ertugrul, Hakikat Nurlari (Istanbul: 1949), 221-4.
30. Bediuzzaman Said Nursi, The Letters, trans. by Þukran Vahide (Istanbul: Sozler, 1994), 22.
31. Al-Tabari, Jami’ al-Bayan, 6:420; Abu ‘Abd Allah Muhammad b. Ahmad al-Qurtubi, Al-Jami’ li Ahkam al-Qur’an, (Beirut: 1967), 6:11; Abu Sa’id ‘Abd Allah b. ‘Umar al-Baydawi, Anwar al-Tanzil (Cairo: n.d.), 2:19; Al-Alusi, Ruh al-Ma’ani, 6:13.
32. ‘Abd Allah b. Siddik al-Ghumari, Iqama al-Burhan ‘ala Nuzuli ‘Isa fi Akhir al-Zaman (Cairo:1974), 97.
33. Al-Suyuti, Al-Durr al-Manthur, 2:241-2; ‘Ali b. Sultan al-Harawi al-Qari, Mirqat al-Mafatih (Cairo: 1309), 5:221.
34. Al-Baydawi, Anwar al-Tanzil, 1:240.
35. Muhyi al-Din ‘Abd al-Hamid, “Bab al-Fatwa,” Majalla al-Azhar, vol. 48 (1972), 4:552.
36. Al-Ghumari, Iqama al-Burhan, 100-1.
37. Ibn ‘Atiyya, al-Muharrar, 4:305-6.
38. ‘Abd Allah Ibn Mas’ud, Tafsiru Ibn Mas’ud, ed. by Muhammad Ahmad Isawi (Riyadh: 1985), 560; Abu ‘Abd Allah Sufyan b. Masruq al-Thawri, Tafsir (Beirut: 1983), 273; Al-Tabari, Jami’ al-Bayan, 25:90-1; Al-Razi, Mafatih al-Ghayb, 27:222; Al-Sayyid Muhammad Siddiq al-Qanuji Khan, Fath al-Bayan fi Maqasid al-Qur’an (Cairo: 1965) 8:428.
39. See Anawati, “Isa”, EI2, 4:84.
40. Mustafa al-Tair, “Nuzul al-Masih min ‘Alamat al-Sa’ah, ” Majalla al-Azhar, vol. 47 (1971), 6:515.
41. Geoffrey Parrinder, Jesus in the Qur’an (London: 1967), 124.
42. Shaltut, al-Fatawa, 74-5.
43. Muhammad Tahir Ibn Ashur, Tafsir al-Tahrir wa al-Tanwir (Tunisia: 1984), 25:243.
44. See Parrender, 122; Anawati, “Isa” EI2, 4:84.
45. Ibrahim al-Tuwijary, “Iqama al-Burhan,” Majalla al-Buhuth al-Islamiyya, vol. 13 (1985), 104-5.
46. Sa’id Ramadan al-Buty, Kubra al-Yaqiniyyat, (Beirut: 1994), 352.
47. Cf. sending down iron (57:25) and clothing ( 7:26).
48. Al-Bukhari, “Da’awat,” 14; “Tawhid,” 35.