robert spencer-did muhammad exist__ an inquiry into islams obscure origins-intercollegiate studies institute (2012) (1)
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The problem with the third option is the logical difficulty embedded within the story: Anyone who<br />
reflects on this account for <strong>an</strong>y time at all will realize that Abdullah had no way of knowing whether<br />
Muhammad's <strong>an</strong>swers were correct. Nor does the reader, which makes the first option problematic. These<br />
considerations make the second option more likely: Muhammad knew Abdullah had presented him with a<br />
game that he could not lose, <strong>an</strong>d he exploited the opportunity.<br />
But if Muhammad was <strong>an</strong> invented character, why fabricate a story that enemies could use to portray<br />
him—<strong>an</strong>d the nascent Islamic community—in a less th<strong>an</strong> flattering light?<br />
Of course, the most likely expl<strong>an</strong>ation here is that this story was constructed by people who took for<br />
gr<strong>an</strong>ted that Muhammad was a prophet <strong>an</strong>d <strong>did</strong> not consider that some readers might take the account as<br />
evidence he was a con artist. Supporting this expl<strong>an</strong>ation is the fact that establishing Muhammad's<br />
prophetic status is not the primary point of the story; the account of Abdullah bin Salam <strong>an</strong>d Muhammad<br />
ultimately focuses on demonizing the Jews, whom Abdullah helps Muhammad catch in a lie after he<br />
converts to Islam.<br />
But other aspects of the c<strong>an</strong>onical Islamic account of Muhammad clearly <strong>did</strong> embarrass those who<br />
regarded him as a prophet. Some of the earliest Islamic material on Muhammad contains attempts to<br />
explain away certain actions of the prophet. One of the most notable examples is the episode in which<br />
Muhammad married his former daughter-in-law.<br />
The Comely Zaynab <strong>an</strong>d the Historicity of Muhammad<br />
On several occasions Allah seemed <strong>an</strong>xious to gr<strong>an</strong>t his prophet his heart's desires—as in the notorious<br />
story of one of Muhammad's wives, Zaynab bint Jahsh. Noted for her striking beauty, Zaynab was<br />
originally married to Muhammad's adopted son, Zayd bin Muhammad (formerly known as Zayd bin<br />
Haritha), who was so close to the prophet that he was known as the Beloved of the Messenger of Allah.<br />
Zayd has the distinction of being the only contemporary of Muhammad, or purported contemporary, to be<br />
mentioned by name in the Qur'<strong>an</strong>.<br />
One day Muhammad ch<strong>an</strong>ced to visit Zayd's home while his adopted son was away, <strong>an</strong>d Zaynab<br />
<strong>an</strong>swered the door in a state of semi-undress. “He looked at her,” says the Tafsir al-Jalalayn, a respected<br />
commentary on the Qur'<strong>an</strong>, “<strong>an</strong>d felt love for her whereas Zayd disliked her.” 2 Zayd offered to divorce her<br />
so that Muhammad could marry her; Muhammad's response is recorded in <strong>an</strong> elliptical passage in the<br />
Qur'<strong>an</strong>: “Keep thy wife to thyself, <strong>an</strong>d fear God” (33:37).<br />
One would think that being overcome with desire for one's daughter-in-law would bring a blush to the<br />
cheeks of the most ardent proponent of free love, but the part of the story that embarrassed Muhammad, at<br />
least according to Islamic tradition, was not that at all. Rather, it was the fact that he told Zayd to keep his<br />
wife. Of this, one of his other wives, Aisha, later remarked: “If Allah's Apostle were to conceal <strong>an</strong>ything<br />
(of the Qur'<strong>an</strong>) he would have concealed this verse.” 3<br />
Why would Muhammad be embarrassed by this point? Because Allah w<strong>an</strong>ted Muhammad to marry