A comprehensive refutation of the accusation of paedophilia levelled at the Prophet

Muhammad ( peace be upon him) By Yahya Snow

Of course Mohammad (pbuh) has been criticised ever since he began preaching the
message of Islam, this criticism began with his non-Muslim contemporaries in 7th
century Arabia and extends to the modern day. The early criticism stemmed from
Pagan Arabs who opposed the message that Muhammad (pbuh) preached this
criticism follows a ubiquitous trait through the dark ages, middle ages, industrial
revolution and all the way to modern times as well as post-modern times. The
common trait being the origination of the critique of Mohammad (pbuh) was
enveloped in a bias born out of the authors of the critique coming from an opposing
religious stance and in many cases coming from an opposing evangelical background.
Thus throwing the critique into the arena of prejudice, therefore, from an objective
stance this criticism is tinged with a bias and in the case of that which flows from the
evangelical side we must say it is far from neutral.

Of course both the early non-Muslim Arabs and the evangelical Christians of the past
and modern times have pursued a policy of open defamation of the Prophet (pbuh)
and indeed they still are doing this through websites and books dedicated to attacking
Islam. The same dedication to attack other religions by the evangelical Christians
does not exist. This observation is supported by the following quote from the
orientalist W. Montgomery Watt ’ of the world’s great men none has been so much
maligned as Mohammad’. This could well be due to the copious number of converts
to Islam from Christianity in the modern Western world today. If this is the case then
we must realise that their focus on Islam is coming from an ideological and
theological battlefield. This, indeed, is my belief and the adage ‘ the first casualty of
war is the truth’ comes to mind as their charges against Mohammad are bathed in
falsehoods and deceptive quoting motivated by none other than attempting to
discredit Islam.

Before delving into refuting the charge of paedophilia against the Mohammad (pbuh)
lets look at a brief overview of the insults and charges thrown in the direction of
Mohammad (pbuh)

In the Middle Ages Mohammad (pbuh) was referred to via the derogatory term
Maometics (the number of the beast, 666),
Martin Luther described him as "a devil and first-born child of Satan" (1) Christian
pastor Jerry Vines called him a "demon-possessed paedophile". (2)

That said lets move onto dissecting their claim of paedophilia. Of course their claim is
based on Lady Aisha’s early marriage to Mohammad (pbuh). From my experiences in
discussing this issue with those who advocate the claims I notice as a matter of fact
that their objection to the marriage in question is fractured into a few claims:

1. The primary charge they bring is that of outright paedophilia, i.e. ‘sex with a pre-
pubescent girl’

2. Having shown the individual that Aisha had reached puberty

(i.e. claim 1 is false) their claim changes to ‘paedophilia with a young girl’
3. Finally after showing claim 2 as being unfair and lacking basis they claim that the
age difference between Lady Aisha and Mohammad (pbuh) is far too vast and claim it
to be repulsive

The primary charge they bring is that of outright paedophilia, i.e. ‘sex with a pre-
pubescent girl’

Dealing with the first claim that Lady Aisha was ‘pre-pubescent’ when she
consummated her marriage with Mohammed (pbuh). Their argument comes from the
4 narrations (hadiths) in Al-Bukhari and 3 hadiths in Al-Muslim stating her age to
being 9 when the marriage was consummated. It must be stated that the age is
disputed, reports regarding the age vary from 9 to age 20. The argument regarding
whether the age was 9 or not shall be discussed later on in this article. It is imperative
that we maintain a methodical approach in dealing with the accusations.
This claim of ’pre-pubescence’ is not that common as it is widely accepted by most of
the accusers of Muhammad (pbuh) that she had reached puberty at the time of
consummation, to be fair the minority who do claim ‘pre-pubescence’ are the
extremely ignorant and hateful ones amongst the accusers. So the vast majority of
them, to their credit, are honest enough to admit or concede that she had reached
puberty before any sexual contact. Having said that, the claim must still be refuted.

First off, let us be clear, Lady Aisha had reached puberty. Obviously if that was not
the case then the Pagan Arabs who vehemently opposed Muhammad (pbuh) would
have brought this complaint up, no records of any such claims exist. Islamic law
does not allow sex with a pre-pubescent girl, therefore, as Islamic Law is based on the
Quran and the teachings of Muhammad, it is known through this fact that Aisha had
reached puberty. Aisha saw this union as an honour and looked back at the marriage
and her great life with Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) with great fondness and joy (3)this
obviously shows that she was in full agreement with the marriage. We must also state
that the parents of Lady Aisha were in full agreement of the marriage to take place
and most crucially in this regard they were in full agreement for consummation to
take place at the time it did, obviously no parent would send their daughter for
consummation in a pre-pubescent stage in her life. Colin Turner (4) highlights the fact
that 7th century Arabian girls reached adulthood at an earlier age. The Cambridge
World History of Food (5) agrees with Turner and states girls in the southerly regions
of Asia where the climate is warmer were marriageable in their eighth year and gave
birth in their ninth or tenth year.

The period of 3 years between the engagement and consummation was clearly for
Lady Aisha to reach maturity, both physically and mentally. Both physical and mental
maturation must be reached if a marriage is to be consummated, this is Islamic law
which is based upon the teachings of Muhammad (pbuh) and the Quran, this shows
that Aisha would have been physically mature as well as mentally mature for
consummation, i.e. she would have attained puberty. Lady Aisha even confirmed
having reached puberty (6) but many people are unaware of this as the claim they
make of ‘pre-pubescence‘ is not a common claim hence the proof to show their claims
to be false is not widely publicised. Karen Armstrong also confirms that Lady Aisha
had reached puberty at the time of consummation in her ‘Muhammad: A Biography
of the Prophet’ (7), this ’reaching of puberty’ is confirmed by great scholars such as
Dawudi, Abu Hanifa etc (8) These are facts that Christian missionaries tend to
ignore to further their agenda of maligning the character of Mohammad (pbuh), this
practice of the Christians is dishonest and intended to deceive. Lady Aisha was
betrothed to Mohammad at the age of 6 and then the marriage consummated at 9
according to the hadith mentioned earlier. The betrothal at an early age (6 years old)
was in concordance with the custom at the time, this is proven by the fact that Lady
Aisha was previously engaged for marriage to a man named Jubair ibn Mut`am (9).
We must also state that the parents of Lady Aisha were in full agreement of the
marriage to take place and most crucially in this regard they were in full agreement
for consummation to take place at the time it did, obviously no parent would send
their daughter for consummation in a pre-pubescent stage in her life. We must also
remember that the marriage was not the idea of Muhammad (pbuh) but was
suggested to Mohammad by Khawalh bint Hakim (10). Also, the consummation of
the marriage was suggested to Mohammad (pbuh) by Lady Aisha’s father, this is
further proof that she had reached puberty but also shows that there was no sexual
motive within the blessed heart of Mohammad (pbuh) as neither the idea of marriage
or consummation were initiated by him.(11) As a side note which is important, the
Islamophobe brings a new element to his claim of ‘pre-pubescence’ and brings forth
Hadith that state that Aisha played with dolls and the Islamophobe infers from this
that Aisha was below the age of puberty. This is an unscholarly conflation of events as
the traditions that tell us that Aisha played with dolls do not specify when she played
with the dolls therefore it would be inaccurate to state that she played with dolls after
or at the time of the consummation of the marriage. The dishonest Islamophobe tries
to paint the picture of a girl playing with dolls and being forced into sex. This is not
the case historically. The traditions of Aisha playing with dolls do not mention what
age she was when she played with the dolls, therefore to make the Islamophobe’s
judgement would be unscholarly and deceptive. The Islamophobe also uses a tradition
that teaches us that Lady Aisha, when moving into live with Muhammad (pbuh), had
took her dolls with her to her new home. People in the West (including myself) can
relate to this as many girls on leaving their parents homes (whether to university
accommodation or to live with their partner) take items of emotional value, dolls and
teddy bears (from their childhood) are amongst these items. So, Aisha, was no
different in this regard. There is no tradition stating that she was playing with the dolls
at the time of consummation nor after this time. It would be extremely unfair and even
deceptive to make that claims of the Islamophobe as there is NO evidence to support
their claim that Aisha was playing with dolls at the time of consummation. All we
know is that she was married at the age of six, she had a waiting period of three years
in order to attain maturity and then she consummated the marriage after puberty; these
are the facts, to imply otherwise would be conjecture. I will also append an online
article that deals with this subject to further your understanding (see reference number
22)

The reason I include these points is to pour further cold water on

their already defeated ‘arguments’.

So to summarise the key points proving puberty:

~ Enemies of Islam at the time saw nothing wrong with the
marriage which proves puberty had been reached at the time of
consummation
~ The parents of Lady Aisha deemed her to be ready for
consummation, i.e. she had reached puberty
~ Karen Armstrong confirms puberty
~ Lady Aisha confirms her attaining puberty at the time of
consummation
~ Well respected Islamic Scholars of the past have confirmed that
puberty had been reached and agree NO sexual contact can be had
with any pre-pubescent girl
~ The period of three years between marriage and consummation
was for Lady Aisha to attain physical maturity
~ Girls of that region and time married earlier and reached maturity
earlier too
~ Islamic law does not allow sex with anybody who is prepubescent,
as Islamic law is based upon the words and actions of Prophet
Mohammad (pbuh) as well as the Quran we realise that
consummation took place after sexual maturity otherwise Islamic
law would have allowed sex with prepubescent girls.

Now that the claim of ‘sex with a pre-pubescent girl’ has been refuted the accuser
goes on to change their accusation to ‘paedophilia involving a young girl’

2. Having shown the individual that Aisha had reached puberty

(i.e. claim 1 is false) their claim changes to ‘paedophilia with a girl who is younger
than a modern day age of consent (usually the age of 16)

Interestingly enough, here the Christian missionary displays his/her own lack of
knowledge of the Bible as the Bible gives its own age of consent/marriage as being
puberty! The reference is Ezekiel 16:4-14 (12),therefore the Christian age of consent
is between 8-13 years old (general age-range of puberty around the world), the word
“hypocrisy” springs to mind when Christians attack Mohammad (pbuh) for using
puberty as a minimum standard for consummation of a marriage. This highlights the
double standards, dishonesty and lack of scholarly pursuit amongst the Christian
missionaries. However the accusation must still be refuted and is refuted in the course
of this article in the interest of thoroughness and academic integrity and most
importantly out of respect and veneration for the Prophet Mohammed (pbuh) as well
as the truth.
Of course, this accusation uses modern day ages of consent as its yard stick. Modern
day standards here in the UK would be age 16. In Oregon, America it would be 18,
Spain and south Korea have it set at 13 and the Philippines are at 12 years of age(13).
By applying American (Oregon) standards on people residing in the UK, Spain,
Bolivia, France etc they would be deemed to have committed a sexual crime with a
minor. This shows the inconsistencies that arise from using one particular cultural
norm as a standard to judge another. Now, if comparing modern day ‘age of consent’
laws with the counterparts of other countries/cultures bring about charges of
‘paedophilia’ then it would be hardly surprising when the same occurs when cultural
norms and standards of the past are scrutinised by modern day standards. I am sure
the reader sees the inherent difficulties and inequities that this would bring about.
Hardly a fair and scholarly way of doing things. In fact it’s a hypocritical argument as
well as a smoke screen in order to deceive by attempting to inspire emotion to over-
rule rationality.
It was a cultural norm at the time for both boys and girls to get married shortly after
puberty, it was not a practice just for females(14) . As shown earlier ‘The
Cambridge World History of Food’ (4) shows that early marriage was the
cultural norm in other geographical locations and it was not just an
Arabian thing. In fact South America and Africa, Asia and Eastern
Europe still have cultural norms that allow if not encourage marrying
shortly after the onset of puberty. It must also be stated this cultural
norm extended to the rest of the Semitic civilizations (as confirmed
by the Baptist minister, Jim West,(15) and was in clear display in the
betrothal of Mary (Mother of Jesus, peace be upon both of them) to
Joseph early on in the life of Lady Mary. This does gazump the
Christian accuser.
Roughly 100 years ago in the 1880 the age of consent was as low
as 7 in Delaware, while many other states in America were at 10
years old, including Alabama, California and Florida. Russia was at
10 while Scotland was at 12 and England 13.(16) therefore the Christian
missionaries must believe EVERYBODY in the past to be paedophiles or advocates
of paedophilia.

Judaism to this day teaches the Jews to use puberty as the minimum age for marriage
(17).Also in Hinduism a man of 30 years can marry a girl of 12 years and a man of
24 can marry a girl of 8 years (Manu 9.94). We must not forget the Bible is also still
using puberty as the age of consent (Ezekiel 16) Therefore Christianity, Hinduism and
Judaism is allowing Paedophilia according to the Christian missionaries. To further
highlight that the Jewish and Christian ages of consent were puberty we can refer to
the well-renowned scholar, Geza Vermes, he teaches us (concerning Jewish customs,
which were the customs early Christians adopted too) that betrothing the girl prior to
puberty and waiting for the ‘ right biological moment’ to consummate the marriage
(ie full wife status) was standard practice. (23) This is exactly what Muhammad
(pbuh) did, this is what was the norm in Jewish and early Christian cultures (including
the culture of Jesus, Mary and Joseph).

So going by the logic of the accuser of Muhammad (pbuh) then the accuser must be
consistent and believe America and all modern countries were founded upon
paedophilia, they must also believe that their own forefathers were paedophiles too
whilst also accusing Abraham (a prophet, pbuh) and Joseph the stepfather of Jesus as
being a paedophile. Another thing they must believe in order to be consistent is that
Jesus (pbuh) gave approval of marriages like Aisha’s, therefore they must believe
their own god approves of paedophilia especially considering the Bible gives the age
of consent as puberty. Also being Christian they must also believe that their god
(Jesus, pbuh) entered the world through the privates of a 12 year old girl, of course
they are not consistent, if they were they would have to give up Christianity and admit
that they are the progeny of paedophilia and that their god (Jesus, pbuh) approved of
paedophilia as well as stating that the mother of their god was subjected to
paedophilic abuse.

Obviously this is an illogical and unfair way of analyzing happenings of the old
civilizations and it is far from scholarly and only adopted by hypocritical/over-zealous
Christians who have a missionary agenda. While the rational person is scientific and
methodical and realises imposing today’s cultural norm as a standard for peoples of
the past is just ludicrous and unjust. Therefore any accusation of paedophilia levelled
at Mohammad (pbuh) is an insult to fair scholarship, logic and the intelligence of
anybody who cares for the truth.

I believe that this is a comprehensive and logical way in which to refute and disprove
the ‘paedophilia with a young girl’ claims of the Christian missionaries, my sincere
hope is that they will remove the clouds of bigotry and hatred from their eyes and see
the lack of fairness, integrity and truth in their claims and realise that they are being
hypocritical as their own faith has the same standard. I must also praise the atheists
and other secularists in their open-minded and logical manner in analyzing claims of
this nature regarding Mohammad (pbuh)as I, from personal experience, have realised
that they readily dismiss the ‘paedophile’ claims as false and brand it as an unfair
character assassination as they recognise the different cultural norms and the lack of
logic within the claims. This does reflect poorly on ‘religious’ folk especially the
evangelical Christians who peddle these slurs against Mohammad (pbuh) relentlessly
without conceding that they have no substance to them and ironically insulting their
own Bible in the process as the Bible supports Muhammad’s (pbuh) marriage to
Aisha, this is a humiliating exposure/exposition of their lack of reading of the Bible. I
guess this is one of the contributing factors in the mass exodus from Christianity to
atheism/secularism in America, so Christian missionaries who couple dishonesty and
hypocrisy of this nature with their preaching are counterproductive to their aims and
are harming Christianity and the reputation of religious Christians, an already much
maligned reputation.

Also to further highlight the Muslim position we must accept that there is alternative
credible sources indicating the age of Lady Aisha to be greater than 9, of course the
Christian missionaries never mention this in their propaganda pieces against Islam.
There has been a book by Mohammed Ali (‘The Prophet of Islam‘) making the case
that the age of betrothal was not 6 and Aisha was at least 14-15 at the time of
consummation. This is the view of other scholars and historians and is best shown by
a snippet of an article by a scholar that I respect hugely (Dr Jamal Badawi), it does
outline reasons why he does not believe the age to be nine, this can be viewed in the
reference section (18)

·To summarize the points made:

~The Christian missionary criteria to judge Mohammed (pbuh) is
unscholarly, unfair and has no basis in the mind of a rational being
who values truth and justice
~The Christian missionary ‘logic’ would result in charges of
paedophilia levelled at their own god (Jesus, pbuh),Prophet
Abraham (pbuh) and the stepfather of their god (Joseph)
~Puberty is not only the age of consent for Islam but it is also the
case with Christianity, Hinduism and Judaism and other past
civilizations. Therefore it is hypocritical of the Christians to attack
Mohammed
(pbuh) for teaching puberty as a minimum age of consent
~Comparing people/civilizations of the past with modern day age of
consent laws does not make intellectual sense and unfairly renders
all past nations as ‘paedophiles’ when using such unscholarly
criteria
~The Christian missionary ‘logic’ would result in charges of
paedophilia levelled at their own god (Jesus, pbuh),Prophet
Abraham (pbuh) and the stepfather of their god (Joseph) as well as
labelling their own book, the Bible, as a book promoting
‘paedophilia’.

3. Finally after showing claim 2 as being unfair and lacking basis they claim that the
age difference between Lady Aisha and Mohammad (pbuh) is far too vast and claim it
to be repulsive

Having refuted the first 2 allegations against Mohammad (pbuh) we

realise that the Christian missionary resorts to this ‘argument’,
which, of course is in a similar mould to the previous 2 desperate
and devious attempts to malign the character of Mohammad (pbuh)

Their argument is, once again, extremely basic and superficial. The
argument they level is ‘a form of sexual perversion’ as the Prophet
(pbuh) was much older than Lady Aisha. Of course it is true that
Mohammad (pbuh) was older, this is not disputed by any historian
or scholar, be they Muslim or non-Muslim. We must point out that
there is no law against a bride marrying a groom who is older than
her and vice versa. As there is no law in the modern world or even
past communities condemning this, one must ask why they see
such an objection in this kind of union, especially considering both
parties were willing to go ahead and the relationship was a great
success. Here, I am of the belief that the secularist (generally)
would ‘free’ Mohammad of any ‘charge’ as there is nothing to go
against secular law here. The objective Christian (i.e. no missionary
agenda) would also recognise that there is nothing wrong here and
they would also point to Biblical figures being involved in similar
marriages. If the christian missionary or hater of Islam sees
objection in an older man marrying a younger lady then you would
expect the marriage of a younger man (Mohammad, pbuh) to an
older lady (khadija) to be objectionable to them, here they remain
silent. They remain silent because it is their will to deceive people
into thinking bad of Mohammad (pbuh). They also remain silent
regarding the fact that the ideas for the marriage and
consummation of the marriage to Lady Aisha were not initiated by
Mohammad (pbuh), this scuppers their sexual perversion argument
before it even gets off the ground

There are historical examples that date back to the time of

Mohammad (pbuh) in Arabia that show that a younger woman
marrying an older man was nothing unusual in fact it was rather
common. (19). This was the case the world over at that specific
time in history and is still the case in some parts of the world today.
They, the missionaries, try to deceptively implant thoughts of sexual
perversion but they ignore the Bible and show double standards.

Now consistency is key here, if the Christian missionaries are

consistent they will find objection with Abraham (a Prophet of
God,pbuh) as Abraham (pbuh) did the same as Mohammad (peace
be upon Abraham and Mohammad) but Abraham (pbuh) was 86
years old which is much older than Mohammad (pbuh) as
highlighted in the Bible:

“Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. But she had an
Egyptian maidservant named Hagar; so she said to Abram, ‘The Lord
has kept me from having children. Go, sleep with my maidservant;
perhaps I can build a family through her.’ Abram agreed to what Sarai
said. So after Abram had been living in Canaan ten years, Sarai his wife
took her Egyptian maidservant Hagar and gave her to her husband to be
his wife. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. … So Hagar bore Abram
a son, and Abram gave the name Ishmael to the son she had borne. Abram
was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore him Ishmael.” (Genesis, chapter
16, verses 1–4, and 15–16, New International Version.)

Also David (pbuh) according to the Bible did have a young virgin to tend to him,
being fair and scholarly I must mention that it is not believed any sexual relations
took place (mentioned below), however the reasons why I include this is to illustrate
honesty on my part and to show that age difference did not matter an iota back in
those days:

“When King David was old and well advanced in years, he could not keep warm
even when they put covers over him. So his servants said to him, ‘Let us look for
a young virgin to attend the king and take care of him. She can lie beside him so
that our lord the king may keep warm.’ Then they searched throughout Israel
for a beautiful girl and found Abishag, a Shunammite, and brought her to the
king. The girl was very beautiful; she took care of the king and waited on him,
but the king had no intimate relations with her.” (1 Kings, chapter 1, verses 1–4,
New International Version. Bolding is mine.)

Also Joseph is said to have been 90 when he married the 12-14 year old Mary (mother
of Jesus, peace be upon both of them)(20), thus it must be extremely hypocritical and
inconsistent for christian missionaries to attack Mohammad (pbuh) for having a
marital relationship with a younger woman when Joseph (who was much older than
Muhammad,pbuh) did the same with Mary (peace be on her). The irony is immense
and it is compounded by the fact that the lady that the Christian missionaries believe
to be the ‘mother’ of their ‘god’ was involved in a similar relationship. Naturally, if
the Christian missionary is entirely consistent and honest (something that history
shows that they are not) they will believe that the ‘mother‘ of their ’god’ was
subjected to ’paedophilia’ or some other ’sexual perversion’ and was wilfully
involved in a ’sexually perverse relationship’, moreover they will believe that the
stepfather of their ‘god’ was a pervert (either ‘paedophile‘ or ‘a man motivated by
lust’):

These accounts are summed up in the Catholic Encyclopaedia, 1913 edition,:

“It will not be without interest to recall here, unreliable though they are, the
lengthy stories concerning St. Joseph’s marriage contained in the apocryphal
writings. When forty years of age, Joseph married a woman called Melcha or
Escha by some, Salome by others; they lived forty-nine years together and had
six children … A year after his wife’s death, as the priests announced through
Judea that they wished to find in the tribe of Juda a respectable man to espouse
Mary, then twelve to fourteen years of age, Joseph, who was at the time ninety
years old, went up to Jerusalem among the candidates; a miracle manifested the
choice God had made of Joseph …”

Of course it is hypocritical for the Christian missionaries to attack Mohammad (pbuh)

because there is an age difference between him and Lady Aisha. However the
Christian missionary who spreads lies and distortions about Mohammad (pbuh) and
Islam is shameless and will no doubt hide the fact that the step-father (Joseph) of the
Christian god (Jesus, pbuh) was in a similar relationship but he was even older than
Mohammad (pbuh) so the age difference is more profound and of course his
relationship was with Mary (peace be on her), the Christians believe that she is the
mother of their god so using ‘logic’ the missionaries would believe that the mother of
their god was the victim of paedophilia or was married to a man of lust, all this while
their god ( Jesus, pbuh) was growing up, i.e. their god was raised by a man of lust
(according to the missionary logic or lack of logic). They also fail to add that their
god (Jesus, pbuh) never rebuked Joseph or Mary for their relationship, therefore they
must believe that Jesus (pbuh) saw nothing wrong with this relationship and it was a
cultural norm at the time.

Of course their relationship was the norm at the time, just like that of Abraham’s
(pbuh) relationship with Hagar. We must also note that the belief of sincere Muslims
and Christians would be that neither Mohammed, Abraham, Joseph, Jesus or Mary
(peace be on them all) did anything wrong concerning their support and/or partaking
in age-gap marriages. Again the Christian missionary ends up with egg on his/her face
and winds up looking unscholarly, lacking sound reasoning and full of hypocrisy and
deception.
Summary
~ Claiming an age difference as being objectionable is being unscholarly and
dishonest as the context is missing as age differences in marriage were not seen
as objectionable in the Arabian culture and were the norm.
~Modern day law does not object to an age-gap marriage and nor did any great
civilization of the past object to this, in fact they partook in age-gap marriages
and were the norm in many past communities and still are the norm in some
modern-day communities
~ Secular, Christian, Hindu, Jewish law do not object to an older male marrying
a younger female, therefore it is hypocritical to attack Islam for allowing it
without attacking the others
~ Well known Biblical figures such as Abraham (pbuh) and Joseph (the step
father of Jesus, peace be upon them) were involved in similar relationships yet
the missionaries tend to ignore this or not know it
~ This claim is unjust and holds no water at all and only highlights a lack of
knowledge on the part of the claimant as well as their desperation to besmirch
the last Prophet of God, Mohammed (pbuh)

The Christian missionaries clearly have an agenda against Islam, their ‘fight’ against
Islam and massive efforts in order to get these ‘paedophile’ claims to stick is shown to
be inconsistent as the same accusations (if using dubious Christian missionary ’logic‘)
could be levelled at their faith (Christianity) and Hinduism (manu 9.94) as well as
Judaism (Sanhedrin 55b). The ‘tactics of dishonesty’ employed by these missionaries
backfire and result in their dishonesty being revealed to all and moves the thoughtful
people away from Christianity rather than bringing them closer to it. These Christian
missionaries are not faithful in speaking about other faiths, what makes us believe
they are truthful when speaking about other topics?
Jesus outlined a principle of reliability at Luke 16:10, "He who is faithful in a very
little thing is faithful also in much: and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is
unrighteous also in much."

These propaganda artists masquerading as ‘religious’ Christians are defying logic and
should contemplate the following sayings rather than looking for opportunities to
twist the truth and slander the last Prophet of Almighty God.

"It is impossible for anyone who studies the life and character of the great
Prophet of Arabia, who knows how he taught and how he lived, to feel anything
but reverence for that mighty Prophet, one of the great messengers of the
Supreme. And although in what I put to you I shall say many things which may
be familiar to many, yet I myself feel whenever I re-read them, a new way of
admiration, a new sense of reverence for that mighty Arabian teacher." – Annie
Besant, THE LIFE AND TEACHINGS OF MUHAMMAD, Madras, 1932, p. 4.

"I have studied him - the wonderful man and in my opinion far from
being an anti-Christ, he must be called the Savior of Humanity. I believe
that if a man like him were to assume the dictatorship of the modern
world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would
bring it the much needed peace and happiness: I have prophesied about
the faith of Muhammad that it would be acceptable to the Europe of
tomorrow as it is beginning to be acceptable to the Europe of today."
George Bernard Shaw, THE GENUINE ISLAM, Vol. 1, No. 81936.

The reason some Christian missionaries operate in this deceitful fashion, in my

opinion, is due to the high convert numbers that Islam tends to have coupled with the
already huge global population of Muslims and its huge growth rate via birth-rate,
therefore it is naturally seen as a threat to Christian dominancy, especially considering
that a large proportion of the converts to Islam do come from Christian
denominations. The question still remains, why would the missionaries resort to
dishonest character assassinations rather than focus their tack on the Islamic theology
and argue against Islam in an honest manner?

The question is answered by comparing Islamic theology with Christian theology,

when this is done in an honest and scholarly fashion one sees that Islam is more
rational, scientific and logical while Christianity comes off very poorly when
compared to Islam, these observations are highlighted by the points below

1. Islam has a logical belief concerning God, i.e. God is ONE while the Christians
have an illogical belief concerning God, i.e. they believe in the trinity, which
Christians themselves do not even understand and this lack of logical sense is further
highlighted by the following quote:
"One may say with one's lips: 'I believe that God is one, and also three'--but no
one can believe it, because the words have no sense." (‘What is Religion’ by Leo
Tolstoy). One must ask themselves “would God send down a core belief(i.e. the
trinity) that is incomprehensible by the recipients or would it be logical and rational
(like the Islamic belief)?” I must also add that NO prophet (including Jesus, pbuh)
ever taught the trinity but they did teach the Islamic form of monotheism. Logic and
history argues against Christianity here!

2. The Bible (through its genealogies) incorrectly teaches us that the Earth is about
6000 years old, science shows the Bible to be far off the mark here and scientists
believe the age of the solar system to be closer to 4.5 billion years and the appearance
of human beings on the earth is estimated to be in the tens of thousands of years! A
vocal group of Christians (Young Earth Creationists) still argue for the Biblical
version today.
The Quran makes no such inaccurate assertions and is fully compatible with modern
day science and even has scientific miracles within it, I must also state that there are
further scientific problems in the Bible for further reading concerning the comparison
of the Bible and Quran with science please read ‘The Bible, The Quran and Science
by Dr. Maurice Bucaille. I also append an excerpt from Gary Miller concerning
science and Islam from his article ‘An Introduction to the way of Life known as
Islam’ in the reference section that makes interesting reading and gives a good feel of
how science agrees with Islam (21). I feel compelled to put forward the rhetorical
question, ‘ would God not know the age of the earth?’ Science argues against
Christianity here

3. The Bible contains lewd passages such as:

For she doted upon their paramours, whose flesh is as the flesh of asses, and whose
issue is like the issue of horses. (Ezekiel 23:20)

The Quran remains a Book of great eloquence and has nothing that can compare to
Ezekiel 23:20. Surely the Book of God would be free from lewdness and full of
eloquence? Rationale argues against Christianity here!

4. The Christians claim that Jesus (pbuh) is God but there is no such claim in the
Bible from Jesus (pbuh), in fact Jesus (pbuh) claims to be a man and claims God is
One and the Gospel of Luke states he is a prophet. The Quran also teaches that God is
One and Jesus is the prophet of Allah (Quran,19:30). However Trinitarian Christians
try to make Jesus (pbuh) out to be part of God even though their own Bible disagrees
with them. This kind of inconsistency is never found in the Quran. In summary the
Christians have an unclear Book (the Bible) while the Muslims have a Book full of
clarity and consistency (the Quran). Surely God would send a message of clarity
concerning the core belief? Sound reasoning argues against Christianity.

5. The Christians accept the belief of ‘sacrifice’ of an innocent man (Jesus, pbuh) in
order for the world to gain forgiveness for sins, Muslims have no such belief and
believe God forgives out of His Mercy. Surely God is Just and would not condemn an
innocent man in order to forgive sins, surely God can forgive sins through His own
Mercy. Why would God kill an innocent man for the sins of others? If the Christian
belief makes no sense now then the lack of logic is further compounded by adding in
the other Christian belief that the man sacrificed/killed for the sins of mankind was
‘God’, therefore the Christians believe that God killed himself or part of Himself in
order to forgive sins. All forms of rationality argue against Christianity here!

The Christian missionaries know the above points yet they adhere to their policy of
spouting propaganda in order to keep Christians away from Islam, this reminds me of
the Pagan Arabs who opposed Islam, these Pagans would lie about Mohammad
(pbuh) in order to keep people away from Islam, despite their efforts more and more
people accepted Islam, interestingly enough more and more people from the Christian
communities are accepting Islam today! One of the reasons behind this is that the
Bible only makes sense through Muslim understanding, i.e. the New and Old
Testaments are corrupted texts, hence the contradictions and problems (some of which
have been outlined above).

My sincere advice to the honest truth-seeker would be put away the Christian
missionary propaganda and research Islam objectively and see for yourself the truth
and logic within it.

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:32)

Abu Hurairah (May Allah be pleased with him) reported: The Messenger of Allah
(PBUH) said, "Allah makes the way to Jannah (paradise) easy for him who treads the
path in search of knowledge.''
[Muslim].

Jesus outlined a principle of reliability at Luke 16:10, "He who is faithful in a very
little thing is faithful also in much: and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is
unrighteous also in much."

REFERENCES

1.Catholic Encyclopaedia (1913)

2. The Washington Post: Anti-Muslim Remarks Stir Tempest
Leading Evangelicals Back Baptist Preacher,
By Alan Cooperman Washington Post Staff Writer
Thursday, June 20, 2002; Page A03
3“al Isabah fi Tamyeez al Sahabah (The correct
differentiation between the Companions”, Ibn Hajar
“Ibn Sa’d said:...Aisha said (in appreciation): ‘I have been given
features not given to any woman. The Prophet (peace be upon him)
married me when I was seven, the angel brought him my image in
his hand to look at it, he consummated our marriage when I was
nine, I saw the angel Gabriel, I was his most beloved wife, and I
attended his diseased till he died, not witnessed but by me and the
angels’.”
4. C. (Colin) Turner, Islam: The Basics, Routledge Press, p.34-35
5.The Cambridge World History of Food says:
Albrecht von Haller (1775), for example, claimed that girls in the southerly regions of
Asia, where the climate was warm, were marriageable in their eighth year and gave
birth in their ninth or tenth year; conversely, women in Arctic regions did not
menstruate until age 23 or 24.
6.“Awn Al Mabood”, Al Aabadi
“… Aisha said: ‘If the “jariyah” (young girl) reaches nine years, then
she is a woman”, Al Munzhiri (the hadeeth expert) said: Narrated by
Tirmizhi and Nasaa’i; Al Tirmithi said: Good Hadeeth. Aisha is
obviously speaking based on her own experience and thus confirming
to have reached adulthood (puberty) at nine
7. Karen Armstrong, Muhammad: A Biography of the Prophet, Harper San
Francisco, 1992, page 157
8.Explanation of Muslim by Imam Nawawi, Book of Marriage,
Hadeeth 75, Vol 9, p.207
Aisha said: ‘Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) engaged me when I was six
years old, and consummated the marriage when I was a girl of nine
years old.’...
And Malik and Shafii and Abu Hanifa said: ‘The limit for that
(consummation) is her (the female’s) capability for (sexual)
intercourse.’
Dawudi said: ‘And Aisha then had physically matured well
indeed’.”
9.Ibn Sa`d has stated in the Tabaqat that when Abu Bakr (father of `A’ishah) was
approached on behalf of the Prophet, he replied that the girl had already been
betrothed to Jubair and that he would have to settle the matter first with him. This
shows that `A’ishah must have been approaching maturity at the time.
10From Imam Ahmed (Good Hadith according to Ibn Hajar in
Fathul Bari, with other hadiths corroborating many of the
details including Tabarani as good, Al Hakim in Mustadrak as
authentic, and Abdulrazaq in Mustadrak):
“After Khadijah died, Khawlah bint Hakeem,...said: ‘Wouldn’t you
marry, O prophet of Allah?’ He said: ‘Who?’ She said: ‘If you like, a
virgin, or a previously married woman.’ He said: ‘Who is the virgin?’
She said: ‘The daughter of the most beloved creature to you, Aisha
daughter of Abu Bakr.’ He said: ‘And who is the previously married?’
She said: ‘Sawda bint Zama; she believed in you and followed you,
in what you say.’ He said: ‘So go, and mention me to them.’
So she entered Abu Bakr’s house and said: ‘O Um Ruman, what
great good and blessing did Allah grant you!’ She said: ‘And what is
that?’ She said: ‘The Prophet PBUH sent me to propose his marriage
to Aisha.’ She said: ‘Wait for Abu Bakr to come.’ Abu Bakr came and
she said: ‘O Abu Bakr, what great good and blessings did Allah grant
you!’ He said: ‘And what is that?’ She said: ‘The Prophet PBUH sent
me to propose his marriage to Aisha.’ He said: ‘Is she good for him?
She is his brother’s daughter.’
She returned to the Prophet PBUH and mentioned that to him. He
said: ‘Return and tell him I am your brother and you are my brother
in Islam, and your daughter is good for me.’
She returned and mentioned that to him. He said: ‘Wait.’ And he
went out. Um Ruman said that Mutim Ibn Adiyy had proposed for
her to his son, and by Allah, Abu Bakr never made a promise and
broke it... He returned and told Khawlah: ‘Invite the Prophet PBUH
to come over.’ She invited him, and he married him to her, while
Aisha was six years old then...
Aisha said: ‘Then we moved to Madinah and lived among bani al
Harth al Khazraj, in al Zanh.’
She said: ‘Then the Prophet PBUH came and entered our house, and
men and women gathered around him. And my mother came to
me... and then said: ‘These are your parents, so may Allah bless
them for you and bless you for them’... And the Prophet
consummated our marriage in our house… and I was nine years old
that day’.”
11. Ibn Hajar (in “Fathul Bari”) and Al Tabaraani
“Aisha said:...’Until we arrived at Madinah, so I dwelt among the family of Abu
Bakr...So Abu Bakr told him: ‘What prevents you from consummating with your wife?’
So he consummated with me’.”

12.Ezekiel 16:6-8 (King James Version)

verse6And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said
unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou wast in
thy blood, Live.
verse7I have caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field, and thou hast increased
and waxen great, and thou art come to excellent ornaments: thy breasts are
fashioned, and thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. (the hair
refers to pubic hair)
verse8Now when I passed by thee, and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the
time of love ( meaning she is at the age of sexual maturity); and I spread my skirt
over thee, and covered thy nakedness: yea, I sware unto thee, and entered into a
covenant with thee, saith the Lord GOD, and thou becamest mine.
Note:The development of pubic hair and breasts can begin from the ages 8-13, thus
the bible has an age of consent between 8-13
13~Stephen Robertson, "Age of Consent Laws." Children and Youth in History, Item
#49 (accessed January 22 2009, 4:26 pm)) http://chnm.gmu.edu/cyh/teaching-
modules/49?section=primarysources&source=24
Also see:
http://www.avert.org/aofconsent.htm
14~Abdul Muttalib, the grandfather of the Prophet, married Hala
bint Uhayb, who was young then. Since he married off his son
Abdullah to Amina at an early age at around the same time of his
own marriage with Hala, the Prophet was almost of the same age
with his uncle Hamza.
~Umar ibn Khattab married Ali's daughter Umm Qulthum, and this
 marriage was not found strange at that time at all.
~ Amr ibn As, for instance, was 12 years older than his son
Abdullah. This means that he was around 10 when he got married.
For further information see Ibn al-Athir, Usud al-Gaba, 3/240.
15~In an article called "Ancient Israelite Marriage Customs", by Jim West, ThD - a
Baptist minister writes:
‘The wife was to be taken from within the larger family circle (usually at the outset of
puberty or around the age of 13) in order to maintain the purity of the family line’
16~Also see:
http://www.avert.org/aofconsent.htm
17"Marrying off one's daughter as soon after she reaches adulthood as possible, even
to one's Slave. (From the Talmud, Pesachim 113a)"
18~’ It is quite strange that no one from Medinah, where Hisham ibn `urwah
lived the first seventy-one years of his life has narrated the event, even though in
Medinah his pupils included people as well known as Malik ibn Anas. All the
narratives of this event have been reported by narrators from Iraq, where
Hisham is reported to have shifted after living in Medinah for seventy-one years.
•· Tehzeeb al-Tehzeeb, one of the most well known books on the life and reliability of
the narrators of the traditions ascribed to the Prophet (pbuh) reports that
according to Yaqub ibn Shaibah: "narratives reported by Hisham are reliable
except those that are reported through the people of Iraq". It further states that
Malik ibn Anas objected on those narratives of Hisham, which were reported
through people of Iraq (Vol. 11, pg. 48 - 51).
· Meezaan al-Ai`tidaal, another book on the narrators of the traditions of the
Prophet (pbuh) reports that when he was old, Hisham's memory suffered quite
badly (Vol. 4, pg. 301 - 302).
· According to the generally accepted tradition, Ayesha (ra) was born about eight
years before Hijrah. However, according to another narrative in Bukhari (Kitaab
al-Tafseer) Ayesha (ra) is reported to have said that at the time Surah Al-Qamar,
the 54th chapter of the Qur'an , was revealed, "I was a young girl". The 54th
Surah of the Qur'an was revealed nine years before Hijrah. According to this
tradition, Ayesha (ra) had not only been born before the revelation of the
referred Surah, but was actually a young girl (jariyah), not even only an infant
(sibyah) at that time. Obviously, if this narrative is held to be true, it is in clear
contradiction with the narratives reported by Hisham ibn `urwah. I see
absolutely no reason that after the comments of the experts on the narratives of
Hisham ibn `urwah, why should we not accept this narrative to be more accurate.
· According to a number of narratives, Ayesha (ra) accompanied the Muslims in
the battle of Badr and Uhud. Furthermore, it is also reported in books of hadith
and history that no one under the age of 15 years was allowed to take part in the
battle of Uhud. All the boys below 15 years of age were sent back. Ayesha's (ra)
participation in the battle of Badr and Uhud clearly indicates that she was not
nine or ten years old at that time. After all, women used to accompany men to the
battlefields to help them, not to be a burden upon them.
· According to almost all the historians Asma (ra), the elder sister of Ayesha (ra)
was ten years older than Ayesha (ra). It is reported in Taqreeb al-Tehzeeb as well
as Al-Bidayah wa al-Nihayah that Asma (ra) died in the 73rd year after hijrah
when she was 100 years old. Now, obviously if Asma (ra) was 100 years old in the
73rd year after hijrah, she should have been 27 or 28 years old at the time of
hijrah. If Asma (ra) was 27 or 28 years old at the time of hijrah, Ayesha (ra)
should have been 17 or 18 years old at that time. Thus, Ayesha (ra) - if she got
married in 1 AH (after hijrah) or 2 AH - was between 18 to 20 years old at the
time of her marriage.
· Tabari in his treatise on Islamic history, while mentioning Abu Bakr (ra) reports
that Abu Bakr had four children and all four were born during the Jahiliyyah -
the pre Islamic period. Obviously, if Ayesha (ra) was born in the period of
jahiliyyah, she could not have been less than 14 years in 1 AH - the time she most
likely got married.
· According to Ibn Hisham, the historian, Ayesha (ra) accepted Islam quite some
time before Umar ibn Khattab (ra). This shows that Ayesha (ra) accepted Islam
during the first year of Islam. While, if the narrative of Ayesha's (ra) marriage at
seven years of age is held to be true, Ayesha (ra) should not even have been born
during the first year of Islam.
· Tabari has also reported that at the time Abu Bakr (ra) planned on migrating to
Habshah (8 years before Hijrah), he went to Mut`am - with whose son Ayesha (ra)
was engaged at that time - and asked him to take Ayesha (ra) in his house as his
son's wife. Mut`am refused, because Abu Bakr had embraced Islam.
Subsequently, his son divorced Ayesha (ra). Now, if Ayesha (ra) was only seven
years old at the time of her marriage, she could not have been born at the time
Abu Bakr decided on migrating to Habshah. On the basis of this report it seems
only reasonable to assume that Ayesha (ra) had not only been born 8 years before
hijrah, but was also a young lady, quite prepared for marriage.
· According to a narrative reported by Ahmad ibn Hanbal, after the death of
Khadijah (ra), when Khaulah (ra) came to the Prophet (pbuh) advising him to
marry again, the Prophet (pbuh) asked her regarding the choices she had in her
mind. Khaulah said: "You can marry a virgin (bikr) or a woman who has already
been married (thayyib)". When the Prophet (pbuh) asked about who the virgin
was, Khaulah proposed Ayesha's (ra) name. All those who know the Arabic
language, are aware that the word "bikr" in the Arabic language is not used for
an immature nine-year old girl. The correct word for a young playful girl, as
stated earlier is "Jariyah". "Bikr" on the other hand, is used for an unmarried
lady, and obviously a nine year old is not a "lady".
· According to Ibn Hajar, Fatimah (ra) was five years older than Ayesha (ra).
Fatimah (ra) is reported to have been born when the Prophet (pbuh) was 35
years old. Thus, even if this information is taken to be correct, Ayesha (ra) could
by no means be less than 14 years old at the time of hijrah, and 15 or 16 years old
at the time of her marriage.
These are some of the major points that go against accepting the commonly
known narrative regarding Ayesha's (ra) age at the time of her marriage.
In my opinion, neither was it an Arab tradition to give away girls in marriage at
an age as young as nine or ten years, nor did the Prophet (pbuh) marry Ayesha
(ra) at such a young age. The people of Arabia did not object to this marriage,
because it never happened in the manner it has been narrated.’
19~Other examples of age gap marriages at the time of the Prophet Muahammad
(pbuh) include: Hala, the cousin of Amina bint Wahb was married to Abdul-Muttalib
on the same day his son `Abdullah married Aminah bint Wahb who was at Hala’s
same age. Also, the Companion `Umar ibn Al-Khattab married the daughter of Ali
ibn Abi Talib, may Allah honor his face, while he was at her grandpa’s age.
20~The Catholic Encyclopaedia even tells us the following:"A year after his wife's
death, as the priests announced through Judea that they wished to find in the tribe of
Juda a respectable man to espouse Mary, then twelve to fourteen years of age.
Joseph, who was at the time ninety years old, went up to Jerusalem among the
candidates"
Note: the priests themselves were the ones who suggested the marriage.They never
cared about the age difference between Mary(12-14 years) and Joseph(90years), thus
further showing that these marriages were the norm
21~An Introduction to the way of Life known as Islam
by Gary Miller
Modern scientists, for instance, have been amazed by the accuracy of scientific
information presented in the Qur'an. Here are just a few examples: In his book of
embryology-'The Developing Human' [W.B. Saunders Publishing, 1982], Dr. Keith
Moore added a whole chapter to discuss the scientific accuracy of the Quranic
discussion of this science. Another eminent scientist, Dr. Maurice Bucaille wrote in
his book-'The Bible, the Qur'an and Science': "I could not find a single error in
the Qur'an.if a man was the author of the Qur'an how could he have written facts
in the 7th century A.D. that today are shown to be in keeping with modern scientific
knowledge" Facts about astronomy, the animal world and other natural
phenomenon, that were alien to modern science not long ago, are scattered among
the messages of Allah's Unity and His Attributes throughout the miracle that is
known as al-Qur'an
22. http://www.scribd.com/doc/7567922/10-Easy-Steps-Refuting-Slander-Against-
Prophet-Muhammed-pbuh-Marriage-to-Aisha
23. Jesus the Jew, by Geza Vermes, 1973, William Collins sons and Co Ltd, pages
219-222