Kenneth Cragg`s views on prophethood in Islam with a special reference to his book "Muhammad and the christian" : a critical evaluation

Abstract

The Prophethood of Muhammad (S.A.W) has been the focal point of Muslim-Christian relations. Many books and articles are published on this issue. One of the most prominent Christian scholars, Kenneth Cragg (2012), wrote a book and entitled it as “Muhammad and the Christian: A Question of Response” presenting his views on Muhammad’s Prophethood. Therefore, this research analyzed and evaluated three areas of the aforementioned book, namely: Muhammad and Tasliyah, Muhammad and the Qur’an and Muhammad and qital. Principal approaches have been used in this research, namely: historical, analytical, comparative and evaluative. In this research Cragg’s claim that Tasliyah and Incarnation have the same notion has been evaluated. The researcher argued that these two issues are incompatible and that there is no divinity in the person of Muhammad (S.A.W). It was also found that Cragg’s acknowledgement of Muhammad (S.A.W) as “the Prophet of the Qur’an” is a mere claim, and that Muhammad is the Prophet of Allah not the Prophet of the Qur’an. It was also found that Cragg’s argument that the military dimension of Islam is one of the obstacles to the Christian faithful appreciation of Muhammad is also a mere assertion and that not only the Qur’an but even the Bible contains many issues of war. Hence, the issue of qital in Islam cannot hinder any faithful Christian from positive appreciation of Muhammad (S.A.W).