September 19: Muslim views / Hadith on Jesus the ascetic / Sermon on the Mount

David Vishanoff

Tuesday, July 21st, 2015

Assignment

First read Gregory Barker & Stephen Gregg, Jesus Beyond Christianity: The Classic Texts, pp. 83-135. Pay especially careful attention to the Qur’anic picture of Jesus that is given in the first few selections:

• In what ways does this portrait differ most significantly from the portraits in the Gospels and in the Talmud?
• What are the common elements that are affirmed or assumed by all our readings so far: the various Christian gospels, the Talmud, and the Qur’an?

Then in Tarif Khalidi, The Muslim Jesus, read the Introduction (focusing on pages 32-43 which give some useful historical perspective) and then read very carefully sayings #1-78 (pages 51-95). All these sayings are culled from reports, or hadith, about Jesus that circulated among Muslims. I suggest you just read the sayings, which are in large type, without worrying about the references and the translator’s comments.

• Jot down for yourself the main impressions or images of Jesus that emerge from these sayings, and write down the numbers of some sayings that support those impressions, so that in class we can put together a picture of this “Jesus of the Hadith”–what he values, how he lives, what he keeps talking about, how he views himself, maybe even what he looks like.
• Are any of these sayings polemical, directed against Christians?
• What assumptions do the authors have that are shaping their interpretation of Jesus?

Finally, write a first draft of your gospel’s equivalent of the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5-7). Think (and comment) about how your Jesus’ teachings align with the teachings in Matthew and with those in The Muslim Jesus.

Notes from class

The Qur’an’s representation of Jesus:

• The Qur’an is NOT responding directly to the Gospels, but to oral versions of Christian stories.
• It is NOT retelling those stories in a polemical ways as the Talmud did, though it does recast stories to fit its own ideas (Jesus fits the same pattern as other prophets, his miracles depend on God’s power).
• In fact, the Qur’an defends Christian versions of the story (the virgin birth, miracles) against the accusations we saw in the Talmud (Mary’s unchastity, Jesus being a magician), and blames the Jews for rejecting Jesus. It even rejects the Talmud’s claim that the Jews killed Jesus–and thus inadvertently (but not polemically) rejects a key element of the Christian story.
• The Qur’an’s only anti-Christian polemic about Jesus is a direct denial of the Christian doctrine of his divinity, which it considers a corruption of the story. It also condemns directly certain Christian institutions like monasticism and clerical authority.
• The core identity that makes Jesus a recognizable character across the Gospels, the Talmud, and the Qur’an is pretty sparse: he existed, he was born under unusual circumstances of a woman named Mary, he gathered disciples, he performed miracles (or magic), and he did some kind of teaching or preaching (though the Qur’an doesn’t say what he taught). Even his death is not agreed upon!

Subsequent Muslim representations of Jesus (in Barker’s anthology):

• Some elaborate further the Qur’an’s polemics against the doctrine of Jesus’ divinity (echoing arguments made by some Jews) and other aspects of the Christian tradition.
• Others, however, are much more positive. Some imply that Jesus was sinless, and one even suggests that the doctrine that Jesus has both divine and human natures is actually correct and reflects the possibility of mystical union with God.

The ascetic hadith collected by Khalidi:

• These Muslims DO know the Bible well, and allude to it constantly, retelling many of Jesus’ actions and sayings.
• But they don’t do so polemically. We have noticed no anti-Christian polemic so far.
• Instead they select Gospel sayings that directly support their ascetic piety, and change others to make them support it:
  • Jesus’ teachings about seeking spiritual rather than this-worldly things like money are quoted or paraphrased with little change of significance.
  • They make Jesus appear not just humble but quite unsure of his own righteousness, which fits their ideal of pious fear of God’s judgment.
  • Jesus’ affirmations of women are replaced with the view that women are dangerous temptations.
  • Jesus’ command to “turn the other cheek” does not make sense to them, so they turn it into a unique event in which Jesus isn’t even sure turning the other cheek was the right thing to do.