Refuting Sam Shamoun's Arguments Against the Monotheism of Islam: Part 7

Rebuttal to Sam Shamoun's Article "Does the Quran really enjoin fearing Allah alone?"

[Introduction, Sami Zaatari's Rebuttals to Shamoun, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6, Part 7, Part 8, Part 9, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12, Tawassul in Christianity]

by

Bassam Zawadi

We encourage the reader first to read Shamoun's article over here.

It's saddening to see how preposterous and desperate arguments against Islam have become. It has reached the stage where people like Shamoun try to convince people to believe that the Qur'an actually teaches Muslims to literally fear a divine womb.

Isn't it strange that Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) didn't teach Muslims to literally fear a womb equally alongside Allah if that was indeed what the Qur'an taught? Isn't it strange that not a single Muslim in history has ever understood the passage to mean that? Does Shamoun have no shame or academic integrity?

How would Christians feel if I were to claim that the Bible teaches polytheism by arguing that the 'Fear of Isaac' alongside with God, assisted Jacob (Genesis 31:42)? How would they feel if I were to ridiculously suggest that an entity known as 'Fear of Isaac' could be sworn by (Genesis 31:53)? How would they feel if I claimed that God set up a partner for Himself because He enabled other people to be feared if they feared him (Deuteronomy 28:10) and had people fear David (1 Chronicles 14:17) when only God alone is supposed to be feared (Psalm 76:7)? Christians would obviously be outraged at how much insult such a ridiculous attempt of exegesis is being made out of their texts. Well, this is exactly the quality of Shamoun's argument in the eyes of Muslims.

Allah makes it crystal clear that we fear no one but Him:

Surah 2:40

O Children of Israel! Remember My Favour which I bestowed upon you, and fulfill (your obligations to) My Covenant (with you) so that I fulfill (My Obligations to) your covenant (with Me), and fear none but Me.

Surah 9:18

The Mosques of Allah shall be maintained only by those who believe in Allah and the Last Day; perform As-Salat (Iqamat-as-Salat), and give Zakat and fear none but Allah. It is they who are expected to be on true guidance.

In light of these passages, one may wonder whether it is permissible to have natural fears (e.g., fear of being locked up in a cage with a lion). Shaykh Abdul Wahhab, in his famous Kitab Al Tawheed clarifies the different levels of fear and which ones are permissible and not:

Fear consists of four kinds: (i) The fear that someone other than Allah will cause one some form of illness, poverty or other misfortune by his power and will - whether he claimed that this was due to the feared one's independent power or because of his supposed position as an intercessor with Allah : This kind of fear is forbidden, for it equates the one who is feared with Allah , which is an act of major shirk; (ii) fear of one of Allah's creatures which leads the one in fear to seek a solution from that which has been forbidden, or to abandon his obligations; this is forbidden; (iii) fear of Allah's promised recompense for the disobedient: This type of fear is the highest level of faith; (iv) natural fear, such as the fear of another of Allah's creatures e.g. a lion, a snake, etc. Such fear is permissible. (Shaykh Abdul Wahhab, Kitab Al Tawheed, Chapter 30, Source)

So, as we can see, it is perfectly fine to have fear of creatures as long as it is not the kind of fear that is only due to Allah. So even if Shamoun successfully proved to us that the Qur'an commands us to fear an entity called 'Womb,' in no way has he shown us that the level of fear must be the same as the one we feel towards God.

Furthermore, Islamic sources make it clear that the womb is a creation:

Allah the Most High said: I am Allah, and I am the Rahman (i.e. the Most Gracious). I created the womb. It derives from one of my Names (i.e. Rahman). I will keep good relations with the one who keeps good relations with it (i.e. the womb) and sever my relations with the one who sever relations with it. (Sunan Al Tirmidhi, Hadith no. 1830; Shaykh Al Albani declared it authentic in his Saheeh Al Tirmidhi, no. 1907. This hadith is also reported in Musnad Ahmad, no. 1571, 1589 & 1594; Ahmad Shakir declared more than one of their chains authentic.)

Since the womb is a creation, it is impossible that Allah would ask us to fear it just as we would fear Him.

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