The Sunni-Shia Divide and Islam’s Puzzling Origins

3 Responses

1. What are Emmett Scot's academic qualifications and why does does he not publish in academic journals?

   this and some of his previous books does suggest a 'pseudo historian'

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2. I read a marvellous book written from a Marxist point of view about the origins of the three Abrahamic faiths.  It is called 'Behind the Myths' by John Pickard, self published.  He isnot a professional historian, but he has meticulously researched this field.  Essentially,Islam  was a form of Judaism, as you argue.  He doesnot really good to the Persian Empire aspect, but he is good on the many civil wars in the early days before Islam crystallised politically.Dur

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3. Consider this as a more direct extrapolation of your historically coherent story:

   Muawiya was also a Nestorian or Ebionite Christian. So was Abd al-Malik, who built the Dome of the Rock. The inscription of the DotR is a perfect rendering of these Christian faiths, especially considering that the "muhammad" appearing in the inscription is an adverbial (the chosen one) reference to Jesus.

   Abd al-Malik was reputed to be born in Medinah, but that rests on no historical basis. It's probably just a tendentiously mythological assignment to a ruler whose Muslim adherence is likely imposed by Islamic opportunism and historical orthodoxy.

   If the DotR inscription is Nestorian, then so was abd al-Malik.

   Muhammad as a prophet appears historically only late in the 7th century/early eighth century. Islam as a religion appears even later. Luxenberg supposes two readings of the DotR inscriptions, early and late. Early, muhammad = chosen/praised one, and Late = Muhammad as a proper name. This Muhammad achieved personhood by being associated with the early 7th century messianic rabble-rouser documented in the Doctrina Jacobi.

   Islam then grew up following the production of an Arabic prophet from a tendentious misreading of the DotR inscription. It seems likely the tendancy to Islam became centralized after the Abbasid revolution replaced the Syrian Arabs with Yemeni Arabs.

   The Yemenis would have seized on an Arab prophet to bring Arabia and the Hijaz (their home of origin) into prominence, so as to cement their power. It wasn't done cynically, of course, but probably an Arab prophet and an Arab religion was taken as by the Abbasids a sign from god that their success was due to his favor.

   The Quran then just grew up as the new believers in a prophet Muhammad combed the oral stories to construct their sacred history.

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