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Who Founded Islam?
Muslims say God enjoined Islam on earlier prophets. The Qur’an calls Muhammad the seal of the prophets, and the Hijra is 622.
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Muslims say Islam was not invented in the seventh century. The Qur’an says God ordained for them the religion he enjoined on Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, and it calls Muhammad the seal of the prophets. Historically, Muhammad’s public mission begins about 610, the community’s calendar begins with the move to Medina in 622, and he dies in 632. Jesus is God. The dates are on When Was Islam Founded?. The man is Who Was Muhammad?.
Key Points
- Qur’an 42:13Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh International
He has ordained for you of religion what He enjoined upon Noah and that which We have revealed to you, [O Muḥammad], and what We enjoined upon Abraham and Moses and Jesus - to establish the religion and not be divided therein. Difficult for those who associate others with Allāh is that to which you invite them. Allāh chooses for Himself whom He wills and guides to Himself whoever turns back [to Him].
Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (1) says God ordained the religion he enjoined on Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, and what he revealed to Muhammad. - Qur’an 3:67Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh International
Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allāh]. And he was not of the polytheists.
Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (3) calls Abraham a Muslim, one who submits, and says he was neither a Jew nor a Christian. The wording is on When Was Islam Founded?. - Qur’an 33:40Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh International
Muḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.
Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (2) calls Muhammad the Messenger of God and the seal of the prophets. - Watt’s Britannica biography (5) places the call in about 610, the Hijra in 622, and the death on 8 June 632.
- What Was Muhammad’s First Revelation? is the cave of Hira and Qur’an 96.
- Christians can grant the Qur’an’s word “submit” for Abraham and still date the public community to Muhammad. John 1:1John 1:1 · King James Version
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source (6) says the Word was God.
When Was Islam Founded?
The question of the year has its own page. When Was Islam Founded? quotes Watt: the call about 610, the Hijra in 622, the death on 8 June 632. Year 1 of the Islamic calendar is 622. The first recitation is What Was Muhammad’s First Revelation?. The life is Who Was Muhammad?. The centuries after his death are What Is the History of Islam?.
610 is when the preaching is dated. 622 is when the calendar starts. 632 is his death, not the end of the community. Abu Bakr is the first caliph in the Sunni count after that death. What Is a Caliphate?
What the Qur’an Says Was Enjoined
Qur’an 42:13Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh InternationalHe has ordained for you of religion what He enjoined upon Noah and that which We have revealed to you, [O Muḥammad], and what We enjoined upon Abraham and Moses and Jesus - to establish the religion and not be divided therein. Difficult for those who associate others with Allāh is that to which you invite them. Allāh chooses for Himself whom He wills and guides to Himself whoever turns back [to Him].
Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International) says:
He has ordained for you of religion what He enjoined upon Noah and that which We have revealed to you, [O Muḥammad], and what We enjoined upon Abraham and Moses and Jesus - to establish the religion and not be divided therein.
Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh International
That is the Muslim claim in the Qur’an’s own words. The religion is one line, from Noah through Jesus to Muhammad. Qur’an 3:67Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh InternationalAbraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allāh]. And he was not of the polytheists.
Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (3) uses the word Muslim for Abraham, a man who lived long before Muhammad, and says he was neither a Jew nor a Christian. Muslims read both verses as true submission to the one God, older than the community in Mecca and Medina. A Christian can grant the word “submit” and still say the public history of Islam, the Hijra, the caliphate, and a prophet in Arabia, begins with Muhammad.
The Seal of the Prophets
Qur’an 33:40Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalMuḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.
Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International) says:
Muḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.
Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh International
The verse answers who brings that religion to its close in their telling. He is not one prophet among others who will be followed by another. He is the seal. Was Muhammad a Real Person? is the historical man. How Did Muhammad Die? is 632.
Which Is Older?
Christianity’s public preaching is the first century: Jesus, then the apostles. Islam’s public mission, on the dates above, is the seventh. Judaism’s scriptures and the people of Israel are centuries before Muhammad. The Qur’an does not treat those facts as the founding of Islam. It treats Islam as the religion already enjoined on the earlier prophets, and Muhammad as the last messenger of it. Both sentences belong on the page. Christians confess that the God of Abraham is the Father of Jesus Christ, and that Jesus is God. They do not read Abraham’s faith as a denial of the Son. The Trinity is that confession. What Do Christians Believe About Muhammad? is the Christian reading of his claim.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Is Older, Christianity or Islam?
The church’s public history begins with Jesus in the first century. Muhammad’s call is dated about 610, and the Hijra is 622. The Qur’an says the religion itself was enjoined on Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus. When Was Islam Founded?
What Did Muhammad Say About Jesus?
Qur’an 4:171Qur’an 4:171 · Saheeh InternationalO People of the Scripture, do not commit excess in your religion or say about Allāh except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, was but a messenger of Allāh and His word which He directed to Mary and a soul [created at a command] from Him. So believe in Allāh and His messengers. And do not say, "Three"; desist - it is better for you. Indeed, Allāh is but one God. Exalted is He above having a son. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And sufficient is Allāh as Disposer of affairs.
Qur’an 4:171 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (4) says Jesus, the son of Mary, was a messenger of God and his word, and it tells the People of the Scripture not to say “Three.” The Gospels and that verse are on Jesus in the Qur’an and the Gospels. John 1:1John 1:1 · King James VersionIn the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source (6) says the Word was God.
Who Came First, the Jews or the Muslims?
Israel and the Jewish scriptures are centuries before Muhammad. Muslims say submission to God is older than the later community, because Qur’an 3:67Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh InternationalAbraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allāh]. And he was not of the polytheists.
Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (3) calls Abraham a Muslim. Who Was Muhammad?
Can a Woman Pray During Her Period?
That question is not who founded Islam. The shelf page on women is Women in Islam.
What Is Haram?
That question is not the founding. The path the Qur’an calls an ordained way, beside later legal rulings, is What Is Sharia Law?.
Keep Reading
References
- Qur’an, 42:13Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh International
He has ordained for you of religion what He enjoined upon Noah and that which We have revealed to you, [O Muḥammad], and what We enjoined upon Abraham and Moses and Jesus - to establish the religion and not be divided therein. Difficult for those who associate others with Allāh is that to which you invite them. Allāh chooses for Himself whom He wills and guides to Himself whoever turns back [to Him].
Qur’an 42:13 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International. Religion enjoined on Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus, and revealed to Muhammad.) - Qur’an, 33:40Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh International
Muḥammad is not the father of [any] one of your men, but [he is] the Messenger of Allāh and seal [i.e., last] of the prophets. And ever is Allāh, of all things, Knowing.
Qur’an 33:40 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International. Muhammad is the Messenger of God and the seal of the prophets.) - Qur’an, 3:67Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh International
Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but he was one inclining toward truth, a Muslim [submitting to Allāh]. And he was not of the polytheists.
Qur’an 3:67 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International. Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian, but a Muslim, one who submits.) - Qur’an, 4:171Qur’an 4:171 · Saheeh International
O People of the Scripture, do not commit excess in your religion or say about Allāh except the truth. The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, was but a messenger of Allāh and His word which He directed to Mary and a soul [created at a command] from Him. So believe in Allāh and His messengers. And do not say, "Three"; desist - it is better for you. Indeed, Allāh is but one God. Exalted is He above having a son. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. And sufficient is Allāh as Disposer of affairs.
Qur’an 4:171 · Saheeh InternationalOpen source (Saheeh International. Jesus, son of Mary, is a messenger of God and his word. Do not say “Three.”) - Encyclopaedia Britannica, Muhammad (W. Montgomery Watt. The call about 610, the Hijra in 622, death on 8 June 632.)
- Gospel of John, 1:1John 1:1 · King James Version
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
John 1:1 · King James VersionOpen source. King James Version
See Also
- Does Isaiah Prophesy Muhammad? — Matthew 12 says Isaiah 42 was fulfilled in Jesus. Kedar’s villages are told to sing. Isaiah 29:12 is a sealed book in a woe on Jerusalem.
- How Did Muhammad Die? — Muslim sources say Muhammad died in Medina in 632, at sixty-three, and that in his last illness he still felt the poison from a sheep he had eaten at Khaybar.
- How Many Prophets Are There in Islam? — The Qur’an names messengers and says some stories were not related. It does not print a total. It calls Muhammad the seal of the prophets. Christians say God has spoken by the Son, who is God, not by a later seal.
- How Many Wives Did Muhammad Have? — The Qur’an permits Muhammad more wives than the four it allows other men. Muslim historians name Khadijah first, and Sunni hadith name Aisha among those who followed.
- How Old Was Aisha When She Married Muhammad? — In Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim, Aisha says she was married at six and that the marriage was consummated at nine. Those reports also say she remained with him nine years, until his death at sixty-three.