Here I am posting the 3rd & final episode of my analysis. I hope you enjoy it
**MARY IN ISLAM WITHOUT JESUS **
Interestingly, there is one single verse in Mohammed’s book that refers to Mary with no mention of Issa. That verse takes place in the comparatively short chapter (only 12 verses!) of Medina period:
(Tahrim) 066: 12. And
Mary, daughter of 'Imran, whose body was
chaste, therefore We breathed therein something of Our Spirit. And she put
faith in the words of her Lord and His scriptures, and was of the
obedient.
The first important point about this last verse of the 66th chapter is that it accentuates Mary’s chastity through an inferential endorsement of Her miraculous pregnancy. Actually, the first part of this verse emphasizing Mary’s virginity is the partly repetition of another verse occurring in a chapter of the earlier period (Mecca) of the supposed revelations. To compare & contrast:
021: 91.
And she who was chaste, therefore We breathed into her (something) of Our Spirit and made her and her son a token for (all) peoples.
As far as we can conclude from this comparative analysis, the authors of this chapter deliberately modify the second part of the verse of the 21st chapter by excluding Mary’s son Issa while copying that verse in order to single out Mary as the only subject of the sentence in question. Once the authors of the 66th chapter get rid of Issa, they add a special sentence praising Mary for Her faith and obedience.The second modification of secondary significance is carried out by Mary’s identification through Her father
Imran, which indicates the continuation of a case of mistaken identity going back to the 19th chapter.
In order to decipher the reason underlying the first major textual alteration, we should comprehend the context of the 66th chapter and find out on what occasion the Quran mentions Mary without any reference to Issa. The opening verses of this short chapter read:
066:001-2. O Prophet! Why bannest thou that which Allah hath made lawful for thee, seeking to please thy wives ? And Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. Allah hath made lawful for you (Muslims) absolution from your oaths (of such a kind), and Allah is your Protector. He is the Knower, the Wise.
It is clear that the prevalent theme of this chapter is Mohammed’s fault to forbid himself from lawful things for the sake of his wives’ happiness. The ensuing verse relates what leads Mohammed to that fault and stresses that Allah reveals to Mohammed whatever his wives try to conceal from him:
066: 003. When the Prophet confided a fact unto one of his wives and when she afterward divulged it and Allah apprised him thereof, he made known (to her) part thereof and passed over part. And when he told it her she said: Who hath told thee ? He said: The Knower, the Aware hath told me.
The next verse contains Allah’s wrathful complaint about Mohammed’s wives after putting the whole blame on two of his wives for misleading Mohammed to erroneous decisions not confirmed by Allah:
066: 004. If ye twain
turn unto Allah
repentant, (ye have cause to do so) for your hearts desired (the ban); and if ye aid one another against him (Muhammad) then lo! Allah, even He, is his Protecting Friend, and Gabriel and the righteous among the believers; and furthermore the angels are his helpers.
Not surprisingly, the next verse expresses Mohammed’s anger along with his relevant threat of divorcing two of his wives and the assertion that Allah, the angelic hosts, and the true believers will always side with Mohammed. In short, this verse commands two of Mohammed’s wives to repent for complying against Allah’s supposed messenger, predicting what they would lose if Mohammed divorced them:
066: 005. It may happen that his Lord, if he divorce you, will give him in your stead wives better than you,
submissive (to Allah), believing, pious, penitent, devout, inclined to fasting, widows and maids.
to be continued…
