The Emergence of Islam: Classical Traditions in Contemporary Perspective

by Gabriel Said Reynolds

Gabriel Said Reynolds tells the story of Islam in this brief illustrated survey, beginning with Muhammad's early life and rise to power, then tracing the origins and development of the Quran juxtaposed with biblical literature, and concluding with an overview of modern and fundamentalist narratives of the origin of Islam. Reynolds offers a fascinating look at the structure and meaning of the Qur'an, revealing the ways in which biblical language is used to advance the Qur'an's religious meaning. Reynolds' analysis identifies the motives that shaped each narrativeIslamic, Jewish, and Christian. The books conclusion yields a rich understanding of diverse interpretations of Islams emergence, suggesting that its emergence is itself ever-developing.

Genres: Islam, Religion, History, Nonfiction

248 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 2012

Reviews

[Mustafa Olomi · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars rounding up. A well-researched academic view of the early development of Islam, the Quran, and aspects of the hadith tradition. Reynolds engages with the main traditional muslim sources while comparing them to external historical evidence. He presents a balanced view of Islamic history, including the first four Khalifs (and shortcomings), the Quran, and hadith tradition. Like a careful historian he asks questions, writes for a wide audience, and clearly lays out strengths and possible doubts. He tells Islams emergence story from various perspectives showing how it grew from a more monotheistic backdrop than usually portrayed.

One example I found interesting was that the Quran appears to have interacted with late antique Christian oral tradition, but not the canonical gospels, prophecies of Isaiah/Ezekial, etc. He also points out that the Quran's mentioning of the "people of the book" commonly used to reference Christianity and Judaism, but the Quran wasn't a physical "book" but rather, divine revelation in the mind of God, becoming a book manifest many years after the prophet. This has profound implications in my opinion, because "the people of the book" is used to justify an Abrahamic ethnocentric world view and impacts who traditional muslim's can marry etc.. This widens the lens of eternal truth to more people.

Overall a great book that left me with many new insights, questions, and a deeper understanding of how Islam emerged.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gabriel Said Reynolds does Great research in this book! Highly Recommended for an understanding of how Islam emerged and how it should be viewed in relation to the other religions that existed during that time.

[Jacob DeVries · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very helpful introduction to the modern state of scholarship surrounding the emergence of Islam. Though the book begins by recounting the traditional Islamic narrative regarding Muhammad and his rise from humble prophet to conquering warlord, the book does not shy away from the many historical problems with this narrative and the sources that it comes from. For this, it is to be commended. My only criticism of the book is that I wish there was more meat on the bone in the section of the book dealing with the historical reconstruction of the real history of the Islamic movement. To be fair, the author seems more concerned with arguing for a paradigm shift in the way researchers go about creating such reconstructions (focusing on what historical information can be mined from the Qur'an itself rather than the later biographies of Muhammad) than in setting out a complete reconstruction of his own. One of the more interesting insights that is offered is that the Qur'an seems to be much more in conversation with the Christianity of late antiquity and is often assumed. The discussion of the recent inscription evidence is particularly interesting in this regard. As someone who is attempting to learn more about this topic, this book was useful and informative.

[Evan Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was helpful to give me, as a follower of Jesus, a more round knowledge of Muslim traditions and their origins with special attention to the cultural context during Islam’s emergence. The first part and a half of this book was deeply educational. The quality of the writing and the helpfulness of the content devolved in the latter stages of the book.

Part 3’s “contemporary context” portion felt more like an unfocused addendum than a well-researched historical argument. It gave plenty of information, but drew few conclusions. This made for dense, non-compelling reading. Admittedly, in the author’s conclusion, he claims that the historical origins of Islam are in and of themselves unclear and widely disputed, thus making drawing widespread conclusions about how those origins reveal themselves in contemporary Islamic traditions very challenging. It seems as though the origins of the emergence of Islam are complex, and the global state of Islam is thus equally so.

[Erik Eliason · Rating 5 out of 5]

In this book, Professor Reynolds gives a masterful introduction to the early history of Islam. He begins by narrating the traditional story told by Islamic sources (utilizing Sunni and Shia hadith, biographies, and Quranic commentaries). After recounting the traditional account of Islam's origins, he demonstrates why a reevaluation of the standard narrative is necessary. His approach provides a way forward in Early Islamic scholarship by relying primarily on the Quran, archaeology, and inscriptional data. By prioritizing these methods, he makes a strong case that pre-Islamic Arabia was Christian rather than pagan (he has since written a new, more rigorous book on the topic, and I plan to read that soon). He then ends the book by providing a historical account of how Islam got to where it is today. Anyone reading this work will find an invaluable guide as they navigate the complicated world of Islam, Muhammed, and the Quran.

[عبد الله القصير · Rating 3 out of 5]

يعد الكتاب تأريخاً لظهور الإسلام في عصر النبي عليه السلام والخلفاء الراشدين، ويتكون من ثلاثة أجزاء؛ الجزء الأول يتناول التاريخ الكلاسيكي لبدايات الإسلام، وفيه لخص المؤلف وجهة نظر المؤرخين المسلمين عن هذه الأحداث.
أما الجزء الثاني فهو أصل الكتاب، وفيه يضع المؤلف وجهة نظره في التاريخ الإسلامي. وخصص الجزء الأخير لوجهات النظر المعاصرة، حيث يناقش المؤلف رؤى المسلمين المعاصرين لبدايات الإسلام، ويُعدُّ هذا الجزء أضعف الأجزاء، وكأنه مقحم على الكتاب أو كُتب على عجل.
يرى المؤلف أن أفضل حل لدراسة بدايات التاريخ الإسلامي -خصوصاً في ظل انعدام المصادر- هو التركيز على ما يقوله القرآن لفهم الأحداث وليس العكس، كما يحدث عندما يحاول المسلمون فهم القرآن بدراسة السيرة وأسباب النزول؛ فالمؤلف يرى أن القرآن، بحكم أنه أقدم نص إسلامي موثوق، هو المصدر الأنسب لفهم بدايات الإسلام. ومن خلال هذه الفكرة، يبدأ بمناقشة القرآن وضرورة قراءته في سياق عصره، ويرى أن القصص القرآني يعطي انطباعاً بأن المحيطين بالرسول في ذلك الوقت كانوا على دراية واسعة بالتوراة والإنجيل.

[Sasha (bahareads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

*I had to read this for my college class "Biblical Application of Middle Eastern Literature"

Gabriel Said Reynolds does a great job with the structure of book and explaining the emergence and rise of Islam. Reynolds also shows a good comparison of Islam with Christianity, and how Islam samples from Christianity. Reynold educated me on Islam and its history, the Quran and the Hadith, and all the other things surrounding it.

[Usama Al-Binni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very nice introduction if you don't know much about Islam. If you know a lot though, you'd likely find it somewhat underwhelming compared to Reynold's Quran and the Bible youtube series. The book is written in a pedagogical style with study questions. Very useful for teaching.

[Kendra Fiddler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paradigm-shifting for the traditional narratives.

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

Indispensable to anyone studying Islam.

[Zaid · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best single volume secular introduction to Islam. Even experts will enjoy Part 2 where the author attempts to reconstruct glimpses of Islamic origins from the Quran alone.

[Caleb Hecox · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hizstorical

Good comparison of Islam with Christianity. Shows th e history of Islamic religion well and how it has developed for today.

[Mano Chil · Rating 5 out of 5]

I liked how the author had divided the sections of the book. I also liked the fact that he quoted from different who were for and against Islam.