Islam's Jesus

4. The Hadith and Jesus’s Eschatological Descent

four The Hadith and Jesus’s Eschatological Descent The Qur’an does not directly refer to Jesus’s eschatological descent per se, but there are verses that hint at it; in the preceding chapter I cited at least four of them. The Hadith, or the sayings of the Prophet, give detailed accounts of the descent of Jesus and shape Muslims’ belief about Jesus’s eschatological descent. Many Muslim historians and biographers who were well versed in the Islamic science of Hadith spoke of Jesus. Some prominent Muslim historians even give details of the story of the life of Jesus and commentary on the Qur’anic verses and sayings of the Prophet about Jesus; these include Abu ‘Abdillah Muhammad bin ‘Umar al-Waqidi (d. 823), in his book Futuh al-Sham [Conquests of Greater Syria]; Ahmad bin Ishaq bin Ja‘far al-Ya‘qubi (d. 897), a Muslim historian and geographer who wrote the famous al-Tarikh; and Abu al-Quasim ’Ali bin Hasan Ibn ‘Asakir (d. 1176), who was arguably the most knowledgeable scholar of Islam in his time in both history and Hadith literature, in his famous book Tarikh Madinat Damashq [The History of the City of Damascus]. Ibn ‘Asakir in particular expected the imminent coming of Jesus to help Muslims against the oppression of crusaders.1 What was the relationship between Jesus and Damascus that prompted al-Waqidi and Ibn ‘Asakir to dedicate sections to Jesus in their books on Damascus? It seems that the Prophet’s sayings that the eschatological descent of Jesus was to occur in Damascus drew the interest of both authors. According to some hadith narratives, at the end of time Jesus will descend to the top of the white minaret that is part of the renowned Umayyad Mosque in Damascus. Working with just such an eschatological scenario in mind, Ibn ‘Asakir gives many titles to Jesus, calling him a just ruler, a leader, and even the rightly guided Islamic messianic figure, the Mahdi.2 The Hadith and Its Significance in Islamic Theology Before delving into the details of the descent of Jesus as presented in the body of the Hadith, it is important to elaborate on the concept of the Hadith and Islam’s Jesus 56 its significance in Islamic theology. First, the differences between the Qur’an and the Hadith should be made clear. Muslims believe that the Qur’an is the direct word of God, revealed to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel. It is considered a direct revelation from God rather than an inspiration. The source of a revelation is always divine with an angel, generally Gabriel, as a mediator. According to Islamic theology, Gabriel’s major duty is to bring revelation to the prophets of God. Revelation is absolute while inspiration is limited and can be ambiguous. Although inspiration is a spiritual intuition that comes from God, it is below the level of revelation and is not necessarily mediated by an angel. An inspiration that comes to prophets is greater and clearer than the inspiration that comes to saints. Inspiration also comes to the hearts of individuals, be they saints or regular people, which they express in their own words; for that reason inspiration is not as clear as revelation. In fact, in some cases inspiration might even cause some confusion on the part of the person receiving it, similar to when one sees an object through a blurred eyeglass. Keeping this theological difference in mind, we can look at the Hadith as the divine inspiration of the Prophet. Although the Qur’an calls the Prophet’s words a revelation, the term is not used in its precise theological sense (53:4). The Prophet of Islam is the center of the religion and the most important figure for Muslims in the era of the commencement of Islam and even today. Every aspect of his life, including his words, his actions, and his reactions to certain events, were and still are essential for Muslims. The Qur’an presents him as an exemplary personality to be emulated. “Surely for you, O believers, who have hope in God and the Day of Judgment, there is a beautiful example in the Messenger of God” (33:21). The Qur’an explicitly connects the love of God to following the practice of the Prophet. “Say, [O Muhammad, to your people,] if you really love God, follow me so that God will love you” (3:31). Despite the Qur’an’s emphasis on the Prophet, we do...