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Mary, Sister of Aaron: Difference between revisions
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'''Mary (Miriam) the sister of Aaron''' (and of Moses), is mentioned in the [[Quran]] in passing in reference to | '''Mary (Miriam) the sister of Aaron''' (and of Moses), is mentioned in the [[Quran]], in passing, in reference to [[Mary]] (Mariam) the mother of [[Jesus]].<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|34}}</ref> Many [[Critics of Islam|critics]] of the Quran as far back as [[Muhammad ibn Abdullah|Muhammad]]'s time regard this as a simple but revealing error.<ref name=":0">Mughira b. Shu'ba reported: | ||
When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them. | When I came to Najran, they (the Christians of Najran) asked me: You read "O sister of Harun" (i. e. Hadrat Maryam) in the Qur'an, whereas Moses was born much before Jesus. When I came back to Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) I asked him about that, whereupon he said: The (people of the old age) used to give names (to their persons) after the names of Apostles and pious persons who had gone before them. | ||
{{Muslim|28|13}}</ref> In [[Arabic]] both Marys are called by the same name مريم (''Maryam''). | {{Muslim|28|13}}</ref> In [[Arabic]] both Marys are called by the same name مريم (''Maryam''). Skeptical Jewish and Christian scholars at the time believed Muhammad had mistook Jesus' mother for Moses' sister.<ref name=":0" /> While they share a common name, they lived more than a thousand years apart. When confronted, in the [[hadith]] Muhammad explains that their perception is a misunderstanding, however, many remained unconvinced.<ref name=":0" /> Ultimately, it seems, Muhammad came to assert that Aaron and Moses had a sister whose name was Kulthum rather than Miriam, though this too seemed to many a poor cover-up.<ref>{{Quran-range|19|27|28}}.</ref><ref>{{Muslim|25|5326}}.</ref><ref>[http://www.al-islam.org/hayat-al-qulub-vol2-allamah-muhammad-baqir-al-majlisi/ Majlisi, ''Hayat al-Qulub'' 2:26].</ref> | ||
==Mention of Mary in the Quran== | ==Mention of Mary in the Quran== | ||
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{{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2684&Itemid=75 Maryam with Al-Masih before the People, Their Rejection of Her and His Reply to Them]<BR>Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=(O sister of Harun!) referring to the brother of Musa, because she was of his descendants. This is similar to the saying, `O brother of Tamim,' to one who is from the Tamimi tribe, and `O brother of Mudar,' to one who is from the Mudari tribe. It has also been said that she was related to a righteous man among them whose name was Harun and she was comparable to him in her abstinence and worship.}} | {{Quote|1=[http://www.qtafsir.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=2684&Itemid=75 Maryam with Al-Masih before the People, Their Rejection of Her and His Reply to Them]<BR>Tafsir Ibn Kathir|2=(O sister of Harun!) referring to the brother of Musa, because she was of his descendants. This is similar to the saying, `O brother of Tamim,' to one who is from the Tamimi tribe, and `O brother of Mudar,' to one who is from the Mudari tribe. It has also been said that she was related to a righteous man among them whose name was Harun and she was comparable to him in her abstinence and worship.}} | ||
That he mentioned two alternative explanations suggests he was unsure regarding the certainty of either of them | |||
==="Sister of Aaron means a descendant of Aaron"=== | ==="Sister of Aaron means a descendant of Aaron"=== | ||
The Qur'an | The Qur'an says "sister (أُخْتَ) of Aaron" and people understood the verse to literally mean "sister of Aaron". Only when Muhammad came to know that it was wrong, the meaning changed into "a descendant of Aaron". In the Christian sources she is said to be from the family of David, so many wondered why the Qur'an would describe her as being from the family of Aaron? Some point out that in Luke 1:5, Elizabeth is said to be a descendant of Aaron and in Luke 1:36 Mary is said to be a cousin or relative of Mary <ref>https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1</ref>. But, as it stands, being related to a descendant doesn't guarantee one's own descendancy from the same ancestor (Aaron in this case). | ||
Furthermore, if she was a known descendant of Aaron, then one wonders why the learned Arab Christians (and Aisha and Mughira b. Shu'ba) of Muhammad's time were unaware of this. | |||
The additional description of her as the "daughter of Amram (Imran)" in Surahs 3 and 66 appears to make the matter even foggier and more clearly problematic. | |||
==="Mary coincidentally had a father called Imran and a brother called Aaron"=== | ==="Mary coincidentally had a father called Imran and a brother called Aaron"=== | ||