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Mary, Sister of Aaron: Difference between revisions
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Her father's name was Joachim, and her mother's Anna. The family of her father was of Galilee and the city of Nazareth. The family of her mother was of Bethlehem.}} | Her father's name was Joachim, and her mother's Anna. The family of her father was of Galilee and the city of Nazareth. The family of her mother was of Bethlehem.}} | ||
==Traditional Muslim Explanations== | ==Traditional Muslim Explanations== | ||
Ibn Kathir gave the following explanation in his tafsir:{{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 | Ibn Kathir gave the following explanation in his tafsir:{{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 says "sister (أُخْتَ) of Aaron" and people understood the verse to literally mean "sister of Aaron". Only | The Qur'an says "sister (أُخْتَ) of Aaron" and people understood the verse to literally mean "sister of Aaron". Only after this relation was criticized as an error did it become instead understood as a metaphor meaning "a descendant of Aaron". Christian sources consistently stated that Mary was from the family of David, so many wondered why the Qur'an would describe her as instead 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, Elizabeth is said to be a cousin or relative of Mary <ref>https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke+1</ref>. But being related to another person does not guarantee that one also descends from any particular one of that person’s distant ancestors (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. | 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. | ||
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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. | 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"=== | ||
Christian sources say her father was named Joachim and they don't mention she had a brother called Aaron. And if she had a brother called Aaron, then the question still is, why is she called "sister of Aaron"? If | Christian sources say her father was named Joachim, and they don't mention she had a brother called Aaron. And if she had a brother called Aaron, then the question still is, why is she called "sister of Aaron"? If this brother is so important that he had to be mentioned with her name, why don't we hear more about him? It is more probable that the author of the Qur'an thought that she really is the sister of Aaron and Moses, and so in the Qur'an people called her "sister of Aaron" to emphasize her social status.{{Quote|{{Quran|19|28}}|O sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a wicked man nor was thy mother a harlot.}}In other words, the people asked "How can you have a baby without a husband, when you are from such a moral family". | ||
==Moses' Father== | ==Moses' Father== | ||