This is a lexicon entry that gathers the technical meaning of this term in Shahrur across his various books, and links together its multiple uses.
This entry belongs to the Shahrur lexicon. For reading by theme, one may refer to Shahrur’s major themes and shared concepts.
Meaning according to Shahrur
The messenger is the one who bears a divine message that is binding to convey to people, and his obedience in this framework is an obedience grounded in mercy and guidance, not coercion. In this source, he is understood as the bearer of the function of conveying and warning, with his station distinguished from that of the prophet.
Distinctions
- It differs from the prophet in that message and conveying are the center of meaning here, not mere prophethood as a general station
- It does not denote coercive authority or an obligation backed by violence, but rather obedience linked to freedom and mercy.
- It is not equivalent to the concept of faith specific to the Muhammadan message, because this term describes the bearer of the message, not the content of faith itself.
Passages from his books
- Islam and Faith: the messenger is the bearer of the divine message that must be conveyed, and obedience to him is linked to mercy, not coercion. In this source, his station is separated from that of the prophet, so conveying becomes his primary function
What is adjacent to it and different from it
- The prophet
- Faith specific to the Muhammadan message
- Distinguishing between the messenger and the prophet redefines the boundaries of authority and revelation
- Religion according to Shahrur is a free covenant that rejects coercion and violence
- Shahrur re-calibrates religious authority through freedom and the limits of revelation and ijtihad
- Obedience to the messenger is mercy for humanity
- Obedience to the messenger within a framework of freedom