Moses’s people believed by affirming what they saw, while the community of Muhammad believes by submission
Editorial verification status: this atom is extracted from an explanatory audiovisual source, and it has now been linked to the nearest books within the Shahrur project at the book level. For precise academic citation, consult the original book and the original episode together.
Formulation of the claim
Shahrur distinguishes between the faith of Moses’s people, which was based on seeing and affirming, and the faith of Muhammad’s community, which rests on submission before seeing.
Explanation
He says that Moses’s signs were manifest, witnessed proofs, and therefore belief in them was direct affirming belief. As for Muslims with Muhammad, they do not see those same miracles, so their belief is closer to submission. Here Shahrur establishes a distinction between two modes of faith according to the nature of the sign and the message. He uses this distinction to explain the difference between prophethood and messengerhood in the Qur’anic experience.
Its place in the episode’s argument
This atom connects the topic of “manifest proofs” with the topic of miracle, and explains why it is not permissible to project the Moses model onto the Muhammad model.
Limits of the claim
This does not mean that one mode is absolutely better than the other, but rather that each has its own context.
Brief witness
“Moses’s people… believed in it by affirming… we… believe in it by submission.”
Nearby links
- Shahrur - faith
- Shahrur - the prophet
- Book: Islam and Faith