Basic
Worldview:
104
Why Christianity?
Explaining
the Success of Islam (Part 2)
Evidentiary
Religions - Islam Introduction
Koran
and Judeo-Christian Apostles
Koran
and Judeo-Christian Scriptures
Koran
Contradicts Judeo-Christianity (Part 1)
Koran
Contradicts Judeo-Christianity (Part 2)
Koran
Contradicts Judeo-Christianity (Part 3)
Koran
Contradicts Judeo-Christianity (Part 4)
Another
Gospel and Explaining the Success of Islam (P. 1)
Explaining
the Success of Islam (Part 2)
Explaining
the Success of Islam (Part 3)
Islam
Conclusions
Introduction | Section 1
| Section 2 | Section
3
(Continued from previous section.)
But what about Mohammed himself? Perhaps it was just these
homeless emigrants who were raiding the caravans.
"Muhammad - Others, with the approval of Muhammad,
set out in normal Arab fashion on razzias (ghazawat, "raids")
in the hope of intercepting Meccan caravans passing near Medina
on their way to Syria." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - Muhammad himself led three such razzias
in 623. They all failed, probably because traitors betrayed
the Muslim movements to the enemy. At last, in January
624, a small band of men was sent eastward with sealed orders
telling them to proceed to Nakhlah, near Mecca, and attack
a caravan from Yemen. This they did successfully, and
in doing so they violated pagan ideas of sanctity - thereby
making the Meccans aware of the seriousness of the threat
from Muhammad." - Britannica.com
Mohammed not only approved of the raiding of Meccan caravans,
but he also ordered some and personally participated in others,
including 3 such raids in 623, just one year after his flight
to Medina.
So, how does these raids escalate to broader military conflict
resulting in the spreading of Islam through armed battle?
"Muhammad, prophet of Islam - Medina lies on the
caravan route N of Mecca, and the Kuraishites of Mecca
could not endure the thought of their outlawed relative
taking vengeance on his native city by plundering their caravans."
- The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001.
As stated above, these raids by Mohammed and the Muslims made
"the Meccans aware of the seriousness of the threat from Muhammad"
Needless to say that the Meccans were not happy that Mohammed
and his 70 emigrant followers from Mecca were now making a
living for themselves by raiding Meccan caravans. So, the
Meccans took up arms to stop Mohammed and his followers. Our
next excerpts will recount what happens next.
"Muhammad - In March 624 he was able to lead about
315 men on a razzia to attack a wealthy Meccan caravan returning
from Syria. The caravan, led by Abu Sufyan, the head of
the Umayyah clan, eluded the Muslims by devious routes and
forced marches. Abu Jahl, the head of the Makhzum clan, however,
leading a supporting force of perhaps 800 men, wanted
to teach Muhammad a lesson and did not withdraw. On March
15, 624, near a place called Badr, the two forces found
themselves in a situation, perhaps contrived by Muhammad,
from which neither could withdraw without disgrace. In
the ensuing battle at least 45 Meccans were killed, including
Abu Jahl and other leading men, and nearly 70 taken prisoner,
while only 14 Muslims died. To Muhammad this appeared to be
a divine vindication of his prophethood, and he and all
the Muslims were greatly elated." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad, prophet of Islam - A pitched battle between
Muhammad's men and the Meccans occurred at Badr, and the
victory of an inferior force from the poorer city over the
men of Mecca gave Islam great prestige in SW Arabia."
- The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001.
Notice the timeframe for these events is March 624 AD. This
is just 2 years after Mohammed's relocation to Medina and
at this point in time Mohammed himself has already been on
a least 3 raids as well as approving and ordering many others.
To put is simply, in the 2 years since his flight from Mecca
to Medina, Mohammed and his followers were engaging in pirating
raids on caravans from Mecca for financial benefit. This came
to a conflict when about 800 Meccans arrived to support the
caravan and counterattack the Muslim raiders. This is known
as the battle of Badr.
The result of the Battle was that although Mohammed and his
Muslims raiders were "an inferior force" they lost only 14
men compared to the 45 men lost by the Meccans. They also
managed to take 70 of the Meccan's prisoner.
This definitive victory by the weaker Muslims marked a turning
point for Mohammed and Islam. Not only were these raids about
armed thievery, but the victory on this particular raid gave
the relatively small community of Muslims confidence that
Mohammed was indeed a prophet from God. The victory by the
weaker Muslim raiders over the superior Meccans (who were
simply defending their caravans) was indeed viewed as a sign
of God's support.
"Muhammad - In the flush of victory some persons
in Medina who had satirized Muhammad in verse were assassinated,
perhaps with his connivance...The remaining waverers among
the Arabs probably became Muslims about this time. Thus
the victory of Badr greatly strengthened Muhammad." -
Britannica.com
Consequently, as the quote above demonstrates, this military
victory not only led to the assassination of Mohammed's critics
in Medina, but to additional conversions to Islam as well.
With this unlikely military victory at Badr, Islam began to
expand and bring in new converts.
And with the victory at Badr behind him and people at Medina
being more open to his leadership, Mohammed continued even
more raids to bring in even more stolen goods to his followers
from the Meccan caravans.
"Muhammad - In the same year Muhammad led larger
Muslim forces on razzias against hostile nomadic tribes
and had some success. Presumably, he realized that
the Meccans were bound to try to avenge their defeat. Indeed,
Abu Sufyan was energetically mobilizing Meccan power. On March
21, 625, he entered the oasis of Medina with 3,000 men...On
the morning of March 23 the Meccan infantry attacked and was
repulsed with considerable loss. As the Muslims pursued, the
Meccan cavalry launched a flank attack after the archers guarding
the Muslim left had abandoned their position. The Muslims
were thrown into confusion. Some made for a fort and were
cut down, but Muhammad and the bulk of his force managed
to gain the lower slopes of Uhud, where they were safe
from the cavalry." - Britannica.com
Just one year after the victory at Badr, the Meccans and Muslims
met again in combat in March of 625 AD. Just as before, the
Meccans were attempting to defend their caravans from Mohammed
and his forces who were again engaged in raids. This time,
the Muslims were not successful as they had been at Badr.
"Muhammad, prophet of Islam - More than a year later
the battle of Uhud was fought but with less fortunate results."
- The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001.
"Muhammad - The battle produced neither a clear
victor nor loser. In Badr and Uhud together, the Meccans
had killed about as many men as they had lost; but they
had boasted that they would make the Muslims pay several times
over, and they had not shown the degree of superiority appropriate
to their leading position in Arabia." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - Muhammad, though he had lost above 70 men,
realized that this was a military reverse, not a defeat;
but the confidence of the Muslims and perhaps his own had
been struck a serious blow. If the victory of Badr was
a sign of God's support, did Uhud indicate that he had abandoned
the Muslims? Muhammad's faith soon overcame any momentary
doubts, and he was gradually able to restore the confidence
of his followers." - Britannica.com
The problem now was simple. Mohammed's military victory over
the Meccans at Badr had greatly helped to convince the people
that God was on his side. But since God did not provide the
same decisive victory at Uhud but instead the Muslims found
themselves in a stalemate, the confidence in Mohammed's divine
mandate was in question and needed to be restored.
In the mutual loss at Uhud provides a very significant example
of what we promised above. As we began this survey of the
militant origins of Islam, we stated that even though Mohammed
was able to greatly advance Islam through military means,
his military efforts were a mixture of successes and failures.
These mixed results provided further demonstration that neither
Mohammed's military success nor his success at spreading Islam
were the work of a divine power. They were merely the result
of mixed human efforts and opportunities. And the mutual losses
on both sides at Uhud provided just such a demonstration to
the people of Mecca and Medina, who now experienced temporary
doubts about Mohammed's legitimacy as a prophet.
So, after the problematic result at Uhud, Mohammed moves ahead
to continue building his Islamic community. And how does he
build that confidence and community? Through more caravan
raids, which provided additional material gain for his followers.
"Muhammad - For two years after Uhud, both sides
prepared for a decisive encounter. In the razzias Muhammad
led or sanctioned, he seems to have aimed at extending his
own alliances and at preventing others from joining the
Meccans." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - Ever since the hijrah, Muhammad had
been forming alliances with nomadic tribes. At first these
were probably nonaggression pacts, but, when he was strong
enough to offer protection, he made it a condition of alliance
that the tribe should become Muslim." - Britannica.com
Here we see that after Uhud Mohammed wisely uses his raids
to build alliances in order to help him with his ongoing military
conflict with the Meccan's, who were attacking Mohammed in
defense of their own caravans.
"Muhammad - And another Jewish clan was expelled from
Medina. At length, in April 627 Abu Sufyan led a great
confederacy of 10,000 men against Medina...For a fortnight
the confederates besieged the Muslims. Attempts to cross the
trench failed...Then, after a night of wind and rain the great
army melted away. The Meccans had exerted their utmost
might and had failed to dislodge Muhammad, whose position
was now greatly strengthened." - Britannica.com
So, after Uhud and after 2 years of continued raids in which
Mohammed used the raids to build alliances, the Meccans finally
attacked again in April 627 AD. But the Meccans failed to
defeat Mohammed once again and the result was that Mohammed's
strength, both in perception and in reality, continued to
grow.
However, by this point in time, Mohammed and the Muslims had
expanded their raiding to include other groups such as the
Jews living in the area, who provided another opportunity
for financial conquest.
"Muhammad - After the siege of Medina, Muhammad
attacked the Jewish clan of Qurayzah, which had probably
been intriguing against him. When they surrendered, the
men were all executed and the women and children sold as slaves."
- Britannica.com
So, again and again we are seeing these same elements. Mohammed
is raiding caravans and clans including Meccans and Jews and
others to provide financially for his followers. His is using
these raids also to create a system of alliances to help him
against the Meccans who are now engaged in a prolonged counterattack
campaign against Mohammed because of the raids. And the longer
Mohammed holds out against the Meccans and the more raids
he can carry out, the more people he is able to convince and
the more military allies he is able to acquire.
Mohammed's ability to spread Islam is no mystery. Nor is it
the result of divine assistance. Islam grew because Mohammed
was winning military victories, forming military alliances
against his enemies, and providing for his followers through
pirating raids on caravans.
But, having successfully held out against the Meccans' most
determined efforts in the siege of 627 AD, Mohammed now set
his sites on his former hometown, Mecca itself.
"Muhammad - The Meccans were determined to prevent
the Muslims from entering their town, so Muhammad halted
at al-Hudaybiyah, on the edge of the sacred territory
of Mecca. After some critical days the Meccans made a treaty
with Muhammad. Hostilities were to cease, and the Muslims
were to be allowed to make the pilgrimage to Mecca in 629.
In 628 AD, Mohammed marched against Mecca but instead of victory,
Mohammed settled for a treaty with the Muslims that would
end conflict with the Meccans and allow the Muslims to make
pilgrimage there. Here again we see another example of Mohammed's
mixture of moderate successes, which again bears evidence
that Mohammed's victories were not the decisive work of a
divine being.
After this treaty with the Meccans, Mohammed turned his sites
on an easier opponent, one he could raid with more success
in order to continue the ongoing flow of financial wealth
to his followers. This, of course, was again the Jews who
lived in the region.
"Muhammad - The orderly withdrawal showed how completely
Muhammad controlled his followers. Partly to reward this
orderly conduct, Muhammad two months later led the same force
against the Jewish oasis of Khaybar, north of Medina.
After a siege it submitted, but the Jews were allowed to
remain on condition of sending half of the date harvest
to Medina. Thus throughout 628 and 629 Muhammad's power
was growing, since success led more men to become Muslims,
for the religious attraction of Islam was apparently supplemented
by material motives." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad, prophet of Islam - Medina had a large
Jewish population which controlled most of the wealth of the
city, and they steadfastly refused to give their new
ruler any kind of religious allegiance. Muhammad, after a
long quarrel, appropriated much of their property, and his
first actual conquest was the oasis of Khaibar, occupied by
the Jews, in 628." - The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth
Edition. 2001.
Of course, the focus of Mohammed's raid was the Jewish oasis
of Khaybar. But we should also take note that Mohammed had
since assumed control of Jewish wealth in Medina due to the
refusal of the Jews there to give him any religious allegiance.
In these two actions, we again see the extent to which Islam
was advanced through military conquest, material provision,
and persecution of those who refused to pay homage to Mohammed,
which the following quote will attest to as well.
"Islam - Jews and Christians were assigned a
special status as communities possessing scriptures and called
the "people of the Book" (ahl al-kitab) and, therefore, were
allowed religious autonomy. They were, however, required to
pay a per capita tax called jizyah, as opposed to pagans,
who were required to either accept Islam or die." -
Britannica.com
As we can see, the more strength Islam gained through its
military actions, the more it forced its religion on other
peoples. Jews were in some cases raided (as in Khaybar and
Qurayzah) and in other cases money taken from them simply
for not giving Mohammed religious allegiance (as in Medina).
As we have seen, Pagan Arabs were forced to accept Islam in
order to obtain military alliance or protection. And in other
cases, pagan Arabs were forced to accept Islam or die.
Still, the story of Islam's rise through military conquest
for financial benefit continues.
"Muhammad - An attack by Meccan allies in about November
629 upon allies of Muhammad led to the latter's denunciation
of the treaty of al-Hudaybiyah. After secret preparations
he marched on Mecca in January 630 with 10,000 men.
Abu Sufyan and other leading Meccans went out to meet him
and formally submitted, and Muhammad promised a general
amnesty. When he entered Mecca there was virtually no resistance."
- Britannica.com
"Muhammad, prophet of Islam - In 630 he marched
against Mecca, which fell without a fight. Arabia was won."
- The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001.
So, from his flight to Medina in 622 AD to his victorious
entry into Mecca in 630 AD, the spread of Islam can be clearly
attributed to Mohammed's mixed but ultimately successful results
in military conquest for the financial gain of his followers.
But notice that Mohammed's activities in Mecca also provide
further corroboration that Islam grew simply by means of Mohammed's
military strength and his providing of material goods to his
followers.
"Muhammad - Thus Muhammad, who had left Mecca as a
persecuted prophet, not merely entered it again in triumph
but also gained the allegiance of most of the Meccans. Though
he did not insist on their becoming Muslims, many soon did
so." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - Muhammad spent 15 to 20 days in Mecca settling
various matters of administration. Idols were destroyed
in the Ka'bah and in some small shrines in the neighbourhood.
To relieve the poorest among his followers, he demanded
loans from some of the wealthy Meccans." - Britannica.com
It cannot be said that the Meccan's conversion resulted from
legitimate persuasion that Islam was true. Instead, now in
a position of military control over Mecca, Mohammed uses his
military strength to destroy the idols and shrines of other
gods worshipped by the Meccans. The result of this military
action against their religious practices is that most of the
Meccans finally convert to Islam. The Meccans did not convert
because they were persuaded of Islam's validity but because
Mohammed was exercising his military prowess to outright destroy
their former religious practices.
Additionally, it is important to note that upon conquest of
Mecca, not only did Mohammed use his military might to crush
opposing religions, but he also used his position of prowess
to force wealthy Meccans to make loans to provide for the
poorer Muslims. In this way, not only was military might used
to aid in conversion, but material gain continued to be a
benefit for the converted, as it had been all along from the
very beginning of the raids in 622 AD after the flight to
Medina.
And did the spreading of Islam through military conquest and
pirating raids end once Mohammed conquered Mecca? Nope.
"Muhammad - He might have proceeded to crush the
Meccans, and he indeed put economic pressure on them; but
his main aim was to gain their willing adherence to Islam.
He had already realized that, insofar as the Arabs became
Muslims, it would be necessary to direct outward the energies
expended on razzias against one another." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - When he marched east to meet a new threat,
2,000 Meccans went with him." - Britannica.com
Most notably, they continued the "razzias" or raids, by which
he and his Muslim followers had provided for themselves financially
from the beginning starting with the flight to Medina in 622
AD. The only real difference was, he was no longer fighting
against the Meccans. From now on, the Meccan's went with him
as part of his own forces. With the Meccan's defeated and
subsequently converted after his destruction of their idols
and shrines, Mohammed turned his attention outward toward
other Arab groups.
The reason for this action against other Arab groups was two-fold.
As shown above, Islam has always spread through two primary
means. First, Islam had always grown through military action
against unbelieving groups, such as the Meccans and even some
Jews in the region. So, for Islam to continue to spread, that
would require continued military conquest of unbelieving groups.
Second, conversion had always benefited followers financially,
not only from the very onset with the first raids from Medina
but also in the loans for the poor Muslims acquired upon conquest
of Mecca. So, for Islam to continue to spread, that would
presumably required the continuation of financial provision
and material benefit for the converts.
And so the raids and military action did in fact continue
against unbelieving groups to the financial benefit of those
who decided to convert and follow Mohammed. However, Mohammed
was now much more powerful militarily after his conquest of
Mecca. Since Mecca was arguably the strongest and wealthiest
group in the area, its defeat also brought other tribes into
military alliance with Mohammed. So, this military might not
only forced the Meccans to conversion through the destruction
of their idols and shrines, but it also forced the conversion
of the tribes, which sought alliances after Mecca's defeat.
"Muhammad - Muhammad was now militarily the strongest
man in Arabia. Most tribes sent deputations to Medina seeking
alliance." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - Ever since the hijrah, Muhammad had been
forming alliances with nomadic tribes. At first these were
probably nonaggression pacts, but, when he was strong enough
to offer protection, he made it a condition of alliance that
the tribe should become Muslim. While in Mecca Muhammad had
word of a large concentration of hostile nomads, and he set
out to confront them." - Britannica.com
So, to this point, Mohammed's surprise victory at Badr in
624 AD allowed him to crush opposition in Medina, including
the use of assassinations against critics.
"Muhammad - In the flush of victory some persons
in Medina who had satirized Muhammad in verse were assassinated,
perhaps with his connivance...The remaining waverers among
the Arabs probably became Muslims about this time. Thus
the victory of Badr greatly strengthened Muhammad." -
Britannica.com
Then Mohammed's conquest of Mecca in 630 allowed him to destroy
the idols and shrines of the Meccans, who subsequently converted.
"Muhammad - Muhammad spent 15 to 20 days in Mecca settling
various matters of administration. Idols were destroyed
in the Ka'bah and in some small shrines in the neighbourhood."
- Britannica.com
And as we just saw above, this victory in Mecca also gave
Mohammed the strength to acquire more alliances with other
Arab tribes and to make conversion to Islam a requirement
for the alliance. With his military now the strongest in the
region, Mohammed continued further raids to expand his territory
and using the spoils to provide financial benefit to the converts.
"Muhammad - While in Mecca Muhammad had word
of a large concentration of hostile nomads, and he set out
to confront them. A battle took place at Hunayn in which
part of Muhammad's army was put to flight, but he himself
and some older Muslims stood firm. The enemy was finally
routed, and their dependents and possessions were all
captured. They were allowed to ransom wives and children,
but their livestock was divided as booty." - Britannica.com
What is again interesting about the excerpt above is that
even after his victory in Mecca, Mohammed's military successes
were still a mix of failure and success. It was thought that
Mohammed's victory at Badr with inferior forces demonstrated
that God was with him. But now with the strongest military
in the region, Mohammed's forces were put to flight. The victory
was not a decisive display of divine support, but eventually
victory was obtained and again the spoils of war were divided
among those who had converted to Islam.
As to the successful spread of Islam after Mohammed's death
in 632 AD, his pattern of enlarging Islam through military
conquest and provided financial incentive to the followers
continued with his successors.
"Muhammad - The greatest of all of Muhammad's razzias
occurred at the end of 630, when he took 30,000 men on a month's
journey to the Syrian border. In this campaign he pioneered
the invasion of Syria and made agreements that became
models for treaty arrangements with captured peoples." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - It is noteworthy that his largest razzias,
apart from the expeditions against the Meccans, were along
the route to Syria followed by the Arab armies after his
death." - Britannica.com
"Muhammad - Before his death, armed opposition to
him appeared in one or two parts of Arabia, but the Islamic
state was strong enough to deal with this. Thus he
left most of Arabia united and poised for expansion into Syria
and Iraq." - Britannica.com
In the years before his death, Mohammed's raids only increased
in size as Mohammed set his sights beyond Arabia to the rest
of the Middle East, including Syria and Iraq. His success
in battle and his habit of dividing the spoils for the financial
benefit of anyone who converted, particularly those who participated
in the fighting, set the stage for his successors to continue
the very successful methods of spreading Islam.
But despite their success, these methods were anything but
proof of divine support. Instead, the success was the simple
outcome of natural, human activity. Financial incentive was
provided both for conversion and for fighting by means of
dividing the spoils of the raids to Muslim families who participated.
Financial incentive led to more converts. Increased fighters
led to increased military victories. Increased military success
led to more converts and more financial spoils for Muslims,
which in turn provided still further incentive to fight, conquer,
and spread Islam.
In short, nothing about Islam's successful expansion provides
any validation whatsoever to Mohammed's claim that he was
God's chosen messenger or that his teaching was from the true
God.
(Continued in next section.)
