IS ISA (JESUS) COMING AGAIN? (PART 4)

IS ISA (JESUS) COMING AGAIN? (PART4) Our denial of 'Isa's nuzul does not necessarily imply disbelief in the ahadith of the Prophet concerning this but an amplification of our consistency in interpreting the Prophet's predictions on ad-Dajjal and the killing of the latter at the hands of 'Isa as the ascendancy of justice over evil. In the same vein, we do not extend our confirmation of 'Isa's rafc to his nuzul towards the end of Time. The Qur'an fell short of promising that 'Isa would be 'descended' again. Neither is 'Isa the first to be so raised (Idris too was raised 19:57) and no one appears to be contemplating the descent of any other prophet. Having examined the views of the Qur'an and the hadith on this issue, we now want to sound the opinions of scholars on the question of the nuzul of 'Isa. It should be noted that this writer is not the first to deny Isa's nuzul or Second Coming. Among the Islamic scholars who have debunked the idea are Rashid Rida, Al-Qadi 'Iyad, Al-Sa'd, Shaykh al-Muraghi and Maulana Muhammad 'Ali, to mention just a few. The argument that the Qur'an did not mention 'Isa's raf' physically and alive is emphasized by Rashid Rida, a contemporary Egyptian Scholar in the tenth volume of his work Al-Munar (The Light) in which he rejects the theory of the nuzul. Al-Qadi 'Iyad in his Sharh al-Muslim (Explanation of Muslim's Sahih) calls the idea "mere wishful thinking in both origin and implication." Al-Sa'd in his Sharh al-Maqasid (Explanation of Intentions) attacks nuzul as obtaining "only in the figment of imagination." Shaykh al-Muraghi also refuses to be carried away by the traditions which imply 'Isa's nuzul arguing that faith in any Islamic issue is not wajib (compulsory) unless the Qur'an expressly mentions it or many ahadith enjoin it. Maulana Muhammad 'Ali compares 'Isa's nuzul to that of Elijah's second coming, a promise in the Bible (Malachi 4:5) after he had been taken up in a whirlwind (2 Kings 2:11). Curiously enough, 'Isa too was 'taken up' or 'raised' and is believed to be alive in heaven. But Jesus confirmed that he (Elijah) had come without people knowing (in form of John the Baptist, Mathew 17:11-13 ) thus fulfilling the prophecy. The analogy here is that though Elijah's second coming was promised he did not come in his personal form but in the image of John the Baptist. Muhammad 'Ali thus dealt a fatal blow to the theory of nuzul. Religion needs reformers. Society is in dire need of cleansing and the masses are badly in need of a redeemer. These functions of reform, cleansing and redemption will now be performed by reformers. In Muhammad 'Ali's opinion it is these reformers (mujadidun) that the world will continue to have. To support this idea of the advent of reformers, he says:     "Though Prophethood, being no longer needed, has been brought to a close, the gift of Divine revelation to the righteous servants of God is still granted as heretofore." To further support his idea, Muhammad 'Ali contends that since speaking (al-Kalam) is a divine attribute which must continue "because God's attributes never cease to function", Allah continues to speak to the righteous. Finally, he cites an hadith recorded by Abu Da'ud asserting that Allah will raise reformers among Muslims. We are inclined to agree with Muhammad 'Ali. We call attention to his logical argument and particularly his comparison between Elijah and 'Isa's returns. The fact that Elijah's return which was promised in the scripture materialised in a different form vindicates our metaphorical interpretation of 'Isa's nuzul which was not promised in the Qur'an except in the hadith which mentions it in only a few ahadith thereby reducing conviction. What we are sure of is that as far as the Qur'an is concerned 'Isa was not killed by his enemies. The word "ma qataluhu yaqinan," i.e. 'they did not kill him with certainty' (4:157) further accentuates this belief. Even if they had succeeded in doing so, 'Isa would still have remained alive before Allah because his death would have occurred on active religious service (fi sabililahi). The Qur'an assures that such men remain alive and "enjoying" yarzikun) before their Lord ('inda Rabbihim 3:169). We also consider the debate on the 'signs' which would precede his nuzul, the exact time, mission and duration on earth as wasteful exercise in polemics because those issues have no backing of the Qur'an and neither have they the support of sound ahadith. We therefore reject them as mere conjectures on the part of their authors and non-issues once the theory of the nuzul is rejected.  (To be continued) Professor Is-haq Akintola,  Lagos State University, P.O. Box 10211, LASU Post Office, HO 102 101, Ojo, Lagos, Nigeria. Tel. 234-803-346-4974        234-818-211-9714 Website: www.ishaqakintola.com Blog: drishaqakintola.blogspot.com Twitter:  ishaqakintola Facebook: facebook.com/ishaqakintola Twitter: ishaqakintola   I remain oppressed untill the hungry are fed, the naked clothed, the sick healed and the homeless sheltered