Sunday, January 29, 2012

The World's Greatest Thinker / Philosophers on Muhammad; the Prophet of Islam



 Renan on Muhammad, 
The Prophet for all of Humanity



Ernest Renan, arguably the greatest philosopher of the school of Higher Criticism, and certainly one of the most renowned theological historians of modern time and by far, 19th century's most influential philosopher to ever write in the Franco-phonic language on Hebraic and Middle Eastern Civilizations; Judeo-Christian and Islamic.

Renan subjected the existing canonical scriptures to the same standard of historical scrutiny as any other source of history and insisted on subjecting all scriptural heritage to higher criticism. His arguments on the lack of authenticity in much of the canonical scriptures, while inspiring to the enlightened mind, earned him the wrath of the Catholic Church.

Described by France's Supreme novelist; Anatole France as the greatest modernist in France's entire literary history, Ernest Renan certainly left us with a delineating mark on the subject of discerning historical truths from pseudo-religious myths.

Renan wondered whether Moses; the Great Prophet of the Children of Israel, ever existed. And whether we can afford to muse over his "la raison sous-jacente" which might have compelled this kind of doubt, and which he attributes to both historical contradictions and scriptural inconsistencies, we mustn't waste too much time wondering about the criteria that he employed to arrive at the stark truth about Islam on which he lavished the splendor of his writing. 


Citing what he comfortably called "Islam's supreme spiritual authority", Renan called upon France to employ its moral imperatives to transcend religious hatred and accept the axiomatic inevitable when viewing The great Prophet of Islam and his sublime divine message.