Regarding Mentioning Of Jesus's Return In Early Hadith Books
Your question touches on a crucial distinction that is often misunderstood: the difference between a narration transmitted by Hammam bin Munabbih and a narration found in the Sahifa manuscript itself. 1. The Sahifa vs. Musnad Ahmad’s Grouping When Ghamidi Sahb states the Sahifa lacks this narration, he refers to the original independent manuscript discovered by Dr. Muhammad Hamidullah (Damascus/Berlin manuscripts), which contains 138 narrations. This specific document does not include the Jesus return narration. Musnad Ahmad contains thousands of narrations. When you see “#9259 attributed to Sahifa,” this likely reflects later editorial grouping—compilers organized narrations by transmitter (Hammam from Abu Hurayrah) for convenience. However, Musnad Ahmad is not the Sahifa. The presence of a Hammam narration in Musnad Ahmad does not automatically make it part of the Sahifa document. Without verification that #9259 appears in the actual Hamidullah manuscripts, the attribution remains questionable. 2. Epistemological Standards (Ahad vs. Creed) Even if authentic, this narration is Ahad (solitary). Classical Usul al-Fiqh requires Tawatur (mass transmission) for establishing core creed ( aqidah ), not merely Sahih Ahad. A small cluster of narrations cannot add a fundamental article of faith that the Quran omits. 3. The Primacy of the Quran The Quran discusses Jesus’s life, mission, and departure in detail (3:55, 5:117), interpreting Tawaffi as natural death. It emphasizes all messengers completed their missions and passed away. If the physical return of a Prophet were essential to faith, the Quran—which details inheritance laws and social conduct—would not remain silent on such a major global event. This is not about “overlooking” evidence. It is about source criticism (is #9259 actually in the Sahifa manuscript or merely transmitted by Hammam?) and epistemological standards (Ahad reports suffice for Fiqh, not for Creed). To Ghamidi, these narrations reflect early Muslims’ eschatological expectations, not binding doctrinal truths meant for all time.