Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) Is Infallible

Resolution: - As per the rules of the announced in R1: 1. The BOP is on Pro to establish that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is infallible as per the Islamic doctrine of Ismah, namely, infallible in conveying the message of God & infallible in acting upon it. Once established, Pro wins the debate. To win, Con must thus negate Pro’s affirmative case, by proving the non-infallibility of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in his conveying of the message of God or in his acting upon it. 2. The validity of Pro’s or Con’s arguments/rebuttals also hinges on the reliability & supportiveness of their sources, Particularly, scriptural sources must be sound & scriptural interpretations doctrinal citations must be scholarly. Case: - To establish Pro’s case, I shall demonstrate, using reliable sources, the affirmative case for the infallibility of the Prophet (pbuh) as per the resolution, & the negative case against the contrary belief. Thus, as per the definition & requirements of the doctrine of Ismah in Islamic Theology [1], my argument shall be exposed in the following points to conclude that the Prophet (pbuh) is, in fact, infallible: 1. To be elected for the charge to receive revelation from God & be accountable for conveying it, the prophet should possess the quality of infallibility of being, that is purity & free will. 2. To perfectly communicate the supreme word of God to inspire Mankind the prophet should be infallible in conveying God’s word. That is faithfulness in transmission, inerrancy in execution & inviolability of person. 3. To profoundly inspire his people & invite them to God, the prophet should be infallible in adhering to the word of God first. That is devotion to God, divine guidance from & by God & exemplification as a role model. 4. To properly lead his people in matters outside the scope of what has been revealed, the prophet should still be infallible from falling into immorality. That is virtuousness, high moral character. 5. To prevent his people from deifying his person & be thankful to his Lord deservedly, the prophet, though infallible by the grace of God, may not be perfect as is God, & that is humility with guidance. 1. To be elected for the charge to receive revelation from God & be accountable for conveying it, the Prophet (pbuh) possesses the quality of infallibility of being, that is purity & free will. - To that effect, the Qur’an states that Allah had purified the Prophet (pbuh) & members of his household: “Allah intends only to remove from you the impurity [of sin], O people of the [Prophet's] household, and to purify you with [extensive] purification. ” (33:33) - It also states that the Prophet (pbuh) has the choice to abide by Allah’s commands or disobey even though in won’t, as elucidated in this verse: “O Messenger, announce that which has been revealed to you from your Lord, and if you do not, then you have not conveyed His message. ” (5:67) 2. To perfectly communicate the supreme word of God to inspire Mankind the Prophet (pbuh) is infallible in conveying God’s word. That is faithfulness, inerrancy & inviolability. - The Prophet’s (pbuh) complete faithfulness in conveying the word of God without fail is confirmed by the Qur’an in that, One: his words were indeed those revealed to him, “[That] indeed, the Qur'an is the word of a noble Messenger. And it is not the word of a poet; little do you believe. Nor the word of a soothsayer; little do you remember. [It is] a revelation from the Lord of the worlds. ” (69:38-43). Two: he has not concealed any of what he received, “He [Muhammad] does not withhold what is revealed to him from beyond. ” (81:24). Three: he has completed his mission in revealing the word of God before his death, “This day I have perfected for you your religion and completed My favor upon you and have approved for you Islam as religion. ” (5:67) - The Qur’an also clearly & unequivocally confirms the inerrancy of the Prophet (pbuh): “Your companion [Muhammad] has not strayed, nor has he erred, Nor does he speak from [his own] inclination. It is not but a revelation revealed” (53:2-4), & his inviolability: “Allah will certainly protect you from the evil of men. ” (5:67). 3. To profoundly inspire his people & invite them to God, the Prophet (pbuh) is infallible in adhering to the word of God first. That is devotion, divine guidance & exemplification. - There are no shortage of verses in the Qur’an about the devotion of the Prophet (pbuh), as example, verses (33:56) & (48:8-9) declare the blessings & honours that Allah bestowed on his prophet: ”Indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [ Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [ Allah to grant him] peace. ” “Indeed, L1;O Prophet,L2; We have sent you as a witness, a deliverer of good news, and a warner, That you [people] may believe in Allah and His Messenger and honor him and respect the Prophet and exalt Allah morning and afternoon. ” - Moreoever, verses (7:158) & (3:31-32) illustrate how divine guidance & love is contingent on following the Prophet (pbuh), “So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the unlettered prophet, who believes in Allah and His words, and follow him that you may be guided”. “Say, [O Muhammad], "If you should love Allah, then follow me, [so] Allah will love you and forgive you your sins. And Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. ”. Thus, following the Prophet (pbuh) means being guided, from which follows, the Prophet (pbuh) can not be misguided. - Further, verse (33:21) “Certainly you have in the Messenger of Allah an excellent exemplar for him who hopes in Allah and the latter day and remembers Allah much. ” states how the Prophet (pbuh) is a exemplar, an infallible role model to be followed. 4. To properly lead his people in matters outside the scope of what has been revealed, the Prophet (pbuh) is aslo infallible from falling into immorality, that is virtuousness. - Here again the Qur’an discernibly certifies the supreme moral character & virtuousness of the Prophet (pbuh) “And indeed, [O Muhammad], for you is a reward uninterrupted. And indeed, you are of a great moral character”. “And We have not sent you, [O Muhammad], except as a mercy to the worlds. ” (68:3-4) (21:107). Thereby, negating the Prophet's (pbuh) possible approach to immorality at all. 5. To prevent his people from deifying his person & be thankful to his Lord deservedly, the Prophet (pbuh), though infallible by the grace of God, is not be perfect as is God, & that is humility with guidance. - For all intents & purposes, the Qur’an makes clear that the Prophet (pbuh) is but a man who Allah blessed, “Say, "I am only a man like you, to whom has been revealed that your god is one God. So whoever would hope for the meeting with his Lord - let him do righteous work and not associate in the worship of his Lord anyone. ” (18:110), & purified & guided accordingly, “That Allah may forgive for you what preceded of your sin and what will follow and complete His favor upon you and guide you to a straight path” (48:2), & humbled further: “So know, [O Muhammad], that there is no deity except Allah and ask forgiveness for your sin and for the believing men and believing women. ” (47:19), so that the Prophet (pbuh) may realise these blessing & show gratitude & humility towards God. Conclusion: - Drawing from all the points made above & closing on the inescapable inference therefrom, it thus has been thoroughly established that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) is, decidedly, infallible as per the Islamic doctrine of Ismah, in conveying the message of God & acting upon it, in perfect accordance with the Qur’an, which I have brought ample evidence for. Sources: Qur'anic verses: quran. com [1] . http://shamela.ws...