Ridiculous Claims of Some Christians Regarding Word “Allah” (2)
“Among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon. Adore not the sun and the moon, but adore Allah, Who created them, if it is Him ye wish to serve” (Quran 41:37)
Allah - the Moon God (This is the claim of the writer. Let us see if the writer successfully proves this claim with evidence)?
The Archeology of The Middle EastThe religion of Islam has as its focus of worship a deity by the name of "Allah." (Islam asserts that Allah is not a deity, Allah the only deity/god. “There is no god/deity except Allah”: Basic principle of Islam) The Muslims claim that Allah in pre-Islamic times was the biblical God of the Patriarchs, prophets, and apostles. (Islam does not maintain that word Allah was used by previous Patriarchs, prophets and apostles). The issue is thus one of continuity. (Islam does not claim any continuity of this word: Allah. It should be proved giving references from Holy Scripture of Islam, i.e. Quran, that Islam claims the continuity of word Allah. As Islam never claims the continuity of word Allah, so it is a fake claim that the issue is one of continuity). Was "Allah" the biblical God or a pagan god in Arabia during pre- Islamic times? The Muslim's claim of continuity is essential to their attempt to convert Jews and Christians for if "Allah" is part of the flow of divine revelation in Scripture, then it is the next step in biblical religion. (This is not true, as Islam does not claim any continuity of word Allah. Islam asserts only the continuity of the concept of Supreme Being. Islamic scripture are devoid of any claim for the continuity of this word, Islam claims the continuity of the concept). Thus we should all become Muslims. But, on the other hand, if Allah was a pre- Islamic pagan deity, then its core claim is refuted (Allah was not a pre-Islamic pagan deity. Allah was a word used by pre-Islamic pagans, Jews and Christians for God. Till to date, Arabic Bible uses word Allah for God. For evidence, click here, or read Arabic Bible online). Religious claims often fall before the results of hard sciences such as archaeology. (Let’s see whose claim is refuted by archaeology and history)! We can endlessly speculate about the past or go and dig it up and see what the evidence reveals. (Yes, historic record refutes many old and modern mythologies). This is the only way to find out the truth concerning the origins of Allah. (Historic evidence shows that word Allah was used also by Arabic speaking Jews and Christians as Arabic alternative of God, in past and in present. Read Arabic Bible online). As we shall see, the hard evidence demonstrates that the god Allah was a pagan deity. (If Allah was a pagan deity other than God, The Supreme Being, why Arabic speaking Jews and Christians of past and present use this word for God?) In fact, he was the Moon-god who was married to the sun goddess and the stars were his daughters. (This is a claim, where is the evidence)?
(This picture of idols in no way proves that Allah is the name of moon-god).
Archaeologists have uncovered temples to the Moon-god throughout the Middle East. (Yes in ancient periods, moon-god and sun-god were worshiped by a large number of nations). From the mountains of Turkey to the banks of the Nile, the most wide-spread religion of the ancient world was the worship of the Moon-god.
In the first literate civilization, the Sumerians have left us thousands of clay tablets in which they described their religious beliefs. As demonstrated by Sjoberg and Hall, the ancient Sumerians worshipped a Moon-god who was called many different names. The most popular names were Nanna, Suen and Asimbabbar. His symbol was the crescent moon. Given the amount of artifacts concerning the worship of this Moon-god, it is clear that this was the dominant religion in Sumeria. The cult of the Moon-god was the most popular religion throughout ancient Mesopotamia. The Assyrians, Babylonians, and the Akkadians took the word Suen and transformed it into the word Sin as their favorite name for the Moon-god. As Prof. Potts pointed out, "Sin is a name essentially Sumerian in origin which had been borrowed by the Semites. " (All of it is true. But it does not prove that Allah was the name moon-god. This claim must be proved with evidence that Allah was the name of moon-god).
In ancient Syria and Canna, the Moon-god Sin was usually represented by the moon in its crescent phase. At times the full moon was placed inside the crescent moon to emphasize all the phases of the moon. The sun-goddess was the wife of Sin and the stars were their daughters. For example, Istar was a daughter of Sin. Sacrifices to the Moon-god are described in the Pas Shamra texts. In the Ugaritic texts, the Moon-god was sometimes called Kusuh. In Persia, as well as in Egypt, the Moon- god is depicted on wall murals and on the heads of statues. He was the Judge of men and gods. The Old Testament constantly rebuked the worship of the Moon-god (see: Deut. 4:19;17:3; II Kings. 21:3,5; 23:5; Jer. 8:2; 19:13; Zeph. 1:5, etc.) When Israel fell into idolatry, it was usually the cult of the Moon-god. As a matter of fact, everywhere in the ancient world, the symbol of the crescent moon can be found on seal impressions, steles, pottery, amulets, clay tablets, cylinders, weights, earrings, necklaces, wall murals, etc. In Tell-el-Obeid, a copper calf was found with a crescent moon on its forehead. An idol with the body of a bull and the head of man has a crescent moon inlaid on its forehead with shells. In Ur, the Stela of Ur-Nammu has the crescent symbol placed at the top of the register of gods because the Moon-god was the head of the gods. Even bread was baked in the form of a crescent as an act of devotion to the Moon-god. The Ur of the Chaldees was so devoted to the Moon-god that it was sometimes called Nannar in tablets from that time period. (All of it could be true, but all this historical record fails to prove that Allah is actually the name of moon-god. This claim is yet unproved). temple of the Moon-god has been excavated in Ur by Sir Leonard Woolley. He dug up many examples of moon worship in Ur and these are displayed in the British Museum to this day. Harran was likewise noted for its devotion to the Moon-god. In the 1950's a major temple to the Moon-god was excavated at Hazer in Palestine. Two idols of the moon god were found. Each was a stature of a man sitting upon a throne with a crescent moon carved on his chest . The accompanying inscriptions make it clear that these were idols of the Moon-god. Several smaller statues were also found which were identified by their inscriptions as the "daughters" of the Moon-god. (All of it could be true, but all this historical record fails to prove that Allah is the name of moon-god. This claim is yet unproved). What about Arabia? As pointed out by Prof. Coon, "Muslims are notoriously loath to preserve traditions of earlier paganism and like to garble what pre-Islamic history they permit to survive in anachronistic terms." (Of course, Muslims do not revere any pre-Islamic polytheistic traditions). During the nineteenth century, Amaud, Halevy and Glaser went to Southern Arabia and dug up thousands of Sabean, Minaean, and Qatabanian inscriptions which were subsequently translated. In the 1940's, the archeologists G. Caton Thompson and Carleton S. Coon made some amazing discoveries in Arabia. During the 1950's, Wendell Phillips, W.F. Albright, Richard Bower and others excavated sites at Qataban, Timna, and Marib (the ancient capital of Sheba). Thousands of inscriptions from walls and rocks in Northern Arabia have also been collected. Relieves and motif bowls used in worship of the "daughters of Allah" have also been discovered. (Yes, pre-Islamic polytheists maintained that Supreme Being Allah has daughters. Christians still believe that God has a begotten son. Quran refutes both. Quran says, “Yet they (polytheists) make the Jinns equals with Allah, though Allah did create the Jinns; and they falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters. Praise and glory be to Him! (For He is) above what they attribute to Him!” (6:100)) The three daughters, al-Lat, al-Uzza and Manat are sometimes depicted together with Allah the Moon-god represented by a crescent moon above them. (Remember, it is yet to be proven that Allah is the name of moon-god, so do not make this unproved statement the basis of further claims. If in a graving, al-Lat, al-Uzza and Manat are depicted with a crescent moon above them, how can it be the evidence of the notion that Allah is moon-god? If in a Christian painting, Jesus Christ is shown with the sun, can it be deduced that God whom Christians worship is actually sun-god)? The archaeological evidence demonstrates that the dominant religion of Arabia was the cult of the Moon-god (Archaeological record alone cannot show true picture, if it is not interpreted in the light of recorded history. Recorded history does not support this claim. This claim is not supported by history that dominant religion of Arabia was the cult of moon-god. The responsibility of giving proof is on the one who is formulating a new claim). In Old Testament times, Nabonidus (555-539 BC), the last king of Babylon, built Tayma, Arabia as a center of Moon-god worship. Segall stated, "South Arabia's stellar religion has always been dominated by the Moon-god in various variations." Many scholars have also noticed that the Moon-god's name "Sin" is a part of such Arabic words as "Sinai," the "wilderness of Sin," etc. (Yes, we know in ancient periods, moon-god and sun-god were worshipped by an overwhelming majority of people. How does it prove that Allah is the name of moon-god)? When the popularity of the Moon-god waned elsewhere, the Arabs remained true to their conviction that the Moon-god was the greatest of all gods. (“The moon-god was the greater of all gods” in Arabia. This claim is without any evidence. Evidence should be given. Otherwise people should not be misguided). While they worshipped 360 gods at the Kabah in Mecca, the Moon-god was the chief deity. (This claim is made without any evidence. Can this be proved with the help of some archaeological or historical record that moon-god was the chief deity of Mecca)? Mecca was in fact built as a shrine for the Moon-god. (This is one of the lies that are constantly being told in this article. Could it be proved with any historical record that shrine of Mecca was built for moon-god? Historic record shows clearly that people of Mecca always claimed that this shrine was made by their fore father Abraham (PBUH), and it was made for the worship of Abraham’s God, whether it be called God or Allah. See Arazaqi’s Book, “Akhbar-e-Makkah”, Vol 1. Quran also maintains that Meccan shrine was built by Araham (PBUH). Even if someone rejects this claim of Arabs and Quran that Meccan Shrine was made by Abraham (PBUH), even then this rejection is not an evidence that Meccan shrine was built for the worship of moon-god. Historical evidence must be given to prove this claim. And the responsibility of producing the evidence is on the one who is maintaining this claim). This is what made it the most sacred site of Arabian paganism. (This is not true. It was most sacred because Arabs believed that it was made by their forefather Abraham (PBUH) for the worship of his God. This is what historic record shows. But even if someone rejects this claim of Arabs, it makes no difference. “Meccan shrine was the most sacred in Arabs because it was made for the worship of moon-god” is a claim made without any evidence). In 1944, G. Caton Thompson revealed in her book, The Tombs and Moon Temple of Hureidha, that she had uncovered a temple of the Moon-god in southern Arabia. The symbols of the crescent moon and no less than twenty-one inscriptions with the name Sin were found in this temple. An idol which may be the Moon-god himself was also discovered. This was later confirmed by other well-known archeologists. (Yes, in ancient eras a lot of people used to worship moon-god and sun-god. In southern Arab, if people used to worship moon-god, how does this prove that Allah is the name of moon-god)?
The evidence reveals that the temple of the Moon-god was active even in the Christian era. (If someone starts using the style of logic presented in this article, he could claim that because moon-god was worshipped in Christian era, it concludes that Christians worship moon-god). Evidence gathered from both North and South Arabia demonstrate that Moon-god worship was clearly active even in Muhammad's day and was still the dominant cult. (If it is claimed that moon-god worship was active in the days of Muhammad (PBUH), it can be accepted. If it is claimed that it was the dominant cult, I will ask what is the evidence)? According to numerous inscriptions, while the name of the Moon-god was Sin, his title was al- ilah, (“The title of moon-god was al-ilah” is a myth. This claim must be proved with historical evidence. People must not be misguided by fabricated stories) i.e. "the deity," meaning that he was the chief or high god among the gods. As Coon pointed out, "The god Il or Ilah was originally a phase of the Moon God." (Il is not a phase of moon-god. While discussing the etymology of “God”, “Catholic Encyclopaedia” states, “The common name most widely used in Semitic occurs as 'el in Hebrew, 'ilu in Babylonian, 'ilah in Arabic, etc.” (Click here to read online). It proves that ilah of Arabic is same as El of Bible, the God of Abraham) The Moon-god was called al- ilah, (“Catholic Encyclopaedia” states that el of Hebrew, the God of Abraham, and Arabic ilah are same. So people must not be deceived with fabricated stories (For reference see the previous comment)) i.e. the god, which was shortened to Allah in pre-Islamic times. (Yes, I agree, al-ilah is shortened to Allah. So Allah means “the god”, i.e. God). The pagan Arabs even used Allah in the names they gave to their children. For example, both Muhammad's father and uncle had Allah as part of their names. (Yes, the name of the father of Muhammad (PBUH) was Abd Allah. It means “the servant of Allah”. So how this proves that Allah was the name of moon-god)?
The fact that they were given such names by their pagan parents proves that Allah was the title for the Moon-god even in Muhammad's day. (What a rational? The basic claim that Allah is the title of moon-god, is not yet proved. So further claims cannot be made on the basis of this unproved claim). Prof. Coon goes on to say, "Similarly, under Mohammed's tutelage, the relatively anonymous Ilah, became Al-Ilah, The God, or Allah, the Supreme Being." (There are heaps of historical record that Ilah did not become Al-llah or Allah under the tutelage of Muhammad (PBUH). Allah was already used for Supreme Being in Arabic. “Encyclopedia of Islam” (this encyclopedia is not written by Muslims) states that word Allah was used in pre-Islamic era. So this word was not coined by Muhammad (PBUH)).
This fact answers the questions, "Why is Allah never defined in the Qur'an? (It is a fabrication. Allah is defined in Quran as, “Say: He is Allah, the One and Only; Allah, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him”). Why did Muhammad assume that the pagan Arabs already knew who Allah was?" (Because these polytheists, Jews and Christians of Arabia were using word Allah for Supreme Being for hundreds of years. See “Encyclopedia of Islam”). Muhammad was raised in the religion of the Moon-god Allah. (This is a claim made. This article has completely failed to prove it). But he went one step further than his fellow pagan Arabs. While they believed that Allah, i.e. the Moon-god, (Not yet proved) was the greatest of all gods and the supreme deity in a pantheon of deities, Muhammad decided that Allah was not only the greatest god but the only god. (Muhammad (PBUH) never claimed that moon-god is the only god. He claimed, “Among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon. Adore not the sun and the moon, but adore Allah, Who created them, if it is Him ye wish to serve” (41:37)). In effect he said, "Look, you already believe that the Moon-god Allah (This claim is yet to be proven that Allah is the name of moon-god) is the greatest of all gods. (Muhammad (PBUH) never said that Allah is moon-god. It is an allegation. Is there any prove that he (PBUH) said such things)? All I want you to do is to accept that the idea that he is the only god. I am not taking away the Allah you already worship. I am only taking away his wife and his daughters and all the other gods." (Muhammad never asked polytheists to keep worshipping moon-god Allah. He said, “Among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon. Worship not the sun and the moon, but worship Allah, Who created them, if it is Him ye wish to serve” (41:37)) This is seen from the fact that the first point of the Muslim creed is not, "Allah is great" but "Allah is the greatest," (First creed of our belief is “There is no god/deity except Allah”.) i.e., he is the greatest among the gods. (Quran and Hadith are devoid of this concept that Allah is greatest of all gods. Quran and Hadith say, “There is no god/deity except Allah”. This article is full of fabrications). Why would Muhammad say that Allah is the "greatest" except in a polytheistic context? (Quran and Hadith reject all polytheist notions. “Allah is the Greatest” does not mean “Allah is the Greatest of all the deities” because the first point of Muslim creed is “There is no god/deity except Allah”. “All is the Greatest” means “Allah is the Greatest of all beings”. It seems this article is written to deceive the people with concocted notions). The Arabic word is used to contrast the greater from the lesser. That this is true is seen from the fact that the pagan Arabs never accused Muhammad of preaching a different Allah than the one they already worshipped. This "Allah" was the Moon-god according to the archeological evidence. (Single archaeological or historical evidence could not be presented yet to prove that Allah is the name of moon-god. Just some claims are made, without substantiating them with any evidence. As a matter of fact in this article a fictitious story is being told in the name of archaeology). Muhammad thus attempted to have it both ways. To the pagans, he said that he still believed in the Moon-god Allah. (A single evidence could not yet be given to show that Muhammad (PBUH) believed (na’uzubillah) in moon-god). To the Jews and the Christians, he said that Allah was their God too. But both the Jews and the Christians knew better and that is why they rejected his god Allah as a false god. (Jews and Christians never rejected Muhammad’s God Allah. Allah was their own God. All Arabic speaking Jews and Christians used word Allah for God. Encyclopædia Britannica states that word Allah is used by Arabic-speakers of all Abrahamic faiths, including Christians and Jews, in reference to God. "The Cambridge history of Islam” states that even today Arabic speaking Christians use term “Allah al-Ab” for “God the Father”.) Al-Kindi, one of the early Christian apologists against Islam, pointed out that Islam and its god Allah did not come from the Bible but from the paganism of the Sabeans. They did not worship the God of the Bible but the Moon-god and his daughters al-Uzza, al-Lat and Manat. (Quran and Hadith are devoid of any concept of worshipping moon-god and Uzza, Lat and Manat. Quran clearly states, “Among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon. Worship not the sun and the moon, but worship Allah, Who created them, if it is Him ye wish to serve”.(41:37) Quran also states, “Yet they (polytheists) make the Jinns equals with Allah, though Allah did create the Jinns; and they falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters. Praise and glory be to Him! For He is above what they attribute to Him!” (6:100)). If in spite of this Al-Kindi maintains such claims, it will only mean that Al-Kindi was a liar of first degree). Dr. Newman concludes his study of the early Christian-Muslim debates by stating, "Islam proved itself to be...a separate and antagonistic religion which had sprung up from idolatry." (Quran completely refute the idea that Islam had sprung from idolatry. On earth there is no other book in such a staunch opposition to idolatry and polytheism as is Quran. Quran says, “O men! Here is a parable set forth! Listen to it! Those, on whom, besides God, Ye invoke (including deities, gods, idols, angles and Jesus Christ), cannot create (even) a fly, if they all met together for the purpose! And if the fly should snatch away anything from them, they would have no power to release it from the fly. Feeble are those who petition and those whom they petition!” (22:73)). Islamic scholar Caesar Farah concluded "There is no reason, therefore, to accept the idea that Allah passed to the Muslims from the Christians and Jews." (Islam never claimed that word Allah passed to Muslims from Christians and Jews. Allah was an Arabic word used for Supreme Being, common to all Arabic speaking Jews, Christians and polytheists. See Encyclopædia Britannica). The Arabs worshipped the Moon-god as a supreme deity. (A claim that still could not be proved). But this was not biblical monotheism. (This is correct. As, trinity of Christians is not pure monotheism. It is polytheism with the label of monotheism). While the Moon-god was greater than all other gods and goddesses, this was still a polytheistic pantheon of deities. (Of course, moon-god is a pagan deity, that is why it is rejected completely by Islam). Now that we have the actual idols of the Moon-god, it is no longer possible to avoid the fact that Allah was a pagan god in pre-Islamic times. (The cae is proved exactly opposite to what you are claiming. It is proved that Allah is the God of Christians and Jews. It is what Encyclopædia Britannica tells us. On the other hand, this article has completely failed to prove that Allah is the name of moon-god). Is it any wonder then that the symbol of Islam is the crescent moon? (Symbol of Islam is not crescent moon at all. It is only indecent times that Muslims started using crescent as symbol of Muslim Nationhood. Wikipedia states, “Though the crescent was originally a secular symbol of authority for Muslim rulers, it is now often used to symbolize the Islamic faith. However, it should be noted that the crescent was not a symbol used for Islam by Muhammad or any other early Muslim rulers, as the Islamic religion is, in fact, against appointing "Holy Symbols" (so that during the early centuries of Islam, Muslim authorities simply didn't want any geometric symbols to be used to symbolize Islam, in the way that the cross symbolizes Christianity, the menorah was a commonly-occurring symbol of Judaism, etc.). This is why early Islamic coins were covered with Arabic writing, but contained no visual symbols.” Click here to read it. For many centuries, after the advent of Islam, Muslim flags, and standards were without any crescent. Crescent has nothing do with Islam. In modern days Muslim started it using only in non-religious sense).That a crescent moon sits on top of their mosques and minarets? That a crescent moon is found on the flags of Islamic nations? (Read the previous comment). That the Muslims fast during the month which begins and ends with the appearance of the crescent moon in the sky? (This is really interesting. Using similar logic, one can claim that as Christian religious festivals are related with solar calendar, it shows Christians worship sun-god. It is not logic; it is nonsense).
CONCLUSION (THE ONLY CONCLUSION OF THIS ARTICLE IS THAT IT IS A MYTH THAT ALLAH IS THE NAME OF MOON-GOD)
The pagan Arabs worshipped the Moon-god Allah by praying toward Mecca several times a day; (A claim completely failed to be proved). Making a pilgrimage to Mecca; running around the temple of the Moon-god called the Kabah (A claim completely failed to be proved); kissing the black stone; killing an animal in sacrifice to the Moon-god (A claim completely failed to be proved); throwing stones at the devil; fasting for the month which begins and ends with the crescent moon (You are really kidding); giving alms to the poor, etc.
The Muslim's claim that Allah is the God of the Bible and that Islam arose from the religion of the prophets and apostles is refuted by solid, overwhelming archeological evidence. (Islam never claimed that it arose from the religion of prophets, Islam claims it is the religion of prophets, i.e. it is the religion of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Ishmael, Moses, Jesus etc (PBUT). On the other hand, it could not be proved that Allah is the name of moon-god. What's proved is that Arabic speaking Christians and Jews also believe in Allah as Supreme Being). Islam is nothing more than a revival of the ancient Moon-god cult (A claim completely failed to be proved). It has taken the symbols, the rites, the ceremonies, and even the name of its god from the ancient pagan religion of the Moon-god (A claim completely failed to be proved). As such, it is sheer idolatry and must be rejected by all those who follow the Torah and Gospel. (How can followers of Torah and Gospel reject Allah, when Arabic Torah itself says:
In the beginning Allah created the heaven and the earth. (Genesis 1:1)
And Gospel says:
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see Allah. (Matthew 5:8)
Followers of Torah and Gospel can reject Allah only by rejecting Torah and Gospel).
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