Imām al-Qarāfī's Arguments in Critique of the Old Testament

عہد نامہِ عتیق پر نقد میں امام قرافیؒ کےمستدلاّت

Abstract

Imām al-Qarāfī was a renowned Muslim scholar of 12^th century. He authored "Al-Ajwibat al-Fākhirah 'an al-As'ilat al-Fājirah" (The Splendid Response to the Wicked Questions). The book was written in response to Paul of Antioch's Document "A Letter to a Muslim Friend." In his work, Imām al-Qarāfī not only addressed the religious claims about the Bible made by Paul of Antioch but also formulated an Islamic counter-narrative in his book. In this regard, Imām al-Qarāfī critically examined the authoritative status of the Bible, discussing both the Old Testament and the New Testament. This article provides an analytical study of Imām al-Qarāfī’s views on the Old Testament which he presented to demonstrate that the Old Testament is not a credible religious text. In addition to questioning the authoritative status of the Old Testament, Imām al-Qarāfī elucidated that the Old Testament's laws were abrogated with the advent of Islam, asserting that Islam is now the true path to salvation. He provided comprehensive responses to the objections raised by Jews in old times regarding the Islamic concept of abrogation. This article examines Imām al-Qarāfī’s arguments on the abrogation of the Old Testament's laws and presents his counter-arguments to the critiques posed by Jewish scholars and Orientalists. Additionally, the perspectives of other scholars are included to offer a comprehensive understanding of the topic.