Drowning in Fake Miracles

Or: Watering the verses until the miracles sprout

by Jochen Katz

Osama Abdallah, a well-known Qur’an miracle inventor makes the following claims:

The Holy Qur’an and Islam are filled with scientific statements and notions. These are statements of Allah Almighty describing how He created things on earth and in the Universe. What's most amazing is that all of these scientific statements and notions had been proven to be in perfect agreement with science and our modern-day scientific discoveries. Allah Almighty made the Noble Qur’an be Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) Everlasting Divine Miracle and proof for Prophethood. The Holy Book certainly stood the test of time 1,500 years ago with Its Claims, Prophecies and Miraculous language eloquence, and it does again and again in our day today with Its overwhelming agreement with science and discoveries that were not known to man 1,500 years ago.

Allah Almighty Said: "We will show them Our signs in the Universe and inside their selves, until it will become quite clear to them that it is the truth. Is it not sufficient as regards your Lord that He is a witness over all things? (The Noble Qur’an, 41:53)" (Source)

However, when we look at other translations of this verse, the “universe” disappears with a big bang:

We shall show them Our portents on the horizons and within themselves until it will be manifest unto them that it is the Truth. Doth not thy Lord suffice, since He is Witness over all things? Pickthall

Soon will We show them our Signs in the (furthest) regions (of the earth), and in their own souls, until it becomes manifest to them that this is the Truth. Is it not enough that thy Lord doth witness all things? Yusuf Ali

We shall show them Our signs in the horizons and in themselves, till it is clear to them that it is the truth. Suffices it not as to thy Lord, that He is witness over everything? Arberry

We will soon show them Our signs in farthest regions and among their own people, until it is quite clear to them that it is the Truth. Is it not enough that thy Lord is a Witness over all things? Maulana Muhammad Ali

Obviously, Osama Abdallah’s “miracle” depends on choosing a particular English translation but, unfortunately for Abdallah, the Arabic does not speak about the universe. The Arabic term “Afaq” means horizons and has nothing to do with the universe at large. Even if this verse had used the word “universe” it still would not contribute any “scientific insight”. Merely mentioning the word “universe” isn’t quite science yet.

Let’s look at a few claims found in Abdallah’s first paragraph:

The Holy Qur’an and Islam are filled with scientific statements and notions.

That is a bold hypothesis for which I have not yet seen any substantial evidence. This particular article is certainly not providing any support for this assertion.¹

These are statements of Allah Almighty describing how He created things on earth and in the Universe.

Most of the statements in the Qur’an in regard to creation are either already found in the Bible, or are trivial observations which don’t constitute proof for supernatural knowledge of scientific facts ahead of their actual scientific discovery.

Even in this very article, I could not find any statement from the Qur’an that would fit the above description. Apart from S. 41:53, the only other verse quoted by Abdallah is the following:

Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe? S. 21:30 Yusuf Ali

So, allegedly, heavens and earth were first “in one piece” and then ripped apart. Well, where is the description HOW they came from nothingness to the state of being together? HOW were they created before they were ripped apart? Didn’t Abdallah just claim that the Qur’an explains HOW things were created?

The second part of the verse, at face value, says that every living thing was made from water. Is that telling us “HOW God created the living things?” No, at most it tells us one ingredient that was used for the creation process. But obviously, a lot more than water is needed to make anything that is not water. Without adding anything else, water remains water and nothing else and water is not a living thing.² Frankly, that is a rather meagre statement to see a miracle in it.

It is like saying “I made that cake from flour”. That is true enough but not telling anything new that others didn’t know yet. Here is a question for Abdallah: Why do you think there are thousands of books on cooking and baking? Because saying that “every cake is made from flour” is an utter triviality that doesn’t tell anyone how to bake a cake. Every recipe has two vital parts. The first is a list of ingredients, the second is the instruction how to put the ingredients together so that I will get the desired result instead of ending up with a mess.

People who lived all their lives in the jungle where it rains nearly every day, and who have never experienced the scarcity of water, might not come to that conclusion so easily, but for people living in the desert it is obvious that everything that lives needs water. Humans or animals or plants, if they do not get water, they die. Water means life, lack of water is death. That is common sense and was certainly known to Muhammad and the Arabs before him as well.

Abdallah gave his article the title “Water is a must have for having life in any planet in the Universe - Mentioned in the Noble Qur’an and confirmed by Science”. Well, given that the necessity of water (“Water is a must have for having life”) was merely a matter of common sense for Muhammad and the people around him, adding “in any planet in the Universe” to the statement hardly justifies seeing miraculous supernatural knowledge in it. It is only an extrapolation, i.e. generalizing what they already know to be true where they live.

However, even though such a statement would merely be a common sense extrapolation from known facts, the Qur’an does not even say that. The verse does not speak about “planets in the universe”. That is merely wishful thinking on the part of Abdallah who has the great urge to invent more and more miracles for the Qur’an and who is trying really hard to make that book appear impressive.

Under the section heading “The Scientific Proofs”, Abdallah lists two statements from scientists (one quote embedded in a film-clip, and one written quote) stating that (a) water is necessary for life to develop by accidental chemical reactions (on any planet in the universe) and (b) all forms of life need water to survive. I don’t object to these two statements, but I can’t find either one of these statements in the verse of the Qur’an that Abdallah wants to connect them with. Here is that verse again:

Do not the Unbelievers see that the heavens and the earth were joined together (as one unit of creation), before we clove them asunder? We made from water every living thing. Will they not then believe? S. 21:30 Yusuf Ali

There is nothing about the existence of other planets, let alone life on other planets. There is nothing about “water being necessary for life to develop spontaneously”, there is not even the common sense statement that water is necessary for life to survive. None of these statements is found in this verse. Abdallah’s whole article is “make believe” without any substance.

Scientists say that there needs to be water for life to arise (i.e. to develop by accidental chemical reactions). The Qur’an does not say anything like that. The Qur’an says that “WE have MADE every living thing from water”. That speaks of divine creation and is certainly not the consensus of scientists. Neither does the Qur’an talk about sustaining life and the ongoing need of water. No, it talks about a one-time creation act (or at least a one-time creation act for each individual living being).

Osama Abdallah is clearly abusing his scientific sources. He claims they say the same as the Qur’an, but that is not true. And therefore, science does not prove the divine origin of the Qur’an (at least not on this topic), contrary to the bold claims of Abdallah.

Finally, far from being a miracle, Surah 21:30 is actually the cause of a number of contradictions in the Qur’an! In Islam, angels and jinn are living beings that are NOT created from water. Angels are taught to be created from light, and jinn are taught to be created from fire. For a detailed discussion of this contradiction see the article “What were jinn created from?”

Even more importantly, Muhammad’s companions understood this verse in a totally different way than what modern Muslim missionaries want to make of it. According to Ibn Abbas and other early Muslim commentators on the Qur’an, the word “water” in this verse (and several similar ones) is a euphemistic reference to semen. In other words, this verse says that every living being is the result of sexual intercourse. And this again is scientifically wrong, see Appendix 3 of the above linked article.

Abdallah’s second scientific source states:

“All life forms need water in order to survive. Animals in dry regions, therefore, have been created with mechanisms to protect their metabolisms from water loss and to ensure maximum benefit from water use. If water loss takes place in the body for any reason, and if that loss is not made good, death will result in a few days. …”

Is there any logical way to derive this fact from the statement in the Qur’an that “We made from water every living thing”? In my opinion, no, one cannot. This should be obvious once we observe several other statements in the Qur’an that have similar expressions.

It is He Who has created man from water. S. 25:54
We created man from sounding clay. S. 15:26,28,33
He has created man from a sperm-drop. S. 16:4

Does “creation from water” imply the ongoing need for (drinking) water in order to survive?

Although our human need for water is obvious, and also scientifically proven, it is not a logical implication from the statements in S. 21:30 and 25:54, or otherwise we would also have an ongoing need for (eating) clay or (drinking) sperm-drops to survive – which is clearly nonsense.

Therefore, although I am absolutely convinced that Muhammad knew that water is necessary to sustain life, the Qur’an does not actually say it, neither explicitly nor implicitly; at least not in this verse, no matter how much Abdallah tries to force such a meaning onto it.

Osama Abdallah finishes off his article with this conclusion:

Again, the Holy Qur’an and Islam are filled with scientific statements and notions.

This article did not show us even one of them. And repetition does not make a claim come true.

These are statements of Allah Almighty describing how He created things on earth and in the Universe.

Of which Abdallah has not provided any evidence.

What's most amazing is that all of these scientific statements and notions had been proven to be in perfect agreement with science and our modern-day scientific discoveries.

Hm, … did I overlook something?

Allah Almighty made the Noble Qur’an be Prophet Muhammad's (peace be upon him) Everlasting Divine Miracle and proof for Prophethood. The Holy Book certainly stood the test of time 1,500 years ago with Its Claims, Prophecies and Miraculous language eloquence, …

Well, that is an entirely different topic. Various aspects of these claims are discussed here.

and it does again and again in our day today with Its overwhelming agreement with science and discoveries that were not known to man 1,500 years ago.

If there are any at all, this was certainly not one of them.

Allah Almighty Said: "We will show them Our signs in the Universe and inside their selves, until it will become quite clear to them that it is the truth. Is it not sufficient as regards your Lord that He is a witness over all things? (The Noble Qur’an, 41:53)"

Apart from the wrong translation, that is an announcement of what Allah intends to do, not a scientific statement.

Allah Almighty's Divine Statement about water being the base for life in the Universe,

The Qur’an says no such thing.

by mentioning it after the mentioning of the Big Bang event,

Nor does the Qur’an speak about the Big Bang.

was indeed confirmed by science today. Planets without water are lifeless.

I agree with the last sentence. Planets without water are lifeless, but the Qur’an did not say that.

Water is a must have in order for life to exist on any planet in the Universe.

Fine.

Allah Almighty mentioned it, and science today has confirmed it.

Where did Allah mention it? And why would it be a miracle, even if the Qur’an had stated it? It is the natural extrapolation from our own experience, nothing one would need supernatural insight for.

Indeed, all Praise and Glory are due to Allah Almighty Alone for making the Noble Qur’an and the Divine Inspirations that He Sent to Prophet Muhammad be the Perfect and Everlasting Miracle, for us humans, out of all of His Divine Miracles!… Ameen.

It is good to glorify God for what He is and what He did, but is it really glorifying to God to make false and silly claims about the Qur’an?

Footnotes
¹ For this discussion, I am only looking at the evidence provided in this particular article by Abdallah. I am not going to chase his dozens of other links to articles which supposedly also prove this, that and the other. The claim is that the Qur’an revealed that water is necessary for life to exist on any planet of the Universe. I am examining the statements in this article to see whether this claim is actually proven or not. However, when we remove Abdallah’s smokescreen of recommending dozens of links to his other articles and audio files, the whole thing shrivels down to very little.
² Even if every living being needs water, and has a substantial amount of water in its cells, is it the water that makes it alive? What makes a living being alive? If one could locate the “life” at all, the DNA would be a much more appropriate candidate. It contains the information and complexity of any living being. And the DNA does not contain water molecules. Water is necessary for life to exist, but life itself is based on the existence of proteins, amino-acids, etc. That is “the stuff that life is made of”.

Source: http://answering-islam.org/authors/katz/rebuttals/ac/water_life.html

IHS