The Qur’an presents ʿUzayr as a figure called “Son of God” by Jews. Holger Zellentin and Hythem Sidky argue the Qur’an reframes Rabbi Eliʿezer ha-Gadol as ʿUzayr, meaning “little helper,” transforming him from “The Great” to a servant who received God’s Torah. (1/23)
The Qur’an primarily addresses Jews from Medina, Khaybar, and the Hijaz. Evidence about them is sparse (just inscriptions, archaeology, and early Islamic literature) but the Qur’an itself provides crucial insight into their beliefs and practices. (2/23)

🧵Unpopular opinion: after more than two years of closely following and reading Western academic studies of Islam, l've come to a blunt conclusion: Muslim apologists are SOCIALLY justified in their disdain toward the field. (1/19)


Whether one views Western academia as colonialist or not, the experience of being a Muslim in the academy still carries stark dualities. Borrowing a phrase from Frantz Fanon, it is a manichaean existence. (2/19)

🧵 What do inscriptions and other Late Antique evidence reveal about the Goddesses mentioned in the Quran? (1/20) There are many later Muslim sources naming dozens of idols, the Qurʾān itself mentions very few divine figures by name. That parsimony is deliberate and historically meaningful. (2/20)

🧵 Who were the prophets of pre-Islamic Arabia? Later Islamic sources preserve reports of individuals in the days of Jahiliyya who were regarded as prophets or who claimed prophethood, just before or alongside Prophet Muhammad. (1/ The standard narrative says Prophet Muhammad appears “out of the blue” in a pagan Arabia unfamiliar with prophecy. This picture does not survive close scrutiny of the sources. (2/

🧵is the Qur’an Historical? A major unresolved issue in Qur’anic studies is how to reconcile the Qur’an’s historical claims with its literary construction, polemical elements, and shifts between literal and symbolic language. It shapes the entire reading of the text (1/9) Traditionalists assume literalism, yet the text shows chronological compression, recast scenes across surahs, and clear Late Antique intertextuality. These are not small glitches. They form a pattern that challenges a simple literal frame. (2/9)

🧵I present a full thread compiling all my Twitter threads on academic Islamic papers, from Qur’anic studies to theology and philosophy. (1/?) Van Putten and questions on intertextuality. (2/?)

https://x.com/dmontetheno1/status/1958413009564352943?s=46

🧵 Was Islam from the beginning a universal movement open to all monotheists?
Or did the Qur’an initially imagine itself as rooted in a particular genealogy the children of Ishmael and Abraham? @MohsenGT ’s brilliant essay tackles this head-on. (1/15)
Scholars like Fred Donner argue early Islam was “The Believers’ Movement”: an ecumenical fellowship of Jews, Christians, and Muslims united by monotheism and righteous conduct. Universal from the start, not tied to ethnicity or genealogy. (2/15)

🧵 In Creation and Contemplation, Julien Decharneux examines Qur’anic teleology, showing that the text repeatedly emphasizes creation is purposeful. God did not create the universe in vain, and humans are meant to reflect and engage with it. (1/9)
Verses such as Q 23:115 ask: “Did you think We created you in vain?” Similarly, Q 3:190-191 affirms that creation is neither false nor meaningless. Decharneux highlights how these passages underscore a rejection of purposelessness. (2/9)

🧵 The Qur’an presents historical narratives not as conventional chronicles but often through typology: historical figures and events are structured as recurring patterns that illustrate moral, social, and political dynamics. (1/11) Typology refers to the representation of a figure or event as a type: a model whose actions, decisions, and outcomes exemplify patterns that recur across contexts. The emphasis is on the pattern, not just the individual case. (2/11)

🧵 The Qur’an’s account of Salih’s she-camel (nāqat Allāh) is not a simple miracle story. It is a ritual and linguistic polemic aimed at Quraysh’s control of water, sacred time, and access to the divine. A thread from my own upcoming work. (1/9)
The Qur’an does not merely say nāqa (“camel”). It says nāqat Allāh “God’s camel” (7:73, 11:64, 26:155, 91:13). This divine possession is unusual. The only consistent parallel is Bayt Allāh, the Kaʿbah. (2/9)

🧵According to Saqib Hussain, the Quran presents a striking image of a primordial gathering: Adam, created by God, is shown his progeny before their earthly existence. This motif resonates with late antique rabbinic traditions and warrants deeper exploration. (1/10) Using Q 7:172, we see the verse depicts a pre-temporal covenant with humanity. (2/10)

🧵 Who exactly were the mushrikūn the Qur’an condemns? What did shirk mean in the Prophet’s time?
To answer this, we need the Qur’an, classical tafsīr, and modern scholarship on intercession.
The Qur’an doesn’t portray the mushrikūn as your standard polytheist. They acknowledged Allah but prayed to others as intercessors.

“They say: ‘These are our intercessors with Allah.’” (10:18)

The radical claim: God accepts no middlemen. (Q 10:18, 34:22–23, 39:43–44)

🧵 One of the most interesting rhetorical tools in the Qur’an is targhīb wa-tarhīb (persuasion and dissuasion). Muhammad A.S Abdel Haleem calls this the language of “enabling obedience.” It’s not just belief, it’s rhetoric, psychology, and literary design. (1/6)
Tarhīb is the rhetoric of deterrence. Passages like Q.14:47–51 paint Hell with sensory detail: chains, fire, garments of pitch. The goal isn’t abstract doctrine, it’s to shock and move the listener at a gut level. (2/6)

🧵@GabrielSaidR’s upcoming book claims the Hijaz was Christian before Islam. This is a huge claim. If it is true, these are 10 questions I expect answered in the upcoming book. Each one tests whether the evidence actually supports this view. (1/12)

https://twitter.com/gabrielsaidr/status/1960682418651689229

Before we get into the questions I want to clarify this is not an attack on Professor Reynolds. I am simply setting expectations that need to be addressed to fully support the claims he is making. The book is not out yet and I will not make full judgments until then. (2/12)

🧵 The Quran frequently presents ruins rhetorically, showing the cyclical nature of history. Past nations rise, thrive, collapse, and leave traces. Columns, rock dwellings, overturned cities, and preserved ships are not passive, they argue. (1/10) The Quran emphasizes that ruins form a distinct category of ayat. They are meant to be examined, not simply noted, guiding readers toward understanding the patterns of social success, failure, and moral consequence. (2/10)

Claiming mutawaffīka in Q 3:55 definitively means “I will cause you to die” is a case study in lexical overreach. I’ll walk through the text, syntax, and internal Qur’anic coherence to see why this argument fails on every level. 🧵

https://twitter.com/chonkshonk1/status/1924566879172989211

The triliteral root w-f-y simply means “to take in full” or “to complete.” In the form tawaffā, it can refer to death but it just as often refers to non-lethal withdrawal, including in sleep (Q 6:60; Q 39:42). Context determines meaning.