Muslim Identities - An Introduction to Islam Second Edition - Aaron W. Hughes
2. The Making of the Last Prophet
Muslim Identities - An Introduction to Islam Second Edition - Aaron W. Hughes
Aaron W. Hughes [+]
University of Rochester
Aaron W. Hughes is the Dean’s Professor of the Humanities and the Philip S. Bernstein Professor in the Department of Religion and Classics at the University of Rochester. His research and publications focus on both Jewish philosophy and Islamic Studies. He has authored numerous books, including Situating Islam: The Past and Future of an Academic Discipline (Equinox, 2007); Theorizing Islam: Disciplinary Deconstruction and Reconstruction (Equinox, 2012); Muslim Identities: An Introduction to Islam (Columbia, 2012); and Abrahamic Religions: On the Uses and Abuses of History (Oxford, 2012). He currently serves as the editor of the journal Method and Theory in the Study of Religion.
Description
As the title suggests, this chapter examines the role and function of Muhammad, Islam’s prophet, in the formation of Muslim identities. It provides some of the sources used to reconstruct that life, and the biographical tradition that gives us details of his life and times in both Mecca and Medina. After exploring issues such as his “night flight” and his consolidation of the community in Mecca, it looks at the role of Muhammad in subsequent Islamic formation. The latter includes the genre know as hadith, or his sayings and deeds.