Response to The Jewel of Madina

Disclaimer: This post is classified as a “rant,” meaning that it’s not meant to be an analytical or even constructive criticism of the subject, but rather an expression of my own outrage.

Ah, where would we be without controversy? The latest episode in this never-ending game of “Hey, let’s do something senseless just to get a reaction from Muslims!” revolves around the novelist Sherry Jones and her book “The Jewel of Madina.” Marketed as historical fiction, this book is the author’s depiction the story of our beloved Messenger Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and the Mother of Believers A’ishah (radhiAllahu anha) – and as can be expected, by the author’s own admission takes full advantage of “literary license” (i.e. she makes things up to make it a more exciting story).

“The Jewel of Madina” is the result of author Sherry Jones’ 6-year-long endeavour to ‘bring the love story of Aishah and Muhammad to the West,’ as she claims. Scheduled to be published by Random House and other publishing agents around the world, Random House called a halt to the August 12th launch date after a call from University of Texas professor Denise Spellberg denounced the novel as incredibly offensive, stupid, and likely to incite the wrath of Muslims. Aside from numerous factual and historical errors (though she says that she did “a lot of research”), as pointed out in this book review, most notorious – and disgusting – is the inclusion of an explicit scene between RasulAllah (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and A’ishah (radhiAllahu anha). This fact alone should prepare you for what is to come below. Yet, terribly, Random House has retracted its decision and is going to go ahead with publishing and distributing the novel.

Sherry Jones’ interview with AltMuslim is apparently meant to allay suspicions,soothe tempers, and encourage us all to read (to buy!!!) her book before making judgments on it. She rambles on about her personal research journey into the life of our Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and of A’ishah (radhiAllahu ‘anha), her hope that the Western world will gain a better understanding of the life of Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and that it’ll be a bridge between cultures and all the rest of what you can expect from the so-called liberal artistic intellectual types.

I don’t believe a word of it. The interview is so sickeningly saccharine in her cooing over the greatness of Islamic history and her personal love of the Seerah (her own twisted version, that is) and encouragements for people to be more open to change and re-interpretations that only a blind man would be unable to see the outright tabloid-quality of the entire endeavor. For a woman who’s been a journalist for the last 28 years, Ms. Jones is incredibly stupid to think that in today’s day and age such a work would be accepted as what she’s trying to pass it off as; that the majority of Muslims would not be outraged and disgusted at her depiction of our most beloved Messenger (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and his wife, whose innocence from the slander of the hypocrites was revealed and confirmed from above the Seven Heavens, yet which she is quite happy to cast doubt upon for the mere sake of making her book more exciting (or as she says, to make the character of A’ishah “more humanistic”).

To my cynical eyes at least, the author’s true motives are glaring obvious even through all her sugarcoating and wide-eyed protestations of innocence and pure intentions. There is no reason to write and publish a fictional account of our Prophet’s life, especially focusing on (what is to others) more “controversial” issues, except to generate money and tabloid fodder. If she were truly interested in Islam, in the exceptional and beautiful life of Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and his companions, then she would respectfully keep her trap shut and pursue further education regarding this Deen of ours rather than undertake such a ridiculous and ill-fated endeavor. May Allah guide her, ameen.

A question is asked, if Muslims are just not ready for historical fiction. That question, I believe, is a moot point – the real issue is not that of accepting historical fiction (I’m quite a fan of it, actually), but that of people continuing to slander and debase those whom we love even more than our ownselves: our Prophet, and his companions. To those who say that we’re just being stick-in-the-mud conservatives again, that don’t you get it, the book is actually saying positive things about the Prophet!, that it’s important for us to accept a “humanized” picture of the Prophet and his companions – to them I say, this is not an issue of being a grumpy old conservative who is being reactionary for no reason, nor is it that I’m not able to accept a “humanistic” vision of our Messenger. Indeed, in the authentic Seerah and in the Qur’an itself there is enough that presents the human side of Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam)! We don’t need to depend on others, on those who don’t even believe in the truth of Islam, the Message conveyed by the Messenger, to tell us how “human,” how “flawed yet beautiful,” how “complex and rich” our history is. We know our history – or should know it – very well, thank you very much. And we believe in it far more than you ever could, Ms. Jones, however much you profess to love “your Muhammad” and “your A’ishah.”

In conclusion, I don’t think that this particular subject is going to be any different from the Danish cartoons case… except that (hopefully) there won’t be any deadly riots over it; nonetheless, it doesn’t make it any easier for me to swallow. The same old slogans and arguments and flamewars over freedom of speech and expression, of overcoming our own internal obstacles towards “greater understanding” and “enlightenment,” of what we can do to defend our Messenger will be repeated over and over again, with little if any progress or change. The book is published, it’s going to sell, and bitter as it may be to us all, there’s nothing we can do about it except pray that Allah guide this foolish woman and refer people to far more authentic sources through which they may learn of the true biography of the greatest of Allah’s creation.

I contemplated not bothering to publish this post, as I feel that it’s not worth much in terms of practicality. If I can’t provide any solutions to the problem, what’s the point? A bitter part of me feels that with all the proverbial mud being slung at us these days, incidents like this aren’t even worth being responded to when compared to the far more weighty and depressing situations like that of the Muslims in Palestine, Chechnya, Iraq, Afghanistan, China, Kashmir, and elsewhere. The other voice in my head insisted that I may as well write this out because it’s something that’s happening, that has to do with us and our Messenger, and that we can’t just ignore it… and so, I’m going to press the “publish” button and pray that I haven’t simply given this woman and her foolishness more attention than they deserve.

May Allah paralyze the tongues and limbs of those who knowingly and maliciously slander our beloved RasulAllah (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam), may He guide those with an atom’s weight of fitrah left in them to the correct path, and may He increase us in our love of Him and His Messenger and follow in the footsteps of the Sunnah throughout our lives, ameen.

Note: IslamOnline published a column by Sherry Jones, defending her book. The Wall Street Journal has another such article. A Wikipedia summary of the novel and the controversy surrounding it.

Source: Muslim Matters