that they describe all these things as necessarily existent. This is a contradiction in his account of their views.

Moreover, refuting these views on the basis of their doctrine of divine oneness—which amounts to denying the attributes, on the grounds that there can be only one necessarily existent being—has already been shown to be unsound.

Al-Rāzī said:

“As for those who maintain that there is only one necessarily existent being, they hold two different positions. Some say that He, exalted is He, did not act in pre-eternity, but subsequently began to act. These are all the adherents of revealed religions. Others say that He was acting from eternity. These are the majority of philosophers.”

I say:

The position he attributes to all adherents of revealed religions is actually the position of certain groups among them who engage in newly introduced speculative theology, whom the early generations and the imams condemned. This position is not known from any prophet sent by Allah, nor from any of the Companions, the Successors, or the imams of the Muslims.

None of these said that Allah had not been acting and then began to act. Rather, what is known from them is what the Quran and Sunnah teach: Allah is the Lord, Sovereign, and Creator of everything, and everything other than Him is created and came into existence after not existing. This is what the Quran and Sunnah declare, and what the adherents of revealed religions agree upon.

Likewise, his statement that the majority of philosophers hold that Allah has always been acting is ambiguous, for the vast majority of philosophers do not affirm the eternity of the world. The first among them known to have professed its eternity was Aristotle.

Someone who maintains that He has always been acting is not thereby obliged to maintain that anything in the world is eternal. He may nevertheless say that He has always acted, bringing about one thing after another: everything other than Him is created and originated, while He has always been acting.