a Christian. Both were instances of blameworthy disagreement:

“Abraham was neither a Jew nor a Christian; rather, he was upright, a Muslim, and was not one of the polytheists.”

[Surah Āl Imrān: 67]

The fourth is Jesus. The Jews claimed that he was born of fornication(1), while the Christians made him a god.

The fifth is the revealed Scriptures. Each group believed in only some of them.

The sixth is religion. One group adhered to one religion and the other to another.

Of the same kind are the words of Allah Most High:

“The Jews say, ‘The Christians have no ground to stand on,’ and the Christians say, ‘The Jews have no ground to stand on.’”

[Surah al-Baqarah: 113]

It has been related from Ibn Abbās—may Allah be pleased with them both—that he said:

“The Jews of Medina and the Christians of Najrān disputed in the presence of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace. The Jews said, ‘The Christians have no ground to stand on, and none shall enter Paradise unless he is a Jew,’ and they disbelieved in the Gospel and Jesus. The Christians said, ‘The Jews have no ground to stand on,’ and they disbelieved in the Torah and Moses. Allah then revealed this verse and the one preceding it.”(2)

The disagreements among the proponents of religious innovations follow this same pattern. The Kharijite says:

“The Shiite has no ground to stand on.”

The Shiite says:

“The Kharijite has no ground to stand on.”

The Qadarī who denies divine decree says:

“The one who affirms it has no ground to stand on.”

The determinist Qadarī who affirms it says:

“The one who denies it has no ground to stand on.”

Those who uphold the doctrine of the divine threat say:

“The Murji'ites have no ground to stand on.”

The Murji'ites say:

“Those who uphold the doctrine of the divine threat have no ground to stand on.”

Indeed, something of this is also found among adherents of the theological and jurisprudential schools