Createdness of the Quran
The createdness of the Quran is the doctrine that the Quran came into being by God’s act rather than existing eternally alongside God.
Mu'tazilism: An Islamic theological school that emphasized divine unity, justice, and rational inquiry. Mu'tazilite theologians defended the Quran’s createdness to preserve God’s uniqueness and unity.
Divine attributes in Islam: The qualities ascribed to God in Islamic theology, including knowledge, power, and speech. The Quran’s status depends on whether speech is an eternal divine attribute.
Uncreated Quran: The Sunni doctrine that the Quran is God’s eternal, uncreated speech. This is the direct doctrinal opposite of the createdness position.
Abbasid Caliphate: An Islamic caliphate that ruled much of the Muslim world from 750 to 1258. Its rulers turned a theological dispute into an instrument of imperial policy.
Ahmad ibn Hanbal: An influential ninth-century Muslim scholar and founder of the Hanbali school of jurisprudence. His refusal to affirm the Quran’s createdness made him a central opponent of the inquisition.
Kalam: Islamic speculative theology, which uses argument to explain doctrines of God and revelation. Kalam supplied competing arguments about divine speech and the Quran’s origin.
Tawhid: The Islamic doctrine of God’s absolute oneness and uniqueness. Mu'tazilites appealed to tawhid to reject an eternal attribute distinct from God.
Sunni Islam: The largest branch of Islam, grounded in the Quran, prophetic tradition, and communal scholarship. The rejection of createdness became a defining Sunni position after the Mihna.
Mihna: An Abbasid-era inquisition that tested scholars’ adherence to the doctrine that the Quran was created. The debate became state policy when caliphs compelled scholars to affirm createdness.
Divine speech: The theological attribute by which God communicates or speaks. The Quran was understood as divine speech, making its relation to time decisive.