# What should Muslims learn from the Wood versus Hijab debate? *Takeaways: thorough knowledge, better adab, and consistency in following reason* - URL: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/gyrfzzzca8g/s/9/ - Date: 2018-12-24 · Kind: lesson · Transcript tier: machine · Recording: On the David Wood and Muhammad Hijab Debate: Reflections & Review -Mufti Abu Layth (27:53–31:40) - Status: general teaching - Watch from the start of the segment: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyRfZZZcA8g&t=1673s - Recording page: https://muftiabulayth.org/r/gyrfzzzca8g/ **Topics:** Reason and revelation; Prophethood and miracles; Debate challenges and reviews **Summary (not a quotation; machine-made, unchecked):** Thorough knowledge wins debates, Muslims must raise their adab, and they must be consistent: if the laws of nature do not matter for miracles, then there is no ground to say three cannot equal one. Clips about camel urine or suspended laws of nature send a confusing message. **Checked position (checked by two independent reviews, not by the channel):** Mufti Abu Layth holds that Muslims must be consistent in following the voice of reason, because if they say the laws of nature do not matter when it comes to miracles they lose any ground for saying that three cannot equal one, and that Muslims also need to raise their adab in debate. **Evidence, his words at 29:31:** “what we can't do is have irrational beliefs ourselves and then condemn other people for irrational beliefs like we must be consistent” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyRfZZZcA8g&t=1771s) ## Longer summary Mufti Abu Layth says the debate will go down in history and that Wood will forever be embarrassed by it, noting with amusement that in the YouTube comments Wood's supporters still acted as though he had won, with one commenter asking why he was acting like the winner. His takeaways for anyone who debates, Hijab included: the performance of knowledge on the biblical side was excellent and inspiring, and he has read that Hijab may even have studied Hebrew, which impresses him if true; one must have thorough knowledge. Second, the shouting pushed Muslims back into the stereotyped era, so Muslims need to raise their adab. Third, if Muslims are to be objective and true to themselves they cannot hold irrational beliefs and condemn others for theirs; they must be consistent and revisit some of their understandings. If one says the laws of nature do not matter, he argues, then three equalling one does not matter either, since God could make himself three manifestations if reason is thrown out, and the counter that mathematics forbids it fails once one allows God to make exceptions by his power; the argument becomes absurd precisely because it abandons the voice of reason. So if Muslims stick to reason they must follow it through within Islam too, and he says that clips sent to him about drinking camel urine, miracles that suspend the laws of nature, or there being no laws of nature when God does not want them give a confusing message. He closes by congratulating Hijab on the debate. ## Sources and names cited - Mohammed Hijab - David Wood - adab - report: the prophet told the sick to drink camel urine - miracles never defy God's laws; they have causes within nature ## Transcript (machine tier, 27:53–31:40) [27:36] think that that didn't help really because it showed this whole thing of like kind of just you know Muslims kind of being rowdy and stuff like that so that was some of my thoughts about the o'clock characteristics but I definitely do feel that this is in many ways a monumental kind of discussion I do think if you have a watch do some when you get time do watch it it will definitely go down I think that David Wood will forever be embarrassed now what was funny was in the YouTube comments I read their YouTube comments so many of them not the whole thing that so many but what was shocking is that the the kind of supporters of David Wood were still [28:13] trying to act like that he'd won they were like oh I mean some of them were just saying about oh you know he said that he job should have behaved better and stuff like this but many of them were like all excellent you know you did amazing you did this he did and then like so many comments down you one comment saying what horrible discipline what is acting like he won I think that was funny to read but but yeah but overall so if if any of the people watching this as well including Muhammad hijab and others I think that [28:52] it was definitely there was an excellent performance of knowledge that I have to say from the biblical side of things so and that is it's something really inspiring and also a lesson that you know if you are going to debate something or discuss they should have thorough knowledge I don't know whether read somewhere Mohamed hijab even studied Hebrew for he I don't if that be the case wow I'm impressed but so that is something that was well done his own day and age I'm Adi that was the whole oh you know that shouting and the whole [29:31] day it kind of pushed a straight back into into that era so I think we do need to up our a flop game definitely and I think also one thing I would say is that we need to kind of what we can learn from this debate is if we're going to be objective and true to ourselves is that have what we can't do is have irrational beliefs ourselves and then condemn other people for irrational beliefs like we must be consistent that's one thing that I would like to definitely take away from that and I would encourage people [30:10] to take that away that we need to revisit some understandings we have because if we're saying things like look you know this was done and laws of nature don't matter and this don't matter and none of these things matter then three equals one doesn't matter because what's to say that God can't make himself be three manifestations apart from reason and if you throw a reason out the window then nothing matters it's like what's to say well you could say well three does an equal 1 according to mathematics it's a year but but maybe God made an exception using his all power [30:48] all-powerful power so that it becomes an absurd argument I accept that but it's absurd because you're not sticking to the voice of reason so if we're gonna stick to the voice of reason we have to follow through in Islam there's no point having it at that level and then we start saying things like you know like somebody had sent me this these clips of let's drink camel urine or let's do this or you know or miracles happen in certain ways and you know there is no laws of nature or when God doesn't want them and stuff like this that to me is a confusing message so that's all I would [31:28] like to say on that debating shelves lot so I hope that but well done definitely for for having the debate I think Muhammad Li dev I think that was well done ## Cite Mufti Abu Layth Archive, segment gyRfZZZcA8g/s/9. https://muftiabulayth.org/r/gyrfzzzca8g/s/9/ Not a fatwa: these answers were given to specific people at specific times. Ask a qualified scholar about your own situation.