Intro
While most disbelievers like to criticize the marriage of the mother of the Believers Aisha R.A., it is mostly Christians that spread this willy-nilly. So this will also focus on pedophilia in the Christian faith.
If you are a Christian and disagree with pedophilia being present in your faith, let it be known that your 'proof' likely also debunks the claim that Muhammad was a pedophile (the issue of presentism).
This article has been written to show my defense for Muhammad and Aisha respectively, [although the disbelievers dislike it].
Presentism
In 1880, the ages of consent were set at 10 or 12 in most states, with the exception of Delaware where it was 7. (George Mason University; Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media)
This breaks any true fundamental standard that Muhammad was a sexual degenerate or pedophile at his time, as societal standards have changed everywhere and will continue to change. The following adds more to this claim.
Conditions of marriage are as follows: sane mind, both can provide, physical maturity, mental maturity, and general acceptance by society.
How can a child not be hurt, be mentally sane, provide for the marriage, and be supported by society, including the Christians, pagans, etc. of Arabia to marry an adult man? This argument falls apart easily by the slightest of skepticism, and leads to the conclusion that Aisha was most likely an adult at the time, and was allowed to marry Muhammad.
Finally, the critics of Muhammad didn't criticize the marriage of Aisha, but everything other thing he did.
Strictness of Sharia Law in This Regard
The following counteracts the argument that Muhammad was a sexual degenerate (agreeing that pedophilia is sexual degeneracy, which is concerning if you disagree).
- Women and men cannot converse casually.
- Men and women cannot flirt.
- Men should lower their gaze.
- Women should cover up for the sake of modesty, and to veil like the Virgin Mary A.S.
- A man and a woman cannot even shake hands, let alone have physical contact with each other.
Aisha was covered. Aisha was not sexualized in any way (with the punishment being harsh i.e. stoning if this ever happened). Aisha was modest. Aisha went on to be the Mother of the Believers.
All this respect given to the wife of the Prophet, and yet the disbelieving liars dumbed it down to "rape" which is the most disrespectful sinful thing to do to a woman. This logically does not add up at all.
Why would Muhammad - if he was a falsifier of the religion - make it:
- Punishable by stoning to death for the fornicator?
- Make it so a man and a woman who love each other have to marry first before they can even hold hands?
- Make women follow the footsteps of the Virgin Mary and make them cover themselves up?
- And therefore marry Aisha for the sake of his supposed sexual degenerate mindset?
As Muslims, we strive to be like the Prophet Muhammad. If, by today's perspective, a pedophile Muslim were to exist today, he would be punished for his crimes by death.ย Why would Muhammad make rules against pedophilia but be a pedophile himself? This is illogical.
Christians and Their Double-Sidedness
Rebecca was allegedly 3 at the time of her marriage, a number which is accepted by most medieval rabbinical commentators.
Any argument against Rebecca's age mostly revolves around the problem of presentism or denying the accuracy of the age due to how counting ages worked back then. Ironically, these same arguments are identical to what some Muslims use to argue the fact that Aisha might have been around 18.
Therefore, if the argument of presentism is used, this also means that both Rebecca and Aisha weren't victims of pedophilia; if a Christian wants to hold the world view that Aisha's marriage was pedophilic disregarding the argument against presentism, the Christian must also denounce Christianity due to the marriage of Rebecca.
Here's another instance in which, most likely, girls of ages 9 and younger, some being potentially THREE, have been raped in the Bible.
Moses allowed his troops to have sexual relations with young women in Numbers 31:17-18:
NIV: 17 Now kill all the boys. And kill every woman who has slept with a man, 18 but save for yourselves every girl who has never slept with a man.
KJV: 17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman that hath known man by lying with him. 18 But all the "women children", that have not known a man by lying with him, keep alive for yourselves.
Hebrew: ืึฐืึนืึ ืึทืึผึทึฃืฃ ืึผึทื ึผึธืฉืึดึืื ืึฒืฉืึถึฅืจ ืึนืึพืึธึฝืึฐืขึืึผ ืึดืฉืึฐืึผึทึฃื ืึธืึธึืจ ืึทึฝืึฒืึืึผ ืึธืึถึฝื
Rape was allowed by implication (The Hebrew word ืึธืึถื lakhem means โfor you,โ similar to ููู in the Arabic language.)ย They were indeed little girls. The Hebrew word ืึทึผืฃ taff means toddler, similar to ุทูู which is explicitly used for little baby-like children.
This is also present in i.e. Exodus 12:37: โ600,000 men on foot, besides the tafโ meaning baby-like children.
Ages were as low as 3 as the Talmudic proof for this is Talmud Sanhedrin 55b:
ืืชื ืื: ืืช ืฉืืฉ ืฉื ืื ืืืื ืืื โืืชืงืืฉืช ืืืืื, ืืื ืืขื ืืื ืื ืืขืจืืืช ืืืืืจืื ืืชืืจื โื ืืจื ืขืืื, ืืื ืืื ืืื ืช โืคืกืืื ืื ืืชืจืืื
โAs it was taught: A girl three years and one day old may be betrothed through intercourse. If one of the forbidden relatives listed in the Torah has intercourse with her - ย he is executed for it. If she is a daughter of a priest, she becomes disqualified from eating terumah.โ
Final Thoughts
The marriage of the Prophet Muhammad ๏ทบ to Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) must be understood within its historical and cultural context, not through the lens of modern bias. Islam honors and protects the dignity of women, and its laws reflect a strong moral framework. Accusations rooted in ignorance or double standards should be challenged with knowledge, fairness, and historical clarity.