Child Marriages
While reading this next section, remember that Mohammad is declared to be an excellent example (uswah hasanah) meaning one worthy of imitation:
Quran 33:21
Indeed, in the Messenger of Allah you have an excellent example for whoever has hope in Allah and the Last Day, and remembers Allah often.
While the exact age of Aisha is in dispute by Islamic scholars, they are all in agreement that Mohammad (roughly 53 years old) married Aisha (between 6-7 years old) and consummated/had intercourse with her when she was 9. Aisha was allowed to play with her dolls, which was forbidden once a girl reaches maturity. We know that Aisha was a child having relations with Mohammad. This is reported in many Sahih Hadiths:
Sahih al-Bukhari 3894
The Prophet (ﷺ) engaged me when I was a girl of six (years). We went to Medina and stayed at the home of Bani-al-Harith bin Khazraj. Then I got ill and my hair fell down. Later on my hair grew (again) and my mother, Um Ruman, came to me while I was playing in a swing with some of my girl friends. She called me, and I went to her, not knowing what she wanted to do to me. She caught me by the hand and made me stand at the door of the house. I was breathless then, and when my breathing became Allright, she took some water and rubbed my face and head with it. Then she took me into the house. There in the house I saw some Ansari women who said, "Best wishes and Allah's Blessing and a good luck." Then she entrusted me to them and they prepared me (for the marriage). Unexpectedly Allah's Apostle came to me in the forenoon and my mother handed me over to him, and at that time I was a girl of nine years of age.
And Sahih Muslim 1422a:
Sahih Muslim 1422a
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) married me when I was six years old, and I was admitted to his house at the age of nine. She further said: We went to Medina and I had an attack of fever for a month, and my hair had come down to the earlobes. Umm Ruman (my mother) came to me and I was at that time on a swing along with my playmates. She called me loudly and I went to her and I did not know what she had wanted of me. She took hold of my hand and took me to the door, and I was saying: Ha, ha (as if I was gasping), until the agitation of my heart was over. She took me to a house, where had gathered the women of the Ansar. They all blessed me and wished me good luck and said: May you have share in good. She (my mother) entrusted me to them. They washed my head and embellished me and nothing frightened me. Allah's Messenger (, may peace be upon him) came there in the morning, and I was entrusted to him.
And Sahih Muslim 1422c:
Sahih Muslim 1422c
'A'isha (Allah be pleased with her) reported that Allah's Apostle (ﷺ) married her when she was seven years old, and he was taken to his house as a bride when she was nine, and her dolls were with her; and when he (the Holy Prophet) died she was eighteen years old.
A few full examples are provided above, but there is near unanimous agreement within the Sahih Hadiths that she was at most 9 years old when their marriage was consummated, and 18 when Mohammad died. See more samples below:
- Sunan Ibn Majah 1877
- Sahih Muslim 1422d
- Sunan Abi Dawud 2121
- Sunan an-Nasa'i 3256
- Sunan an-Nasa'i 3378
- Sunan an-Nasa'i 3257
- Sunan an-Nasa'i 3255
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5133
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5134
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5158
- Sahih al-Bukhari 3896
If you cannot condemn Mohammad for having relations with a child, you agree that it is fine and an excellent example to follow. Mohammad is not just a messenger for the people in the 6th century. According to Islam, he is a messenger for the entire world:
Quran 21:107
We have sent you ˹O Prophet˺ only as a mercy for the whole world.
Furthermore, it is acceptable to marry and divorce pre-pubescent girls. The waiting period between divorce or the death of the husband is specified to be 3 months for those who have not had their period. This shows that it is acceptable to marry a child, as prepubescent girls are directly mentioned to have a waiting period after their divorce.
Quran 65:4
As for your women past the age of menstruation, in case you do not know, their waiting period is three months, and those who have not menstruated as well. As for those who are pregnant, their waiting period ends with delivery.1 And whoever is mindful of Allah, He will make their matters easy for them.
A Christians View
The easiest way to see how Christians view marriage is by looking at Jesus. How did Jesus view children?
Matthew 19:14
Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these
In Christianity, marriage is understood as a sacred covenant between two consenting adults, reflecting the sacrificial love Christ has for his church. It is a partnership built on mutual love, respect, and maturity.
Mark 10:6-9
6 But at the beginning of creation God ‘made them male and female.’
7 ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife,
8 and the two will become one flesh.’So they are no longer two, but one flesh.
9 Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.
In Islam, the concept of marriage is butchered multiple times:
- First, with mut'ahs, temporary marriages, as low as a few hours. Often a dowry (payment to the wives family) is required, and its main purpose is sexual gratification. It is legalized prostitution within Islam. This is not generally practiced in Sunni Islam however, with the majority of Shia allowing it.
- Second, with multiple wives. The scriptures before Islam explicitly call for exactly one husband, and one wife as a lifelong covenant. Islam directly opposes this with allowing multiple wives - up to 4. Unlike normal people, Mohammad had 9 simultaneous wives , and 11 total (though some traditions count 12 wives).