Introduction

ʿUmar Sulaymān al-Ashqar (1940–2012) completed his foundational studies at the Islamic University of Madinah before pursuing an academic career at the University of Jordan and the University of Kuwait. His scholarly output, spanning more than two dozen books, concentrated on Islamic creed and jurisprudence, and his series on ʿaqīdah became a reference point for students and educators across the Arab-speaking world and in translation. Messengers and Messages (al-Rusul wa al-Risālāt) was composed as the volume in that series devoted to the doctrine of prophethood, a topic that bridges theology, Quranic studies, and sacred history. The book reflects al-Ashqar's characteristic approach: grounded in the Quran and authenticated hadith, attentive to classical scholarship, and written in clear modern Arabic accessible to the educated non-specialist.

The work opens with a careful treatment of the theological necessity and wisdom of prophethood: why Allah, in His mercy and justice, did not leave humanity without guidance but instead chose and prepared messengers from among human beings. Al-Ashqar then examines the essential attributes of the prophets, including truthfulness (al-ṣidq), trustworthiness (al-amānah), and protection from major sin (al-ʿiṣmah), while clarifying the scope and limits of each attribute according to Sunnī consensus. Subsequent chapters survey the missions of key prophets mentioned in the Quran and Sunnah, from Ādam to ʿĪsā, situating each within the overall arc of divine guidance culminating in the prophethood of Muḥammad. The book concludes with a discussion of the finality of prophethood and the implications of that doctrine for Muslim belief and practice.

Messengers and Messages has earned a durable place in the curriculum of Islamic studies programmes because it provides a single, coherent, and well-sourced account of a doctrine that is foundational to Muslim faith yet often treated in a fragmented way across different genres of classical literature. Scholars have commended the book for its careful handling of potentially controversial topics, such as the prophets' protection from sin and the relationship between earlier scriptures and the Quran, positions that al-Ashqar presents in line with established Sunnī scholarship without polemical excess. Its translation into multiple languages has extended its influence far beyond the Arab world.

Students reading this book will find it most rewarding if they come to it with at least a basic familiarity with Quranic narratives of the prophets, since al-Ashqar frequently refers to these stories as evidence for his theological points rather than retelling them at length. Those who have previously studied introductory creed texts will recognise many of the positions affirmed here and will benefit from seeing them elaborated and defended with primary sources. The volume is well-suited to reading alongside the Quranic chapters devoted to prophetic narratives, such as Sūrat Hūd, Sūrat Yūsuf, and Sūrat al-Anbiyāʾ. A reader who engages carefully with each chapter will come away with a theologically sound and historically informed understanding of prophethood as Islam presents it.