Tag Archives: Christianity

Review: “The Sacred City” (2016)

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 26 June 2025

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Was Islam’s Ka’ba Always in Mecca?

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 11 June 2025

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A Note on the Mu’tazilites and the Office of the Caliph

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 4 June 2025

Muslim belief is that the Qur’an is “uncreated” (ghayr makhluq). While the Qur’an was revealed to Muhammad over twenty-three years (610-32 AD), the “speech of God” (kalam Allah) in these revelations had existed co-eternally with God. This was once a point of serious dispute in Islamic theology, and the outcome of that debate was an important waymarker in the development of Islam.

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Gerald Hawting on the Mystery of the Ka’ba

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 1 June 2025

Below is a reproduction of an academic book chapter by G.R. Hawting, “The Origins of the Sanctuary at Mecca”, in G.H.A. Juynboll [ed.] (1982), Studies on the First Century of Islamic Society, pp. 23-47.

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Meeting Protestants in Ukraine

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 28 May 2025

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Islamic State Changes Course in Dealing With the Tribes, Holds Its Ground Against Democracy

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 4 April 2025

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Will Trump Succeed in Withdrawing From Syria This Time?

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 29 March 2025

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The Alawi Massacres in Syria: A Blip or a Rubicon?

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 17 March 2025

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Visiting Post-Revolutionary Syria

By Kyle Orton (@KyleWOrton) on 12 March 2025

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