Philosophy of Religion Research

Inliteration of Islamic Revelation and the Idea of Divine Language

Document Type : Original Research

Author

Assistant Professor, Department of Philosophy of Religion, University of Religions and Denominations, Qom, Iran.

Abstract

In comparative theology, some scholars have drawn an analogy between the person of Christ and the Qur’an, suggesting that both possess a divine nature—Christ through incarnation and the Qur’an through inliteration. However, just as the doctrine of incarnation struggles to explain how the infinite can be present in the finite, this analogy raises a corresponding challenge for inliteration. Assuming the validity of this comparison, this paper explores whether a resolution to this challenge is possible. One potential response is the “idea of divine language,” which posits that language itself originates in the divine realm. This view could explain how the Qur’an, as the Word of God, can be fully divine while existing in linguistic form, since the linguistic form itself is divine. However, this solution does not extend to incarnation, which involves the presentation of the infinite in matter. Nevertheless, the idea of divine language faces two significant objections: firstly, it leads to the incomprehensibility of revelation; secondly, it faces historical-phenomenological implausibility.

Keywords

Main Subjects

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Philosophy of Religion Research
Volume 23, Issue 1 - Serial Number 45
April 2025
Pages 83-100