2019129 [Elias-Orfali] 003-Ch2-Brockopp-proof-01 [version 20190520 date 20190603 16:01] page 25 © koninklijke brill nv, leiden,  | doi:./_ chapter  The Rise of Islam in a Judeo-Christian Context Jonathan E. Brockopp One of the hallmarks of Gerhard Bowering’s minor writings is his interest in Muslims’ interaction with religious others, whether conceptually in pieces on “awakening” or “tolerance,” or historically at specific moments in time. In one short article, “The Qurʾān as the Voice of God,” in Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Bowering observes that the Quran has “a significant rela- tionship to the tradition of the Jewish and Christian scriptures.” Rejecting the notion that biblical texts—whether canonical or apocryphal—were a direct source for the Quran, he argues for a common “oral lore” that was commu- nicated to Muhammad in Arabic. In this article, I take up some of the chal- lenges in this fourteen-year-old article, speculating on the tasks of collection and canonization by the early Muslim community. It is my contention, how- ever, that Bowering’s notion of a common oral lore necessarily implies that the boundaries among Muslim, Jewish, and Christian Arabs were not so clear dur- ing Muhammad’s lifetime, and also that early Muslim communities still main- tained significant relationships to Jewish and Christian traditions well after the death of the prophet Muhammad. Given what we know about the history of religious emergence, this should not be a particularly controversial suggestion, but unfortunately, some modern authors misrepresent the earliest period of Islam in one of two ways. On the one hand, apologists regard the early community of the Prophet’s Companions as al-salaf al-ṣāliḥ, a group blessed by their proximity to Muhammad and so par- ticipants in a “golden age” of correct practice. Such a view represents the past as an ideal example for Muslims to strive for—a worthy use of religious his- tory but one that diminishes the actual challenges faced by this community. On the other hand, extreme skeptics doubt whether Muhammad existed at all 1 Böwering, Erwachen; Böwering with Gramlich, Heinen, Crollius, and Troll, Toleranz. 2 Böwering, Jesuits; Böwering, Challenged. 3 Böwering, Qurʾān. , Ibid. 347. 7 Ibid. 351. B Apologists hew to Fred Donner’s “descriptive approach” to Muslim history. Donner, Narra- tives 5–8. I include here both popular authors, such as Karen Armstrong and Reza Aslan, as well as blogs and websites written for pious consumption.