Hello,
Ansar, you mentioned Islamic law as saying that after a girl has had her menses she is considered to be a young woman. Is that law current?
Islamic law indeed places physical changes as the limit for marriage and once someone is past puberty they are considered a young man or a young woman. This concept is medically accurate in comparison to setting artificial limits. As far as marriage is cocnerned, then in previous times, even in the west, it was typical for marriage to occur early as children needed to take an active part in helping out around the house, farm, etc. It was not like today where people usually wait until after completeting their education.
I know different countries have different laws, but what I'm getting at is this: could a Muslim man have sex with a nine-year old girl today and use that law to justify himself?
As I repeatedly emphasized this is not about just 'sex' it is about marriage. Marriage is a life-long commitment that needs approval from both partners. See here for the conditions of marriage:
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/...h-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503546572
Customs or
'urf plays a role as well. Depending on the society, in some cases marriage is done earlier than in others. But the bottom line is that it is done after puberty with the consent of both parties.
I've made my point and I still find this situation disturbing
What is disturbing about a girl being married after puberty by consent and being happy with her marriage as well? Just because today people get married later, why are historical customs 'disturbing'? Do you have any medical evidence to support your view?
And don't feel that you have to withdraw from the discussion at the risk of offending others. It is better to discuss these issues and research them properly, rather than let them fester within and create more misunderstandings. I have always been an advocate of evidence-based and respectful dialogue.
bin direnken,
Oh I'm sorry for not citing my sources. As a physicians assistant I speak from a scientific standpoint almost daily, and sometimes I forget that others do not have this kind of foundation to build upon.
That's not what I'm criticising you for. I am criticising you for building your claims on fallacious arguments such as red-herrings and strawmen and blatantly ignoring the evidence that has already been presented.
Let's deal with the claim of central precocious puberty first.
There is also condition called central precocious puberty and can affect young girls as young as four. These girls develop genital hair, budding breasts, active sweat glands and active menstrual cycles. In no way should they be considered sexually mature at this young age. In my professional opinion, the same can be said for menstruating nine year olds. If you want to verify this, please google the condition. There are a plethora of active links to help you in your search.
For someone who should be educated on this issue, you shall a remarkable lack of understanding. As per the Medline plus Medical Encyclopedia:
Precocious puberty is premature development of body characteristics that normally occur during puberty. (Puberty is the period in life when the body changes rapidly and develops reproductive capability). Puberty normally occurs between 13 and 15 years old in boys, and between 9 and 16 years old in girls.
In girls, precocious puberty is when any of the following develop before 8 years of age:
Breasts
Armpit or pubic hair
Mature external genitalia
First menstruation
(
SOURCE, emphasis added)
The Nemours Foundation concurrs with the description as well:
Precocious puberty - the onset of signs of puberty before age 7 or 8 in girls and age 9 in boys - can be physically and emotionally difficult for children and can sometimes be the sign of an underlying health problem. (
SOURCE)
So our Medical references confirm that it is
normal for girls to attain puberty at the age of nine, and it is only abnormal if it occurs
before the age of 7/8. As we know from the hadith, Aisha was certainly passed the age of nine!
Furthermore, the medical encyclopedia also notes:
Children of both sexes with early sexual development are more likely to have psycho-social problems. Children and adolescents generally want to be the same as their peers, and early sexual development can make them appear "different". This can result in self-esteem problems, depression, acting out at school and home, and alcohol and illegal substance abuse.(
SOURCE)
Now we also know that Aisha rd did not fit these characteristics in the slightest way possible. She was then and remained since a confident, in fact very bold young women who took an active part in her community later assuming the role of leadership on a military level as well as an educational level.
And the major part that demonstrates that you didn't do your homework is the fact that this is an abnormality. But we have already established that the marriage was absolutely normal then. In fact Aisha was engaged to someone else before the Prophet Muhammad pbuh. Please read the following links as you
still have not addressed any of the points that were previously mentioned, and you continue to use red-herrings as your primary method of argumentation:
http://www.load-islam.com/C/rebuttals/The_Young_Marriage_of_Aishah/#6
http://www.load-islam.com/C/rebuttals/The_Young_Marriage_of_Aishah/#8
When I spoke of fistulas, you may verify these early childbirth dangers on the following webpage:
www.endfistula.org
Did you even read what I wrote in response?! I said it was a
red-herring. In other words fistulas have nothing to do with the marriage of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh. This is all related to
prepubescent brides and the Prophet saws married Aisha rd
after puberty!
Bin direnken, I highly suggest that you review the material posted here and provide evidence to support your conclusions about the Prophet's marriage as opposed to building your arguments on conjecture.
Regards
bin direnken,
And technically, because of this fact, Aisha was still a child and still socially considered a prepubescent.
