Introduction
The article gives a brief synposis of the life of the imposter Rashad Khalifa and his ignomious death.
Khalifa was an Egyptian chemist born in 1935. He moved to the United States in 1959 where he later obtained his PhD in biochemistry. In 1974 he claimed that he had discovered the mathematical miracle of the Qur’ān based upon the number nineteen. The latter number is mentioned in Sūrah Muddaththir (74:29). To Khalifa, the unique mathematical composition of the Qur’ān was proof that the Qur’ān was the word of God. A number of books were produced on his theory which was initially well received throughout the Muslim world. However, even at the time, those who closely examined his mathematical claim found that intentional manipulation in his findings. Dr Bilal Phillips succinctly destroys his arguments here and here.
Khalifa claims prophethood
His subsequent claim that he was the messenger of God led Muslims from various denominations to reject him as a heretic. In 1989 he published his second edition of the Qur’ān. This edition did not include the last two verses of Sūrah Tawbah, as according to Khalifa, they were added later, and did not fit in with the numerical pattern of the Qur’ān. In 1982 he wrote his book, “Qur’ān, Ḥadīth and Islam” in which he rejected the concept of ḥadīth and sunna. Khalifa preached that second part of the shahadah was “idolatry.
False Predictions
As is expected with false prophets, Rashad Khalifa made a number of failed predictions. [2]. These are found throughout his newsletters (Muslim Perspective/MP). He claimed that King Fahd would be the final monarch of Saudi Arabia (MP, May 1985. p. 1)
Khalifa called for the world to join the United Islamic Nation (UIN) which was to be a government run by Rashad himself through the proposed capital in Mecca. (MP, September 1985)
He also predicted that: “There will be a change of government in that region at the rate of at least three governments every two years, until a government comes with the specific objective of joining UIN.” (MP, January 1986, p. 1)
Other false prophecies include his understanding of the splitting of the moon (Surah 54), which he traces to himself with the 1969 landing on the moon (Splitting of the Moon Prophecy), and the prophecy about the smoke (44:11), which was supposed to happen during his lifetime (“End of the World”, Appendix 25).
Rashad Khalifa’s legacy
In January 1990, Khalifa was killed in his local mosque in Tucson, Arizona. The assassination was blamed on a Pakistani Islamist group, al-Fuqra’.
Khalifa stands apart from many of the Qur’aniyūn groups due to a number of factors:
- his claim to Prophethood,
- his rejection of ayāt of the Qur’ān,
- and the centrality of the numerical code of the Qur’ān to his philosophy.
His followers, who have divided into a number of groups since his death, choose not to call themselves Muslims preferring the description ‘Submitters’. His movement is relatively unknown outside America, and has attracted many American converts. Unlike Parwez, Khalifa’s was not strongly influenced by other thinkers, although his fixation with ‘nineteen’ may have its roots in the Bahai faith [2].
[1] This section is taken from here.
[2] “The Bahai calendar has 19 months consisting of 19 days each, and 19 can be found in all Bahai premises written on walls and even embossed on chairs” See Phillips, Abū Ameenah Bilal. (1987). The Qur’an’s Numerical Miracle: 19. Hoax and Heresy. Jeddah: Abdul Qāsim Bookstore.
