Picture this scene. Prophet Muhammad has just died.
A crowd gathers outside his house in Medina. His closest companion, Abu Bakr, comes galloping on his horse. He goes inside to confirm the news. After consoling himself, he comes out to address the swelling crowd. ‘O believers,’ Abu Bakr announces. ‘If you worshipped Muhammad, know that Muhammad is dead. But whosoever worshipped God, know that God is alive, for He cannot die.’ Then Abu Bakr recites a verse from the Qur’an: ‘Muhammad is only a messenger before whom many messengers have been and gone.’ (3:144).
