us to obey Him if He were untrustworthy. The Catholic
faith, therefore, can point to the unchanging nature of its
own doctrine as proof of its definitive, divinely revealed
character.
Not only does the nullification theory oppose logic and
sound theology; it also contradicts the Koran itself. For in it,
we read: ‘‘Such was the way of Allah in days gone by: and
you shall find no change in the ways of Allah’’ (Sura
48:23). A similar proclamation is made in Sura 6:115:
‘‘Perfected are the words of your Lord in truth and justice.
None can change His words.’’ It is also in Sura 17:77:
‘‘Such were our ways with the apostles whom we sent
before you [Muhammad]. You shall find no change in our
way.’’ A Hadith echoes this: ‘‘My Word does not change,’’
Allah says flatly.[37] But the nullification theory holds that
Allah’s word does change. Mutability is a manifestation of
imperfection. Can the Koran then be giving a true picture of
the Almighty God who is perfect in all things? Abrogation
and nullification are not the same as a progressive
understanding of divine revelation: it is one thing to
gradually understand more and more of God’s revelation to
humanity (as in the Catholic faith), but it is entirely another
to change the substance of the revelation to its opposite.
The plain fact of the case is that whole idea of
abrogation demonstrates that the Koran is merely a human
book.