Study of Angelika Neuwirth’s Viewpoint on the Relation between the Qur’an and the Holy Scripture(A Case Study of Surat al-Rahman and Psalm 136)

Comparison between the Qur’an and the bible and the study of their similarities is among the topics that have always been of interest to the orientalists and the Qur’an scholars. These similarities have caused various and sometimes contradictive viewpoints. Meanwhile, the Psalms have been of more interest than other parts of the Holy Scripture. Angelika Neuwirth is one of the Qur’an researchers who has conducted various studies comparing the Qur’an with Psalms and has provided valuable information about the structure of the topics and contexts of these two texts. She maintains that the similarities of these two texts originate from the existence of oral tradition among the earlier Arabs. Psalms are among these traditions, with which the early Muslims were familiar and were much in vogue among the people of that era. Calling the Qur’an as a metadiscourse, Neuwirth believes that the Qur’an has always been talking about the issues common among the early Muslims. This article tries to study and appraise Surat al-Rahman and the psalm 136 as a case study from the viewpoint of Neuwirth.