Neurologists have discovered that the brain of a child is not developed enough to make decisions such as whether or not to get married. Medical doctors tell us that the female organs are not developed enough at that age to accept an adult organ and that damage will result if they have intercourse. It is not only a horrible crime for an adult man to have sex with a child, but can any Muslim father out there honestly say that he would permit a 50 year old man to marry and have sex with his 9 year old daughter? I'd really like to know the answer to this question as I am thinking of becoming a Muslim, but this fact just disgusts me. How can a man of God abuse such a little child like that? Should all Muslims follow this "sunnah" of the Prophet?
This is a personal response, not a cut and paste, as I hope you will read the full reply.
Firstly, 'Aisha (peace be upon her) was an adult when the marriage was consummated, though she entered into the Prophet's (peace be upon him) house several years before consummation. Her young age distresses many people today, and given the current climate, it is understandable why.
However, I ask you a question, who is your frame of reference when you think of a nine year old? Think about this carefully. Have you ever had the experience of meeting a nine year old from Mauritania? Where individuals in their teens are judges and there is no adolescence?
It should be noted that adolescence is an artificial period that has been injected into the lives of our youth due to the current education system (you can read The Disappearance of Childhood by Neil Postman if you would like further details on this). The reality is that once individuals are pubescent, they are adults. If they act like children, then it is due to their upbringing and social environment.
A key feature of Arabia fifteen hundred years ago is that they were an oral_ culture, and I wonder whether the neurologists you mention have ever met such an individual. They would develop a deep understanding and eloquence in language at a very young age – are you aware of the affect that language has on maturity? They would memorize massive amounts of information (thousands upon thousands of lines of poetry) at a very young age. Did you know that memorizing in youth actually creates more synapses in the brain? The youth of Arabia fifteen hundred years ago fought in battles, got married and took care of their families in their teens. This is historical reality, and was a norm of that society.
To respond to the statement that doctors say that the organs are not developed – then how is it that the youngest woman to conceive was only five years old? (Such relations are prohibited in Islam as the youngest a woman is considered to be an adult is nine.)
If you study the life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) you will see the wisdom in the marriage. 'Aisha (peace be upon her) narrates over two thousand Prophetic traditions – second only to Abu Hurayra (peace be upon him). Of the one hundred thousand plus companions of the Prophet, she was from the less than ten that issued legal verdicts (Fatwa). She would question the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in a way that other people would not, and because of this, we have gained greater understanding of verses of the Qur'an.
To respond to the various accusations that are leveled against the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), remember that his first wife was twenty five years older than him, and every wife after 'Aisha (peace be upon her) was a widow.
You may contend that only someone that is eighteen (as an example) should get married. I ask why? If your answer is related to maturity, and I am pretty certain that it will be, then what happens if maturity is found in some that is fifteen (or younger) – should they be allowed to get married? If the answer is no, then your problem with the marriage lies with the taboos of your society, and not because you think that a nine year old can't make any decisions for themselves.