Question:

An innovator made the claim that Zurarah, a companion of the Imams (a.), was a Nazarene (Christian) and cited Al-Fihrist of At-Tusi on page 104 as the source. Does this statement correspond to the facts?

Answer:
Such a statement is not found on page 104 or anywhere else in the work. However, the Islamic scholar mentions Zurarah on page 74

Muhammad Ibn Al-Hasan At-Tusi writes: “Zurarah, the son of A’yan, had the name Abd Rabbih and the surnames Abu Al-Hasan and Zurarah was a nickname of his. A’yan was the son of Sinsin and a Roman servant of a man among the sons of Shaiban. He became a scholar of the Qur’an and was therefore released into freedom. Afterwards he offered him to join his family line, but A’yan refused to do so and told him: “You have given me faith because of my loyalty.” Sinsin was a monk in the territories of Rome.” [Al-Fihrist, page 74]

قال شيخ الإسلام أبو جعفر الطوسي رضي الله عنه: زرارة بن أعين و اسمه عبد ربه، يكنى أبا الحسن و زرارة لقب له و كان أعين بن سنسن عبدا روميا لرجل من بني شيبان تعلم القرآن ثم أعتقه فعرض عليه أن يدخل في نسبه فأبى أعين أن يفعله و قال له أقرني على ولائي، و كان سنسن راهبا في بلد الروم

Zurarah was not a monk, but his grandfather, which does not make him a Nazarene himself. A much more interesting companion can be found in the acknowledged works of the innovators.

Abd-ul-Aziz reported that Anas Ibn Malik said: “There was a Nazarene who became a Muslim and read the chapters Al-Baqarah and Al-Imran and wrote it down for the Prophet Muhammad (s.) Then he became a Nazarene again and said: “Muhammad has no knowledge except what I have written down for him. Afterwards God let him die and he was buried. When the next morning dawned, the earth had cast him out and people said: “This is the work of Muhammad and his companions! They desecrated the tomb of our companion and threw him out because he ran away from them.” So they dug another grave for him and buried him even deeper. When the next morning dawned, the earth had expelled him and the people said: “This is the work of Muhammad and his companions! They defiled the grave of our companion and threw him out because he ran away from them.” Then they dug another grave for him and put him as deep in the earth as they could, but the next morning the earth pushed him out again and they got to know that this is not the work of men and they let him fall.” [Sahih Al-Bukhari, Hadith 3421]

حدثنا أبو معمر حدثنا عبد الوارث حدثنا عبد العزيز عن أنس رضي الله عنه قال كان رجل نصرانيا فأسلم وقرأ البقرة وآل عمران فكان يكتب للنبي صلى الله عليه وسلم فعاد نصرانيا فكان يقول ما يدري محمد إلا ما كتبت له فأماته الله فدفنوه فأصبح وقد لفظته الأرض فقالوا هذا فعل محمد وأصحابه لما هرب منهم نبشوا عن صاحبنا فألقوه فحفروا له فأعمقوا فأصبح وقد لفظته الأرض فقالوا هذا فعل محمد وأصحابه نبشوا عن صاحبنا لما هرب منهم فألقوه فحفروا له وأعمقوا له في الأرض ما استطاعوا فأصبح وقد لفظته الأرض فعلموا أنه ليس من الناس فألقوه