Intent
The intent of this document is to provide a comprehensive collection of Biblical and historical resources for understanding and responding to Islamic theology, with particular focus on common questions and points of discussion between Christianity and Islam.
Brief History of Islam
In the seventh century, Muhammad claimed the angel Gabriel visited him. During these angelic visitations, which continued for about 23 years until Muhammad’s death, the angel purportedly revealed to Muhammad the words of Allah (the Arabic word for “God” used by Muslims). These dictated revelations compose the Qur’an, Islam’s holy book. Islam means “submission,” deriving from a root word that means “peace.” The word Muslim means “one who submits to Allah.”
James White: “In the first half of his life from 610-622, Muhammad is a minority prophet in Mecca. Mecca is filled with polytheists; there is a shrine in the middle of the city called the Kaaba, and the money of Mecca comes from trade and worship of others coming to visit the Kaaba. Muhammad called to the prophethood in 610 by the angel Gabriel, and for the first 12 years, he is persecuted because he is preaching monotheism. Especially within his own tribe, “the Quraish”, since they are in charge of running the Kaaba.”
Brief History of Islam
In the seventh century, Muhammad claimed the angel Gabriel visited him. During these angelic visitations, which continued for about 23 years until Muhammad’s death, the angel purportedly revealed to Muhammad the words of Allah (the Arabic word for “God” used by Muslims). These dictated revelations compose the Qur’an, Islam’s holy book. Islam means “submission,” deriving from a root word that means “peace.” The word Muslim means “one who submits to Allah.”
James White: “In the first half of his life from 610-622, Muhammad is a minority prophet in Mecca. Mecca is filled with polytheists; there is a shrine in the middle of the city called the Kaaba, and the money of Mecca comes from trade and worship of others coming to visit the Kaaba. Muhammad called to the prophethood in 610 by the angel Gabriel, and for the first 12 years, he is persecuted because he is preaching monotheism. Especially within his own tribe, “the Quraish”, since they are in charge of running the Kaaba.”
History of Muhammad and the Quran
Comprehensive history on Answering Islam
Doctrine of Islam (Aqeeda)
Muslims summarize their doctrine in six articles of faith (Quran 2:285):
- Belief in one Allah: Muslims believe Allah is one, eternal, creator, and sovereign.
- Belief in the angels
- Belief in the prophets: The prophets include the biblical prophets but end with Muhammad as Allah’s final prophet.
- Belief in the revelations of Allah: Muslims accept certain portions of the Bible, such as the Torah and the Gospels. They believe the Qur’an is the preexistent, perfect word of Allah.
- Belief in the last day of judgment and the hereafter: Everyone will be resurrected for judgment into either paradise or hell.
- Belief in predestination: Muslims believe Allah has decreed everything that will happen. Muslims testify to Allah’s sovereignty with their frequent phrase, inshallah, meaning, “if God wills.”
Five Pillars of Islam (Sharia, “the way to water”)
These five tenets compose the framework of obedience for Muslims:
- The testimony of faith (shahada): “la ilaha illa allah. Muhammad rasul Allah.” This means, “There is no deity but Allah. Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.” A person can convert to Islam by stating this creed. The shahada shows that a Muslim believes in Allah alone as deity and believes that Muhammad reveals Allah.
- Prayer (salat): Five ritual prayers must be performed every day.
- Giving (zakat): This almsgiving is a certain percentage given once a year.
- Fasting (sawm): Muslims fast during Ramadan in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. They must not eat or drink from dawn until sunset.
- Pilgrimage (hajj): If physically and financially possible, a Muslim must make the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia at least once. The hajj is performed in the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar.
A Muslim’s entrance into paradise hinges on obedience to these Five Pillars. Still, Allah may reject them. Even Muhammad was not sure whether Allah would admit him to paradise (Surah 46:9; Hadith 5.266).
The Quran
The Quran is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims believe to be a revelation from God (Arabic: الله, Allah). The Quran is divided into chapters (surah), which are then divided into verses (ayah). Muslims believe the Quran was verbally revealed by Allah to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel (Jibril), gradually over a period of approximately 23 years, when Muhammad was 40, and concluding in 63, the year of his death. Muslims regard the Quran as the most important miracle of Muhammad, a proof of his prophethood, and the culmination of a series of divine messages that started with the messages revealed to Adam and ended with Muhammad. (Wiki)
Key Facts:
- Quran is ordered by length of surahs after the first
- Each surah is not arranged in a particular chronological order; they bounce around different periods of time
- Written around 600 AD
- Christians are referred to as the “people of the Gospel” or “people of the Book” (Christians, Jews, or both at times depending on the context)
- Classical Muslim perspective (Sunni orthodox): Quran exists in Heaven on a tablet, it is uncreated and eternal; came down on “the night of power”
- Quran is perfect transmission of Allah –> Gabriel –> Muhammad
Canonization of Quran and Bible (Textual Criticism)
Tremendous problem (c650-656, Uthman burns Qurans after Muhammad dies in 8 June 632): In early Islamic history, all the Qurans were burnt because of the differences within them within 20 years of Muhammad’s death. This is recorded in the Islamic sources. A standard Quran was then issued afterwards. No Muslim scholar denies this event since it is so well recorded. If you are going to point the finger at the Bible for corruption, you need to point four fingers at the Quran.
Bible: The Bible was written over 1500 years, in 66 books, by over 40 authors on 3 continents, in 3 languages, yet comes together as one Book (Steven Lawson)
This stands in stark contrast to the history of the New Testament. The Qur’an was purposefully compiled—at least twice—after Muhammad’s death. Neither process produced a large number of physical copies. This process was entirely under the direction of the leaders of the Islamic Empire. After the second collection, all prior records were purposefully destroyed. In short, this means that the Qur’an we see today is the result of a tightly-controlled process, under the direction of a very few people, very soon after it was first written down. There is no way to know if or to what extent this might have changed from the original. (Got Questions)
The New Testament, on the other hand, was originally written by various authors at various times and places. These words spread during a time when Christianity was functionally illegal. Texts were copied freely, independently, and often. This was done without any central control, and without any restrictions. The end result is what we see today: thousands and thousands of surviving manuscripts from an extremely broad geography. The advantage to this is that no one group, church, or government ever had the ability to control what those manuscripts said. Any copyist errors or changes stand out clearly. By the time the Roman Empire cared about the Bible—three hundred years later—manuscripts had been in circulation for centuries. At that point, it was impossible to replace the texts with some controlled version.
Fundamental Difference: Free Transmission of Text vs. Controlled Transmission
Free transmission of NT: multiple writers, multiples times, multiple audiences –> there was never a historical time where any man, woman, or group of men could control what was in the New Testament
- Textual variations that need to be studied but there cannot be any substantial differences between variants
- 25,000 handwritten manuscripts of NT (no other work of antiquity comes close)
Controlled version of Quran: external authority or power that is involved in the revision or control of an offcial text that has the power to enforece that
- Uthman specifically creating an official version of the text and sending it to the major Islamic cities. Anything else is to be destroyed
Surah 4:157
A very important ayah in the Quran. There is no interpretation in hadith literature on this verse.
Common interpretations:
- The substitution view (common among non-Westernized Muslims): “Jesus” only appeared to die; it was actually someone else…maybe Judas or Simon the Cyrene?
- But this means that God started Christianity by mistake. He fooled many and caused them to commit shirk
- Western Muslims will just say “God knows. I don’t know”
Corruption of the New Testament Gospels?
The Quran affirms the inspiration, preservation, and authority of the Torah and the Gospels.
Verses on Inspiration of Torah (Tawrat) and the Gospel (Injil)
(Quran 3:3-4) He hath revealed unto thee (Muhammad) the Scripture with truth, confirming that which was (revealed) before it, even as He revealed the Torah and the Gospel
(Quran 7:157) They are the ones who follow the Messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whose description they find in their Torah and the Gospel. He commands them to do good and forbids them from evil, permits for them what is lawful and forbids to them what is impure, and relieves them from their burdens and the shackles that bound them. ˹Only˺ those who believe in him, honour and support him, and follow the light sent down to him will be successful."
Verses about the Word of Allah Being Unchangeable
(Quran 18:27) And recite, O Muhammad, what has been revealed to you of the Book of your Lord. There is no changer of His words, and never will you find in other than Him a refuge.
(Quran 6:114-115) “Then is it other than Allah I should seek as judge while it is He who has revealed to you the Book explained in detail?” And those to whom We previously gave the Scripture know that it is sent down from your Lord in truth, so never be among the doubters. And the word of your Lord has been fulfilled in truth and in justice. None can alter His words, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing.
Verses about the Authority of Torah and Gospels
Historical Context: Jews come to Muhammad to settle a dispute. Allah says “why do the Jews come to you for judgment when they have the Torah?” Muhammad puts the Torah on the judgment cushion.
(Quran 5:43) Yet how will they appoint you a judge when they have the Torah with them, wherein there is Allah’s judgement – and still they turn away from it? The fact is, they are not believers.
Historical Context: “People of the Gospel” are Christians. Let them judge by the Gospel.
(Quran 5:47) And let the People of the Gospel judge by what Allah has revealed therein. And whoever does not judge by what Allah has revealed - then it is those who are the defiantly disobedient.
These passages don’t say “Jews and Christians should not judge by their corrupt Scriptures.”
(Quran 5:68) Say, O Prophet, “O People of the Book! You have nothing to stand on unless you observe the Torah, the Gospel, and what has been revealed to you from your Lord.” And your Lord’s revelation to you O Prophet will only cause many of them to increase in wickedness and disbelief. So do not grieve for the people who disbelieve.
(Quran 10) Muhammad is having doubts about his revelations. Allah tells him to go to Torah and Gospels
(Quran 2:59) Quran isn’t saying that the Bible has been changed or corrupted. It is saying that the people exchanged the truth of the Scripture for a lie. Similar to Romans 1:25 and Psalm 106:20
Divinity of Christ in the Gospels (hard to deny elsewhere in the NT)
Muslims often ask “Where does Jesus Himself say he is God?”. They, along with Jews, also don’t like “biased” books like Matthew, Luke, or John since they come after Mark.
Important: Jesus was very particular about His identity. He rebuked the demons in Mark 1:24 right away as they called Jesus the “Holy One of God”
Evidence from the Gospel of Mark:
- Jesus performs miracles according to His own will and character and name (Mark 1:40-42, 5:34)
- Jesus forgives sins (Mark 2:5)
- Jesus calls Himself a Physician. Prophets don’t do that. (Mark 2:17)
- He calls Himself a bridegroom (Mark 2:19-20)
- Jesus rebukes and controls nature (Mark 4:39)
- Demons submit to Jesus (Mark 5:6, 13)
- Jesus raises the dead (Mark 5:41) DIFFERENTLY from Elisha in 2 Kings 4:33 who prays to the Lord for supplication.
- Jesus STRONGLY implies (as evidenced by the high priest tearing his clothes) that He is the God of Moses (Exodus 3:14), David (Psalm 110), and Daniel (7:13) in Mark 14:62.
- In Matthew 27:40,43,54, everyone clearly acknowledges that Christ has professed that he was the Son of God.
Trinity
A Jewish Defense of the Trinity
Claims against the Trinity
- The stumbling block for Jews and Muslims is the Trinity
- The Trinity is a “violent hermeneutic” to the Hebrew Bible
- The Trinity is even a “violent hermeneutic” to the New Testament
- Mark’s Christology is adoptionist
- In Synoptic Gospels, Mark 3, Luke 11, Matthew 12, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is unforgiveable
- Trinity is a term coined by Tertullian and its doctrine wasn’t finalized until the fourth century (Nicene Creed)
Several Reasons the Trinity is Fully Compatible with the Torah
The Torah’s Teaching about God’s Mysterious Presence
Where does God dwell?
Sanctuaries for God’s dwelling place:
- Tabernacle/Temple (Exodus 40:33-35, Leviticus 1:1, 1 Kings 8:10-13)
- Heaven (Deuteronomy 26:15; 4:36; 1 Kings 8:30, 27,32,34, 39, 43, 45, 49)
No Jew would ever say that this proves that there are multiple gods. The Torah teaches that God can simulatenously dwell in multiple places while remaining as one God.
How does the Two-Sanctuary Theology differ from John’s Gospel?
- God tabernacles in Animal Skin (Exodus 30:33-34)
- God tabernacles in Human Skin (John 1:1, 14)
Mysterious Unity of God in Creation (The Spirit of Wisdom)
Genesis 1:26 - Why does God speak in the plural?
- Rabbis say that God spoke to His angels
- What is the most textually sensitive interpretation?
- Spirit of God (Genesis 1:2)
- Spirit of God is identified with the wisdom of God (Exodus 31:2-5)
- Proverb makes this connection explicit (Proverbs 8:27-31)
Mysterious Unity of God (The Messenger of the Lord)
- Exodus 3:2-6
- Judges 6:12-16
- Genesis 18:1-3, 22
- Exodus 33:18-23
Trinity in the New Testament
Paul’s Christology in the Early Epistles (AD 50)
- Romans 10:9, 12-13; Joel 3:50
- Philippians 2:10-11; Isaiah 45:23
Earliest Gospel (Debate between Mark and Matthew)
- Mark 1:1-3; Isaiah 40:3
- Mark 4:37-41; Jonah 1
Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit is not Evidence of a Low Christology
Matthew 12:31-32 - If this verse proves Jesus is not fully God, then it also proves the Father is not fully God either (Non-sequitur)
Matthew’s Christology is very high:
- Inclusio (opening and closing of a text) of Divine Identity (Matthew 1:23, 28:20)
- Claims of Divine Identity (Matthew 11:28-30)
- Citations of Divine Identity (Matthew 3:3, Isaiah 40:3; Acts 2:21, 38)
Four Theological Truths in the New Testament
- The Father is God
- Jesus is God (John 1:1)
- The Spirit is God (Acts 5:3-4)
- God is one (1 Corinthians 8:5-6)
Call it What You Want!
- Sommer, a renown Hebrew scholar and conservative Jew, calls this mysterious unity “fluidity” - God has many bodies, and God’s person finds expression in more than one self, even as the underlying unity of the being called Yahweh endures"
- Mystic Judaism calls the msyterious unity “Sephiroth”
- Tertullian called this mysterious unity the “Trinity”
- Israeli believers say “the unity of God”
Important: Modern Judaism’s understanding of the oneness of God is closer to Greek philosophy than biblical Judaism (Maimonides)
Several Reasons the “Trinity” is Affirmed by the Torah
- The Torah’s teachings about God’s mysterious presence (the one God is more than one place simultaenously)
- The Torah’s teachings about God’s mysterious unity (the one God more than one person simultaneously)
- The Torah’s teachings about God’s bodily appearances (the one God takes up physical bodies)
- God’s mysterious unity is:
- Affirmed by the rest of the Hebrew Bible
- Affirmed by post-biblical Jewish sources
- Expressed accurately by the NT (regardless of the name)