George Brahm and Tara Macarthur: Hello, Miss MacArthur, before we begin, I’d like to give you a few moments to introduce yourself.
Hello, Mr Brahm. I’m an ordinary university graduate who knows something about research methods. I live with my family, go to work, go to church and socialise with my friends. Most people don’t know about my secret life as a researcher and writer.
When I write about Islam, I use the name “Tara MacArthur,” which is Irish for “Asma bint Marwan”. This was the name of a real Arabian poet who once wrote a poem about Muhammad. He didn’t like her poem and so he killed her. I chose my pseudonym in her honour.
Tara does nothing except write about Islam. I keep her in a box and only bring her out on occasions like this one. She writes to encourage and inform the important conversation that we need to have about the origins of Islam.
Tara has written a biography of Muhammad and a three-book series on the lives of his wives. The biography, Unsheathed – The Story of Muhammad, is free, so as to make it accessible to everyone including people in countries where it might be dangerous to buy it. It is available in PDF and MP3 audio format from http://www.answeringmuslims.com/2018/09/tara-is-free.html, and on Amazon for those who like paper and Kindle versions. Amazon is the best place to leave a review if you’d like to write one. The audio version is currently available through Castbox or Soundcloud.
The issue that we will be discussing today is sharia law and its effects on society. So as an introduction, what exactly is sharia law and what are the sources from which it is derived?
In this video, Ishmael demonstrates what many apologists who have studied Islam have been saying for decades. The Qur'an has many versions with different readings. Muslims make the same worn out argument that the Qur'an has never been changed, that it has remained the same for 1400 years since the time of Muhammad. The main weakness in this argument, is that the textual evidence that comes from Islam itself will not support such a claim. What is encouraging about Ishmael, who is a former Muslim, is that he not only shows the differences in the English translations of the Qur'an, but he also reads Arabic and shows the differences in the Arabic texts of two Qur'an versions: the Hafs and the Doori versions. Please pray for Ishmael as he is doing tremendous work in this area and continues to shed the light of Christ to our Muslim friends. While we oppose the ideology of Islam, which is unbiblical and dangerous, we need to show love to Muslims. I have taken the word ISLAM to mean "ISincerely Love All Muslims". The Lord Jesus Christ commands us to love, even our enemies (Matthew 5:43-48).
Here's Episode 6 of our "Answering Islam" series, where I answer the question: "What are the main differences between Islam and Christianity?" For the rest of the series, click on the playlist.
Here's the full text of the video:
What Are the Main Differences between Islam and Christianity?
Christians and Muslims agree on a number of issues. We agree that there is one God—all-powerful, all-knowing, and merciful. We agree that God has sent messengers into the world, and that people like Noah, Abraham, Moses, and David were mighty prophets. Concerning Jesus, we agree that he was born of a virgin, that he performed miracles, and that he is the Messiah.
But there are some fundamental differences between Islam and Christianity, and we can break these differences down into three categories: theology, ethics, and evidence.
Let’s start with theology. According to the Bible, God is a Trinity. The Bible calls the Father “God”; it calls Jesus “God”; and it calls the Holy Spirit “God.” And yet the Bible consistently affirms that there’s only one God. This is the basis for the doctrine of the Trinity. The Qur’an declares that Allah is not a Trinity and that anyone who calls Allah a Trinity is a blasphemer.
In both the Old and New Testaments, believers (Jews and Christians) refer to God as their Father in heaven. The Qur’an repeatedly declares that Allah is a father to no one. This is why you don’t hear Muslims calling God “Father.” The highest relationship you can have with Allah, according to the Qur’an, is a slave to master relationship.
The Bible says that God loves everyone. The Qur’an says that Allah doesn’t love unbelievers; he doesn’t love the proud; he doesn’t love ungrateful sinners; he doesn’t love those who exceed his limits; he doesn’t love the extravagant; he doesn’t love mischief-makers. Allah doesn't love most people.
And this difference in God’s love leads to another important theological disagreement between Christians and Muslims. In Christianity, God loves us so much that he enters the world as Jesus of Nazareth to become the perfect sacrifice for our sins. When Muslims hear this, it makes no sense to them, because they have no concept of a God who loves people enough to do something like that.
Allah’s deficient love leads to the second category of disagreement between Christianity and Islam: the ethical disagreements.
Jesus commanded his followers: “I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.” Notice, as Christians, we have to love others. Why? Because God loves them. But as we’ve seen, Allah doesn’t love unbelievers. So the command in Islam is not, “Love your enemies”; it’s “Fight those who do not believe in Allah.”
The emphasis on love in Christianity affects all our relationships. In Ephesians 5:25, the Apostle Paul says, “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” Jesus was crucified for the church, and Paul tells husbands to love our wives the same way. In Christianity, husbands are supposed to love our wives so much that we should be ready to be crucified for them. In Islam, Allah says that you can beat your wife into submission. Very different attitude towards wives, and this ultimately goes back to differences in God’s love in Christianity and Islam.
The third category is evidence. In Christianity, we have good evidence for what we believe. I grew up as an atheist. I started studying Christianity because I wanted to refute a Christian I knew. I understood from reading and discussions that the Apostles based their faith on Jesus’ resurrection, so I started studying the resurrection, in order to prove that Christianity was false. What I found was that every shred of evidence we have tells us that Jesus died by crucifixion. We know this from ancient Christian writers, ancient Jewish writers, and ancient Roman writers. And every shred of evidence we have tells us that Jesus was alive again later. He appeared to more than 500 people at one time. The historical facts just can’t be explained without a miracle.
But Jesus’ resurrection takes us even further. If Jesus was raised from the dead, he must have God’s stamp of approval. God confirmed Jesus’ message by raising him from the dead. So now we have to believe what Jesus claimed about himself, and Jesus claimed to be the divine Son of God who came into the world to die on the cross for the sins of others. I realized this as an atheist. I realized that if I wanted to go where the evidence pointed, I had to believe what Jesus said.
Islam just doesn’t have anything like this. The main argument offered by the Qur’an is that the Qur’an is so wonderfully written, it must come from God. And this is one of the strangest arguments ever offered by any religion. Even if the Qur’an were the most amazing book ever written, this wouldn’t make it the Word of God. It would just mean that the Qur’an had the best writer in history. But in fact, the Qur’an isn’t the most amazing book ever written. Far from it. Let me quote what the Iranian scholar Ali Dashti wrote in his book Twenty Three Years:
The Qur’an contains sentences which are incomplete and not fully intelligible without the aid of commentaries; foreign words, unfamiliar Arabic words, and words used with other than the normal meaning; adjectives and verbs inflected without observance of the concords of gender and number; illogically and ungrammatically applied pronouns which sometimes have no referent; and predicates which in rhymed passages are often remote from the subjects. These and other such aberrations in the language have given scope to critics who deny the Qur’an’s eloquence.
So the main argument of the Qur’an fails miserably, and other arguments for Islam are even worse. This means that there’s no good evidence for Islam, but we have very good evidence for Christianity. And since Christians have proof for what we believe, this confirms our theology and our ethics whenever our theology and ethics disagree with Islam.
Here's Episode 5 of our "Answering Islam" series, where I answer the question: "What are the basics of the Islamic worldview?" For the rest of the series, click on the playlist.
Here's the full text of the video:
“What Are the Basics of the Islamic Worldview?”
We can often learn something important about a religion just by examining its name. The name “Christianity,” for instance, draws attention to the importance of Christ in Christianity. Similarly, the word “Islam” tells us something about the religion preached by Muhammad. “Islam” is Arabic for “submission” or “surrender,” and, in its religious context, the term refers to submitting one’s will to “Allah” (the Arabic for “God”). The word “Muslim” means “one who submits” (to Allah).
So we can already tell that Islam’s going to have a lot to do with submitting to God. And Muslims who preach Islam in the West emphasize this when they preach. They say, “Islam just means submission to God. You want to submit to God, don’t you? Well, then, Islam is the religion for you.” Now if the message of Islam were simply, “Submit to God,” Christians and Jews would agree. We want to submit to God. But the message of Islam isn’t just that you must submit to God; it’s a message about how you must submit to God.
According to Islam, you submit to God by doing certain things and by believing certain things. And Islam has two convenient lists for us—a list of the most important deeds (called the “Five Pillars”) and a list of the most important beliefs (called the “Six Articles of Faith”).
The five pillars of Islam (the five most important practices) are shahada, salat, zakat, sawm, and hajj.
“Shahada” means “testimony.” To become a Muslim, all you have to do is recite the words “La ilaha illa Allah; Muhammadu rasul Allah.” (“There is no god but Allah; and Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.” By reciting this “testimony of faith,” or creed, a person formally submits to Allah and Muhammad.
“Salat” refers to prayer and worship. Muslims are required to pray five times per day. These prayers are memorized recitations in Arabic that are accompanied by specified bodily positions (standing, prostrating, and sitting). Muslims perform ceremonial washings called “ablutions” before prayers, and they pray facing the “Kaaba,” which is a cube-shaped shrine in Mecca.
“Zakat” refers to alms-giving, which is required of all Muslims except for those who are extremely poor. Muslims have to give 1/40 of any monetary wealth they’ve held for an entire year, along with various percentages of agricultural products, livestock, and other goods.
“Sawm” is Islamic fasting, which is especially associated with “Ramadan,” the ninth month of the Islamic lunar calendar. When fasting, Muslims are required to abstain from food, beverages, and sexual intercourse during daylight hours (so, from dawn till sunset).
The “Hajj” is the pilgrimage to Mecca. Every Muslim who is physically and financially able must take a pilgrimage to Mecca at least once in life. The communal Hajj takes place annually during the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar. Muslims circle the Kaaba seven times, run or walk back and forth between the nearby hills of Safa and Marwah, pelt walls with pebbles to symbolize stoning the devil—things like that.
So Islam requires submission to Allah, and Muslims demonstrate their submission by performing these five deeds.
Muslims are also required to believe certain things. These are summarized in the Six Articles of Faith: belief in Allah, belief in angels, belief in inspired books, belief in prophets, belief in the day of judgment, and belief in predestination. And these beliefs aren’t just some kind of intellectual assent to the existence of God or the existence of angels—they require belief in what Islam teaches about God, angels, and so on.
So, belief in Allah isn’t just belief that God exists. It’s belief in the Islamic view of God—most importantly that Allah is one, with no division in essence or person. The oneness of Allah (a doctrine called “tawhid”) is so central to Islam that denying Allah’s oneness is the worst sin a person can commit in Islam. It’s the sin of “shirk”—associating partners with Allah.
The second article of faith is belief in angels. In Islam, angels are created from light and are incapable of disobeying Allah. So there are no fallen angels in Islam. “Iblis,” or Satan, is one of the “jinn.” Jinn are created from fire rather than from light and may rebel against Allah.
Then there’s belief in Allah’s revealed books. The Qur’an affirms the inspiration, preservation, and authority not only of the Qur’an but also of the Torah, the Psalms, and the Gospel.
Muslims have to believe in Allah’s prophets. Counting Muhammad, the Qur’an mentions 25 prophets by name, though there are numerous unnamed prophets as well. The most respected prophets in Islam are Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad.
Belief in the Day of Judgment includes belief in a general resurrection of the dead, followed by a final reckoning. After hearing their deeds read from a scroll, faithful Muslims will enter “Jannah” (the “Garden,” or Paradise), while unbelievers and hypocrites will be thrown into “Jahannum” (referring to hell).
Belief in Predestination is interesting. Some passages of the Qur’an suggest that human beings are ultimately responsible for their own actions. But passages indicating Allah’s complete control over human actions are clearer and more common. If you do right, it’s because Allah wanted you to do right. If you do wrong, it’s because Allah wanted you to do wrong. Allah controls everything we do.
So, those are the basics of Islam. There are a lot more beliefs and practices in the Muslim sources, but these are the beliefs and practices that are most significant.
Youtube sensation Adam Saleh claims that he and his friend Slim Albaher were kicked off a Delta Airlines flight for speaking Arabic, and the complaint on Twitter has launched the #BoycottDelta campaign. But can we trust Adam Saleh when we know that he has fabricated discrimination stories in the past? In this video, I go through Adam Saleh's previous plane pranks to see if his account can be trusted.
A recent MSN headline for an article in The Guardian suggested that Muslim asylum seekers in Greece are being forced to convert to Christianity. The article, however, simply reported that two Christian aid workers gave copies of the Gospel of John to some Muslims at the camp. Why would the media suggest that Muslims were being forced to convert when they were only being given copies of a single book of the Bible?
Islam and Basic Human Rights mix like water and oil. Many Muslims would like us to believe that Islam and its sharia law is fully compatible with Western democratic values of freedom. When we see the application of sharia anywhere in the world we realize that such a notion is baseless and false. Here is a blast from the past where I debate the Muslim apologist Sami Zataari on this very question.
The most popular argument for Islam goes something like this: "Islam must be the true religion because it's spreading so rapidly." But can we really conclude that a religion is true based on rapid growth? In this video, I go through some studies to help viewers understand the nature of Islam's growth. Not surprisingly, the spread of Islam has nothing to do with its being true (in fact, just the opposite).
I was on the Trinity Channel addressing the question of whether Islam is an Abrahamic religion. I was joined by Osama Abdallah on the Islamic position, and Rabbi Nachum Shifren on the Jewish position. The show was hosted by Tony Gurule and Joe Carey.
In a video titled "10 Lies You Were Told about Islam," AllTime10s insists that ISIS is "anti-Islamic" because the group has targeted Muslims. However, the Qur'an commands its adherents to wage jihad not only against unbelievers, but also against "hypocrites" (i.e., Muslims who aren't really following Islam). Not surprisingly, the early Muslim community was characterized by bloodshed, with various groups accusing other groups of being hypocrites and apostates. Since Muhammad called the first generation of Muslims the "best of peoples," can we really say that it's "anti-Islamic" for ISIS to wage jihad against Muslims they regard as hypocrites?
The video "10 Lies You Were Told about Islam" attempts to respond to various false claims made about Islam and Muslims. However, the video-makers tell their viewers that the Qur'an says that “One who kills a non-Muslim person under protection will not even smell the fragrance of Paradise,” and “Whoever hurts a non-Muslim, I shall be adversary to him, on the Day of Resurrection.” These words are found nowhere in the Quran. Instead, they are versions of sayings found in the Hadith, but in the Hadith, they have a very different meaning from the meaning provided by AllTime10s.
Recently, AllTime10s posted a video titled "Ten Lies You Were Told about Islam." The video attempts to respond to various false claims made about Islam and Muslims. However, the "research" for the video was incredibly sloppy, and a number of false statements were made. For instance, AllTime10s insists that Pew Research has found that only .006625% of Muslims "identify with extremism." This claim, however, doesn't come from Pew Research. It comes from the blog of Dave Cecil, who clearly didn't understand the CNN article he was reading. Ironically, the link provided by AllTimeTens refutes the claim in the video. With such shoddy video research, it's clear that the video makers need to be more careful.
Be sure to check out this series of audio recordings from the recent "Answering Islam" conference at Southern Evangelical Seminary. There are 18 different lectures, totalling nearly 16 hours of content, available for your listening pleasure. Enjoy!
With more than 1.6 billion adherents globally, Islam is the second largest religion in history. Despite such impressive numbers, however, much of the world's population knows little about Islam. It's time for Christians everywhere to learn some basic information about the beliefs of Muslims.
Islam poses three significant challenges to Christians:
(1) Islam contradicts the core teachings of Jesus and his apostles.
(2) Islam places massive obstacles in the way of conversion.
(3) Islam calls for the subjugation of Christians and the global implementation of Sharia.
What are some Biblical responses to these challenges?
Our Muslim friends tell us that Islam is the religion of submission to Allah alone. But when we open the Qur'an, we find that Islam demands complete submission to Muhammad:
Quran 4:65—But no, by your Lord, they can have no Faith, until they make you (O Muhammad) judge in all disputes between them, and find in themselves no resistance against your decisions, and accept (them) with full submission.
Quran 33:36—It is not fitting for a Believer, man or woman, when a matter has been decided by Allah and His Apostle to have any option about their decision: if any one disobeys Allah and His Apostle, he is indeed on a clearly wrong Path.
Moreover, Muhammad commanded his followers to address him directly in their prayers:
Sahih Muslim 798—Ibn Abbas reported: The Messenger of Allah used to teach us tashahhud just as he used to teach us a Sura of the Qur'an, and he would say: All services rendered by words, acts of worship, and all good things are due to Allah. Peace be upon you, O Prophet, and Allah's mercy and blessings. Peace be upon us and upon Allah's upright servants. I testify that there is no god but Allah, and I testify that Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah.
To this day, Muslims around the world speak directly to Muhammad during their prayers, saying, "Peace be upon you, O Prophet." What kind of attributes would Muhammad need in order to hear these prayers?
And this is the religion that condemns other religions for idolatry?
For more on this topic, see the following articles by Sam Shamoun:
There are several ways to answer the question "What is Islam?" In the following video, I discuss basic statistics on Islam, the role it plays in the lives of Muslims, and the beliefs and practices it is composed of.
Taking all sects into account, Islam is the world’s second largest religion (after Christianity) with more than 1.6 billion adherents worldwide. Islam is the majority religion in 49 countries, the largest being Indonesia. According to many sources, Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world.
The term Islam means “submission” (or “surrender”). The submission emphasized by Islam is submission to Allah, the god of Islam. A follower of Islam is called a “Muslim” (“one who submits”). A Muslim submits to Allah by obeying Allah’s commands in the Qur’an (believed by Muslims to be the literal word of Allah), along with the teachings of Muhammad (Islam’s prophet) contained in the Hadith (collections of stories about Muhammad).
Essential Islamic doctrines are outlined in the Six Articles of Faith, which include belief in Muhammad’s teachings concerning (1) Allah, (2) angels and other spirit beings, (3) prophets, (4) scriptures, (5) the Day of Judgment, and (6) predestination. Core Muslim practices are listed in the Five Pillars of Islam and consist of (1) reciting the Islamic Creed, (2) performing prescribed Islamic prayers, (3) giving alms in accordance with Muhammad’s teachings, (4) fasting during the Month of Ramadan, and (5) taking the pilgrimage to Mecca.
