Review by Rameen Shahid -- Who Told You That You Were N...

[Rameen Shahid]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Who Told You That You Were Naked?" by William Combs.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Religion is not just a belief but a way of life, a way of living and a concept on which our behavior is based. Given that, not one religion is entirely similar to the other yet there are numerous religions that are deduced from another, a religion that is older than the other, that share the same history but changed beliefs.

This book is based on one of this kind of religions. Christianity. Christians, Jews and Muslims share almost the same history varying mostly at parts that favor their own predecessors. The incident around which this book revolves is the famous incident in Islam and Christianity, how the first human came on Earth. Adam is believed to be the first human, who, alongside with the first human female, Eve (Hawa in Islam), disobeyed God and by this act of sin, were put on Earth for the rest of their human lives. William E. Combs explains the scenario as an act of sin that made the two newly made humans realize they were naked after committing the sin.

The human nature has an ability to distinguish wrong from right. When you commit a sin, guilt takes birth in you. This guilt makes you want to hide yourself, hence giving a feeling of nakedness. He also explains how sin is engraved in every human, inherited from our first parents, Adam and Eve and that we should teach ourselves to gain control over the urge to sin.

For any other religion, this book could be used as a guide, in addition to other guides, to step away from sin. The story about Adam and Eve isn’t very different in this book as described in Islam but there seem to me quite a lot of detail. I’m not sure if the Bible itself describes the scene of Adam and Eve with such delicate details. For example, Adam being convinced by his wife to eat the fruit, serpent and Eve having a proper conversation regarding the tree, Eve convinced to eat the fruit to become like God Himself. Not belonging to the Christian religion, I would still agree to most of the things it has to say about sin, how a human indulges himself in wrongdoings and finds no way out and how God is there for them as well as the pious. The amount of references used from the holy books and quoted references of the Prophets’ sayings is inevitably praiseworthy. Which is why I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars.

The reason I would not rate it 4 out of 4 is because I found some information and explanation to be inexplicable. Adam and Eve were sent to Earth due to their disobedience to God’s commands. The author has tried to interpret the situation as a scene that may have happened a few years back when people could actually find pieces of history buried under the Earth, but in actual, the scene dates back to thousands of years when the only people on Earth were the two newly created humans. An event can be interpreted by the critics with all the logic that compel us to believe them but after all, the truth can’t be decided based on mere interpretations.

This book is definitely recommended to the religious, the pious, the believers, the ones looking for light but it is mostly recommended to those who find themselves misguided. The sinners, who may think their sins are way too much to be forgiven by their lord. God is merciful, to the extent we can not even fathom. He is the only One who loves us the most, seventy times more than a mother’s love. When you find the courage in yourself to ask for his forgiveness, remember that he would never let a sincere heart down because it is said that had there been no sin, no human would turn to their lord for forgiveness and hence, realize His Greatness. May He guide us all to the straight path, the path of righteousness.

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Who Told You That You Were Naked?
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Like Rameen Shahid's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Jeremie Mondejar]

I agree with you for I also reviewed this book. I noticed what you mean that's why I rated it 3. I like your opening sentence ,

[Rameen Shahid]

I agree with you for I also reviewed this book. I noticed what you mean that's why I rated it 3. I like your opening sentence ,

Thank you so much