Official Review: Why Do They Leave Christianity and come ...

[L_Therese]

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Why Do They Leave Christianity and Come to Islam? A Scriptural Quest for the Truth" by Aicha Zoubair.]

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It’s all over the place. Phrases like “culture clash”, “the Great Satan”, “Islamist extremism”, and “jihad” inundate the news. Ever since 9/11, America has become hyper-conscious of a culture nearly 1500 years old (1435 years, actually). Most people could tell you that Islam came from the Prophet Muhammad and Muslims worship God, whom they name Allah. Probably, the majority of Americans (mistakenly) believe that Islam is prominent only in the Middle East and Southwest Asia (which people sometimes mistake for the Middle East) because Islam is associated with the Arabic language. In more liberal circles, phrases like “the Judeo-Christian tradition” are being modified to include the term “Islamic”. There is continual discussion about the degree to which Islam is a religion of peace or a religion of violence and intolerance. All this is to say, Islam has burst upon the modern American consciousness, and now we are collectively trying to figure out how it fits in with what we thought we knew.

First, let me tell you what this book is not. Despite what it says, it is not Scriptural. Throughout the text, this book cites passages from the Holy Bible, the Qur’an, and the Hadiths. However, the passages are totally divorced from their contexts, a flaw commonly known as proof-texting, and interpreted with no respect to the author’s probable intention or the larger doctrinal context. Furthermore, the reliability of Scripture is neither established nor outright denied. When it suits the author, every word becomes crucial (even though he works from a translation, not original manuscripts), and at other times, he asserts that the text is corrupted or outright fabrication. In order for this book to represent a Scriptural endeavor, the author would have to treat Biblical Scripture as the inspired Word of God and interpret it according to its mode and context.

Another thing this book is not is a “quest for truth”. Such a book would have to assume that truth is an unknown at the beginning of the quest and then seek to discover it. This book assumes that truth is known - the revelation of the Prophet Muhammad as recorded in the Qur’an and Hadiths. There is no questing involved. Instead, the author’s apparent purpose is to exposed the alleged untruths and partial truths of Christianity. By the same token, this book is also not an academic comparison or debate between Islam and Christianity. It is too biased towards Islam. The assumption throughout is blatently that Islam is Truth and Christianity is what happened when people stopped paying attention and misinterpreted God’s message. Unfortunately, at times, the book is even sarcastic, mocking Christianity with an obvious lack of knowledge, such as the discussion of the name of God, during which the author accuses Christians and Jews of carelessness, invention, and deliberate deception and calls the Bible “a big mess” (pg. 63) or later when the deity and supreme sacrifice of Jesus Christ that are central doctrines of Christianity are labeled blasphemous lies.

So why, especially since I am a Christian, do I not rate this book only one star and move on? Because although this book is not a great many things that it seems to be from the title, it is still something of value. This book shows the world how reasonable Islam sees Christianity. When the crazies (on all sides) who give regular people a bad name are silenced or ignored and the rest of us are trying to get along, it becomes crucial to understand each other. A book like this lets Christians know how Islam believes it relates to the Christian Canon, and this helps build the foundation on which to converse and engage in friendly debate. Imagine for a moment a Christian and a Muslim discussing this book. One of the first chapters claims that the Bible is obviously deficient because most of Mary’s life is missing from the Gospels of Matthew and Luke and doesn’t feature in Mark or John at all. Imagine that the Muslim brings this up as an argument that the Bible is obviously incomplete and edited. Then the Christian can respond, “Wait a minute. It’s not there because that’s not the point. Mary’s life outside of giving birth to Jesus might be interesting for the history books, but these are Gospels - their purpose is to share Jesus’ message and ministry. The only reason two of the Gospels include Mary at all is to show the fulfillment of prophecy.” Then our hypothetical Muslim can talk about why she thinks the Qur’an included more biographical information about Mary, and the result is a calm and reasonable discussion about Islam and Christianity. In my opinion, the world could use a lot more such discussion, and that is why I think this book could be worth reading.

I’ve given this book two out of four stars, albeit with serious reservations. There is no getting around that this book is offensive to Christians. It will repeatedly accuse the Biblical writers of lying and blasphemy. It will casually dismiss core doctrines (like Christ’s crucifixion) with no legitimate evidence outside of Qur’anic passages. It may infuriate or frustrate readers. Despite all of this, I encourage curious minds to check it out, but bear in mind what it is and what it is not. Bite your tongue for now and ignore the abrasive phrasing (turn the other cheek). And if this piques your curiosity, there is a lot of literature about Christianity, Islam, and Judaism available just about everywhere, and I personally think it would be difficult to study these topics too much, given the world we live in today.

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[ALRyder]

Hm...this is a very thoughtful review. I do like that you didn't simply give it one star because it was a bit offensive to your own religious beliefs. I am more of an agnostic myself, finding most religions and spiritualitys worth looking into. I may have to read this one, just to kind of look at things from a different perspective. Thanks for doing such a great job with this review.

[toddwiese]

Nice review. As an atheist I can see religions going back and forth insulting each other and it doesn't surprise me that this book is no exception. Kudos for sticking it out throughout the whole thing! It's not easy to read something that insults your religion (and intelligence) and keep on reading. I also admire the fact that you gave this book two stars instead of just one. That probably wasn't the easiest thing to do. Thanks for the review!

[khamneithang]

Seems to be an interesting book. Will check it out.

[5032010782]

We all need Jesus are saver in side he is the only true salvation he will set you free always are saver in Jesus Christ ho love's us

-- 14 Apr 2014, 13:39 --

We all need Jesus are saver in side he is the only true salvation he will set you free always are saver in Jesus Christ ho love's us

[MyOwnStyle]

interesting review. but i personally would recommend people to understand their own religion before moving forward to read book regarding other religion so that people can see stark difference between religions.

[H0LD0Nthere]

Wow. I am really impressed with this review ... or, more accurately, with the time and trouble you obviously took over the book, to be able to write such a review. I remember that when the book came up for review, I gave it a pass. Not because I was afraid of encountering an argument that would devastate my faith, but because I could guess that the content was pretty much as you describe, and I knew that persisting thru it would take a lot of mental and emotional energy that I don't have just lying around at this time in my life. (Whew, sorry for the run-on sentence!)

[Norma_Rudolph]

We all need Jesus are saver in side he is the only true salvation he will set you free always are saver in Jesus Christ ho love's us

-- 14 Apr 2014, 13:39 --

We all need Jesus are saver in side he is the only true salvation he will set you free always are saver in Jesus Christ ho love's us

This is a nice sentiment, but you need to check your grammar. You are making Christians look bad.
Try, "We all need Jesus our Savior on our side. He is the only true salvation. He will set you free. Always, our Savior is Jesus Christ who loves us.

I say this in love, not to embarrass you, friend.

-- 02 Oct 2014, 20:45 --

Oh yah. Nice review.

[amybo82]

I appreciate this honest and thoughtful review. Even though my beliefs are different from those described in the book, I think that it is unfair to take scriptures out of context and mislead the reader.

[LivreAmour217]

As a sister in Christ, I want to commend you for keeping a fair mind as you read this book. I wish that more people on both sides could be as rational and calm when faced with this sort of opposition. We live in a very touchy world, and it seems that most people shy away from things that may offend them, but you faced it head-on.

Personally, I think it is beneficial to listen to the "other side" every now and then (regarding any issue, not just faith). Confronting an opposing viewpoint can be very helpful to people on both sides of the issue, as it requires opponents to be well-educated in their own beliefs and allows an opportunity to gain greater understanding of another's convictions.

Writing this review must have been difficult, but you did a great job. I enjoyed your post, and I am considering reading the book as well.

[rssllue]

This is the best, most thought out review that I have read in a really long time. I thank you very much for you effort in writing fairly about a writer who treated you and your beliefs unfairly. I too hold your viewpoint on Christ, and I cannot say that I would have been able to do this review with such grace and thoughtfulness as you did. Your review challenges me to strive to be more holy in my responses which I also thank you for. Keep the faith!