Common questions asked by Christian missionaries against Islam
Q2.Difference between mary and
miriam?
Question
It is
mentioned in your Qur’an that Mary was the sister of Aaron (pbuh). Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh) who wrote the Qur’an did not know the difference between Miriam the
sister of Aaron (pbuh) and Mary the Mother of Jesus (pbuh), the time span
between both of them was about a thousand years.
Answer
IN THE SEMITIC LANGUAGES SISTER ALSO MEANS
DESCENDANT
The
Qur’an mentions in Surah Maryam, Chapter 19 verses 27-28
“At length
she brought the (baby) to her people, carrying him (in her arms). They said: ‘O
Mary! Truly an amazing thing hast thou brought!
O
sister of Aaron! Thy father was not a man of evil, nor thy mother a woman unchaste!’”
[Al-Qur’an 19:27-28]
Christian
missionaries say that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) did not know the difference
between Mary the mother of Jesus (pbuh) and Miriam the sister of Aaron (pbuh).
The time span between both was more than a thousand years.
In the
Arabic construction of the sentence, sister is also considered as a descendant.
Thus, when the people said to Mary, Ukhta Haroon i.e. ‘sister of Aaron’
it actually means descendant of Aaron (pbuh).
SON ALSO MEANS DESCENDANT
It is
mentioned in the Gospel of Mathew, Chapter 1 verse 1
“Jesus
Christ, the son of David,....”.
[Mathew 1:1]
Gospel
of Luke Chapter 3, verse 23
“And
Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed)
the son of Joseph, .....”
[Luke 3:23]
DID
JESUS (PBUH) HAVE TWO FATHERS?
What do
you call a person who has two fathers? The explanation of the phrase that Jesus
(pbuh) was the son of David (pbuh), is that Jesus (pbuh) was a descendant of David
(pbuh). ‘Son’, here means a descendant.
Common questions asked by Christian missionaries against Islam
Is it not true that prophet Muhammad (pbuh) has copied the Qur’an from
the bible?
Answer
Many critics
allege that prophet Muhammad (pbuh) himself was not the author of the Qur’an
but he learnt it and/or plagiarised (copied or adapted) it from other human
sources or from previous scriptures or revelations.
Muhammad learnt the Qur’an from a roman blacksmith
who was a Christian
Some
pagans accused the prophet of learning the Qur’an from a roman blacksmith, who
was a Christian staying at the outskirts of Makkah. The prophet very often used
to go and watch him do his work. A revelation of the Qur’an was sufficient to dismiss
this charge - the Qur’an says in surah an-nahl chapter 16 verse 103:
"We
know indeed that they say, ‘it is a man that teaches him,’ the tongue of him
they wickedly point to is notably foreign, while this is Arabic, pure and
clear."
[Al-Qur’an 16:103]
How
could a person whose mother tongue was foreign and could hardly speak little
but of poor broken Arabic be the source of the Qur’an which is pure, eloquent, fine
Arabic? To believe that the blacksmith taught the prophet the Qur’an is somewhat
similar to believing that a Chinese immigrant to England, who did not know proper
English, taught Shakespeare.
Muhammad (pbuh) learnt from waraqa - the
relative of khadijah (ra)
Muhammad’s
(pbuh) contacts with the Jewish and Christian scholars were very limited. The
most prominent Christian known to him was an old blind man called waraqa
ibn-naufal who was a relative of the prophet’s first wife khadijah
(r.a.). Although of Arab descent, he was a convert to Christianity and was very
well versed with the New Testament. The prophet only met him twice, first when
waraqa was worshipping at the kaaba (before the prophetic mission) and he
kissed the prophet’s forehead affectionately; the second occasion was when the
prophet went to meet waraqa after receiving the first revelation. Waraqa died
three years later and the revelation continued for about 23 years. It is
ridiculous to assume that waraqa was the source of the contents of the Qur’an.
Prophet’s religious discussions with the Jews
and Christians
It is
true that the prophet did have religious discussions with the Jews and
Christians but they took place in Madinah more than 13 years after the
revelation of the Qur’an had started. The allegation that these Jews and Christians
were the source is perverse, since in these discussions Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)
was performing the roles of a teacher and of a preacher while inviting them to embrace
Islam and pointing out that they had deviated from their true teachings of
monotheism. Several of these Jews and Christians later embraced Islam.
The prophet learnt the Qur’an from those Jews
and Christians that he met outside Arabia
All
historical records available show that Muhammad (pbuh) had made only three
trips outside Makkah before his prophethood:
At the age of 9 he accompanied his mother to
madinah.
Between the age of 9 and 12, he accompanied
his uncle abu-talib on a business trip to Syria.
At the age of 25 he led Khadija’s caravan to
syria.
It is
highly imaginary to assume that the Qur’an resulted from the occasional chats
and meetings with the Christians or Jews from any of the above three trips.
Logical grounds to prove that the prophet did
not learn the Qur’an from Jews or Christians
(i)The day-to-day life of the prophet was an open book for all to see. In
fact a revelation came asking people to give the prophet (pbuh) privacy in his
own home. If the prophet had been meeting people who told him what to say as a revelation
from god, this would not have been hidden for very long.
(ii)The extremely prominent quraish nobles who followed the prophet and accepted
Islam were wise and intelligent men who would have easily noticed anything
suspicious about the way in which the prophet brought the revelations to them -
more so since the prophetic mission lasted 23 years.
(iii)The enemies of the prophet kept a close watch on him in order to find
proof for their claim that he was a liar - they could not point out even a
single instance when the prophet may have had a secret rendezvous with
particular Jews and Christians.
(iv)It is inconceivable that any human author of the Qur’an would have
accepted a situation in which he received no credit whatsoever for originating
the Qur’an
Thus,
historically and logically it cannot be established that there was a human source
for the Qur’an.
Muhummad (pbuh) was an illiterate
The
theory that Muhammad (pbuh) authored the Qur’an or copied from other sources
can be disproved by the single historical fact that he was illiterate.
Allah
testifies himself in the Qur’an in surah al-ankabut chapter no.29 verse 48
"And
thou was not (able) to recite a book before this (book came), nor art
thou (able) to transcribe it with thy right hand: in that case, indeed, would
the talkers of vanities have doubted."
[al-Qur’an 29:48]
Allah
(swt) knew that many would doubt the authenticity of the Qur’an and would ascribe
it to prophet Muhammad (pbuh). Therefore Allah in his divine wisdom chose the
last and final messenger to be an ‘ummi’, i.e. Unlettered, so that the talkers
of vanity would not then have the slightest justification to doubt the prophet.
The accusation of his enemies that he had copied the Qur’an from other sources
and rehashed it all in a beautiful language might have carried some weight, but
even this flimsy pretence has been deprived to the unbeliever and the cynic.
Allah
reconfirms in the Qur’an in surah al a’raf chapter 7 verse 157:
"those
who follow the messenger, the unlettered prophet, whom they find mentioned in
their own (scriptures) in the law and the gospel"
The
prophecy of coming of the unlettered prophet (pbuh) is also mentioned in the bible
in the book of isaiah chapter 29 verse 12.
"and
the book is delivered to him that is not learned."
[isaiah 29:12]
The Qur’an
testifies in no less than four different places that the prophet (pbuh) was illiterate.
It is also mentioned in surah a’raf chapter 7 verse 158 and in surah al-jumu’a
chapter 62 verse 2.
Arabic version of the bible was not present
The Arabic
version of the bible was not present at the time of prophet Muhammad (pbuh). The
earliest Arabic version of the old testament is that of r. Saadias gaon of 900
c.e. - more than 250 years after the death of our beloved prophet. The oldest arabic
version of the new testament was published by erpenius in 1616 c.e. – about a
thousand years after the demise of our prophet.
Similarities in the Qur’an and the bible due
to common source
Similarities
between the Qur’an and the bible does not necessarily mean that the former has
been copied from the latter. In fact it gives evidence that both of them are
based on a common third source; all divine revelations came from the same source
- the one universal god. No matter what human changes were introduced into some
of these judeo-christian and other older religious scriptures that had distorted
their originality, there are some areas that have remained free from distortion
and thus are common to many religions.
It is
true that there are some similar parallels between the Qur’an and the bible but
this is not sufficient to accuse Muhammad (pbuh) of compiling or copying from
the bible. The same logic would then also be applicable to teachings of Christianity
and Judaism and thus one could wrongly claim that Jesus (pbuh) was not a
genuine prophet (god forbid) and that he simply copied from the old testament.
The
similarities between the two signify a common source that is one true god and the
continuation of the basic message of monotheism and not that the later prophets
have plagiarised from the previous prophets.
If
someone copies during an examination he will surely not write in the answer sheet
that he has copied from his neighbour or mr. Xyz. Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) gave
due respect and credit to all the previous prophets (pbuh). The Qur’an also mentions
the various revelations given by almighty god to different prophets.
Muslims believe in the taurah, zaboor, injeel
and Qur’an
Four
revelations of Allah (swt) are mentioned by name in the Qur’an: the taurah, the
zaboor, the injeel and the Qur’an.
Taurah,
the revelation i.e. the wahi given to moosa (a. S.) i.e. Moses (pbuh).
Zaboor,
the revelation i.e. the wahi given to dawood (a.s.) i.e. David (pbuh).
Injeel,
the revelation i.e. the wahi given to isa (a.s.) ie. Jesus (pbuh).
‘al-Qur’an’,
the last and final wahi i.e. Revelation given to the last and final messenger Muhammad
(pbuh).
It is
an article of faith for every Muslim to believe in all the prophets of god and
all revelations of god. However, the present day bible has the first five books
of the old testament attributed to moses and the psalms attributed to David.
Moreover the new testament or the four gospels of the new testament are not the
taurah, the zaboor or the injeel, which the Qur’an refers to. These books of
the present day bible may partly contain the word of god but these books are
certainly not the exact, accurate and complete revelations given to the
prophets.
The Qur’an
presents all the different prophets of Allah as belonging to one single brotherhood;
all had a similar prophetic mission and the same basic message. Because of
this, the fundamental teachings of the major faiths cannot be contradictory,
even if there has been a considerable passage of time between the different
prophetic missions, because the source of these missions was one: almighty god,
Allah. This is why the Qur’an says that the differences which exist between
various religions are not the responsibility of the prophets, but of the followers
of these prophets who forgot part of what they had been taught, and further more,
misinterpreted and changed the scriptures. The Qur’an cannot therefore be seen
as a scripture which competes with the teachings of moses, jesus and the other
prophets. On the contrary, it confirms, completes and perfects the messages
that they brought to their people.
Another
name for the Qur’an is the ‘the furqan’ which means the criteria to judge the
right from the wrong, and it is on the basis of the Qur’an that we can decipher
which part of the previous scriptures can be considered to be the word of god.
10.Scientific comparison between Qur’an and bible
If you
glance through the bible and the Qur’an you may find several points which appear
to be exactly the same in both of them, but when you analyse them closely, you
realise that there is a difference of ‘chalk and cheese’ between them. Only based
on historical details it is difficult for someone who is neither conversant
with Christianity or Islam to come to a firm decision as to which of the
scriptures is true; however if you verify the relevant passages of both the
scriptures against scientificknowledge, you
will yourself realize the truth.
Creation
of the universe in six days
as per
the bible, in the first book of genesis in chapter one, the universe was
created in six days and each day is defined as a twenty-four hours period. Even
though the qur’an mentions that the universe was created in six ‘ayyaams’,
‘ayyaam’ is the plural of years; this word has two meanings: firstly, it means
a standard twenty-four hours period i.e. A day, and secondly, it also means
stage, period or epoch which is a very long period of time.
When
the Qur’an mentions that the universe was created in six ‘ayyaams’, it refers to
the creation of the heavens and the earth in six long periods or epochs;
scientists have no objection to this statement. The creation of the universe
has taken billions of years, which proves false or contradicts the concept of
the bible which states that the creation of the universe took six days of
twenty-four hour durations each.
1)Sun created after the day
the
bible says in chapter 1, verses 3-5, of genesis that the phenomenon of day and
night was created on the first day of creation of the universe by god. The
light circulating in the universe is the result of a complex reaction in the stars;
these stars were created according to the bible (genesis chapter 1verse 14 to
19) on the fourth day. It is illogical to mention the result that is the light
(the phenomenon of day and night) was created on the first day of creation when
the cause or source of the light was created three days later.
Moreover the
existence of evening and morning as elements of a single day is only
conceivable after the creation of the earth and its rotation around the sun. In
contrast with the contents of the bible on this issue, the Qur’an does not give
any unscientific sequence of creation. Hence it is absolutely absurd to say
that prophet Muhammad (pbuh) copied the passages pertaining to the creation of
the universe from the bible but missed out this illogical and fantastic
sequence of the bible.
2)Creation of the sun, the earth and the moon
according
to the bible, book of genesis, chapter 1, verses 9 to 13, the earth was created
on the third day, and as per verses 14 to 19, the sun and the moon were created
on the fourth day. The earth and the moon emanated, as we know, from their
original star, the sun. Hence to place the creation of the sun and the moon
after the creation of the earth is contrary to the established idea about the
formation of the solar system.
3)Vegetation created on the third day and sun on the fourth day
according
to the bible, book of genesis, chapter 1, verses 11-13, vegetation was created
on the third day along with seed-bearing grasses, plants and trees; and further
on as per verses 14-19, the sun was created on the fourth day. How is it
scientifically possible for the vegetation to have appeared without the
presence of the sun, as has been stated in the bible?
If
prophet Muhammad (pbuh) was indeed the author of the Qur’an and had copied its
contents from the bible, how did he manage to avoid the factual errors that
the bible contains? The Qur’an does not contain any statements which are
incompatible with scientific facts.
The sun
and the moon both emit light
according
to the bible both the sun and the moon emit their own light. In the book of
genesis, chapter 1, verse 16 says, "and god made two great lights; the
greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night".
Science
tells us today that the moon does not have its own light. This confirms the qur’anic
concept that the light of the moon is a reflected light. To think that
1400 years ago, prophet Muhammad (pbuh) corrected these scientific errors in the
bible and then copied such corrected passages in the Qur’an is to think of
something impossible.
11.Adam (pbuh), the first man on earth, lived 5,800 years ago
As per
the genealogy of Jesus Christ given in the bible, from Jesus through Abraham (pbuh)
to the first man on earth i.e. Adam (pbuh), Adam appeared on the earth approximately
5800 years ago:
1)1948 years between Adam (pbuh) and Abraham (pbuh)
2)Approximately 1800 years between Abraham (pbuh) and Jesus (pbuh)
3)2000 years from Jesus (pbuh) till today.
These figures
are further confused by the fact that the Jewish calendar is currently on or
about 5800 years old.
There
is sufficient evidence from archaeological and anthropological sources to suggest
that the first human being on earth was present tens of thousands of years ago
and not merely 5,800 years ago as is suggested by the bible.
The Qur’an
too speaks about Adam (pbuh) as the first man on earth but it does not suggest
any date or period of his life on earth, unlike the bible - what the bible says in
this regard is totally incompatible with science.
12.Noah (pbuh) and the flood
The
biblical description of the flood in genesis chapter 6, 7 and 8 indicates that
the deluge was universal and it destroyed every living thing on earth, except
those present with Noah (pbuh) in the ark. The description suggests that the
event took place 1656 years after the creation of Adam (pbuh) or 292 years
before the birth of Abraham, at a time when Noah (pbuh) was 600 years old. Thus
the flood may have occurred in the 21st or 22nd century b.c.
This
story of the flood, as given in the bible, contradicts scientific evidence from
archaeological sources which indicate that the eleventh dynasty in Egypt and
the third dynasty in Babylonia were in existence without any break in civilization and in a manner totally unaffected by any major calamity which may
have occurred in the 21st century b.c. This contradicts the biblical story that
the whole world had been immersed in the flood water.
In contrast to this, the
qur’anic presentation of the story of Noah and the flood does not conflict with
scientific evidence or archaeological data; firstly, the Qur’an does not
indicate any specific date or year of the occurrence of that event, and
secondly, according to the Qur’an the flood was not a universal phenomenon
which destroyed complete life on earth. In fact the Qur’an specifically
mentions that the flood was a localised event only involving the people of Noah.
It is
illogical to assume that prophet Muhammad (pbuh) had borrowed the story of the
flood from the bible and corrected the mistakes before mentioning it in the Qur’an.
13.Moses (pbuh) and pharaoh of the exodus
The
story of Moses (pbuh) and the pharaoh of the exodus are very much identical in the
Qur’an and the bible. Both scriptures agree that the pharaoh drowned when he tried
to pursue Moses (pbuh) and led the Israelites across a stretch of water that they
crossed. The Qur’an gives an additional piece of information in surah yunus chapter
10 verse 92:
"this
day shall we save thee in thy body, that thou mayest be a sign to those who come
after thee! But verily, many among mankind are heedless of our signs!"
[al-Qur’an 10:92]
Dr.
Maurice bucaille, after a thorough research proved that although rameses ii was
known to have persecuted the Israelites as per the bible, he actually died
while moses (pbuh) was taking refuge in median. Rameses ii’s son merneptah who succeeded
him as pharaoh drowned during the exodus. In 1898, the mummified body of
merneptah was found in the valley of kings in Egypt. In 1975, dr. Maurice bucaille
with other doctors received permission to examine the mummy of merneptah, the
findings of which proved that merneptah probably died from drowning or a
violent shock which immediately preceeded the moment of drowning. Thus the
qur’anic verse that we shall save his body as a sign, has been fulfilled by the
pharaohs’ body being kept at the royal mummies room in the Egyptian museum in Cairo.
This
verse of the Qur’an compelled dr. Maurice bucaille, who was a Christian then,
to study the Qur’an. He later wrote a book ‘the bible, the Qur’an and science’,
and confessed that the author of the Qur’an can be no one else besides god
himself. Thus he embraced Islam.
14.Qur’an is a book from Allah
These
evidences are sufficient to conclude that the Qur’an was not copied from the bible,
but that the Qur’an is the furqaan - ‘the criteria’ to judge right from wrong and
it should be used to decipher which portion of the bible may be considered as the
word of god.
The Qur’an
itself testifies in surah sajda chapter 32 verse 1 to 3 Alif laam meem. (this
is) the revelation of the book in which there is no doubt – from the lord of
the worlds.
Or do they
say, ‘he has forged it’? Nay, it is the truth from thy lord, that thou mayest
admonish a people to whom no warner has come before thee: in order that they
may receive guidance."
