Posted on 03/16/2009 8:13:05 PM PDT by BrotherSka
Christians and Muslims have been kept apart for over 1,300 years, because they were taught that irreconcilable differences exist between their religious beliefs. This has resulted in mutual distrust, persecution, and even wars. I was motivated to read the Qur’an by the events of September 11th, 2001.
I wanted to know the teachings in the Qur’an that could convince Muslims to be willing to sacrifice their lives, in order to kill persons who did not appear to be associated with Islam or their conflict.
My Christian tradition was the source of some anxiety, since I had been taught that “the Koran” was full of evil, and could cause the reader to be led astray. Even the name “Koran” sounded and appeared ominous. After convincing myself that my only motive for reading the book was to investigate its contents, I commenced reading with some trepidation.
I was surprised to find that the Qur’an seemed so familiar, and after reading several different translations, I began to wonder whether Muslims who followed the Qur’an, were part of the community of believers, otherwise called the elect of God.
The claim is admittedly shocking for some Christians, and had I heard of such an assertion by anyone before I read the Qur’an, I would have dismissed the claim and would have decided not to devote any effort investigating any evidence that the claimant might have provided. It is for this reason that I shall present what I understand the Qur’an teaches at this point in this article, in the hope that the reader will want to accompany me on this investigative journey.
What does the Qur’an Teach
The Qur’an appears to teach that Muslims must believe that Jesus:
- was born of the virgin Mary;
- taught the Gospel;
- performed many miracles, including raising the dead;
- was crucified;
- was raised by God; and
- is the Messiah.
The Qur’an also appears to teach that Muslims must:
- believe in one God who is identified as the only Creator, and the God of Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Job, Elisha, David, and the Old Testament Prophets;
- repent and believe in order to receive God’s forgiveness by grace;
- develop and cultivate a personal relationship with the God of Abraham;
- believe the Bible, and copy and distribute it to all nations of the earth without compensation;
- receive guidance from the Holy Spirit;
- resist the temptations from Satan; and
- avoid the condemnation of hell.
I realize that many readers, including Muslims, will not readily believe that the Qur’an actually teaches all of this; however, if you will read further, then we can examine the evidence together, and you can decide for yourself what the Qur’an teaches. If we reach similar conclusions, then perhaps our investigations can lead to some reconciliation between these brothers who have been unnecessarily kept apart for far too long.
Brothers Kept Apart
Most Muslim teachers have never read the Bible, yet they continue to criticize their understanding of Christian tradition. Similarly, most Christian teachers have never read the Qur’an, yet they continue to criticize their understanding of Islamic tradition. Thus both leaders continue to mislead more than half of the world’s population, who are either Christian or Muslim, about what the other believes.
Since Christians believe that God’s revelation is contained in the Bible, and Muslims believe that God’s revelation is contained in the Qur’an, then a scientific comparative analysis of both books can determine whether a common author is likely.
Brothers Kept Apart is perhaps the first comparative analysis of the Bible and the Qur’an, which assumes that both of the books are entirely correct. The study provides compelling evidence to show that there is harmony between the principal teachings of the Bible and the Qur’an, without compromising any of the teachings, or damaging the integrity of any of these verses in either book. However, the study found disharmony between Christian and Islamic religious traditions. The book also exposes the barriers erected by Christian and Islamic religious traditions, which have kept Christian and Muslim brothers apart for the past 1,300 years.
Walter Phillips has studied the Bible and early civilizations for the past thirty years, and the Qur’an for the past seven. He has spent the past twenty years investigating evidence and designing solutions to problems. With four university degrees, several professional affiliations, and 30 years of research, Walter Phillips presents his findings in a remarkably conversational style.
“In my opinion, the most important lesson from studying history is: never be afraid to re-examine the evidence in order to learn or verify the truth. We should never be afraid to critically examine claims of truth, for truth should be able to withstand rigorous scrutiny.” Walter Phillips BSc, BEng, MASc, MURP, CEng, MIStructE, MIHT, MCSCE, MBAPE
www.BrothersKeptApart.com
It has been my experience that those who see simple answers to longstanding questions don’t truly understand those questions.
Hooyah! Yeah, my favorite part of the Bible is where the guy chops people’s heads off and marries a 9-year-old. Oh, wait...
Dilute something enough and you can find many similarities to other substances. The hydrogen bomb and water both contain hydrogen. Are they “brothers kept apart”?
Should be "Brother-OWNED".
Ozone?
Muslim leaders would make Rev. Ann one of their many female servants, whipping, beating and raping her if she dared to open her mouth.
Then Rev. Ann would really have a predicament!
Stupid troll! Be gone!
I see the poster has been banned already... LOL...
But, really posting something like this and trying to make it out to be true, is totally false and misleading and someone is trying to deceive people. That’s all that is going on here.
For one thing, Muslims are *absolutely adamant* against Jesus being the “Son of God”. They are also adamantly against the Doctrine of the Trinity (the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, as in being the Triune Godhead). Muslims do not believe Jesus died on the cross. They believe that Jesus was taken up to Heaven being alive, never having died at all, in the first place.
Muslims believe in the God of Abraham and Ishmael, and *not* the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They are *two different entities* — one being through Ishmael, while the other one is the true Creator God of the Universe, being the one who is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
This is all total garbage — what this author of the article is writing.
And whoever posted this is either totally misled himself, totally stupid or trying to mislead a bunch of other people... LOL...
I’m too slow! See post #19.
No different if someone decided to make up a religion today in 2009 and copy half of the Bible for his new religion. And then make up something else for the other half.
Maybe the new religion would be based on the belief that Al Gore is a divine prophet.
Complete and utter crap.
Let us suppose, for the sake of argument, that everything you listed is correct.
One irreconcilable difference remains.
Biblical Christians believe that Jesus Christ is in fact God, creator of the universe.
Islam does not teach this.
This does not mean that members of the two faiths cannot co exist in a peaceful way, but it does mean that we are not brothers in faith.
I believe you need to re-read the Quran.
I’ve read it several times, I suggest that you are unable to read in context.
Already gone. The Mods are very alert tonight.
It’s another Taqiyya Sunrise...
>> They examine their feces to check for lumps, it might
be their next prophet.
ROFLMAO!
We have a possible troll sighting in religion sector. Need confirmation
It is important to note that Mohammed was long dead when the Quran was written. Arabic didn’t even have an alphabet, so they borrowed the Syrio-Aramaic characters. Where Arabic didn’t have a word, they borrowed a word from Syrio-Aramaic.
And the Qu-ran was written to justify the Arab conquest, not to motivate it.
They’re all drinking “JOLT”?.....:))
Dear Brother Ska:
You should be praying to the Viking Kitties about now. The Prayer goes like this:
Oh Kitties: Zot me for I have sinned....
And then there is this wild flash bang thingy and you’re gone.
Go ahead try it.
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