ISLAMIC WORLDVIEW TRUTH TEST/REALITY CHECK
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The format for this truth test is going to be different from the others. The reason is because Islam is monotheistic, and therefore affirms much of the same things Christianity affirms. It's the differences that matter, however, and as slight as they may seem at first glance, upon deep reflection and close examination, the contradictions between the two are glaring, undeniable, and irreconcilable. I will be referring to this debate (right) between Dr. William Lane Craig and Dr. Jamal Badawi.
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Philosophical problem (of Unitarianism):
While Christianity is Trinitarian (3 persons in one BEING=GOD), Islam is Unitarian (1 person in one BEING=GOD). At first glance, the Unitarian view caries simple, and therefore attractive, explanatory power. Careful reflection regarding God’s attribute of "love", however, shows how the Unitarian view comes up short. In order to have selfless, unconditional love, there must be at least one other person to love.
C. S. Lewis put it this way:
"All sorts of people are fond of repeating the Christian statement that ‘God is love.’ But they seem not to notice that the words ‘God is love’ have no real meaning unless God contains at least two Persons. Love is something that one person has for another person. If God was a single person, then before the world was made, He was not love."
Richard of St. Victor, a 12th century Scottish theologian, put it like this:
"One never says that someone properly possesses love if he only loves himself; for it to be true love, it must go out towards another. Consequently, where a plurality of persons is lacking, it is impossible for there to be love."
Historical problem (of the Person of Jesus Christ and the Trinity):
A. The Qur’an mistakenly assumes (in surah 5:116) that the Christian idea of the Trinity is God the Father, God the Mother (Mary), and God the Son. *fast forward to 19:30 in the debate above*
B. Islam denies that Jesus Christ claimed to be or even thought of Himself as THE unique Son of God. The interesting thing here is that Islam affirms a crucifixion happened that witnesses believed was Jesus (according to the Qur’an it just wasn't really Jesus--God made someone else look like Jesus) but they deny the obvious cause of the crucifixion--Jesus claiming to be God (BLASPHEMY).
There is no dispute among bible scholars that the parable of the Wicked Tenants in Luke chapter 20 is the authentic words of Jesus. Furthermore, what is undeniable from Jesus' parable here is that He regarded Himself as THE unique and divine Son of God. *fast forward to 3:45 in the debate above*
If you watch the entire debate, it is worth noting that Dr. Badawi was never able to give an adequate response to the authenticity, and implications of the Wicked Tenants parable.
Royce Gruenler, (New Testament scholar):
“Jesus is consciously speaking as the voice of God on matters that belong only to God...The evidence clearly leads us to affirm that Jesus implicitly claims to do what only God can do, to forgive sins..The religious authorities correctly understood his claim to divine authority to forgive sinners, but they interpreted his claims as blasphemous and sought his execution." *fast forward to the 3:45 mark above*
C. Islam denies (Qur'an 4:157) the most certain and established fact of antiquity--the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
A. The Qur’an mistakenly assumes (in surah 5:116) that the Christian idea of the Trinity is God the Father, God the Mother (Mary), and God the Son. *fast forward to 19:30 in the debate above*
B. Islam denies that Jesus Christ claimed to be or even thought of Himself as THE unique Son of God. The interesting thing here is that Islam affirms a crucifixion happened that witnesses believed was Jesus (according to the Qur’an it just wasn't really Jesus--God made someone else look like Jesus) but they deny the obvious cause of the crucifixion--Jesus claiming to be God (BLASPHEMY).
There is no dispute among bible scholars that the parable of the Wicked Tenants in Luke chapter 20 is the authentic words of Jesus. Furthermore, what is undeniable from Jesus' parable here is that He regarded Himself as THE unique and divine Son of God. *fast forward to 3:45 in the debate above*
If you watch the entire debate, it is worth noting that Dr. Badawi was never able to give an adequate response to the authenticity, and implications of the Wicked Tenants parable.
Royce Gruenler, (New Testament scholar):
“Jesus is consciously speaking as the voice of God on matters that belong only to God...The evidence clearly leads us to affirm that Jesus implicitly claims to do what only God can do, to forgive sins..The religious authorities correctly understood his claim to divine authority to forgive sinners, but they interpreted his claims as blasphemous and sought his execution." *fast forward to the 3:45 mark above*
C. Islam denies (Qur'an 4:157) the most certain and established fact of antiquity--the crucifixion of Jesus Christ.
"That he was crucified is as sure as anything historical can ever be, since both Josephus and Tacitus ... agree with the Christian accounts on at least that basic fact."--John Dominic Crossan
The British New Testament scholar, James Dunn, states (regarding the baptism and crucifixion of Jesus) that these “two facts in the life of Jesus command almost universal assent” and “rank so high on the ‘almost impossible to doubt or deny’ scale of historical facts” that they are often the starting points for the study of the historical Jesus.
*fast forward to 1:17:48 in the debate above*
The British New Testament scholar, James Dunn, states (regarding the baptism and crucifixion of Jesus) that these “two facts in the life of Jesus command almost universal assent” and “rank so high on the ‘almost impossible to doubt or deny’ scale of historical facts” that they are often the starting points for the study of the historical Jesus.
*fast forward to 1:17:48 in the debate above*
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In this video (right), a former Muslim shares his testimony how he became a Christian after researching the historical evidence for the crucifixion of Jesus. |
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Theological problem (of God being the greatest good/morally perfect/all-loving/having unconditional love):
By definition, God must be the greatest good. The greatest good would be all-loving (impartial, unconditional, and universal). As Jesus said, “If you love those who love you what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.” Jesus is speaking here about the virtue and truth of unconditional love. This virtue stems from the very nature of God. According to Islam, Jesus is a prophet. If Jesus is a prophet, then what he says is true. If this statement is true, then it applies to God as well. But this is not how the Qur’an describes God. The God of the Quran only loves Muslims who believe Muhammad is his messenger, and those who do enough good deeds to earn his love. *fast forward to 15:35 in the debate above*
By definition, God must be the greatest good. The greatest good would be all-loving (impartial, unconditional, and universal). As Jesus said, “If you love those who love you what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.” Jesus is speaking here about the virtue and truth of unconditional love. This virtue stems from the very nature of God. According to Islam, Jesus is a prophet. If Jesus is a prophet, then what he says is true. If this statement is true, then it applies to God as well. But this is not how the Qur’an describes God. The God of the Quran only loves Muslims who believe Muhammad is his messenger, and those who do enough good deeds to earn his love. *fast forward to 15:35 in the debate above*
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Experiential problem (of the greatest good, i.e., “God”, spreading the truth of His love through the gospel of peace or through force):
*fast forward to 20:00 in the "Islam: A Critique” video (right)* |
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Conclusion:
Please review the preliminary axioms for testing the truth of a worldview here.
Here is a summary from the examination above:
Islam failed the logical consistency test regarding its description of God's love and being.
Islam failed the logical consistency test regarding what Islam describes Jesus as (a prophet), while at the same time denying the very things that are unequivocally attributed to him.
Islam failed the logical consistency test regarding God's love for man (conditional and partial) while at the same time claiming God to be all-loving and merciful.
Islam failed the empirical adequacy test regarding the historical facts of who Jesus claimed to be, His crucifixion, and the origin of the disciples' faith.
Islam failed the experiential relevance test regarding an all-loving God commanding to spread the Truth by force (house of submission vs house of war).
Therefore, Islam gives us no good reason to consider it as a plausible worldview, especially when comparing it to the Christian worldview.
Resources
Lewis, C. S. "Mere Christianity." The Complete C.S. Lewis Signature Classics. San Francisco, CA: HarperSanFrancisco, 2002. N. pag. Print.
http://www.answering-islam.org/Quran/Themes/love.htm
http://www.answeringmuslims.com/2012/10/does-allah-love-unbelievers.html
Dunn, James D. G. Jesus Remembered. Grand Rapids, MI: W.B. Eerdmans Pub., 2003. Print.
Crossan, John Dominic. Jesus: A Revolutionary Biography. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 1994. Print.