It is true that most Christians don’t know the Bible that well. In this day and age, we’re bound to run into some young zealous Muslim who engages in dawah and wants to sell Islam to us. The answer is simple, we need to know our Bible and how to debate.
There is actually one thing that will really help us. Christians who know the Bible don’t need to study the Quran unless they’re getting into apologetics. However, there is one exception and that is Surah 5. Surah 5 is one of the longest Surah’s in the Quran but it actually deals with Christian belief quite a bit. We should read it and familiarize ourselves with it.
When dialoguing with the Muslim, the issue of the Trinity is bound to come up. It’s one of the big three topics that takes centre stage in Muslim vs Christian polemics, the other two being the cross and the integrity of the Bible.
The Muslim brings up the Trinity because its a point of differentiation that they think they can win on. The Christian has two options at this point. He can either defend the Trinity from the Bible which any educated Christian can do, or he can shift the burden of proof to the Muslim. The second one is easier to do but a knowledge of Surah 5 helps.
The Muslim will point out that this doctrine is esoteric and unbelievable. At this point, we respond by shifting the burden of proof and putting the Muslim on the ropes. We say: “Well, it’s true that the Trinity is a very esoteric doctrine and that’s why some Christians have a hard time understanding it. However, the Quran in Surah 5 gets the Trinity completely wrong by thinking Mary is part of the Trinity.”
At this point, the burden of proof is on them. Modern Islamic apologetics is built around the perfection of the Quran. As Christians we can blow a big whole in this belief. It helps because it’s an area where they think they’ve got us. All we need to do is shift the burden of proof.
Like I said earlier, it’s good to be familiar with the Surah. At this point they might bring up how Catholics supposedly worship Mary. At this point you need to explain that Catholics don’t think that Mary is part of the Trinity. Simple enough.
Expect a few other bad arguments as well. They might try to say it’s some small fringe group that doesn’t exist and isn’t recorded in history or barely recorded. It should be pointed out that this would be ridiculous since at the end of the Surah, Jesus himself condemns this group on the day of Judgment. He wouldn’t condemn some small group with no influence that no one has heard of. He would condemn the belief that supposedly has sent billions of people to hell over the course of centuries and millennia.
When we realize this, Western dawah will take a serious hit. The best thing is that we don’t have to do much. We need to read Surah 5 and know how to shift the burden of proof. The Trinity will be untouched and the integrity of the Quran will take a huge blow. It’s ironic that the doctrine that Muslims think hurts the Christian faith, does far more damage to Islam and the Quran.
Bassam Zawadi was somehow different than the rest of Muslim apologists (“was”, because he’s no longer engaging in active apoligetic work). He was an unfortunate dawamonger, true, but I think he was the first who tried (mostly unsuccessfully) to escape the usual boundaries of Isalmic polemics and to utilize a more
original arguments against Christianity. For example, he claimed that Quranic call to Jews and Christians to check their Scriptures for prophecies about Muhammad was actually directed to mysterious groups of Jews and Christians that were present in 7th century Arabia and that had access to the “original” Torah and Gospel. There is an interesting “exchange” between Sam Shamoun and Zawadi on the Trinity:
http://www.answering-islam.org/Responses/Osama/zawadi_trinity_r2_1.htm
Sam has also written an analysis of the debate you provide a link to:
http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/shamoun/rebuttals/zawadi/white_debate1.html
Finally, without the slightest intent of spamming, a reason why Muslims shouldn’t say that belief in Trinity is “ezoteric and unbelievable”:
http://www.answering-islam.org/authors/shamoun/conscious_quran.html
Hi Orangehunter,
You talk about how Bassam Zawadi was different since he tried to come up with his own arguments. That’s actually what I’m trying to do with this website. I usually try to make my own arguments rather than use other peoples.
Zawadi was a breath of fresh air. I did admire that he at least tried to present new arguments instead of standards ones that had been refuted.
Thanks for the links. I’ll have to check them out.
God Bless,
Allan
Ooops, I meant “esoteric”.
The Bible does not explicitly refer to the Trinity or say that God is three or a Trinity.
The Quran al kareem does not explicitly say Mary was part of the Trinity.
So let’s all just reconcile and enjoy the “green men”. They’re so cute and cuddly as the woman in 5:30 think so.
Hi Latias,
I hope you’re doing well. First of all, regardless of what the Bible teaches, there is no question that the Christians in the 600’s believed in the doctrine of the Trinity and it is far from what is depicted in Surah 5. Even if the Trinity is wrong shouldn’t Allah know what the Christians believe?
You said: “The Bible does not explicitly refer to the Trinity or say that God is three or a Trinity.”
I’m actually going to be responding do this in a post or two since this meme is trending on Facebook so stay tuned.
It doesn’t explicitly say that Mary is part of the Trinity? Mary is one of the three mentioned when the Quran attacks Christian worship regarding the nature of God.
What is your interpretation of Surah 5:73? Is it referring to the Trinity? I don’t see how you could deny it. I just plucked a Tafsir off my shelf and it said it clearly was. If it is we follow a consistent narrative throughout the rest of the Surah, it argues against the divinity of Jesus and Mary. The Surah is attempting to refute what it believes to be the Christian Trinity – Allah, Jesus his Son, and his Mother.
Thanks for sending the link of the green men. It’s good Russian practice.
God Bless,
Allan
Latias, I would recommend you (or any other Muslim, for that matter) to use the word “explicitly” more carefully. “God is Triune” is a belief, deduced from both Testaments- for example, Christ says “I am the beginning and the end”- two of Allah’s names in the Quran, and according to orthodox Islam ascribing Allah’s names to someone means you’re equalizing him to Allah. Christ also says that all sins will be forgiven except those against Holy Spirit. If He doesn’t think of Holy Spirit as God, how could he say such thing? St. Paul says that Holy Spirit is eternal- according to both Christianity and Islam ONLY God is eternal. At the same time the Bible is explicit that God is only One- Epistle of St. James 2:19, for example. The best conclusion is that God is Triune- He is only One Being, but manifests in three distinct Persons.
Now let’s apply your standard to the Quran- Allah nowhere says explicitly “I’m only one person, not two, three or more”. He does say he is one, but “one” what? One being? One person? One community? The Quran never tells us. The Hadith only makes things worse, there Muhammad says that Quran is actually a sentient being on its own, it (or “he”?) sometimes prays to Allah and intercedes on behalf of the believers. The Quran and Allah share the same nature, remember? That means Islam is a binitarian religion. But not exactly, because the Quran is comprised of (at least) three other sub-beings that sometimes act independently. Check the last link in my previous comment for more info.
Christ is risen, He Is our blessed Lord and Savior.