Dr Paul Allen

As a Christian growing up in Egypt, many of my neighbors and classmates were named “Muhammad.” From an early age, I learned the significance of that name—the name of their prophet—to the Muslims around me. Muslims cherish, love, and respect Muhammad. They also believe the use of his name brings blessing to their lives. Now I live in America. And as more Muslims come to this country, I believe American Christians need to know more of what Muslims understand about their prophet. Here are nine things you should know about Muhammad. 1. Muhammad was probably a historical figure. Muhammad was allegedly born in Mecca in AD 570 and died in Medina in AD 632. Many are skeptical of the information about his life because the Muslim accounts of it were documented about two centuries after his death. We have no eyewitness accounts. This is problematic, as we cannot fully trust the records about him. However, we have reason to believe Muhammad was a historical figure. Some Christians in the seventh c

I hear people say, "there is this underlining unity, we all believe the same thing." That's not true. What Muslims believe about what is good and the nature of redemption is radically different from what Christianity teaches, for example. Buddha was an atheist who simply claimed to be enlightened, Confucius talked about the veneration of ancestors—that's a long way from the faith of the Scriptures .  And what you don't have in Buddhism and Islam , Confucianism , Shintoism , Taoism , and these other religions is an atonement. You don't have a way of redemption that we have in Christianity, nor do you have a living Mediator. Moses is dead, Buddha is dead, Confucius is dead, and Muhammad is dead. There is no resurrection in these other religions.  Christianity has elements to it, content to it that distinguish it from all other religions, and with that distinction comes the claim of Christ that it [He] is the only true way to God. Related ar

(Photo credit: Wikipedia ) The fact remains that Western civilization — and much of the world beyond — is directly threatened by a militant form of Islam that has the allegiance of millions of Muslims . While the vast majority of Muslims in the world are not fighters in a jihad against the West, and for that we must be thankful. WE KEEP HEARING LEADERS SAY: This is not at war with Islam. We can understand why they would say this, and we also need to admit that there is an important element of truth in the statement. The West is not at war with Islam if that means a war against all Muslims and against all forms of Islam.  But, true as that statement may be, we must also be clear that we are facing a great and grave civilizational challenge from millions of Muslims who believe, quite plausibly, that their version of Islam is more faithful to the essence of Islam and the Quran .   This understanding of Islam is growing, not receding.  It is now drawing thousands of

English: An illustration from the Encyclopaedia Biblica, a 1903 publication which is now in the public domain. Map 5 for article "Geography". Image of Israelite worldview during the time 5th century. It would be helpful if someone could add colour to the map (specifically, the oceans and the highlight of the area), to clarify it/ improve the aesthetic. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Abortion. Euthanasia. Pornography. Same-sex marriage. Transgender rights. Embryonic research. Genetic enhancement. Christians surveying the cultural landscape in the West have a clear sense that things are headed in a destructive direction. While most believers can easily identify the symptoms of decline, few feel competent to diagnose and address the root causes. There are many complex factors behind these developments, but one invaluable tool for better understanding and engaging with our culture is the concept of worldview. The sociological quakes and moral fissures we observe in our day are

Allah in Arabic (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) What is Islam ? Is it one of the three great worldwide monotheistic religions, or is it a pretender to Christ ’s throne, a scourge of the Devil ? Is it an interesting historical and cultural phenomenon to be examined with the care and aloofness of an academician, or a heresy to be denounced and hooted off the stage? Making the question more difficult is the reality that somewhere out there is probably some kind of Muslim publication addressing the issue of the Christian faith . Would I want them to treat Christianity with respect? Would I want them treating the faith once delivered unto the saints as some kind of joke? And mustn’t I do unto others, even if they are outside the church? Here’s a particular issue. The Qur’an capitalizes all references to deity. We quote the Qur’an. We believe Allah to be a false god, and capitalize all references to the true God . What should we do? We decided to follow their style, not because we believ

Miniature of Muhammad re-dedicating the Black Stone at the Kaaba. From Jami Al-Tawarikh, c. 1315 (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed” (Gal. 1:8). Before we begin our comparisons of the specific doctrines of Islam and Christianity, it will be helpful for us to trace the origins of the Islamic religion . We will do this by offering a brief survey of the life of Mohammed , the founder of Islam. Mohammed was born in 570 A.D. in the city of Mecca, which is located in modern day Saudi Arabia . The culture into which he was born was largely polytheistic, although Jews and marginally Christian sects were also present in Arabia. Mohammed early on grew dissastisfied with the polytheism of his surroundings but remained religious, traveling into the hills surrounding Mecca to pray. At age 40, while on one of these retreats, Mohammed claimed to have been visited by the ange

Muhammad at the Ka'ba (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Two things unite most Muslims: their belief in the unity of God and their veneration of Muhammad as the channel through which God’s final revelation was given. Muslims claim that God revealed the Qur’an to Muhammad whom they see as the greatest and last prophet. The Arabic word Islam means submission. Muslims are those who claim to submit to God and His will and law as presented by Muhammad and found in the Qur’an and in the traditions recording Muhammad’s life, deeds, and sayings (hadith). Muhammad’s figure towers over Islam not just as its founder, but as the perfect man who is divinely inspired not only in the Qur’anic revelation, but in all his sayings and deeds. He is infallible, free from sin, and the supreme example all Muslims are obliged to emulate in every detail. Most Muslims in theory affirm the believer’s direct access to God without the need for any intercessor, and the humanity of Muhammad as simply a human channe

Quran, Mus'haf_Al_Tajweed. (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Islam teaches that throughout history God has sent prophets, from Adam to Noah to Jesus and ultimately Muhammad, all with the same message: There is only one God, who desires people to pursue good and to prevent evil. Christians and Jews, “People of the Book,” are believed to be the remaining followers of earlier divine, but corrupted, revelations. Islam’s scripture, the Qur’an , is understood by Muslims to have restored God’s original guidance. The Qur’an includes numerous biblical personalities but recognizes as authentic only three sections of biblical literature: the Torah of Moses, the Evangel of Jesus, and the Psalms of David . Muslims see many of their beliefs and practices as biblical: the existence of only one God, the prophets, heaven, hell, angels, and a day of judgment. They also see the importance of charity, prayer, and fasting in the Bible. Although Muslims believe that Jesus was only a prophet and no

English: Quba Mosque (Photo credit: Wikipedia ) Muhammad was born around 570 in Mecca in what is now the nation of Saudi Arabia . This was an area where there were significant populations of both Christians and Jews, so there was access to the Scriptures and the teachings of both the Old Testament and the New Testament.  Muslims claim that Muhammad was a direct descendent of Ishmael, and thus of Abraham, though the only evidence to support this comes through oral tradition. Muhammad’s father died before he was born and his mother sent him as an infant to live in the desert with Bedouins in order to become acquainted with Arab traditions. While in the desert he is said to have encountered two angels who opened his chest and cleansed his heart with snow, symbolic of Islam’s teaching that he was purified and protected from all sin. Muhammad returned to Mecca sometime soon after. His mother passed away when he was 6 and he came under the immediate care of his grandfather and t