A journey through the Qur’an, pt. 1

Last Friday, my day off, I went wandering through Minneapolis on my mountain bike. Snow was predicted for the next day, so I assumed this might be the last nice fall ride. I rode over the stone arch bridge. I passed a bridal party getting their pictures taken, tempted to ride up right behind them as they all smiled and make myself part of the family. There’s a Dunn Brothers coffee shop just up the hill where I rested for a few moments. I didn’t buy anything, so they asked me to leave—fair enough.

I rode over to the University campus and entered Kaufmann Union. I explored the three levels, the restaurants, the movie theater, the large meeting hall, the student book store, the large collection of couches and cushy chairs. I noticed some representatives from a local Mosque camped out by the escalators. At first I was disturbed that there was no Christian representation in the place, only Muslim. By the time I was ready to go, I walked past their table again and saw they were giving away paperback copies of their holy book, the Qu’ran. I asked if I could have one and they were more than eager, of course.

They started to discuss with me how good the book was and how it’s a continuation of what the other prophets said. One of their comments regarded how the gospels were not as reliable in fact as the Qu’ran because they were written by man, not words given by God. Having studied both Testaments that Christians believe in their original languages to some degree, and having a strong belief in the historical reliability of these texts, I pursued them further regarding the issue of the harmonizing the Mohammed with previously revealed Scripture.

It was an interesting discussion. The white guy with the long red—haired beard told me he had converted from Agnosticism to Islam and he dressed as he did to try and be like the prophets of old as much as possible. He gave me a book that defended the authority of Mohammed, and said they are there every Thursday and Friday. With that in mind, I thought, what if I were to actually read through the book that over 1 billion people on earth claim to be the last word on faith?

So, as best I can I seek to work through this holy book, ask questions and see what I can learn from original sources. Of course, this little paperback being in English is not the original source, as my Muslim friends are quick to point out. I will only get the truest meaning from the Arabic text. Granted, I understand this from the perspective that Biblical languages of Hebrew and Greek that our English Bibles are the most rich and meaningful resource any Bible scholar could tap. Here my questions start:

Is it possible to be a true Muslim without understanding the Qur’an in Arabic? Did Allah only intend Arabic speakers to understand its meaning? Are there cross-cultural principles and beliefs that this text teaches that are adequately translatable into other languages?

Certainly as a student of the Torah and the Christian Canon, we would never abandon the original languages or cultures or their study, but would say that modern English translations are effective at communicating a high percentage of the story and doctrines and principles of the faith.

I only feel qualified to speak about the validity and interpretation of Genesis and Revelation, so I will write to the issues raised by these devoted Islamic missionaries with respect to my understanding of Christian doctrine.

The Authority of Mohammed

Was Jesus speaking of the coming of Mohammed, not the Holy Spirit in John 16:7?

The Muslim argument goes that since Jesus was present and filled with the Holy Spirit that Jesus could not have been speaking about the Holy Spirit, since the Holy Spirit was already there. It doesn’t make sense that Jesus and Holy Spirit would have to go away for the Holy Spirit to come again. It refers instead to a different Counselor/Comforter that would come. These missionaries seemed to call the Holy Spirit “the Praised One’ also, which introduces a new idea to the text.

1. The word means "one who comes alongside." The Greek word used in the text is parakletos, meaning helper, encourager, one mediates on behalf of, I think the Muslim I talked with called it “the Praised One” which seems like a far wandering from the Greek word. I am curious to know if Mohammed acts and serves as a helper like one who comes alongside and helps his people. Does he acts as one who mediates on behalf of his people? If he does, how can we know if Allah will hear his advocacy? Does Mohammed even come close to doing what the Holy Spirit does in reminding people of the truth? Convicting men of sin and judgment? I will have to read the Qu’ran to find these things out. I have a sense that Mohammed is very good at accusing people of sin, however, does Mohammed function as an advocate?

2. The text argues that parakletos = the Holy Spirit. A look at the context of John 14-17, all passages in which Jesus is talking about the Holy Spirit as he prepares his disciples for his upcoming departure, show three obvious uses of the word parakletos in extremely close association with the one titled Holy Spirit. In John 14:6, it says “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” The grammatical construction is what’s called an appositive, a renaming of one thing by another. Take for example, “Jim, the smelly guy by the door, regularly turned away customers from the restaurant.” Jim = the smelly guy. Two nouns next to each other meaning they refer to each other. John 15:26, John 14:16-17 also use parakletos in a similar appositive.

Why would Jesus or the gospel writers use the same term to refer mystically to a man who would appear 6oo+ years later? The context argues for agreement with a previously mentioned usages of parakletos where The Counselor=the Holy Spirit.

That’s all I have time for today.

Loving God Wholeheartedly

As Tim Olson spoke this morning at our men’s meeting, I was reminded again of the priority that Jesus gave to what church people call the Great Commandment. In fact, it isn’t just church people who would call it that, it was Jesus who called it the greatest commandment.

Look it up if you’d like: Deuteronomy 6, verse 5 is the Old Testament quote, from the law given to Israel through Moses: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”

Jesus quotes it this way, almost identically in Matthew 22:37 and Mark 12:30 respectively:

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment."

“Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’

I can’t help but notice Mark recites the Old Testament concept for concept better than Matthew. Matthew adds “mind” and deletes “strength.” Nevertheless, the parallel witness of Mark gives us hope that the Jesus, the son of God knew his Old Testament.

After doing a brief word study of the terms used in both the Old testament and the New testament, as well as a look at the context surrounding Deuteronomy 6, I came to these conclusions regarding the Great Commandment:

1) The command to love God is based in God’s desire to see His people flourish and endure for generations. The context of Deuteronomy 6 gives the reasons for this and all the rest of the commands God would give:

These are the commands, decrees and laws the LORD your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, (vs. 1)

so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the LORD your God as long as you live by keeping all his decrees and commands that I give you, and (vs. 2)

so that you may enjoy long life. Hear, O Israel, and be careful to obey (vs. 2)

so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the LORD, the God of your fathers, promised you. (vs. 3)

Moses, the messenger of this command lays out this directive in light of God’s initiative of a love relationship with his people. He laid out this distinct relationship when he revealed himself to Moses in the ten commandments:

You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand [generations] of those who love me and keep my commandments. (Exodus 20:5-6)

The Great Commandment is not a random, obligation God demands of his people, but rather an order rooted in God’s love for His people. It is rooted in his desire to see his people flourish and endure for generations.

2) To obey the command to love God does not necessarily depend on an initial feeling of warmth towards God. This observation may be contestable if we only look at the Hebrew text where there are no distinctions made regarding types of love. However, in Greek, the word (agapao) calls us to love God out of deep appreciation and high regard, not out of the warmth of interpersonal associations that the word phileo might have conveyed. In this sense, one’s emotional state could be anywhere and still love (agapao) God. Of course, as the rest of the verse carries on, our emotions must play their part to the full in our loving God.

Taken in this sense, this command to love God might let us “love” him, even when we don’t “like” him. I say this as one who enjoys being in that place where I sense I have “heard from God” and “feel close to God.” It is isn’t authentic emotions if I say that all the time. Regardless, the truth of who God is stands strong and my obedience to the command to love God needn’t begin from some kind of warmth I feel towards God.

3) Our loving response to God incorporates the whole person. The terms heart, soul, mind have significant semantic overlap. Taken as a whole, any one of these terms could mean thinking, feeling or willing. Even as the lexicon scholars Louw & Nida suggest, these terms would need to be translated differently in different cultures to effectively communicate meaning. Regardless of whatever psychology theory about the relationship between mind, emotion, will, inner man, outer man, affections, appetites that you hold to, the semantics and term definitions are not the end goal. The command to love God demands all of us, asking all that is going on inside and all that happens through our physical body to work together as a team effort.

4) There is a choice we make in loving God whole-heartedly that requires us to point ourselves towards God. It takes place inside of us. It results in outward expressions of love, towards God and neighbors.

5) There are physical activities that help us love God. The Deuteronomy passage suggests:

- Be active in passing on your faith to the next generation. Impress them on your children. (7)

- Talk about your faith. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. (7)

- Use physical reminders on the body and at home: Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. (8) Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates. (9)

- Find Remembering exercises. Be careful that you do not forget the LORD, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. (12)

- Ask yourself the question: “Do I seek God’s approval or someone else’s?” Do what is right and good in the LORD’S sight, so that it may go well with you and you may go in and take over the good land that the LORD promised on oath to your forefathers, (18)