THEMES
FOR
THE DILIGENT
Nicola Yacoub Ghabril
THE GOOD WAY ■ RIKON ■ SWITZERLAND

All Rights Reserved
Order Number: RPB 4905 ENG
First Arabic edition: 1983; first English edition: 1989
English title: Themes for the Diligent
All Scripture quotations are taken from the New King James Version
of the Holy Bible, 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc.
All Qur'an quotations are taken from The Koran Interpreted,
by Arthur J. Arberry
The Good Way • P.O. Box 66 • CH-8486 Rikon • Switzerland
Internet: www.the-good-way.com   •   e-mail: info@the-good-way.com

CONTENTS		
	Page	
Introduction	5-	
First Discourse	9	
Part I:       The Authenticity of the	9	
Torah and Gospel		
Part II:      Intellectual Proof	16	
Part III:     Historical Evidence	20	
Part IV:     Archaeological Evidence	24	
Second Discourse	34
Has the Koran Abrogated the Torah
and Gospel?
Third Discourse	39
All Have Sinned, Even the Prophets
Fourth Discourse	60
Part I:        God's Purpose in the	62
Crucifixion
Part II:      Only Christ Was Fit for	67
this Task

Part III:     Did Christ Willingly	69	
Accept Crucifixion?		
Part IV:     The Crucifixion in the	78	
Koran		
Part V:      The Crucifixion in History	85	
Fifth Discourse	92	
Christ's Sinlessness, Divinity and		
Sonship		
Sixth Discourse	100
The Superiority of Christ in the
Koran Over Others
Seventh Discourse	108
Trinity in Unity
Eighth Discourse	119
The Paraclete and Muhammad
Conclusion	126

INTRODUCTION
I have spent much time in the company of my
Muslim brethren most of whom are scholars.
When we engaged in friendly and sincere
discourses about religion we explored every
avenue and knocked at every door; so, it occurred
to me to summarize these discourses in book form.
As a result, this effort comes to all those who have
sought fairmindedness and made truth their goal,
in the hope that it will benefit and guide them in
the path of Truth. Then, if the truth is clear to
them, hopefully they will embrace it, selling every-
thing they have in order to buy it. Such folk will be
blessed and they will prosper.
In my discussion I have followed a method
suited to any reasonable Muslim, and no honor-
able seeker will disapprove of it. It is to furnish,
whenever possible, proofs from the Koran and the
Traditions, as well as from History, because these
carry more weight with the Muslim and meet with
no objections. Thus we shall arrive at the conclu-
sion of the matter. Surely, truth is the daughter of
investigation as scholars defined it. The seeker

after truth is not against roaming in the field of
discussion in order to find it. The one who already
possesses it will not refrain from discussion since it
will only establish him more firmly. Therefore, my
Muslim brother do not be upset by my invitation
to discuss in the spirit of piety, for in so doing, you
will either benefit others or yourself; in both cases
you will come out of the arena a winner. The fact
that I quote from the Koran and Traditions does
not commit me to acknowledging their veracity.
The rules of logical debate and civil laws permit
me this method; especially as I am obliged to by
necessity. For the Muslim brother, in the first
place does not accept the infallability of my Holy
Book (the Torah and Gospel). Otherwise I would
have quoted him numerous proofs from it of the
veracity of each of the discourses in this publica-
tion, thus removing from his heart every doubt
and exchanging certainty for suspicion.
My Muslim brethren, don't you and we have the
same purpose in religion, to worship the Creator
and enable us to secure eternal felicity after
death? So you follow a certain path to this end
while we follow another. How would it harm us if
we discuss the subject thoroughly in a spirit of

humility, piety and objectivity? Truth is one and
indivisible, so let us walk together in amity,
thereby gaining our Creator's favour, and at last
enjoy an Edenlike immortal bliss. It was only
genuine love which led us to compile this and
other messages. We wish you to walk side by side
with us, and share with us the Salvation which we
have obtained in Christ, and to enjoy with us
everlasting life. If we wish you the happiness, joy
and salvation we covet for ourselves, we cannot
hate you but rather are sincere friends who love
you. Do not therefore mistrust us; may God guide
you in the right path.
In discussion one should avoid shallow amiabil-
ity, and so I shall beg my Muslim brother's
indulgence if he finds some of my words hard to
bear, for it is not my intention to denigrate his
beliefs. At the same time, I would like to arrive at
some truths, and this does not permit me to set
aside my own convictions in order to please him.
Likewise I do not expect him to set aside his. This
is, after all, a debating opportunity. However, I
shall promise my esteemed reader to avoid any
trace of provocation, ridicule or scorn. Let it be
admitted that I have, in compiling this book, made

use of previous publications. My prayer to God is
that it will prove beneficial and a means of accord.
He it is who answers the petitions of the sincere,
and he is my sufficiency and the source of all my
help.

FIRST DISCOURSE
Part One
The Authenticity of the Torah and Gospel
We believe that the Holy Bible (the Torah and
Gospel) is the cornerstone of all Christian
doctrine, its foundation and the arbiter used by
Christians in solving problems. It is the fair judge
who fears not censure but exposes truth and
suppresses falsehood, the faithful witness in legal
cases. I have therefore placed it first in my discus-
sions so that, if I can prove its reliability by
convincing argument and logical proof, we can
together consult it in every case and refer to it in
every dispute, yielding to its judgments and being
enlightened by its guidance. Truly it is a light and
a right guidance to all beings.
1) In the Koran, House of Imran, 2, we read
these words: "He sent down the Torah and the
Gospel aforetime, as guidance to the people."
God sent down the Torah and the Gospel for the
guidance of mankind.

2)	In The Table, 72: "Say: 'People of the Book,
you do not stand on anything, until you perform
the Torah and the Gospel.'" This shows that the
Torah    and    Gospel    are    reliable,    otherwise
Muhammad would not attest to them.
3)	Also in The Table, 51: "So let the People of
the Gospel judge according to what God has sent
down therein," meaning that the Gospel is sent
down from God and Muhammad recognized its
authority.
4)	In The Women, 135: "O believers, believe in
God and His Messenger and the Book He has sent
down on His Messenger and the Book which He
sent down before. Whoso disbelieves in God and
His angels and His Books, and His Messengers,
and the Last Day, has surely gone astray into far
error." It judges the infidelity of the Muslim who
does not believe in the Torah and Gospel in the
same way that he believes in the Koran.
5)	In Sheba, 30: "The unbelievers say, 'We will
not believe in this Koran, nor in that before it.'"
Thus the people of Mecca knew about the Torah
and Gospel in the same way they knew the Koran.
6)	In The Story, 49: "Say: 'Bring a Book from
10
2)	
God that gives better guidance than these (the
Koran and the Bible), and follow it, if you speak
truly.'" Clearly Muhammad attests to the accuracy
of the Torah and Gospel and their equality with
the Koran.
7) In The Table 47: "Yet how will they make
thee their judge seeing they have the Torah,
wherein is God's judgment." Here we have a plain
admission that the Torah is sound, contains God's
decrees and whoever follows it will not need
another arbitrator.
The meaning of the foregoing verses is very
plain, and they do not require interpretation or
explanation.
The gist of these texts is that the Holy Bible (the
Torah and Gospel) was sent down by a wise and
all-knowing God, as a light and guidance to the
world. Its precepts are to be observed and should
be followed. If any Muslim does not believe it his
religion is lacking and he will stray far. Further-
more, the people of Mecca were as familiar with
the Bible as they were with the Koran.
My Muslim brother, do you still hold back from
believing in this Book, in spite of these explicit
11

verses, and consider it as irrelevant? How will you
excuse yourself on the day of reckoning for
disobeying God's commands, when the books will
be opened? I counsel you to read this book (the
Torah and Gospel), believe it and obey its
precepts. In so doing, you will discover the only
way whereby God's justice and mercy are recon-
ciled. You will find cleansing from sins and will
attain eternal joy through Christ Jesus, the most
important Person in this world and the next.
It may be that a Muslim brother would object:
"The verses you have quoted are true and your
conclusions right. However, the Torah and Gospel
which you ask me to believe in and to which the
Koran attested have been altered and distorted; a
corrupting hand has been at work. What you
today call the Torah and Gospel differ completely
from the ones witnessed to by the Koran. It is for
this reason that Muslims avoid them, rejecting
their precepts. Surely, you don't blame them for
that!" I ask the objector and others like him to pay
attention and judge my reply fairly.
You have learnt from the aforementioned
Koranic verses that the Book (Torah and Gospel)
was quite perfect and reliable in Muhammad's
12

day. Otherwise he would not have testified to it
and commanded people to keep its precepts. You
have to admit that at one time at least it was
correct, free from alteration and forgery.
Also I would like you to read the following
verses to see for yourself if such changes could
take place, or if humans could alter it in such a
manner:
"Recite what has been revealed to thee of the
Book of thy Lord; no man can change His words"
(The Cave, 26).
"No man can change the words of God"
(Cattle, 34).
"No man can change His words"
(Cattle, 115).
"There is no changing the words of God"
(Jonah, 65).
"And thou shalt never find any changing the
word of God" (Victory, 23).
"A Book Sublime; falsehood comes not to it
from before it nor from behind it"
(Distinguished, 42).
13

"It is We who have sent down the Remem-
brance, and We watch over it" (El Hijr, 9).
From these quotes you will see that no one can
change the words of God, because God has sent
down a Book and promised to protect it. Should
you say that what is meant here by the "Remem-
brance" is the Koran, I would respond that it also
means the Torah and Gospel. Witness, for
instance, the Koranic statement: "Question the
People of the Remembrance (the Torah and the
Gospel), if you do not know" (Sura 7, The
Prophets). In fact, the Torah itself is referred to as
"Koran" in the verse: "We gave Moses and Aaron
Salvation (Al-Furkau) and a Radiance, and a
Remembrance for the godfearing..." (Sura 49,
The Prophets).
You say this applies only to the Koran; I say, all
that applies to the Koran applies also to the Torah
and the Gospel. For the Torah and Gospel are the
words of God and the Koran, according to your
belief, is the word of God. If you believe that God
said in the Koran that there is no change, corrup-
tion, addition or deletion of his word (as Jalalayn
has stated), then how can you say that the Torah
and Gospel have been altered in view of all this?
14

If you allow this possibility, then it would also
follow that the Koran could have been changed,
because what is admissible for the Torah and
Gospel is also admissible for the Koran. If men are
able to alter God's words - the Torah and Gospel
- it follows that they would inevitably have been
able to alter the Koran, as Al-Razi has stated.
And you do not admit that the Koran has been
changed. Therefore, you are obliged to agree that
altering the Torah and Gospel is an impossibility.
You must admit that they are genuine, observe
their precepts and adopt them as your guide to
Christ who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. As
for the alleged corruption referred to by the Koran
in the Medina Suras, it was with reference to some
of the Jews only. The Gospel is free from this
accusation. The corruption intended here was in
the meaning of certain verses, that is, in their
interpretation, since the Jews used to interpret
them contrary to Muhammad's wishes. This has
been proven by Al-Razi and Al-Baidawi in their
exposition of "corrupted texts." Otherwise, the
words of the Koran in the Medina Suras would
contradict the Meccan Suras.
15

Part Two
Intellectual Proof
Every intelligent being knows that the God
who, by the fiat of his eternal power made the
heavens, the worlds and all creatures, is Almighty.
Furthermore, it is evident from the perfection of
his handiwork, the precision of universal laws and
their constancy over thousands of years that God
is wise. Since God is both able and wise, he had to
establish a constitution or produce a canon for his
intelligent human creatures to enable them to
comprehend their relationship to their Creator,
and their duties to one another. They needed to
know the destiny of mankind: for the disobedient
a punishment and for the believing and obedient a
reward. Otherwise chaos would reign with no
restraints or laws, like fish, the large eating the
small. Ultimately, man would exterminate his
kind, as savage tribes did that have disappeared.
Virtue then would be the same as vice, in fact, no
term or distinction of these terms would exist.
Such a state of affairs is unacceptable to the
Almighty, the Wise One.
16

If this constitution and canon are not the Torah
and the Gospel, then tell me what are they? Is
there an ancient holy book which meets such a
need like the Torah and Gospel? Not at all!
Doubtless, God the Almighty and Wise, in
sending down a book to be the constitution and
guide for mankind would ensure its preservation
from change, addition, deletion or deterioration.
If that were not so, it would be the butt of every
attacker. There would be a multiplicity of books, a
diversity of opinions and truth would be lost in
perplexity and confusion. Far be it from God to do
this! For he has preserved his books, the Torah
and Gospel century after century, free from
change and error. He has kept them as a beacon of
light, guiding all who stray.
It is impossible to have unanimity for a plot to
alter the Bible (the Torah and Gospel). For a
start, the Christian religion and Judaism had
already spread in the East and West, in Syria,
Turkey, Egypt, Ethiopia, India and Europe. The
Bible, especially the Gospel, was translated from
the original Hebrew and Greek into the languages
of all the nations, such as Arabic, Armenian,
Amharic  (Ethiopian),  Coptic  and  Latin.  Is it
17

reasonable to suppose that all these multitudes
should come together and agree on a scheme to
alter their book, considering their differences of
language and creed, especially as there were
numerous denominations of Christians, each vying
with the other for orthodoxy?
Doubtless, the Muslims' claim that the Bible has
been changed is a charge without proof. Other-
wise, where are the texts which have been altered,
"which texts are they, what were they originally,
and what was the purpose in changing them? If
there is no answer to these questions, and it is
clear that is so, I ask them: "How does someone
dare to make such an allegation? The prudent
scholar does not embark on such a scheme without
first having something to support his allegation."
The Gospel had been translated into Arabic
before the appearance of Islam, for the benefit of
those Arab tribes who were Christianized, such as:
Himyar, Ghassan, Rabiya and the people of
Nijran, Heera and others. How else would they
have understood Christianity? These facts are
corroborated in the book "Al-Aghanee" (The
Songs), for it relates that Waraka Bin Nawfal (the
most famous Arab writer of Muhammad's time)
18

wrote this book, copying in it whatever he desired
of the Arabic Gospel. Now, if the Gospel had
been subsequently changed, Muslims would have
kept the original, to substantiate their case.
As for the Jews, their zeal in preserving their
book is proverbial. They know the exact number
of words and letters it contains, as all who have
associated with their leaders know. Thus, the Holy
Bible in its entirety is free from alteration and
change will never overtake it, as is witnessed by
common sense and historic transmission.
If books proliferate, do not allow truth to
become clouded; investigate, search and compare.
Thus you will arrive at the facts. For the book
which condemns lusts and selfish inclinations,
which transforms men's evil hearts; one which
conforms to God's pure attributes, sustains a
civilized life, is the source of love for God and all
men, whatever their creeds, commands love of
one's enemies, frowns on repaying evil and
regards all sons of Adam as brethren, is most
indeed The Book, given by the Creator of all to be
observed by his creatures everywhere.
19

Part Three
Historical Evidence
The timelessness of the Bible (Torah and
Gospel) and its authenticity is indisputable. No
other book in the universe is so well-attested.
Since history is the fairest witness and the truest
proof, I have decided to use it in our discussion to
uncover and reveal the truth indubitably.
It is obvious that the Bible contains a large
number of prophecies, most of which have been
fulfilled. The remainder will come to pass in their
time. God, through his noble prophets, foretold
the occurrence of numerous events such as the rise
of certain kings and the fall of others, the destruc-
tion of great cities and the extinction of glorious
and haughty nations which never dreamed of their
coming destruction.
For instance, the prophet Nahum prophecied
clearly the destruction of Nineveh, the capital city
of the Assyrians. This was a great metropolis
whose walls were 100 feet high, with a perimeter
of 60 miles, having 1500 towers, which, at the
height of its grandeur, rose to 200 feet. This
prophecy was literally fulfilled.
20

Isaiah and Jeremiah foretold the destruction of
Babylon, the capital of the Chaldeans, at the
height of its splendour, and prosperity. In less
than 160 years from the date of the prophecy the
great Babylon had fallen according to the word of
the prophets. The details of its downfall as
described by the historians Herodotus and
Xenophon agree remarkably with what the
prophets described.
Among the other biblical prophecies is the one
by Ezekiel about the city of Tyre, where we see
the following facts which history witnessed and
recorded for us:
In Ezekiel 26:8 we read that Nebuchadnezzar
would destroy the city of Tyre. In verse 3, the
prophet says that many nations would rise against
it, in verse 4, that it would become a barren rock
and in verse 5, that fishermen would cast their nets
on its site. In verse 12, it is prophecied that its
remains would be cast into the sea, in verse 14,
that it would never rise again and verse 21 says
that its disappearance is determined and certain.
Three years after Ezekiel's prophecy the King of
Babylon besieged Tyre for 13 years until it surren-
21

dered on his terms (585-573 B.C.). When he
finally stormed it, he discovered that its inhabit-
ants had fled by sea to a new island half a mile
from the city. He then razed it to the ground, as
the prophet Ezekiel foretold in chapter 26, verse
8.
Then came Alexander the Great, and
surrounded the rebellious new city, employing the
ruins of the old city to create a 60 meter wide
causeway. He conquered it as Ezekiel had
prophecied in chapter 26:3,12, and it became a
barren rock again as the prophecy describes it in
verses 4 and 5.
Although the history of Tyre did not finally end
after Alexander's horrendous campaign, the
successive attacks by Antigones (314 B.C)
followed by Ptolemais Philadelphus (285-247
B.C.) extinguished its trade and its importance as
a maritime power. Later, in the year 1321 A.D.,
the Muslims occupied and completely destroyed it.
It became, in the words of the Arab traveller Ibn
Batuta, "a by word... now a complete ruin," exactly
as the prophecy had stated in chapter 26, verse 14.
In his day, Ezekiel looked at Tyre and saw a
great city, at the height of its splendour, so that to
22

those who heard the words of his prophecy and
beheld the wealth and glory of the powerful city, it
sounded like hallucinations. According to human
wisdom, the likelihood of his prophecies coming
true within seven years on the basis of pure chance
were one in 750 million. And yet all his prophecies
came to pass in detail!
"Therefore thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I
am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many
nations to come up against you, as the sea causes
its waves to come up. And they shall destroy the
walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I will
also scrape her dust from her, and make her like
the top of a rock.'" (Ezekiel 26:3,4).

23

Part Four
Archaeological Evidence
If history encounters a challenge to its witness,
the evidence of archaeology (antiquities) cannot
be challenged.
The Scriptures have been, and still are, the
target of critics and the object of the attacks of
atheists and infidels. It is contrary to their
sensuous desires, their naive views and their
destructive philosophies. Hence, many of them
have turned to the remains of antiquity in Pales-
tine, Babylon, Assyria and Egypt, in the hope of
finding, if possible, something to discredit inspired
Scriptures. They want to prove to the world that
the Bible is a mixture of distorted sayings and
traditions. However, God has thwarted their
intentions; their arrows have missed the mark and
their hopes have been dashed. For the testimony
of these archaeological finds was in complete
harmony with the inspired books, even though the
writers of these inscriptions themselves were
pagans.
When our Muslim brethren found that the
24

books of the Torah and Gospel were contrary to
the fundamental Koranic teachings, they levelled
at them the charge of corruption, claiming they
were erroneous. But their charge lacked proper
evidence. Since the witness of archaeology has
convinced many atheistic enquirers, I decided to
refer to some of these antiquities in the hope that
it would help our Muslim brethren as it helped
others before.
The criticism of infidels and their disbelief of the
Bible can be traced to two factors. Firstly, to the
idea that writing was either unknown or else little
used in Palestine until just before the Babylonian
Exile (around 540 B.C.). Consequently, they
think it is unlikely that Moses or others used
writing at the time. Secondly, to the belief that the
Torah highly exaggerated the level of civilization
in the ancient Near East in contrast with the
contemporary historians. But recent discoveries
have come out in favour of the biblical accounts,
depicting clearly the advanced civilizations of
Egypt, Babylon and Assyria. Sennacherib, Tiglath
Pileser and Nebuchadnezzar are portrayed to us
through their chronicles, their culture and the
battles they engaged in. We can now see for
ourselves the form of the letters used by Isaiah,
25

Jeremiah and even Moses in their writings. Thus
the stones have spoken out in support of God's
declarations. These antiquities have established
the fact that the art of writing had been perfected
in the days of Ezekiel, Moses and Abraham, in
fact since 2234 B.C., to a level similar to what we
have today.
I shall now proceed to mention the important
subjects and great events mentioned in the Torah
which have been corroborated, as you will see, by
ancient antiquities.
The original Assyrian tablets exhibited today in
the British Museum confirm the Creation Story
(mentioned at the beginning of the Torah) in
detail, in an amazing way. If not for the need for
brevity I would have translated it to the reader.
While this account has elements of legend in it, the
truth shows through. It confirms the existence of a
single human pair, for it states, "that there be two,
created by the Lord of the noble face." In the
same museum one can see a picture on an ancient
Babylonian column, depicting our first parents,
with the tree between them and the snake behind
Eve. This agrees exactly with the account of the
Fall in the first chapter of the Torah.
26

Formerly, unbelieving scholars have regarded
the biblical story of the Flood as mere myth, one
of the ancients' legends. They supposed it could
not bear the scholar's scrutiny; rigorous enquiry
would prove it to be a forgery. However, after
lengthy investigations, they ended by losing their
case when later archaeological finds exposed their
glaring errors. They confessed that the Flood was
a fact, and acknowledged the truth. Notable
among them were the geologists, for among the
finds in Assyria were tablets, now in the British
Museum, bearing an inscription of how an ark was
built, how men and all kinds of animals were
preserved, how rains covered the face of the earth
(inhabited by living beings) destroying men and
beasts, with all the details of the Flood story.
In every continent of the world large quantities
of sea fossils have been discovered, either concen-
trated or scattered in solid layers, on mountains
and in deep valleys. Some of them are specific to
certain seas. There are remains offish and marine
plants in fossil form embedded in mountain strata.
Anyone interested can inspect these since they are
on display in most museums. All this proves the
truth of the Biblical account of the Flood. Other-
27

wise, how could those shells and fossils of fish and
plants have reached these remote places where
they are not native?
A certain Mr. Smith came across a tablet in the
ruins of Nineveh which is now in the British
Museum. On it there is an account of the Confu-
sion of Tongues and the Building of the Tower of
Babel (Genesis 11). The same man found a tablet
in the ruins of Assyria relating the destruction of
Sodom and Gomorrah with fire and brimstone as
the Bible mentions in Genesis 19:24. These finds
corroborate the account of the raid on Palestine by
Chedorlaomer King of Elam and his allies. Among
them was Amrafel King of Shinar and Southern
Babylon, referred to in Genesis chapter 14.
The historians, Plutarch and Herodotus, denied
the existence and use of wine in Egpyt in the time
of the prophet Moses' writings. However, we now
know from the discoveries of Egyptian
archaeology that these historians were wrong.in
their assumption and that Moses, the lawgiver,
was right. In some Egyptian tombs there are
pictures showing the process of winemaking, from
the culture of the vine, to crushing the grapes, to
extracting the juice and storing it in vessels. Some
28

bottles were found with the word ERB which
means wine. The ruins also give proof of the
famine in Joseph's day, mentioned in the Torah
(Genesis 41:30).
Egyptian inscriptions have shown that Ramses
the Great employed foreigners in the construction
of the two towns of Phithom and Ramses. This is
in agreement with Exodus 1:11, and archaeologists
discovered in a tomb in Thebes mention of the
Israelites and their slavery and conscription in
public works.
Among the silent witnesses to the truth of the
Bible is a piece of marble, known among the
antiquarians as the Moabite Stone. A priest by the
name of Augustus Klein found it. He was of
German origin and lived in Palestine for a long
time serving 20 years in Cairo as Secretary for the
English Church Mission. He was a famous scholar
and knew several languages. The discovery was
made in Transjordan, in what was ancient Moab,
and dates back to 890 B.C. At present it is in the
Louvre Museum in Paris. The stone bears an
inscription, consisting of 30 lines of Phoenician
writing which tells of the wars between Misha
King of Moab and Omri King of Israel and the
29

Edomites as we find it in the book of 2 Kings 3:4-
27. It also mentions other precise details which are
in accord with the Bible, but space prevents us
from giving them.
Furthermore, the recent discovery of the Siloam
inscriptions in Jerusalem confirm the accuracy of
what we read in 2 Kings 20:20, 2 Chronicles 32:30
and Isaiah 22:9,11, to the effect that Hezekiah
stopped the higher source of the Gihon Spring,
running it underground to the western flank of the
City of David.
In the ruins of Nineveh a cylinder was found
bearing a record of the war between Sargon King
of Assyria in 722 B.C. and Ashuri King of Ashdod
in the reign of Hezekiah (Isaiah 2:1). This cylinder
is now in London.
Another hexagonal column was found with an
account of the siege of Jerusalem. It is also in
London. Sennacherib, King of Assyria, besieged it
in 705 B.C., as related in 2 Kings 18:13-16.
We have, in the numerous ancient manuscripts
of the Bible, irrefutable testimony to the veracity
of the Book. These are to be found in the foremost
libraries   and   museums   in   Europe.   They  are
30

written on leather parchment in the original Greek
language of the Gospel as well as other languages.
Some of them consist of the Torah and the Gospel
in their entirety. Others are of certain books of the
Bible. The following are some of these
manuscripts:
I.	"Codex Vaticanus" (Vatican Manuscript) -
You will find this in the Vatican Palace in Rome.
It was written approximately 250 years before the
Hijra.
II.	"Codex Sinaiticus" (Sinaitic Manuscript) -
Named after Mount Sinai where it was found. It is
now in the British Museum in London and consists
of the Torah and the Gospel. It was penned
approximately 200 years before the Higra.
III.	"Codex      Alexanderinus"      (Alexandria
Manuscript) - This document is in the Treasure
Room of the British Museum in London. It was
also written approximately 200 years before the
Hijra, and contains the Torah and the Gospel.
IV.	"Codex	Ephraemus"	(Ephraim
Manuscript) - It is now in Paris and was written
approximately 150 years before the Hijra and
contains the Gospel.
31

Furthermore, the following story made
headlines in the year 1948 and was considered
among the most momentous of historical events.
A certain Muhammad Al-Deeb Badawi of the
Taamirahs was shepherding his flock near the
Dead Sea. When one sheep climbed the mountain
side he threw a stone at it. Hearing the sound of
smashed pottery he threw another stone. Then he
climbed the mountain and stepped cautiously
through a hole into a cave, thinking he would find
treasure. In fact he found it; however, it was not
just for himself and his tribe but for the world at
large!
This discovery consists of a collection of bundles
of the Holy Scriptures, among them the Book of
the prophet Isaiah, one of the biblical books which
dates back 700 years before Christ. It came as an
eloquent testimony to the accuracy of the Bible
since it agreed with the copies in circulation today.
Thus, it refuted the charges that the Book has
been corrupted, and challenged and exposed the
false accusations. These scrolls are now known as
"Qumran" or the "Dead Sea Scrolls."
Since the discovery of this precious storehouse,
it has become abundantly clear that the copying
32

and transmission of God's Holy Book is living
proof of the guidance of the Holy Spirit in the life
of the Church of Christ - the repository of God's
mysteries. Christians possess -numerous other
manuscripts, some written before Islam, others
contemporary to it. We have not listed these for
the sake of brevity. If we compare the copies of
the Scriptures in more than 300 languages in the
hands of Jews and Christians today with those
ancient manuscripts, we shall find a great degree
of harmony between them. They are there for
everyone to examine!

33

SECOND DISCOURSE
Has the Koran Abrogated the Torah and Gospel?
When the Muslim steed fails in the arena of
discussion, lacking proof and evidence, having to
accept the proposition that the Torah and Gospel
are free from corruption and change, as well as
being sent down from an Allwise God, to be
guidance and light to all men, he resorts to the
charge that the Koran has abrogated the Torah
and Gospel. However, this is an unsupported
charge and a grave slander, because the Koran
itself does not claim this. On the contrary, it
proclaimed over every head, in clear Arabic, that
it was sent down confirming the Torah and Gospel
and keeping watch over them, as you will see from
the following verses:
"And believe in that I have sent down,
confirming that which is with you" (The Cow, 38).
"Confirming what was before it" (The Cow, 91).
34

"Then there shall come to you a Messenger
confirming what is with you" (House of Imran,
75).
"He has sent down upon thee the Book with the
truth, confirming what was before it" (House of
Imran, 2).
"You who have been given the Book, believe in
what We have sent down, confirming what is with
you" (Women, 50).
"This Koran could not have been forged apart
from God; but it is a confirmation of what is
before it, and a distinguishing of the Book"
(Jonah, 38).
"And We have sent down to thee the Book with
the truth, confirming the Book that was before it,
and assuring it" (The Table, 52).
"Say: People of the Book, you do not stand on
anything, until you perform the Torah and the
Gospel" (The Table, 72).
The prudent will not embark on a charge, unless
he is confident that he is able to prove it by a
thousand proofs. Some of our Muslim brethren
approach this matter without thought. If we tell
35

them: "Produce your evidence if you are truthful,"
they bring us empty and feeble reasons such as:
"The later abrogates the earlier." In other words,
the Koran came after the Torah and Gospel,
therefore it abrogates them! Others say that, since
the Koran contains the Torah and Gospel, we no
longer need them. I don't think, with due respect
to the reader's intelligence, that I need to
challenge such feeble "evidences," especially since
the Koran itself has spared me this effort. The
previous seven verses, like tens of others,
demonstrate unequivocally that the Koran came
attesting to the veracity of the Torah and Gospel,
confirming them and watching over them, that is,
as a guardian and preserver. It never claimed that
it was sent to abrogate their precepts and there is
no trace in the Koran of such a claim; indeed, one
understands the opposite, for, in addition to
confirming and attesting them, it exhorts the Jews
and Christians openly, saying: "People of the
Book, you do not stand on anything until you
perform the Torah and the Gospel."
Had the idea of abrogation been true, we would
not have seen Muhammad urging the Jews and
Christians  to keep the  commandments of the
36

Torah and Gospel. Also, we would not have seen
him asking the Muslims to believe in them.
Nowhere does the Koran state that it contains the
Torah and Gospel, so that the Muslim could say
that he has no need of them. In fact, the Koran
does state the contrary, as one can see in The
Poets, 193-196:
"Brought down by the Faithful Spirit upon thy
heart, that thou mayest be one of the warners, in
a clear, Arabic tongue. Truly it is in the Scriptures
of the ancients (the Torah and Gospel)."
So, the last quotation confirms that the Torah
and Gospel contain the Koran, "truly it is in the
Scriptures of the ancients." How strange it is that
our Muslim friends allege that the Koran encom-
passes them, without giving proof?
Even assuming that the Koran failed to affirm
the Torah and Gospel, one cannot argue from
silence that it has abrogated them and that they
are no longer needed. God be thanked, it did no
such thing, but instead, sought to establish its own
words on their authority and placed itself
alongside the Torah and Gospel, "Say: 'Bring a
Book from God that gives better guidance than
37

38
these (the Koran and the Bible), and follow it, if
you speak truly'" (The Story, 49). And many a
time the Koran tried to convince the Arabs of the
truthfulness of the Bible's message and how badly
they needed it, by mentioning that the Torah and
Gospel came down in foreign languages to a
foreign nation, "and a guide to every people"
(Thunder 8). And since the Arabs could not
understand those languages, the Koran says that
God sent down the Koran, in the same way (as the
Torah and Gospel) in your own language, in a
clear Arabic tongue: "Yet before it was the Book
of Moses for a model and a mercy; and this is a
Book confirming, in Arabic tongue, to warn the
evildoers, and good tidings to the good-doers"
(The Sand-Dunes, 11).

THIRD DISCOURSE
All Have Sinned; Even the Prophets!
God created man pure, and made for him a
happy home in the Garden of Eden. There was
nothing there to distract him from worship.
However, he disobeyed the word of his Lord,
eating of the forbidden fruit. Thus he lost every-
thing. Adam was a representative of his descen-
dants, and by his rebellion he broke the covenant
that God made with him. His descendants have
ever since rued this representation because of its
consequence. Adam responded to the temptation
and fell into sin. Since we humans are his
offspring, we have inherited this weakness and are
born with the same inclinations, according to the
laws of heredity. However, we are not punished
for his sin; for we too have been disobedient, even
though we know of God's disapproval. We have
committed actual sins just as he did. The following
statement confirms this: "Adam fell, and so his
offspring fell; Adam forgot and ate of the tree,
and his offspring forgot; Adam sinned and his
39

offspring sinned." It is attributed to Tarmathi and
others and is a fair and truthful statement. In
short, Adam's representation of his descendants is
an indubitable reality among Muslim scholars. The
Sheikh Muhyi Ed Din Ibn El Araby has written an
article on this subject in chapter 305 of his book.
If Adam, whom God had created pure,
disobeyed his Lord's commands, how much more
can be said of his weak descendants? Then we find
that all have sinned and come short of God's glory
and mercy.
Both history and experience teach us that man's
heart is wicked and these hearts of ours tell us
that: "Surely the soul of man incites to evil"
(Joseph, 53). Whenever it finds a way to satisfy its
lusts, it follows it, unless it has a deterrent from its
Creator. Although we know that sin and wicked-
ness are forbidden, we violate our conscience,
submit to our corrupt natures and commit what is
forbidden. Have you not noticed that the
drunkard, though he knows what harm his habit
does to his health, livelihood and religion, still
does it? He is drawn by forces within him; likewise
the fornicator, thief and slanderer.
Our personal experience teaches us that we
40

have leanings and passions within us which are
reprehensible. These are the result of the corrup-
tion of human nature, and they fight our
consciences and oppose our good intentions. Thus
we find ourselves captives, doing that which is
contrary to the will of our Creator God.
We do not know anyone who has no faults. No
human has ever claimed to be absolutely pure
except Jesus. We will discuss this later on in this
book.
The following verse points to the fact that all
men are corrupt when it says, "Surely the soul of
man incites to evil" (Joseph, 53). Al-Razi, has
commented, "The soul of man incites to evil: in
other words, it leans to wickedness, is desirous of
rebellion and has a nature which craves pleasures.
Since attraction to the material world is predomin-
ant, and desire to rise to the higher world rare, it
was judged to have incited us to evil" (Al-Razi's
words). What is also clear is that the definite
article "the" refers here to the species, mankind.
Therefore, we are permitted to say that every soul
incites to evil. The form (la-ammara in Arabic)
rendered "surely" is a form of emphasis or exagg-
eration by the use of "lam." It is certain then, that
41

every man's soul incites him to wickedness and has
a strong desire to commit disobedience.
Another proof that all have sinned is the
following verse: "Not one of you there is, but he
shall go down to it; that for thy Lord is a thing
decreed, determined. Then We shall deliver those
that were godfearing; and the evildoers We shall
leave there, hobbling on their knees" (Mary,
72,73). Al-Razi said, "One cannot say, 'then we
shall deliver etc.,' unless all were destined to go
down to it (the fire)." Information on this subject
points in the same direction. When Jaber was
asked about this verse he said, "I heard God's
Prophet...saying that 'al-worood,' going down to it
means entering, and everyone, without exception,
whether he is good or evil, will enter it." Jalal Ed
Din interprets the word "wariduha" (shall go
down to it) by entering and being burnt. Al-Razi
confirms this in his exposition of the verse "he
whose scales are heavy" (The Battlements, 7),
"But the sins of the believer will be forgiven."
Does not this clearly show that everyone
commits sins, and some will be punished for a
while, whereas others will stay in the fire
eternally? Another proof of the fact that all have
42

sinned is the verse, "Whoso blinds himself to the
Remembrance of the All-merciful, to him We
assign a Satan for comrade" (Ornaments, 35).
Since the remembrance of God's name is perpetu-
ally beyond man's power, it is not surprising that
Satan is in continuous battle with every man.
When Muhammad was asked which fight (jihad) is
the better he replied, "Your struggle with your
passions." This fight has been named the
"supreme struggle." It has also been said, "Your
worst enemy is yourself, which is within you."
From this one sees the corruption of nature and
the evil which lurks in the heart and the inclination
to sin in ways both great and small.
The truth of the matter is that mankind is
corrupt and sinful, and but for the grace of God
and his mercy not one would be justified. Muslims
have regarded it a grave sin to consider oneself
safe from God's wrath. We have thus concluded
with irrefutable proofs that everyone has sinned.
Therefore they are in need of Christ's sacrifice to
atone for their sins. Otherwise they are sent to hell
to satisfy God's justice. Since they have this inher-
ited weakness and leaning to sin, inherited from
their father Adam, they also need the Holy Spirit,
43

God's Spirit, to purify their souls. This is needed
to remove evil inclinations bit by bit and to trans-
form twisted thoughts and corrupt emotions. This
is what the Bible calls the New Birth or the Second
Birth.
Christians believe that according to the Bible all
have sinned, and corruption has overtaken the
whole human race. Since the prophets are human
they too are sinners. They also believe that these
prophets and apostles, whom God chose to warn
men and deliver his message, were preserved from
error in their task, whether the message was
spoken or written. Thus God kept them from
forgetting or erring, guiding their efforts by his
Holy Spirit, and inspiring them in what they
should say to men. However, they (prophets and
apostles) were not immune to sin in their actions
and normal behaviour, thus indicating the
inherent weakness of human nature and estab-
lishing the fact that sinlessness and perfection are
God's alone, the Almighty and Glorious One.
Moreover, sin deserves God's wrath and the
fires of hell, whether that sin is great or small. So,
although murder is different from stealing or
cursing, all merit the same punishment from God,
44

because they each constitute an offense and a
disobedience. This fact is supported by many
verses in the Torah and Gospel, for example,
"They have all gone out of the way; they have
together become unprofitable; there is none who
does good, no, not one" (Romans 3:12), and, "For
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God"
(Romans 3:23). In the Hadith (Tradition) we find
this confirmed; here is its text: "If anyone extorts
another's due with his right hand, God must
consign him to the fire and deny him paradise." A
man said, "Oh Prophet of God, even if it is a small
matter?" He replied, "Even if it is a rod of arak
(tree) wood."
Let us now come to the sins of the prophets.
Muslims have disagreed among themselves as to
the sinlessness of the prophets. Some have said
that they were absolutely sinless. Others have said
that they sinned as children but when they
attained adulthood they became sinless. Yet
others have restricted their sinlessness to their role
in delivering their messages, but admitted that
they could sin in other respects. This last view is
the one espoused by the late Sheikh Mohammad
Ado, although the Koran clearly indicates that
45

most of the prophets have committed transgres-
sions, not just minor but also major sins, according
to their admissions, as you will see presently.
Muslim theologians have differentiated between
two kinds of sins, major and minor. God forgives
the minor ones but not the major. In their opinion
there are 17 major sins:
1)	infidelity
2)	persistence in committing minor sins
3)	despairing of God's mercy
4)	considering   oneself safe  from  God's
wrath
5)	false witness (perjury)
6)	defaming a Muslim
7)	swearing falsely
8)	magic
9)	drinking alcohol

10)	extorting the money of orphans
11)	usury
12)	adultery or fornication
13)	sodomy or the like
14)	stealing
15)	murder
16)	fleeing in battle from infidels
17)	disobedience to parents.
46

Thus, in their judgment, every believer who has
committed any of these offenses and has not
repented will be punished in the fires of hell.
Anything else is considered minor.
Adam sinned, as one can conclude from Sura
Taha, 119: "Adam disobeyed his Lord, and so he
erred." Expositors have said that he disobeyed his
Lord by eating of the tree, "...but draw not nigh
this tree, lest you be evildoers" (The Cow, 33).
Baidhawi said, "He strayed from what was
required and went wrong in seeking immortality
by eating of the tree; or in what he was
commanded or from the right course by being
deceived by the enemy." Al-Razi admitted that
Adam sinned, but he claimed that it happened
before his prophethood. He went on to say that he
disobeyed and erred but only in respect to eating
from the tree. Since he repented of it, this trans-
gression will not be counted against him.
However, Al-Razi has not confirmed to us that sin
occurred before the call, but only that he was
forgiven, since he repented. We agree with him in
this last phrase, but this does not deny that he
disobeyed and erred from the path.
Furthermore, disobedience is among the grave
47

sins as we find expressed in this verse, "And
whoso rebels against God and His Messenger, for
him there awaits the Fire of Gehenna" (The Jinn,
24). And by saying, "...and turned again untö
him, and He guided him" (Taha, 120), it shows
that Adam disobeyed and then repented. Repen-
tance is being sorry for one's sin, confessing it and
determining not to repeat it. And repentance can
only be for disobedience, for Adam himself
repented of his disobedience in his words, "They
said, 'Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if
Thou dost not forgive us, and have mercy upon us,
we shall surely be among the lost'" (The Battle-
ments, 22).
Here we have Adam, one of the foremost
prophets, obeying Satan, listening to him,
doubting his sublime Lord and coveting immortal-
ity. In so doing, he sinned and this sin is consi-
dered among the grave ones.
Noah sinned, as one can see from Sura Noah,
24-29, "Increase Thou not the evildoers save in
error!" And Noah said, "My Lord, leave not upon
the earth of the unbelievers even one." When it
was clear he had sinned, he said:  "My Lord,
48

forgive me." It follows that the plea to be forgiven
comes from a sense of having committed a major
sin. However, commentators try * to soften this
verse. The meaning, though, can only be as we
have stated.
Abraham sinned as we find written in Sura
Cattle, 76, "When night outspread over him he
saw a star and said, 'This is my Lord.' But when it
set he said, 'I love not the setters.' When he saw
the moon rising, he said, This is my Lord.' But
when it set he said, 'If my Lord does not guide me
I shall surely be of the people who have gone
astray.'" This happened to him when he saw the
sun. If he said this because he believed it, then he
was an idolater; otherwise, he was lying. In either
case, these are grave sins.
So we find in Sura Abraham, 42, "Our Lord,
forgive Thou me and my parents, and the believ-
ers, upon the day when the reckoning shall come
to pass." Here Abraham plainly asks forgiveness
for himself, his parents and the believers. Also in
The Cow, 266, "And when Abraham said, 'My
Lord, show me how Thou wilt give life to the
dead,' He said, 'Why, dost thou not believe?'
'Yes,' he said, 'but that my heart may be at rest.'"
49

Here we find Abraham doubting the power of
God, and this constitutes a grave sin. In the
Hadith we read, "We are more inclined to doubt
than Abraham."
In The Prophets, 64, we read that Abraham
said, "No; it was this great one of them that did
it." Abraham had broken the idols, and when
asked, he lied, saying that the large idol had
smashed the small ones. According to Abi
Huraira, the Prophet of God stated that Abraham
only lied three times, two lies of which concerned
the person of God. When he said: "I am ill," "this
great one (the idol) did it," and "Sarah is my
sister," when the giant wanted to approach her
(Quoted by Bukhari and Muslim).
Moses sinned as we find in The Story, 14,15:
"And he entered the city, at a time when its
people were unheeding, and found there two men
fighting; the one was of his own party, and the
other was of his enemies. Then the one that was of
his party cried to him to aid him against the other
that was of his enemies; so Moses struck him,
dispatched him, and said, 'This is Satan's doing;
he is surely an enemy misleading, manifest.' He
said, 'My Lord I have wronged myself. Forgive
50

me!' So God forgave him, for He is the All-forgiv-
ing, the All-compassionate." Also in The Poets,
19, "...Said he, 'Indeed I did it then, being one of
those that stray.' And when Moses returned to his
people, angry and sorrowful, he said, 'Vilely have
you done in my place, after me; what, have you
outstripped your Lord's commandment?' And he
cast down the Tablets, and laid hold of his
brother's head (Aaron) dragging him to him. He
said, 'O my Lord, forgive me and my brother and
enter us into Thy mercy; Thou art the most
merciful of the merciful.'"
It is evident from these verses that Moses
committed murder and felt that this was a grave
sin. So he confessed it and pleaded forgiveness.
Likewise, he sinned when he was angry and threw
the stone tablets and insulted his brother. When
he became aware of his sin, he asked forgiveness
for himself and his brother. As for Aaron's sin, it
was that he made the golden calf for the Israelites
to worship.
Joseph sinned as we read in Sura Joseph, 24,
because of his affair with the wife of Potiphar, the
head of Pharaoh's army, "For she desired him;
and he would have taken her, but that he saw the
51

proof of his Lord. So was it, that We might turn
away from him evil and abomination; he was one
of Our devoted servants."
David sinned, as we find in Sura Sad, 23,24,
"And David thought that We had only tried him;
therefore he sought forgiveness of his Lord, and
he fell down, bowing, and he repented. Accord-
ingly We forgave him that, and he has a near place
in Our presence and a fair resort." He sinned by
committing a murder and adultery as described in
detail in the Torah in 2 Samuel 11,12. However,
when he felt that he had committed a crime he
asked forgiveness of God and was forgiven. All
this is clearly stated in the Torah, which would
spare you the lengthy and conflicting sayings of
the commentators. Recurring stories prove that
David fell into sin and reveal his penitence and
great sorrow and the forgiveness he obtained, as
was mentioned by Ans Ibn Malek, and Ibn Abbas,
and Wahb Ibn Munabbeh, and others.
Solomon sinned as we see from Sura Sad,. 30-32:
"When in the evening were presented to him the
standing steeds, he said, 'Lo, I have loved the love
of good things better than the remembrance of my
Lord, until the sun was hidden behind the veil.
52

Return them to me!' And he began to stroke their
shanks and necks. Certainly We tried Solomon,
and We cast upon his throne a mere body; then he
repented. He said, 'My Lord, forgive me, and give
me a kingdom such as may not fall to another's lot
after me.'" Expositors such as the Al-Kashaf, Al-
Razi and others have interpreted these verses in
quite divergent ways, quoting numerous accounts
to prove their case. However, the upshot is that
horses diverted him from the remembrance of
God and Prayer. They even said that he finally
slaughtered them.
Verses 33 and 34 of Sura Sad reveal that
Solomon actually sinned. Otherwise why would he
ask forgiveness, unless he felt his guilt?
Jonah (Yunis) sinned, as we find in The
Rangers, 139-144, "Jonah too was one of the
Envoys; when he ran away to the laden ship and
cast lots, and was of the rebutted, then the whale
swallowed him down, and he was blameworthy.
Now had he not been of those that glorify God, he
would have tarried in its belly until the day they
shall be raised." The verb "tarried" indicates that
Jonah disobeyed his Lord and the strange thing is
that he disobeyed in spite of being "one of the
53

Envoys." What proves this is his saying, "he is
blameworthy." Further confirmation comes in the
words, that for this disobedience he deserved to
remain in the whale's belly "until the day they
shall be raised," except that he was of "those that
glorify God" (that is, of those who ask forgive-
ness). Otherwise what would be the significance of
"glorify" in this context?
Muhammad sinned, as can be inferred from The
Victory, 2, "that God may forgive thee thy former
and thy latter sins, and complete His blessing upon
thee, and guide thee on a straight path," and from
Sura Muhammad, 21, "and ask forgiveness for thy
sin, and for the believers, men and women," and
from The Believers, 57, "And ask forgiveness for
thy sin," and from Women, 106, "Surely We have
sent down to thee the Book with the truth, so that
thou mayest judge between the people by that
God has shown thee. So be not advocate for the
traitors; and pray forgiveness of God; surely God
is All-forgiving, All-compassionate."
The first verse shows that Muhammad sinned
even before this saying and that he would sin
thereafter. If, like Al-Razi, Al-Kashaf and others,
one says that he is seeking forgiveness for his
54

people, the second verse refutes this and
demonstrates that what is required of him is to ask
forgiveness for his sin first, then for the sins of
believers both male and female.
Some Muslim scholars have said that the merits
of the pious are the evils of God's "near ones"
(muqarrabin). If the pious man disobeys God in
small matters God will reckon it to him among the
grave sins. Often, what he does not regards as sin
is counted against him, as such until he asks
forgiveness for it. They say that this is what
happened to Muhammad. What they forget is that
God is the speaker in this verse, according to their
belief, when he says, "and ask forgiveness
(Muhammad) for thy sin, and for the believers,
men and women." Does God imagine to be sin
what in fact is not, and require him to ask forgive-
ness for it?
From The Confederates, 37, "When thou saidst
to him whom God had blessed and thou hadst
favoured, 'Keep thy wife to thyself, and fear God,
and thou wast concealing within thyself what God
should reveal, fearing other men; and God has
better right for thee to fear Him. So when Zaid
had accomplished what he would of her, then We
55

gave her in marriage to thee, so that there should
not be any fault in the believers, touching the
wives of their adopted sons, when they have
accomplished what they would of them; and God's
commandment must be performed.'"
The story is that Muhammad freed his slave
Zaid and adopted him as son after he believed,
and married him to a noble woman called Zaina.
But sometime later he indicated to her his attach-
ment with the remark, "Praise be to the one who
changes the hearts." Zainab then mentioned this
to her husband. He understood Muhammad's
intentions. Approaching him, as though by his
own accord he said, "I wish to leave my woman
companion." Muhammad appeared to ignore him
and said, "What's the matter with you? Do you
suspect her?" He replied, "No, except that owing
to her nobility she lords it over me." He then told
him, "Keep thy wife to thyself." (See what Al-
Kashaf said in commenting on this verse; page
213, second volume, and what Baidhawi has said).
Here he is seen as concealing in himself what
God was revealing. He tried to make it appear to
men that he did not marry Zaid's wife except in
obedience to God's command. You can see from
56

the texts that Muhammad did wrong in concealing
his affection for Zainab and by pretending
something that was not in his heart. Therefore he
was rebuked in the words, "concealing within
thyself what God should reveal."
In his exposition of this verse Al-Razi says, "In
that you wanted to marry Zainab." But Al-Razi
retracts by saying, "He feared God and was afraid
of men, and so God rebuked him," for he said,
"God has a better right for thee to fear Him."
Therefore Muhammad sinned in this manner also,
and feared what he should not have feared.
We read in The Night Journey, 76, "And had
We not confirmed thee surely thou wert near in
inclining unto them a very little." Al-Razi writes,
after Al-Zajjaj: "Had We not confirmed thee,
meaning in the truth, by our protection, you were
"near to inclining" to them, that is to lean towards
them "a very little," that is a little inclination.
Qatada remarked that when this verse descended,
the Prophet said, "Oh God, do not leave me to
myself (even a moment or 'for the twinkling of an
eye')." Does this verse not show that Muhammad
sinned, or at least that he was not immune from
57

sin, for he said "do not leave me to myself for the
twinkling of an eye."
In the sayings of Muslim and Bukhari they attri-
bute to Muhammad this statement, "None of you
will enter heaven except by God's mercy." One
said, "not even you, Oh Prophet of God," he said,
"Not even me, except that God encompass me
with His grace." Of Abu Huraira he stated that he
heard the Prophet say, "Surely I'll ask God's
forgiveness and repent seventy times daily," and in
some accounts more than seventy. It is said of
Ibnat Khaled and Abu Huraira - "The Prophet of
God would say, 'Oh God, I take refuge in you
from the torment of the grave and the torment of
the fire'" (Bukhari, Part One).
It is absolutely clear from the foregoing passages
to those who are honest that our Father Adam fell
into disobedience, and the thoughts of his heart
became corrupt, and he started to incline to evil.
Also, we his descendants have naturally inherited
from him this corruption and tendency to sin. This
has also been confirmed to us from personal
experience.
We have seen that the great prophets have
58

committed transgressions, even Muhammad the
Prophet of the Muslims. So all men everywhere
are in need of a Saviour from the torment
prepared for all who transgress God's laws and
commit sins. They need a spotless redemption in
order to redeem their souls and demonstrate
God's justice and mercy. This thing can be fulfilled
only by the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, his death as
a sacrifice for mankind, so that whoever believes
in him will have his sins forgiven by God and made
clean by his Holy Spirit. Thus he will receive
eternal life and everlasting bliss.
I do not understand why our Muslim brethren
try to exonerate the prophets from the stain of sin,
contrary to the declarations of every book consi-
dered to be revealed (munzal). This is especially
so, since none of the prophets ever claimed this
sinlessness but admitted that they were weak and
sinful. Truly God has sent down the books and
recorded the creeds according to his supreme
wisdom. He is all-wise in his works, and all-
knowing of the needs of mankind.
59

FOURTH DISCOURSE
Introduction
Both Islamic and civil law prescribe that the
punishment for transgression or crime shall be
severe or mild in proportion to the one sinned
against. For instance, if a student at school insults
his fellow pupil, he is punished lightly, whereas if
he insults his teacher he would be expelled from
school. In legislative terms, if someone reviles his
equal it is considered an offense, but if he insults
the judge his punishment would be greater.
However, if he insults the king his sentence would
be greater still. But if he should sin against God,
who is unsurpassed in greatness and holiness, how
much more would be his punishment! Doubtless
he would be condemned to painful endless
torment.
God is just, so he cannot overlook the slightest
offense. Therefore we have to admit that those
who sin against God, "for all have sinned and fall
short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23) will
have to stay forever in the fire as a punishment for
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them. Therefore when this takes place, where is
the mercy of God? And if Allah has mercy on
those sinners and forgives them, and does not
punish them then where is his rightousness? For
this reason he arranged a means of reconciling his
righteousess and his mercy.

61

Part One
God's Purpose in the Crucifixion:
How This Reconciliation was Accomplished
Adam disobeyed his Lord (that is, he sinned)
and was expelled from Eden (Genesis 3). This is
echoed in The Cow, 34, "Then Satan caused them
to slip therefrom and brought them out of that
they were in." He thus deserved eternal death.
Evil desires grew in him, and the tendency to
commit sin took root in his heart. His descendants
also inherited these tendencies and so they
followed in their father's footsteps. The earth
became full of evil, and men's destruction became
inevitable so as to satisfy God's justice, since they
could not find a way to reform, and return to their
original state: the state of purity and holiness
which befits heaven, where only the pure can
enter. Furthermore, God cannot deviate from his
own laws, because his justice demands that the
sinner pay with his life and that justice run its
course. "The soul who sins shall die. The son shall
not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear
the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the right-
eous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of
62

the wicked shall be upon himself" (Ezekiel 18:20).
If the legislator does not enforce his own laws,
then there is no such thing as justice left!
Linguistically, justice is the opposite of injustice
and means fairness, correction, requital. Mercy,
linguistically, signifies tenderness of heart,
graciousness, benevolence and forgiveness. Others
have said it is to forgo punishing one who deserves
it. Since God is merciful, he wanted to show mercy
to man and save him from the fires of punishment
(albeit, without ignoring justice). Therefore he has
ordained the work of Redemption from eternity.
At first it started with blood sacrifices, which are
pivotal to the Mosaic Law. The sons of Adam
offered sacrifices even before the written Law was
sent down. Those coming after them did the same
until the Law was given to Moses, God's spokes-
man, where the subject is given in detail. In it we
see how God, to impress on men the ugliness of
sin and its painful consequences, proceeded to
teach them as children. He divided the animals
into "clean" and "unclean" and taught them the
principle, "And according to the law almost all
things are purged with blood, and without
shedding of blood there is no remission" (Hebrews
63

9:22). Thus he instructed the sinner to offer as a
sacrifice for his sin a clean animal, in whom was no
blemish. He was to slay it and place it on the fire
to remind him that the sinner deserved to be put to
death. However, by means of the substitute
sacrifice he could obtain forgiveness. All these
sacrifices pointed to Christ's Great Sacrifice, since
they could never in themselves redeem one man
because of their inferior value.
When the time came, God sent his Word,
Christ, who took on him human form and became
man like us. He shared many things with us, but
he never committed sin neither was there any
deceit in his mouth. (See a discussion of Christ's
sinlessness in the fifth discourse of this book). This
"Word," that is, Christ, offered himself up on a
cross as a victim and substitute for the souls of
men. In this way Divine justice was satisfied
because God accepted this offering in exchange
for all souls. He also reconciled God's justice with
his mercy, fulfilling the Prophet David's saying,
"Mercy and truth have met together; Righteous-
ness and peace have kissed each other" (Psalm
85:10). All who believe in Christ's death on the
cross obtain this salvation. Also all who will have
this same faith will obtain salvation, on the condi-
64

tion they go on to live according to God's
commands, as recorded in the Torah and Gospel.
Thus, Christ was crucified as a man and not as
God, as some of our Muslim brethren imagine,
raising great objections before they understand the
Christian's real belief in this matter.
I don't think I need to show in detail the place
given in Islam to sacrifices as do other religions.
Namely, that it is a way to obtain forgiveness of
sins and acceptance with God. All Muslims know
that the slaying of sheep in the Al-Adha feast is
not for food, but is regarded as a redemption to
obtain God's bounty and beneficence. Likewise,
the ram which Abraham offered was a substitute
for his son, "And We ransomed him with a mighty
sacrifice" (The Rangers, 107). Thus, every
sacrifice is regarded as a substitute for the offerer
and a means to obtain pardon. Even Muhammad
himself considered the blood of sacrifices a means
to atone for sins and to obtain pardon, as we know
from the following hadith:
He told his daughter Fatima, "Be present, Oh
Fatima at the head of the victim for as soon as the
first drop of his blood falls to the ground your sins
will be forgiven." And on the basis of another
65

hadith attributed to Muhammad, Muslims believe
that on the Day of Reckoning they will mount the
sacrifices which they offered during their lifetime,
and cross the straight and narrow path to paradise.
These sacrifices are not equal to the souls for
whom they were offered; in fact all the animals
offered are not worth one rational being. They are
not adequate to atone for sin, but are only a
symbol of the Greatest Sacrifice of Christ about
whose institution we hear in the Torah, and we
read the account of its fulfillment on the Cross in
the Gospel. This is the Sacrifice which God consi-
dered equal to the souls of all mankind, "For God
so loved the world that he gave his one and only
Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish
but have eternal life" (John 3:16).

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66

Part Two
Only Christ Was Fit For This Task.
Yes, only Christ was fit for this enterprise for
the following reasons:
1.	The Sacrifice had to be pure and without
blemish.
2.	The Sacrifice was to be of such value to equal
the number of souls to be redeemed.
3.	It had to be of the same kind as man.
4.	It had to have the necessary standing before
God to serve as a connecting link' between
God and man.
If one were to search among all mankind one
would not find any who would meet these condi-
tions except Christ. The reason is that all have
sinned, even the prophets, and need someone to
redeem them. No one possesses the necessary
worth in God's sight. No one has the intrinsic
standing, except the Word of God.
67

68

For my soul, O my healer is in misery and decay,
Grant it healing at your hands through the Cross.
O mediator of peace I seek refuge in the Cross,
For me present this plea, to your Father who will heed.
There is
ONE GOD,
and there is
ONB MEDIATOR
between God and men,
THE MAN CHMSTJBSOS.

Part Three
Did Christ Willingly Accept Crucifixion?
If you were to ask the Muslim why he does not
believe that Christ was actually crucified he would
reply: Because he was one of the foremost
prophets and it would have been impossible for
God to deliver his worthy servant to vile Jews to
put him to death on the cross in such a horrible
fashion. The Muslim has forgotten a verse in his
Koran about God permitting something like this to
happen, as we see in Women, 154, "So for their
breaking the compact, and disbelieving in the signs
of God, and slaying the Prophets without right."
In The Cow, 82, "And whensoever there came
to you a Messenger with that your souls had not
desire for, did you become arrogant, and some cry
lies to, and some slay?" Even Muhammad himself
confessed that he died of poisoning by the
treachery of a Jewish woman (as we see in the
history of Almaghazi, and the biographies by
Mohammad Ibn Ishaaq, and the hadiths). In
addition, the Torah, the Psalms and the Gospel
have declared that Christ's crucifixion was volun-
tary, as God had ordained from the beginning.
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Christ himself said plainly that the purpose of his
coming was to complete the work of redemption;
that is, to offer himself up as a sacrifice on the
Cross. When one of his disciples told him, "Never
Lord! This shall never happen to you," Jesus
rebuked him saying, "Get behind me, Satan! You
are an offense to me, for you are not mindful of
the things of God, but the things of men"
(Matthew 16:23). Also when one of his disciples
wanted to defend him from the Jews who came to
arrest him Jesus said to him, "Put your sword back
in its place, for all who draw the sword will die by
the sword. Do you think I cannot call on my
Father, and he will at once put at my disposal
more than twelve legions of angels? But how then
would the Scriptures be fulfilled that say it must
happen in this way?"
Some of our Muslim brethren say, "How can
God punish Christ by crucifixion for the sins of
others, since it says in 2 Kings 14:6: 'Yet He did
not put the sons of the assassins to death, in accor-
dance with what is written in the Book of the Law
of Moses where the Lord commanded: "Fathers
shall not be put to death for their children, nor
children put to death for their fathers; each is to
70

die for his own sins." I would reply that God did
not condemn Christ to death for the sins of
mankind, but rather Christ, out of love for us,
volunteered, offering himself in our place. This is
the ultimate expression of love and deserves
glorification. However, if I volunteer to pay that
debt, what can he say but commend and praise
such action?
When the Jews seized Christ to crucify him he
said, "Have you come out, as against a robber,
with swords and clubs to take me? I sat daily with
you, teaching in the temple, and you did not seize
me. But all this was done that the Scriptures of the
prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples
forsook him and fled" (Matthew 26:55,56). Christ
was not crucified because he had committed an
offense. The Jews could find no fault in either his
character or his actions, but he was crucified to be
our sacrifice, taking our place in judgment and
standing in our stead. Therefore, he was made a
curse for us, not because he deserved it but,
because he willingly agreed to lay down his life in
place of the guilty sinner who deserved the curse.
So you see from the foregoing that God permits
the killing of his prophets for noble purposes and
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that Christ died willingly, out of love for us, to
redeem us from the curse of the law, satisfy divine
justice and grant us salvation and eternal life.
Therefore, apart from Christ Jesus, God does not
forgive the believer, or have mercy on him.
This is the only way which God ordained for the
salvation of believers whereby he demonstrates his
justice and mercy simultaneously. As for Islamic
Law it does not harmonize God's justice and his
mercy and neither in the Koran nor the Traditions
(Hadith) do we find an effective way to deal with
judgment, reckoning and forgiveness. The verses
which our Muslim brethren quote on the subject of
judgment are, "Whether you publish what is in
your hearts or hide it, God shall make reckoning
with you for it. He will forgive whom he will, and
chastise whom he will" (The Cow, 284).
If God settled accounts with men on the basis of
this verse there would be no indication either of
his justice or his mercy. While it is true he can do
as he pleases, yet he would not will what denies his
original attributes and his divine law. Supposing
the judge pardoned your brother's murderer after
his crime was proved, then went on to forgive him.
Would you regard him as being just? Not at all!
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You would regard him as unjust because he
violated the law. This is unthinkable with God for
it does not reflect his decrees. Furthermore, it
contradicts sound thinking.
"The weighing that day is true; he whose scales
are heavy -they are the prosperous, and he whose
scales are light - they have lost their souls" (The
Battlements, 7,8). This verse shows the reckoning
system to be simple, and it is the one used by the
ancient Egyptians and the Magi, whereby God
places a man's good deeds on one side of the scales
and his sins on the other. If the side of good is the
heavier he will be delivered and prosper, but if the
evil deeds tip the scales he will be among the losers
who will spend eternity in hell. This cannot be true
because heaven or paradise, which men aspire to
enter, is a pure spot where only the purified and
those made righteous can enter. Thus he who
commits one sin has transgressed and become
unclean. In that condition it is impossible for him
to enter paradise. I shall give an example to make
the matter clearer.
Suppose a Muslim is dressed in a white robe and
while on his way to prayer a speck of dirt fell on
his robe or person. Wouldn't he be considered
73

unclean? If that was his state wouldn't he have to
return and purify himself to be able to start
prayer? This is the state of man towards God in
respect to purity and impurity. Therefore it is
impossible for the believer to enter paradise
before complete purification and renewal of heart.
For if he were cleansed from sins and forgiven his
transgressions, yet the germ of evil remained
entrenched in his heart, he would remain wicked
and unfit for heaven. Also, if the Muslim believes
he can atone for his sins in the fire, "Not one of
you there is, but he shall go down to it; that for thy
Lord is a thing decreed, determined. Then we
shall deliver those that were godfearing; and the
evildoers We shall leave there, hobbling on their
knees" (Mary, 72,73). Without a man's corrupt
heart and inclinations being changed, he too
would not be fit for heaven nor heaven for him.
Likewise, neither punishing the thief by imprison-
ment nor cutting his hand nor flogging the
adulterer changes the inclination of the first to
theft or the second to adultery. Rather, the
punishment might aggravate them and make them
worse as Joseph, 53 says, "Surely the soul of man
incites to evil." The Christian faith or more
accurately the Holy Bible (the Torah and Gospel),
74

has ordained a way which cannot be objected to
because it is God's provision. By it the believer
can attain purity and forgiveness by means of
Christ's sacrifice and obtain renewal or a change
of heart through the Holy Spirit. In that way the
believer becomes fit to enter paradise and happy
to do so.
"Surely God shall not wrong so much as the
weight of an ant; and if it be a good deed He will
double it" (Women, 44). This verse presumes on
God's favour, because it indicates that he will
double a man's good deeds, and you yourself
know that doubling these is not fair.
"And every man - We have fastened to him his
bird of omen upon his neck; and We shall bring
forth for him, on the Day of Resurrection', as book
he shall find spread wide open" (The Night
Journey, 14,15). This verse shows that for every
man there is a book to be opened at the Resurrec-
tion. He will read it and judge himself. However,
it is not clear what the method of writing this book
is, nor how man will judge himself and what rule
he will follow.
"...surely the good deeds will drive away the
evil  deeds.   That  is  a  remembrance  unto  the
75

mindful" (Hood, 116). This verse shows that one
good deed cancels an evil deed. If the good ones
exceed the evil, the person will be saved; other-
wise perdition is inevitable. Muslim scholars have
said, "No one can complain that God did not
reward him for his good deeds; because the
wicked whose bad deeds overweigh are rewarded
on earth for their good deeds." It is said if the
account is reckoned and every man's deeds are
weighed justly, all creatures will start exacting
their wrongs, that is, giving their adversary his
deserts. Thus every oppressed person will obtain
redress from his oppressor. This is what Muslims
call "disputing and requiting injustices." Accord-
ingly, angels will take from the merits of the
oppressor a portion equal to his injustice and add
them to the merits of the oppressed. If the merits
of anyone outweighs his demerits even by a grain,
God will double them out of mercy, so he would
enter paradise. If one's merits are cancelled and
he is left with the unrequited sins, God will add to
him an equal amount of the burdens of those he
wronged. He will cast him in hell to be punished
for his sins and theirs. All this is not justice.
Don't you see that all these things do not
achieve the required end, namely to purify the
76

heart from the pollution of sin and uproot the
germ of evil desires from it to make it fit for God's
pure presence in a spotless heaven?
There is no doubt that the way God provided
and appointed in the Torah and Gospel for man's
salvation is the ideal way. We have to follow it in
order to receive pardon and heart cleansing and
enter paradise to live there eternally.

77

Part Four
The Crucifixion of Christ in the Koran
The Muslim believes that the crucifixion took
place, but that it was not Christ but another on
whom his likeness fell, as the Koranic saying in
Women, 156 indicates, "Yet they did not slay him,
neither crucified him, only a likeness of that was
shown to them...and they slew him not of a
certainty - no indeed; God raised him up to him."
The statement in the Koran is confused and
ambiguous and no conclusion can be based on it.
To me, it is as though the Koran, not wishing to
deny the crucifixion categorically, stated "I did not
see!"
It is permissible to expound this Koranic verse
in this way, "they slew him not of a certainty,"
meaning, they could not hurt his real person
because the Jews thought that by crucifying Jesus
they would eradicate his memory and make his
name ridiculed among men. The verse shows the
Jews that they failed to do this. For his death
became a means of spreading his name and
glorifying his cause. Further, that the cross did not
extinguish him,  because physical death is not
78

extinction nor perdition. Though Christ died, yet
God raised him up and this death was the prelude
of his raising. To clarify this let me give you an
example. Suppose I insult, curse, and belittle you.
But you are noble-minded and do not recompense
me in kind. Could you not rightly say to me, "You
did not insult or degrade me but raised and
honoured me in people's eyes, because of my
forbearance and degraded yourself by reason of
your vulgarity?" The truth is that the crucifixion
was attributed to the Roman Governor Pilate who
ordered it and not to the Jews!
As for the words, "a likeness...was shown to
them," who does this refer to? It could not be to
Christ since he is the one likened to not the
likeness. If you say it refers to the victim, no
victim has been mentioned. Thus you see that the
verse is vague. If God had intended to rescue
Christ from dying on the cross he would have done
it with a crystal-clear miracle demonstrating to the
Jews their inability to harm his prophet and
messenger. However, the miracle which the
Muslims devise in order to save Christ did not
achieve the desired result, in spite of the deception
involved which ill befits the Lord, as it did not
demonstrate to the Jews God's power and their
79

impotence. Had God regarded crucifixion as
demeaning to his holiness, would it have been
reasonable for him to perform a miracle which
actually shows his disdain? Although he raised up
Christ to himself in order to save himself that
scorn, according to the belief of most Muslims.
We have found verses in the Koran which hint,
if not declare, that Christ actually died. It serves to
clarify the obscure portions of the former verse as
you will see from The House of Imran, 48, "When
God said, 'Jesus I will take thee to Me and will
raise thee to Me, and I will purify thee of those
who believe not.'" Some commentators have said
that the word "mutawaffeeka" (will take thee to
Me) means to put you to sleep. One cannot see at
all the wisdom of putting someone to sleep before
raising them. I wish the learned successors can
enlighten us where the predecessors have failed!
The truth is (will take thee to Me) means death,
and this is according to Ibn Abbas and
Mohammad Ibn Ishaq. They differed regarding
the duration of death. Wahb said that Christ
remained dead for three hours, then was raised.
Mohammad Ibn Ishaq said that he was dead seven
hours, then God raised him. Al-Rabee Ibn Ans
80

said that God caused him to die when he raised
him up to heaven. As for the Imam Al-Baidhawi
he believed that Christ actually died for three
hours. In the language dictionary "it says of the
verb 'tawaffa' "God made him die, that is, he took
his soul, of so and so, that he died, meaning his
soul was taken and he died."
The word 'mutawaffeeka' and the derivatives of
this verb (tawaffa) in this sense occurs 23 times in
the Koran. In all but two cases it means absolute
death. In these two exceptions the context refers
to figurative death during sleep, "It is He who
recalls you by night, and He knows what you work
by day" (Cattle, 60); and in The Companies, 43,
"God takes the souls at the time of their death,
and that which has not died, in its sleep."
Some commentators have said that the 'waw'
(and) in the phrase 'mutawaffeeka' is a play on
words to mystify the reader. In their opinion the
real meaning is that Christ will come again and
die. Oh God! Save us from the evil of deception!
Would it hurt if they considered these words in
their real sense? If the Koran intended what they
desire, it would surely not have couched it in an
ambiguous statement!
81

As you see in Mary, 15, "Peace be upon him,
(refers to John) the day he was born, and the day
he dies, and the day he is raised up alive!" And in
Mary, 34, "Peace be upon me (Jesus) the day I
was born, and the day I die, and the day I am
raised up alive!"
There is no disputing that all Muslims believe
that (Yahya) John was born and died according to
the first verse. Then why not believe the same of
I'sa the Christ according to the second verse?
Because the order of the two verses is the same
and the words are practically the same. The
context in the second can only mean one thing.
As we find in Mary, 32, "...and He has enjoined
me to pray, and to give the alms, so long as I live."
Legally, alms (Zakat) is a certain sum of money
given by the Muslim, in the way of God to the
non-Hashimite Muslim, not being his slave, etc.
According to authorities wherever 'Zakat' is found
in the Koran it means money except its saying,
"and a tenderness from Us, and purity," (Mary,
14) where purity is intended.
Now if Christ went up to heaven without dying
as most of our Muslim brethren believe, it was his
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duty to pay alms according to the commandment.
Are there, I wonder, poor Muslims in heaven to
whom his alms would be given? If, on the other
hand, Christ is still alive on earth, where is he and
who are the recipients of his alms (Zakat)?
When we learn that he is not on earth and that
he is not giving alms, we know of a certainty that
he died and therefore his obligation to pay alms
has been removed!
As we read in The Table, 117, "I was a witness
over them, while I remained among them; but
when you let me die (fall asleep or take me to you)
you were yourself the watcher over them!" Of this
Al-Razi and Al-Jalalayn said: "This verse will be
said by Christ I'sa to God most likely on the day of
reckoning." And while Al-Razi explained the
words "to let me die" by ascension, he had
forgotten that he had previously explained it with
"making him fall asleep" which says in Al-Imran
55 "Oh I'sa, truly I let you fall asleep and will lift
you up to me." Therefore if we go with Razi and
other translators, agreeing that "falling asleep"
means only "lifting up," these words will come
into existence on the last day of judgement and
mean   that   Christ   never   will   die.   This   is
83

contradicting the text of the Koran that "All that
dwells upon the earth is perishing, yet still abides
the Face of thy Lord, majestic, splendid" (The
All-Merciful, 26,27) "All things perish, except His
Face" (The Story,
This also contradicts the belief of many Muslim
scholars who believe that Christ in fact died,
contrary to those among them who believe that
Christ has to die in this world before the Day of
Resurrection. What harm would it do if they
believed that 'take me to Thyself (mutawaffeeka)
here does mean death and that this saying
occurred before the Koran as the introduction to
the verse indicates, "when he said" which indicates
past tense and not future. In that case this Koranic
text falls into line with the Torah and the Gospel
and the belief of the Christians about the
Crucifixion and Death of Christ.
Oh God, I beseech you reveal the Truth to
those who seek it and grant Light to those who
need it, you are the best to be invoked, Oh most
Bountiful of Givers.
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Part Five
The Crucifixion in History
The event of the Cross is not of man's invention.
Otherwise Christians would not have been content
to attribute to their leader, prophet and Saviour,
yea their Lord this great ignominy. The Law of
Moses says, "...because anyone who is hung on a
tree is under God's curse" (Deuteronomy 21:23).
The Gospel says, "Christ has redeemed us from
the curse of the law, having become a curse for us,
(for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who hangs
on a tree'" (Galatians 3:13). Not only have Christ-
ians confessed the fact of the Crucifixion but they
have proudly regarded it the source of their
bounties and heavenly blessings and the fountain
of all Salvation; for themselves as well as for all
who believe in the Crucified Christ and the
redemption he accomplished by his memorable
death. It seems to me, in discussions with my
Muslim brothers, that the subject of Christ's
crucifixion is a historical event in some respects.
Therefore I have chosen now to discuss it histori-
cally.
The prophets of old, David, Isaiah, Daniel and
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others prophesied on every aspect of the life of
Christ, especially his death and resurrection,
starting more than 1050 years before it happened.
In fact some had fixed the place of the crucifixion
and the time, citing signs, some of which were
natural such as the eclipse of the sun and earth-
quake. Others were historical such as the final
cessation of the Sacrifice, because it had pointed
to Christ's great sacrifice; also of the end of the
monarchy among the Jews.
When Jesus came, he announced to the Jews
plainly that what was written in their Law
concerning his death had to come to pass and that
he had to be crucified to atone for the sins of
mankind. The apostles after him gloried in this
Crucifixion, leading one of them to say, "For I
determined not to know anything among you
except Jesus Christ and him crucified" (1 Corin-
thians 2:2). A few days after the crucifixion one of
them stood up before a great crowd of Jews and
declared, "You have taken by lawless hands and
crucified him" (Acts 2:23). The result of his
speech was that 3000 of those present believed in
the Crucified One.
The crucifixion became the theme of the disci-
86

pies and of apostolic preaching, the pivot of all
their sermons, and the only way to obtain forgive-
ness of sins. They used to say, "God forbid that I
should boast, except in the Cross of our Lord and
Saviour Jesus Christ," in spite of being followers
of the Crucified. The Christian Church, in every
century since has regarded the crucifixion of Christ
as the original disciples did. The reason is that
nothing in the Torah and Gospel is clearer than
this fact.
The famous Jewish historian Josephus
mentioned the crucifixion of Christ, saying,
"Pilate sentenced Christ to be crucified to satisfy
the clamour of the chief priests among us, and
those who loved Christ at first did not leave him
but continue with us to this day. They are called
Christians after him." Even Jews today admit that
Christ was crucified and the Koran itself witnesses
that the Jews admit that they killed Christ, as you
can see in Women, 156, "...and for their saying,
We slew the Messiah Jesus son of Mary, the
Messenger of God." The Rabbi Yohanan Bin
Zakka, disciple of the famous Hillel wrote a book
in Hebrew a long time ago, mentioning the Jews
sentencing  Christ to be  crucified,  because he
87

claimed to be God's Son and that they hanged him
on a tree outside Jerusalem, in accordance with
the order of the king and the Jewish rulers.
The Talmud incidentally mentions the
crucifixion of Jesus Christ, and the pagan historian
Tacitus mentioned in chapter 15 of his work,
written nearly 40 years after Christ, that he was
killed by order of Pontius Pilate, the local
governor during the reign of Tiberius.
This historian wrote to people who lived at the
time of Christ and in all likelihood some had been
eye witnesses at his death. He had access to
Roman records, where the official chronicles of
the various governors were kept. Among them
were the chronicles of the governors of Palestine,
where Christ was crucified. Consequently this
author's writings were held in high esteem since
they related to official events and public informa-
tion.
The important fact is that Pilate sent a report to
Rome about the crucifixion and death of Christ
which has been preserved among the records of
Rome as was customary with civilized empires of
the day. From this legal inscription Tacitus was

able to obtain his information in addition to other
public sources. Reference to this inscription was
made by the philosopher Flavius Justinus in
writing to the Emperor Antonius Pius in the year
139 A.D. Also by the scholar Tertullian, writing
from Carthage in the year 199 A.D.
Thus you see that the incident of the crucifixion
of Christ was a thing predetermined and a notable
event known among pagans, Jews and Christians;
not only among the common people but also
among the elite for 600 years. Until the Koran
came and denied it, not openly, but by means of
ambiguous statements and various texts which
have caused much uncertainty for Muslims,
causing some to deny it emphatically and others to
believe it, as you noted from the previous section.
Now thoughtful reader, assume that 50 honest
men witnessed clearly that Zaid killed Amr, and
that the eyewitnesses knew perfectly both the
killer and victim. Then assume that the killer
confessed publicly to his ugly deed. For about 600
years it is the general belief and an undisputed fact
that Zaid killed Amr. But then, after this long
period a contradictory witness presented himself
before the judge, obviously not an eye witness.
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Let us assume that he was an impartial witness and
said, "I testify that the killing did occur but that
the one killed was not Amr but Bakr." How do
you think the judge would decide the case? Would
he confirm that Amr had been killed or would he
judge that the one killed was Bakr, basing his
decision on this latest isolated testimony? There is
no doubt that a fair-minded judge would confirm
the decision that it was Amr who was killed on the
basis of numerous witnesses and the confession of
the killer. Anyone who judges otherwise would
demonstrate his ignorance of civil and canonical
laws and only confirms to others that he is totally
devoid of justice!
I do not have to warn you that this example
concerns the case of Christ's crucifixion and
applies to it in every way.
What will you say after this, oh Muslim brother,
you who are looking for the truth? I counsel you to
leave your credal bias and judge in this matter as a
free man, according to justice and your intellectual
honesty. You will find that the case is simple, and
does not require all this troublesome pursuit. You
will then know that Christ (I'sa) was killed and
crucified to redeem the world. But he arose from
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the grave and ascended up to heaven victorious.
Henceforth, death will not have dominion over
him.
CHRIST CAN SAVE
COMPLETELY
those who come
to God through him,
because he always lives
to intercede for them.
Hebrews 7:25
91

FIFTH DISCOURSE
Christ's Sinlessness, Divinity and Sonship
According to what God has revealed in his
Precious Book, we Christians believe that Jesus
Christ is infallible since he is not in the genetic line
of corrupt human nature, as the inspired books
have confirmed. We have in the Koran and the
Hadith a basis for the inspiration of the Holy
Bible.
We also believe Christ to be God and man at the
same time in the light of the divine inspiration in
the Gospel. As an expression of this truth and by
way of illustration we say: The one God appeared
in the man Jesus Christ and indwelt him with the
fullness of his deity, a limitless indwelling, "For in
him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily"
(Colossians 2:9). "God, who at various times and
in different ways spoke in time past to the fathers
by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us
by his Son, whom he has appointed heir of all
things, through whom also he made the worlds;
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who being the brightness of his glory and the
express image of his person, and upholding all
things by the word of his power, when he had by
himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand
of the Majesty on high," (Hebrews 1:1-3). There-
fore it is correct to say that Christ is God and man
at the same time. For the man is not a God but
God is God, and man is man. He is not two gods
as the Muslims imagine Christ to be. Christ, by his
divine power performed miracles and superhuman
acts, unlike the prophets - for they performed the
miracles by the power of God and not by their own
strength. As man he ate and drank and slept like
any other human. He would at times speak of
himself as God and sometimes as man. As we have
said, this was only because he was both God and
man. Our Muslim brethren and some Christians
have had doubts regarding the divinity of Christ,
since they have seen many passages in the Book
which show him to be man. However, if they
review the numerous texts which point to his
divinity and do it meticulously and with care, the
clouds of doubt which obscure their vision would
disappear. Jesus said to him, "It is as you said.
Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see
the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the
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Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven"
(Matthew 26:64). Jesus said to him, "Have I been
with you so long, and yet you have not known me,
Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father;
so how can you say, 'Show us the Father?'" (John
14:9).
Moreover, Christ as man lived for a while on
earth, was crucified, died and rose again, but the
crucifixion and death fell on his physical nature.
As for Christ's divinity, it is very clear in the
Torah and Gospel; from the prophecies, the words
of Christ himself and in the teachings of the
apostles. Also from the following verse from the
House of Imran, 40, "Mary, God gives thee good
tidings of a Word from Him whose name is
Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; high honoured shall
he be in this world and the next, near stationed to
God." If the expositors claim that what is meant
by 'Word' is the verb 'be' (kun) or speech in other
texts there is no way they can claim this meaning
in this instance. The words, "a Word from him
whose name is Messiah" shows that the Word here
is a person and not an utterance or command as
will be clear upon the slightest reflection. It is
almost like saying, "A being from him." Notice
94

that the pronoun in the Arabic 'Ismihi' (whose
name) is masculine referring to 'Kalima' (Word)
which in Arabic is feminine phonetically but
masculine in meaning; otherwise, linguistically it
would not be permissible.
Muslim scholars have stated that all God's
creatures can be termed God's words since they
were created by a word. I would say, this is false
for otherwise one can call a cause effect, and a
book a pen because the pen is the means or the
tool which wrote the book but not the book itself.
If God created I'sa, the Christ, by a word of
command (kun, in Arabic) as they allege, he could
not be called (kalima) word, because he is not the
word but the effect of the word (the command). If
I write a book with my mind, that book is not
called a mind (or my mind) but the object of the
mind. Otherwise, truth will be mixed with error,
and essentials will be confused with accidentals.
What is clear from other verses is that Christ is
Spirit of God. You know that whatever is of God
is God. Therefore the Word of God is God
eternal, and Spirit of God is God, eternal,
everlasting. This exactly corresponds with what we
have at the beginning of John's Gospel:
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"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word
was with God, and the Word was God. He was in
the beginning with God. All things were made
through him, and without him nothing was made
that was made. In him was life and the life was the
light of men. And the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness did not comprehend it" (John
1:1-5).
As to Christ being the Son of God, that is
possible and not an infidelity. The Hadith,
speaking on God's behalf says, "The poor are my
family." This is not impossible, as shown in the
saying in The Companies, 6, "Had God desired to
take to Him a son, He would have chosen
whatever He willed of that He has created." No
wonder then that the Book has announced that
Christ is the Son of God, not by way of reproduc-
tion as some Muslims think because 'Son' is an
expression not exclusive to the male child by
procreation but is also used figuratively, as in,
"sons of the word," or "son of the sea," or "son of
the desert" and so on. We also use the expression
"so and so is the son (or child) of so and so" by
way of adoption, metaphorically or analogically.
God has called the believers his children. However
he declared that Christ is "his only begotten Son."
96

In other words the latter is a different sonship
from the former.
We do not comprehend this .* sönship fully
because it is beyond human comprehension. And
as Christ was called Son of God so as to elevate
him above men for his deity, he was called 'Son of
Man' to indicate his humanity. This is what is
intended in Daniel's prophecy chapter 7:13,14,
which points to Christ being God and man in one.
And without controversy great is
the mystery of godliness: God was
manifested in the flesh, justified in
the Spirit, seen by angels, preached
among the Gentiles, believed on in
the world, received up in glory.
(1 Timothy 3:16)
That which was from the begin-
ning, which we have heard, which we
have seen with our eyes, which we
have looked upon, and our hands
have handled - concerning the Word
of Life.	(1 John 1:1)
97

The sins of the prophets are mentioned in the
Torah, the Psalms and the Gospel one by one (and
the Koran supports their evidence). The corrup-
tion of the whole human race is also mentioned as
you have seen. However, none of these books
mentions any sin of Jesus Christ. On the contrary,
they all testify to his holiness and purity beyond
any other human, and his infallibility with respect
to sin. He stands out unique among men in this
regard, as you will see from the coming discussion
of the excellence of Christ.
No prophet or apostle, however great, has
dared to claim infallibility for himself, because
sinlessness in human creatures is impossible. Only
God possesses infallibility and perfection. As to
Christ who excelled all others by virtue of his joint
divinity and humanity; he had such utter confi-
dence in his perfection and purity that he could
boldly ask, "Which of you convicts me of sin? And
if I tell you the truth, why do you not believe me?"
(John 8:46). "I will no longer talk much with you,
for the ruler of the world is coming, and he has
nothing in me" (John 14:30). Numerous other
testimonials in the Book testify to Christ's infalli-
bility. Even his foes could not find any fault in his
behaviour.
98

When the governor Pilate examined the charges
of the Jews, he declared that he could not find any
fault in Christ which deserved death (John 18:38
and 19:4,6). Pilate's wife also sent a message
during the trial advising her husband, "Have
nothing to do with that just man, for I have
suffered many things today in a dream because of
him" (Matthew 27:19). After that Pilate washed
his hands, saying, "I am innocent of the blood of
this just person. You see to it!" (Matthew 27:24).
So the Jews said, "Let his blood be on us and on
our children!" It was then that Christ was
delivered to be crucified. Christ's whole life and
walk speaks eloquently of his absolute purity,
integrity and infallibility, in contrast with the
conduct of the rest of humanity, including the
prophets and apostles, lives which are full of
faults, inconsistencies, injustice and corruption of
heart.
This purity of Christ and his sinlessness were
essential and well-deserved so that he would be fit
to offer himself an atonement and a pure and
unblemished sacrifice for the souls of sinful
humanity.
99

SIXTH DISCOURSE
The Superiority of Christ
in the Koran Over Others
Prophets and Apostles have been given
different titles and participated in many deeds, but
Christ excelled them all. Let us now mention what
the Koran has to say on this subject.
1. That he was the Word of God and his Spirit
as we find in Women, 169, "The Messiah, Jesus
son of Mary was only the Messenger of God, and
His Word that he committed to Mary, and a Spirit
from Him." In House of Imran, 40, "Mary, God
gives thee good tidings of a Word from Him whose
name is Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; high
honoured shall he be in this world and the next,
near stationed to God."
Tell me my friend, of whom, whether prophets
or men, did the Koran state they were: God's
Word or Spirit?
God has called some people Apostles, some
prophets, some "warners," some Preachers. But
all these names are less than "Word of God" and
100

"Spirit of God" which Jesus Christ was called. He
is thus undoubtedly greater than all, particularly as
the spirit is greater than the apostle because
"Spirit of God" means God himself whereas "His
apostle" is another individual.
Commentators such as Al-Razi, Al-Jalalayn and
others have said that Christ was called the "Word
of God" because he was called into being by a
word without a father; therefore he is referred to
as the Word. However, we would ask them, "If
that is so, why was not Adam, who was created by
a word of command, also called Word of God and
of his Spirit?"
Does not this designation require the learned
Muslim to look into the words "word" and "spirit"
in the foregoing texts, which suggest, if not
declare, Christ's pre-eminence and divinity?
2. He creates, as we find in The House of
Imran, 43: "I will create for you out of clay as the
likeness of a bird; then I will breathe into it, and it
will be a bird, by the leave of God."
God has permitted his creatures to share with
him in several attributes such as generosity,
justice, mercy, and charity. He also bestowed on
101

his prophets the power to perform supernatural
miracles and to foretell future events before they
happened. This was for man's benefit and to
authenticate their heavenly message. But he has
left for himself some things which he will not share
with anyone.
First, omnipresence, being present in every
place (an imperceptible presence without limit), in
order to be in total control and hear the call of
every living soul worldwide, even simultaneously.
But the creature cannot be present in every place
at the same time. In summary, no person or king
can be omnipresent at the same time, otherwise he
would become God.
Second, omnipotence is an original not derived
power. The prophets have performed amazing
deeds and compelling miracles which no human
can equal, but these were by God's enabling
power and not intrinsic. For God alone is the
cause of all causes and the fountain of all power. If
anyone should acquire intrinsic power he would
become like God and that is obviously absurd.
Third, creating and bringing a soul into being.
This word signifies making or bringing into being
102

something out of nothing and the dictionary
definition is "to bring into being or fashioning
something like nothing before."
God Almighty has endowed prophets and
apostles with power to raise the dead, heal the
dumb, cure a variety of diseases and foretell
events (before they happen). But he did not
permit anyone to create or give the spirit except
Jesus Christ. Why? Only because Christ is greater
than the prophets and apostles and occupies a
different position. Of whom was it said in the
Koran that he created, even by his Lord's permis-
sion? This was not said of anyone, as anybody who
is familiar with the Koran will confirm.
From the preceeding verse you will see that the
Koran asserts that Christ used to create birds in
the same way that God created Adam, since he
fashioned man from the soil of the ground and
breathed on him the breath of life, and he became
a living soul.
3. His miraculous birth as we read in Women,
169, "The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only
the Messenger of God, and His Word that He
committed to Mary, and a Spirit from Him."
103

Meaning that Christ was born without a father by
the Holy Spirit in a supernatural manner. It is
true, Adam had no father, but that was of neces-
sity, since there were no human beings before
him. As for Christ's birth it was not of necessity
but purposed of God, a miracle to the world:
"...and appointed her and her son to be a sign
unto all beings" (The Prophets, 91). "...and that
We may appoint him a sign unto men and a mercy
from Us" (Mary, 21).
Does not Christ's unusual birth capture the
attention of the honest Muslim and bring him to a
belief that Christ (I'sa) had no equal among men,
and that he occupies the highest station?
4. Eminence in this world and the next as we
find in House of Imran, 40, "Mary, God gives thee
good tidings of a Word from him whose name is
Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; high honoured shall
he be in this world and the next, near stationed to
God."
Al-Kashaf has said, "Eminence in this world
means prophecy and precedence over men and in
the next intercession and exaltation of position in
paradise." Al-Razi and Jalal Ed Din Al-Sayouti
has expounded this verse in exactly the same way.
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Regarding the eminence of Moses in The
Confederates, 69, "...and he was high honoured
with God." Al-Razi has expounded it as being
knowledge. He has also said, in explaining the
phrase 'high honoured with God' as follows: "Not
every eminent one is high-honoured because the
people of Paradise are in ranks and degrees, there-
fore did God say, 'and you shall be three bands,'
going on to, '...the outstrippers those are brought
nigh the Throne'" (The Terror, 7,10,11).
From a study of the Koran one learns that no
one has been described as being eminent in this
world and the next other than Christ (I'sa), and
none of the prophets and apostles enjoyed this
distinction except him. Search and see and after-
wards please tell me why. Enquire after the
reason, you will be amazed!
5.	The absence of any mention of sin laid to his
account (review the Fifth Discourse).
6.	He raised him to heaven as we find in House
of Imran, 48: "When God said, 'Jesus, I will take
thee to Me and will raise thee to Me, and I will
purify thee of those who believe not.'"
Earlier  we   discussed  the   question  of  what
105

"taking thee to me" (mutawaffeeks) means, so
there is no need to repeat it, but we desire to
clarify the meaning of "raise." Al-Razi has said,
"what is intended by raise, is to raise to the level
of God's honour; he has used the form "to Me" for
purposes of exaltation and magnification. By using
purify thee, he means, removing you from among
the infidels. As he has exalted him by the term
"raise" he has indicated the sense of deliverance
by the word "purify." All this points to a desire to
exaggerate in honouring him and magnifying his
position with God Almighty.
In explaining the phrase "taking thee to Me,"
Al-Kashaf said, "taking thee to my heaven and the
place of my angels." Raising Christ in the Koran
signifies exaltation (of the high honoured). The
Gospel informs us of the reason for the exaltation
of Christ, saying:
Who being in the form of God, did
not consider it robbery to be equal
with God, but made himself of no
reputation, taking the form of a
servant, and coming in the likeness
of men. And being found in appear-
ance as a man, he humbled himself
106

and became obedient to the point of
death, even the death of the cross.
Therefore God also has highly
exalted him and given him the name
which is above every name, that at
the name of Jesus every knee should
bow, of those in heaven, and of those
on earth, and of those under the
earth, and that every tongue should
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to
the glory of God the Father.
(Philippians 2:6-11)
Does not this subject call upon us to enquire
into the reason? If you, the esteemed reader, want
the reason from me I shall answer you with a verse
from the Gospel which has expressed this in the
clearest terms:
"For the word of God is living and
powerful, and sharper than any two-
edged sword, piercing even to the
division of soul and spirit, and of
joints and marrow, and is a discerner
of the thoughts and intents of the
heart".	(Hebrews 4:12)
107

SEVENTH DISCOURSE
Trinity in Unity
For the reader to be well-informed about the
Christian doctrine of the Unity of God and the
Trinity, I shall now present in detail the first
doctrine of the Christian Faith.
"There is no god but God the One; Living,
True, Eternal, Everlasting, without body, parts or
emotions. Whose might and wisdom and goodness
know no limits, Creator of all things visible and
invisible. In this One God are three Persons of the
same substance, the same might and the same
eternal existence, they are The Father, The Son
and the Holy Spirit."
This creed is well supported by verses in the
Torah and Gospel. Therefore it is not an invention
of the Christians. However, whether it was first
realized, or arrived at by logical discussion first,
will be answered from what follows.
It is not fully understood because it is beyond
the perception of the sons of Adam. However, it is
108

a reality and an accepted fact even though the
majority of Muslim enquirers have failed to
comprehend it, in accordance with the Islamic
doctrine which says, "Investigation regarding the
essence of God is infidelity" (Hadith).
I shall not, at present, attempt to explain a
doctrine which the ancients failed to explain, and
whose essence the moderns cannot grasp, because
it is an enquiry into the nature of God, the Creator
of all beings. Since scholars cannot comprehend
the secret of any of these beings, how then can
they comprehend the nature of the First Cause,
the Creator? I want to demonstrate firstly that we
have to accept this concept by faith, with our
heart, even though our minds do not comprehend
it. The reason is that we have it given in detail in
God's inspired Book which is for mankind's
guidance; I mean by it the Torah and Gospel.
Secondly, I would like to point out to my Muslim
brethren that they themselves have many basic
fundamental beliefs which are not logical. Of these
and foremost among them is the belief in God.
Why then do they require us to prove what they
themselves cannot prove?
First of all, all believers in God whether Jews,
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Christians or Muslims know nothing about God
except what he has revealed about himself.
Anything beyond that is the imagination or specu-
lation of scholars. It cannot be relied on by the
God-fearing nor used to convince the skeptics.
Our own perceptions are incapable of
comprehending their creator. If we could, he
would cease to be God. Only God can understand
God. Although God is the ultimate being yet,
unlike other beings he fills the heavens and the
worlds, without having length, breadth, height,
depth, or origin. Because he is boundless and
incomprehensible, he has soared way above
analogy and representation. Whatever your mind
can conceive, God is something other. Therefore
we should not overreach ourselves in trying to
fathom what our minds are incapable of fathom-
ing. Let us instead accept what God has revealed
to us of himself without probing or debate. That is
closer to godliness.
The important thing is to find out: Does the
Book (the Torah and Gospel) come from God or
not? If we answer in the affirmative (and thank
God it is so), we have to believe all that we read in
it whether it agrees or disagrees with our own
110

opinion. For we are not permitted to believe some
of the Book which we understand and disbelieve
other parts due to lack of understanding. In the
Koran such folk are blamed as we see from The
Cow, 79, "What, do you believe in part of the
Book, and disbelieve in part? What shall be the
recompense of those of you who do that, but
degradation in the present life, and on the Day of
Resurrection to be returned unto the most terrible
of chastisement?"
Quite often our Muslim brethren attack the
Torah and Gospel for mentioning that God spoke,
heard, wrote with his finger, was sad, sorry and
other human-like expressions.
In order to remove any doubts in their hearts we
would remind them that the Koran too uses
similar statements. Here are some of them:
"Hast thou received the story of Moses? When
he saw a fire, and said to his family, 'Tarry you
here; I observe a fire. Perhaps I shall bring you a
brand from it, or I shall find at the fire guidance.'
When he came to it, a voice cried,' Moses, I am
thy Lord; put off thy shoes'" (Taha, 8-12).
"God is the Light of the heavens and the earth;
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the likeness of His Light is as a niche wherein is a
lamp (the lamp in a glass, the glass as it were a
glittering star)..." (Light, 35).
"God's hand is over their hands" (Victory, 10).
"He said, (Abraham) I am going to my Lord"
(Rangers, 97).
"Whoso emigrates in the way of God..."
(Women, 101).
"...and for their saying, 'We slew the Messiah,
Jesus son of Mary, the Messenger of God...'"
(Women 156).
"...and unto God all matters are returned"
(The Cow, 206).
"...then sat Himself upon the Throne"
(The Battlements, 52).
"...then He lifted Himself to heaven..."
(The Cow, 27).
"When God said, Jesus I will take thee to Me
and will raise thee to Me, and I will purify thee of
those who believe not" (The House of Imran, 48).
"All that dwells upon the earth is perishing, yet
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still abides the Face of thy Lord, majestic, splen-
did" (The All-Merciful, 27).
"All things perish, except His Face"
(The Story, 88).
In the Koran we have sayings which attribute to
God love, anger and pleasure which are emotional
reactions; also regret and forgetfulness: "There-
fore today We forget them..."
(The Battlements, 49).
If you accept the foregoing verses at face value
you would have to admit that God was
represented by fire or was inside it. But if you say
he wasn't fire nor was he in it but it was in order
to direct Moses to something, I would reply that
the end of the verse, "put off thy shoes; thou art in
the Holy Valley, Towa," contradicts you and
proves me right. If you admit God is light and that
this light is, "as a niche, wherein is a lamp," etc.,
this is what is known as 'yes and no' (hulul and
hasr) - a dilemma. Then you are bound to admit
that God has a place and a face, and so on. And
this, no Muslim would accept.
Secondly, you say, my Muslim brother, that you
do not believe the doctrine of the Trinity (i.e. that
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God is one in three Persons), because you are
unable to understand it and no one can prove it to
you. What you forget is that you as a Muslim
believe many things in common with the Jew and
the Christian. However, if disbelievers in inspira-
tion ask you to prove one of these beliefs you and
the ablest scholars could not do so nor respond
with an answer supported by proof.
Every believer in God believes that he has
created the heavens and all that is in them of suns
and moons and planets and stars. He fashioned
the world and all that is therein of plant and
animal life in six days and created living rational
man with a word from his mouth. Now every
believer believes that the noble prophets and the
good apostles performed miracles such as raising
the dead, healing the dumb and paralytic, and so
on. Every believer believes in the Resurrection,
namely that every being from Adam to the last
person on earth will be resurrected, those who
have died natural deaths as well as those whom the
fish have eaten. Also those eaten by beasts of the
field shall have their spirits return to their bodies
which have decomposed into various forms of
earth, plant, animal and matter; and this for the
purpose of reckoning and judgment.
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Supposing an infidel challenged you regarding
these truths and denied them. Would you be able
to defend your beliefs by logical reasoning, sound
proof and intellectual arguments without the
inspired books? You know better than I do that
you would not be able to furnish proofs estab-
lishing the foregoing beliefs.
You believe in God and trust him. But if I ask
you: what is God, and where is he? You would fail
to give a convincing answer. You also know you
have a spirit and believe in that. However, you are
ignorant of what the spirit is or of where it exists.
Furthermore, you know and believe you have a
mind and intellectual capacities but you do not
understand their nature. You do not even under-
stand much of intangible things. Learned men
have stated that we do not understand the essence
of material things, but only know their properties
and characteristics. How much more can this be
said of intangible things!
I know and you know and the Jews and Christ-
ians and Muslims, all know that we and they
believe statements about creation, miracles, the
resurrection, the judgment and immortality of the
soul. We also believe in God, not because we are
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capable of proving these doctrines but because
they are mentioned in books we regard as sent
down from God and infallible. Thus the Jew
believes in obedience to his Book, the Torah, the
Christian on the authority of the Torah and
Gospel, and the Muslim in submission to the
Koran.
If it is valid to deny the Trinity because we have
no way to prove it, we must deny all other
doctrines, in fact denying all revelations which we
cannot prove; such as God's self-existence and
eternal nature, his being the first cause of every-
thing, omnipresent and omniscient, knowing all
that has happened from eternity to eternity at
every moment in time, and that his knowledge
does not allow any additions or omissions.
God is one in essence, three in person. Since he
is unique in the universe in his nature and attri-
butes it is no wonder that he is superior to all else
in the mode of his being, even as he excels in his
supreme attributes. It is said that one essence
having three hypostases is impossible. We would
say this is an unsupported claim and that our finite
minds have not created a measure of what is
possible and what is not beyond its limits of
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comprehension. The persons of the Trinity are in
essence one, not in generic or qualitative essence.
Therefore plurality in trinity does not affect the
essence, and does not involve essential dichotomy
since God's essence is not material but spiritual.
Spirit does not, under any circumstances, permit
division. Thus the Father, the Son and the Holy
Spirit are in respect to their hypostasis of the same
essence. Each of them enjoys the essence of one
deity without division or separation. In our
language there is no equivalent to the meaning of
hypostasis in order to be able to describe the Holy
Trinity more easily.
After what I have said, do you still insist that the
Christian's belief in the Trinity belies ignorance?
Do you insist, after all these examples that you do
not accept the Trinity, because you do not find an
intellectual proof for it? Don't you know that to
every matter there is proof of a certain kind? For
instance, in the historic realm, you cannot prove
Alexander of Macedon and all his campaigns in
Egypt, Syria, Persia, India and others by means of
a chemical, geometrical or a logical proof? No,
because these events pertain to history and
nothing else! Or can you demonstrate to me that
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the whole is greater than its part by chemical
means? If this principle is true, we conclude that
everything has a demonstration of its own kind;
thus religious things are demonstrated from
revealed (or inspired) books, mathematical
problems by mathematical proofs such as in arith-
metic, algebra and geometry. Astronomical
matters from the science of astronomy, and so on
and so forth. Therefore, my Muslim brother, do
not try to prove religious doctrines by means of
scientific proofs, lest you go far astray. And why
do you disagree with me on the question of
Trinity? It may be that we are basically in agree-
ment. For you say: God and his Word and his
Spirit, that makes three. And I say: The Father,
the Son and the Holy Spirit. "So believe in God
and His Messengers, and say not, 'Three,'
Refrain; better is it for you. God is only One God.
Glory be to Him" (Women, 169). We believe that
God has a Word and Spirit and he is one with his
Word and Spirit. Everything which is in God is
God according to you. Therefore God's Word is
God having all his attributes such as being and
infinity and much else. Also God's Spirit is God,
and is partner with him in being from eternity to
eternity.
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In closing I would beseech God, who is one in
substance and triune in number to grant you his
Holy Spirit and convince you in your heart of the
truth of this doctrine. In this way, you will believe
in it even as you have believed that he is able to do
all things and is worthy of your response.

119

EIGHTH DISCOURSE
The Paraclete and Muhammad
Our Muslim brethren claim that the name of
their prophet Muhammad is mentioned in the
Gospel, based on the words in the Koran in The
Ranks, 6, "And when Jesus Son of Mary said,
'Children of Israel, I am indeed the Messenger of
God to you, confirming the Torah that is before
me, and giving good tidings of a Messenger who
shall come after me, whose name shall be
Ahmad.'"
It was said that the meaning of the Greek Parac-
lete in the Gospel is the same as Ahmad, the
praised one, and that Ahmad and Muhammad are
the same. Some allege that the Gospel has been
altered because this announcement is no longer in
it, even though it is still recorded there as it was in
Muhammad's day in the Greek.
However, what the Koran understood by the
intended word was misconstrued because the word
in the Greek is this: HAPAKAHTOE not
HEIPIKAHOTE.
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In the Latin spelling thus, PARACLETOS and
not PERICLUTOS is its correct form. The first
means the comforter while the second is the
famous or praised one.
This verse is still in the Gospel, proving that it
has not undergone change. Let us now return to
study the verses containing the word Paraclete in
order to understand its meaning in the Koran, and
see if it is right to attribute it to Muhammad as our
Muslim brethren claim.
1.	And I will pray the Father, and
he will give you another Helper, that
he may abide with you forever, even
the Spirit of truth, whom the world
cannot receive, because it neither
sees him nor knows him; but you
know him, for he dwells with you
and will be in you.    (John 14:16,17)
2.	But when the Helper comes,
whom I shall send to you from the
Father,   the   Spirit   of  truth   who
proceeds from the Father, he will
testify of me...	(John 15:26)
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122

3.	Nevertheless   I   tell   you   the
truth. It is to your advantage that I
go away; for if I do not go away, the
Helper will not come to you; but if I
depart, I will send him to you. And
when he has come, he will convict
the world of sin, and of righteous-
ness, and of judgment...
(John 16:7,8)
4.	And being assembled together
with them, he commanded them not
to depart from Jerusalem, but to
wait for the promise of the Father,
"which," he said, "you have heard
from me; for John truly baptized
with water, but you shall be baptized
with the Holy Spirit not many days
from now."	(Acts 1:4,5)
5.	Now when the Day of Pente-
cost had fully come, they were all
with one accord in one place. And
suddenly there came a sound from
heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind,
and it filled the whole house where
they    were    sitting.    Then    there
4.	
appeared to them divided tongues,
as of fire, and one sat upon each of
them. And they were all filled with
the Holy Spirit and began to speak
with other tongues, as the Spirit gave
them utterance.	(Acts 2:1-4)
It is clear that Christ was the Disciples' teacher
while he was among them. He was a guide and a
comforter to them, defending them, so that they
became attached to him. With his foreknowledge
he knew that his departure from them through
death would break their hearts. He was convinced
that they were in need of heavenly help to
strengthen, guide and comfort them after his
departure. For this reason he promised- to send
them the Holy Spirit to be their Comforter, as you
have seen from the previous verses.
After close examination of these texts it
becomes clear to us that the Person who was
promised could not possibly be Muhammad the
Prophet of Islam for reasons which we see in the
same verses.
First, the one promised was not corporeal
(Spirit of Truth), therefore the world could not
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receive him because they could not see him. This
description does not fit Muhammad because he
had a body and the world saw him, both believers
and infidels.
Second, the Promised One came to stay with the
disciples forever. This too cannot be said of
Muhammad because he did not come at the time
of the disciples and did not remain in the world
forever.
Third, the Promised One was at that time with
the disciples, "because he is with you." This also
cannot apply to Muhammad because he was not
with the disciples.
Fourth, Christ instructed the disciples "not to
leave Jerusalem but wait..." for that Comforter,
the Holy Spirit. In obedience to their Master (and
Muslims believe that disciples are obedient) they
waited ten days in Jerusalem until that Comforter
came and "everyone was filled with the Holy
Spirit." This too cannot apply to Muhammad.
Otherwise it would have been necessary for the
disciples to wait in Jerusalem 600 years until
Muhammad's arrival. How long could they live,
especially as Christ promised them to send the
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Spirit Comforter quickly?! Otherwise it was no use
comforting them after death. Therefore to
encourage them he said, "For John truly baptized
with water, but you shall be baptized with the
Holy Spirit not many days from now" (Acts 1:5).
125
I do not think that the Muslim brother wants to
believe that Christ is the one who sent Muham-
mad, because the verses above show that Christ
was the one who sent the Comforter Spirit. If that
was so, it would be another matter, for he would
have to agree to the divinity of the one who sent
(Christ), because Muhammad claimed to be God's
Apostle. Imagine! I ask God to give my Muslim
brother this Holy Spirit, as he gave to those disci-
ples, so that he would guide him to the truth and
guide him to the right path and enlighten his mind
so that he may distinguish between the worthless
and the worthwhile!

CONCLUSION
You have seen from the above that there is no
way to obtain pardon for sins and cleansing of
heart except in Christ, and no book which shows
the way to this salvation except the Bible, the
Torah and Gospel. There is no religion which
reconciles the justice of God and his mercy,
showing us God's love to man save the Christian
religion. Seize the opportunity, my brother,
because the time is a time of salvation and today is
a day of grace and acceptance.
126
The purpose of these discourses and the study of
them is to reach the truth and obtain happiness by
following this truth. In closing I ask God to grant
you, my Muslim brother, his Holy Spirit and to
enlighten your mind in your search after truth.
May God guide you in the straight path when you
pray daily to obtain salvation in Christ and
everlasting life in heaven forever.

I   QUIZ J
1.	What position does the Bible occupy in the
Christian religion?
2.	How does the Koran regard those Muslims
who do not believe in the Bible?
3.	Mention one Koranic verse which testifies to
the truth of the Torah and Gospel in Muham-
mad's day and.after?
4.	How is the veracity of the Torah and Gospel
proved intellectually?
5.	Are those who speak of the Book as being
altered or corrupted able to point to the
altered texts and give the purpose for doing
so?
6.	Concerning  what  did  Nahum the prophet
prophecy? Were his prophecies and others of
the prophets fulfilled?
7.	Give one archaeological proof which testifies
to the accuracy of the Torah and Gospel?
8.	What did the scholar Smith find in the ruins of
Nineveh?
127

9. Give the names of the ancient manuscripts of
the Bible.
10.	Give one Koranic verse which refutes the
theory of "abrogation."
11.	In what state did God create Adam and Eve?
Did they stay in that condition?
12.	Mention a text from the Bible supported by a
reference in the Koran which speaks of the
corruption and straying of all mankind?
13.	Is there evidence that the prophets fell into
sin?
14.	According to divine justice what do all sinners
deserve?
15.	To whom did the sacrifices point?
16.	How do you confirm the death of Christ from
the Koran?
17.	Is there a historical proof of Christ's crucifix-
ion?
18.	How is Christ superior to the rest of the
prophets and the rest of mankind?
128

19.	What does the Book of Acts 4:13 say about
Jesus Christ?
20.	How can you explain the doctrine of Trinity if
you are asked?
21.	Summarize your understanding of this book in
two lines.
If you have answered 15 questions correctly we
will send you another useful book from our
publishing house.
Please send us your name and address, written
clearly and completely, with the answers to the
above questions.
THE GOOD WAY   P.O. BOX 66   CH-M86 RIKON / SWITZERLAND

I AM THE LIGHT IF THE WORLD, WHOEVER
FOLLOWS ME
WILL NEVER WALK
IN DARKNESS*
BUT WILL HAVE
THE LIGHT OF LIFE««
(JOHN 8:12)