Nearly 1 in 4 people on earth are Muslim. What do we know about our Muslim neighbours’ beliefs? How well equipped are we to discuss matters of faith with our Muslim friends?
The reason that I chose to read Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus was the hope of gaining a better understanding of the Islamic faith. I was richly rewarded for the time spent in this book as it provides a great deal of information about Islam and gives insight into the Muslim life through the author’s personal story. Also, while the author shares his struggles as he wrestled with the truth of the gospel, he provides a robust foundation for the authenticity of the Christian faith.
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus is a biographical account in which the author, Nabeel Qureshi, shares his journey from growing up as a devoted Muslim to becoming a Christian later in life. Written in first-person, Nabeel pours his heart out in this book as he writes about his life. The book begins by Nabeel’s telling of his childhood growing up in a faithful Muslim family to become a confident young Muslim man. At university, Nabeel meets David, a fellow student and devoted Christian. The book then follows Nabeel and David’s friendship as they debate the core values of their beliefs and concludes with Nabeel’s conversion to Christianity.
Nabeel identifies three purposes for documenting his testimony in a book. His first purpose is to provide the reader with an insider’s perspective into the Muslim world. He writes that, “The mystical beauty of Islam that enchants billions cannot be grasped by merely sharing facts. But it is my prayer that by entering my world, you will come to understand your Muslim neighbour, so you can love him as yourself.” (p.17). In order to help the reader to better understand the heart and mind of a Muslim, the first third of the book captures stories of Nabeel’s upbringing as part of a Muslim family and community. He shares details of Islamic worship services and holy days. He also shares stories demonstrating how his family’s faith provided strength during challenging times. The author immerses you into the Islamic world, speaking about aspects of daily Muslim life such as their prayer rituals, whereby Muslims offer prayers of supplication to Allah five times a day. These prayers are seen as a spiritual bath, helping to cleanse the person before Allah. Nabeel explains that the prayers are made while facing Mecca as this is where the Muslim holy shrine Ka’ba is located which is believed to have been built by Abraham and his son Ishmael. While speaking of the Muslim culture, the author uses Islamic terms and provides a running glossary of these words throughout the pages of the book, teaching the reader key Islamic words throughout the narrative.
The second purpose of the book is to compare and contrast the Christian gospel with Islam. To do so, the author recounts many of the discussions and debates that he had with his Christian friend David. Both Muslims and Christians believe in angels, demons, heaven, hell, and a final judgement. Using apologetics, Nabeel and David examine the differences in their beliefs.
A keystone difference between the Muslim and Christian faiths is the understanding of who Jesus is. The Muslim faith believes that Jesus was a prophet. However, they do not believe that Jesus was God, that He died on the cross, or that He rose from the dead. Muslims see the Christian view of Jesus as blasphemy; they believe that one should worship God, not His messenger. Likewise, Islam finds the New Testament to be offensive and teaches that the Bible has been corrupted. Islam believes that because Christians turned Jesus into a god, dishonouring him and blaspheming Allah, God sent Muhammad to be the final messenger for all of mankind. As such, the Muslim faith believes that every single word of the Quran was dictated verbatim by Allah and has remained perfect throughout the generations. Muslims believe that Islam is incorruptible and will be guarded by Allah until the entire world becomes Muslim; only then the day of judgement will arrive and Islam will be victorious.
Through their debates, Nabeel and David systematically research and review the various historical claims, theories and points of contention surrounding each faith. Through their research, the reader learns details about Muhammad’s life (born 570 AD) and beliefs. Likewise, the book provides historical details about Christ’s death, deity and resurrection. Nabeel and David also study the accuracy and reliability of both the Bible and the Quran, the concept of the trinity and how Christ’s death could pay for our sins. These conversations produce a fascinating study about the historical merits and authenticity of both Islam and Christianity.
The third purpose of this book is to share the struggles that a Muslim is likely to face when grappling with the Christian gospel. As Islam is largely an Eastern world religion, Nabeel provides examples to contrast Eastern and Western (a.k.a. North American) cultures. This provides further insight into the Muslim world, enabling North American Christians to better understand their Muslim neighbours. For example, in the West we are taught and encouraged to use independent critical thinking. In contrast, Eastern cultures tend to defer to the wisdom of elders and those in positions of authority for matters of truth. Individual reasoning is not as highly valued as it is in the Western culture. Another important cultural difference that Nabeel explains is how a person’s virtue is determined. In Western culture, we live by a system of justice based on a person’s guilt or innocence in a matter. The person’s virtue is determined to be good or bad according by whether they are innocent or guilty of the matter in question. In contrast, Eastern cultures view virtue through a lens of honour and shame. “The honour-shame principle that tells us, “It’s okay as long as you don’t get caught.” If there is no dishonour, it is not wrong.” (p. 109). These differing foundational perspectives have a large bearing on a person’s view of the world and their place in it.
By understanding Eastern world values, it is easier to appreciate how difficult it would be for a Muslim to openly question his faith, for fear of not respecting the wisdom of the authorities and the shame of being discovered doing so. Through his testimony, Nabeel shares his experience between these tensions. Through a combination of conversations with David and his own study, Nabeel begins to find the evidence for Christianity becoming too strong for him to dismiss. However, the cost of placing his faith in Christ is incredibly high. Leaving the Muslim faith would mean being ostracized from Muslim friendships and social connections. It would mean being rejected by his family. It would mean knowing that he has brought shame and dishonour upon his family. For Nabeel, following Christ would require the sacrifice of giving up his family and all that he had known. Through his journey he came to understand, “It was not that Jesus was turning me against my parents. It was that, if my family stood against God, I had to choose one or the other.” (p. 278).
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus is easy to read and understand. I would highly recommend it to anyone in our congregation who is interested in growing their understanding of Islam, or even just a new appreciation for the solid historical foundation of Christianity. Throughout this book, I was struck by the incredible love that God has for every single one of the 7 billion people that are on the planet right now. I have a renewed desire to pray for our Muslim friends and neighbours, realizing how their acceptance of Christ can be a sacrifice that is unfathomable to most North American Christians. Lastly, this book increased my confidence to engage in evangelical conversations with friends of other faiths. Nabeel’s friendship with David was a very significant component of his faith journey. Nabeel points out that too often North American Christians assume that evangelism will occur magically and effortlessly through chance encounters with strangers. However, as proven in his own life, a friend, someone who can speak truth into specific life circumstances, is a much more effective messenger of the gospel than any stranger could ever be. Our love for our friends and neighbours should imitate the love that God has for them and His desire for them to know Him through Christ.
To God be the glory.
Christopher Peters
Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi, Zondervan, 2014, 296 pages