A Muslim Study of Christian
Scripture and History – Part II
A Muslim Study of Christian
Scripture and History
 Part
I: Origins of Christian Theology
and Scripture (600B.C. to 500C.E)
 Part
II: Modern Bible and Christian
Sectarianism (1000C.E. to 1800C.E.)
27-page source document available at
the bottom of the following web page:
http://cegis.cee.vt.edu/userwebs/mdougher/
Bismillah – In the name of God
“And there are, certainly,
Among the People of the Book,
Those who believe in God,
In the revelation to you,
And in the revelation to them,
Bowing in humility to God:
They will not sell
The signs of God
For a miserable gain!
For them is a reward
With their Lord,
And God is swift in account.
Surah Al-Imran, 3: 199
Review: What is Theology?
N
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U
N
:
NOUN:
1. The study of the nature of God and religious
truth; rational inquiry into religious questions. 2. A
system or school of opinions concerning God and
religious questions: Protestant theology; Jewish
theology. 3. A course of specialized religious study
usually at a college or seminary.
Source: The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000
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Y
M
O
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Y
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Sources of information
Non-Muslim sources


Krieger, L.S., Neill, I., and E. Reynolds.
D.C. 1997. World History-Perspectives
on the Past. 5th edition. Heath and
Company, a division of Houghton Mifflin
Company.
Kelly, J.N.D. Early Christian Doctrines.
2nd edition. Harper & Row Publishers,
N.Y. (Oxford Univeristy lecturer in Patristic Studies)
Muslim sources
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

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Funk, W. Robert., Hoover, Roy. W., and
the Jesus Seminar. 1993. The Five
Gospels: The Search for the Authentic
Words of Jesus. Macmillan Publishing,
N.Y. pp.553.
Kennedy, Brent. 1994. Melungeuns: The
Resurrection of a Proud People. Mercer
University Press.
Adams, Dickenson W. (Ed.). 1983.
Jefferson’s Extracts from the Gospels
“The Philosophy of Jesus” and “The Life
and Morals of Jesus.” Princeton
University Press. Princeton, NJ. pp.438.


Maqsood, Ruqaiyyah Waris. 2000. The
Mysteries of Jesus: A Muslim Study of
the Origins and Doctrines of the
Christian Church. Sakina Books, Oxford,
UK.
Asad, Muhammad. 1975. Islam at the
Crossroads. Arafat Publications. pp.160.
Ali, Abdullah Yusuf. 1989. The Meaning
of the Holy Qur’an. Amana Corporaton,
Maryland. pp.1758.
Quick, Abdullah Hakim. 1990. Deeper
Roots: Muslims in the Caribbean before
Columbus to the Present. AICCLA.
Diouf, Sylviane A. 1998. Servants of
Allah: African Muslims Enslaved in the
Americas. New York University Press.
Review: Outline of Near East history
600B.C. to 500C.E.
 Ancient
Persian Empire (600B.C. –
330B.C.)
– Zorastrianism, ancient Babylon, Jews
 Rome
at its height (0C.E.-200C.E.)
– Crucible of modern Christianity
 Byzantine
Empire inherits from
declining Rome (200C.E.-563C.E.)
– Persian Empire a shadow of former
greatness
Review: Foundation of
modern Christianity

33 C.E.
70 C.E.
90 C.E.
Jesus (pbuh) is taken up to heaven by God.
The Romans destroy the Temple.
As Christian era begins, a new ritual develops,
the Eucharist.

325 C.E.
Nicean Council convened by Emperor
Constantine*


*”Anyone who affirms that the Father pre-existed the Son,
or that the Son is a creature produced out of nothingness,
or is subject to moral change or development, is formally
declared a heretic.”

367 C.E.
381 C.E.

570 C.E.

First official list of 27 books in the New Testament.
Doctrine of “One God in Three Persons” formally
ratified.
Muhammad (pbuh) born in Mecca.
Syria and Palestine under Rome (65 B.C.)
Roman province of Judea created (6 C.E.)
Byzantines inherit from the Roman Empire.
Constantine conquers East and West and
ends persecution of Christians.
Council of Nicea (325 C.E.) bans “Arianism”.
Nicean Council produces the Nicean Creed
Post-Nicean arguments against Arianism
Review: Foundation of
modern Christian theology
Jesus (pbuh) came with a message to
Bani Israel alone.
 Jesus (pbuh) is taken to heaven by God.
 Saul of Tarsus, a Hellenized Jew, preaches
a new “gospel” of the resurrected Jesus,
eventually converting the Roman Empire.
 Followers of Jesus remain in Jerusalem
worshipping in temple until Roman
destruction in 70C.E.
 Pauline theology gains dominance over
Jesus’ followers, the “Nazarenes”.

The Bible: modern & ancient scripture
The Bible
 Jewish
Bible (Torah, Nebiium, Ketubim)
 Christian
Bible (Old and New Testaments)
– Biblical inspiration
– New Testament (Gospel vs. Injil)
– What is the Q source?
– What is significance of Dead Sea scrolls?
Jewish Bible
(Torah vs. Old Testament)
Persian Empire
First temple of Solomon destroyed (587 B.C.)
Second temple built (541 B.C.)
Many portions of Jewish Bible first put in writing.
Christian Bible
(Gospel vs. Injil)
Syria and Palestine under Rome (65 B.C.)
Roman province of Judea created (6 C.E.)
Significance of the
“Q” document
“Q” and the Synoptic gospels
“Q” = source (lost)*
Q
Q
Mark*
Mk Mk Mk Mk Mk Mk
Luke
MLM MLM MLM MLM MLM MLM
LM
LM
Matthew
MLM MLM MLM MLM MLM MLM
LM
LM
*no birth or resurrection accounts
Significance of the
Dead Sea Scrolls
Caves at Qumran where Dead Sea
scrolls were discovered (1947)
Settlement of Qumran, including
ritual bathing pools.
Modern and ancient scripture
Words of Jesus in Qur’an
Bismillah
 And (remember) when God will say (on
the Day of Resurrection): “O Jesus
(pbuh), son of Mary! Did you say unto
men: “Worship me and my mother as
two gods besides God?” He will say:
“Glory be to You! It was not for me to
say what I had no right (to say). Had I
said such a thing, You would surely have
known it. You know what is in my innerself though I do not know what is in
Yours, truly, You, only You, are the AllKnower of all that is hidden and unseen.


“Never did I say to them aught except
what You (God) did command me to say:
‘Worship God, my Lord and your Lord’,
And I was a witness over them while I
dwelt amongst them, but when You took
me up, You were the Watcher over them,
and You are a Witness to all things.
“If You punish them, they are Your
slaves, and if You forgive them, Verily
You, only You are the All-Mighty, the AllWise”.
[Surah al-Mai’da “The Table Spread”, 5:116-118]
A Muslim Study of Christian
Scripture and History
 Part
I: Origins of Christian Theology
and Scripture (600B.C. to 500C.E)
 Part
II: Modern Bible and
Christian Sectarianism
(1000C.E. to 1800C.E.)
27-page source document available at
the bottom of the following web page:
http://cegis.cee.vt.edu/userwebs/mdougher
/
Historical outline of Christian
Europe: 1000C.E.-1800C.E.
High Middle Ages (1000-1300C.E.)
 Origin of European nations (1150-1580C.E.)
 Renaissance and exploration (1300-1600C.E.)
 Reformation and scientific revolution (14501650C.E.)
 Spanish Empire and shifting powers (15001650C.E.)
 Transition to modern times (1558-1815C.E.)

Rise of Islam: 600-750C.E.
Abbasid caliphate 750-1055 C.E.
Selcuk Turks inherit from the Abbasids,
occupying all of Asia Minor and Jerusalem.
Crusades (1096-1270 C.E.) are a direct
response to Muslim conquest of Jerusalem.
High Middle Ages: 1000-1300C.E.
Known World 1250C.E.
Al Mas’udi map: 346 AH/957 CE
the turks
andalus
freng
lands
china
morocco / sudan
earth dome
unknown lands
the ocean
Byzantine Constantinople
Conquered by Muhammad II in 1453 C.E.,
ending the 1,123 year-old Byzantine Empire.
Conquest of Constantinople
(1453 C.E.)
Sent shock waves across the Christian
world.
 Ottoman State emerged as a great world
power.
 Ottomans were finally halted at gates of
Vienna (1529 C.E.).
 Ottoman empire dismembered after World
War I.
 Allenby enters Jerusalem, announcing
“…the Crusades have ended.”
 Hundreds of trainloads of Muslim heritage
are shipped from Istanbul to museums
and private collectors across Europe.

Near East and Americas 1650C.E.
Bismillah (In the name of God)
Behold! In the creation
Of the heavens and the earth,
And the alternation
Of Night and Day
There are indeed Signs
For men of understanding [Surah Al-Imran, 3:190]