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The Islamic Invasion: Confronting the World's Fastest Growing Religion by Robert A. Morey
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May 11, 2024
A WELL-KNOWN CHRISTIAN APOLOGIST LOOKS AT ISLAM
Robert Morey (1946-2019) was a Christian apologist and pastor who wrote a number of theological books and pamphlets, such as ‘The Trinity,’ ‘Death and the Afterlife,’ How to Answer a Jehovah's Witness, How to Answer a Mormon, Reincarnation and Christianity, etc.
He wrote in the Introduction to this 1992 book, “It is our desire to inform Western people about the nature and claims of Islam and then to point out to them why Middle East scholarship has rejected those claims… I have collected a vast amount or Muslim literature which openly attacks the Bible and denies the Trinity, the deity of Christ… His death on the cross, His bodily resurrection… Since Muslims evidently have no problems whatsoever in openly criticizing other religions, why should they have a problem with those who for good and sufficient reasons criticize Islam?... The burden of proof for Muhammad’s call to be a prophet and for the inspiration of the Quran is upon the Muslims. Thus we will be examining the arguments given by Muslims to see if in fact they hold up under careful scientific scrutiny.” (Pg. 10-11)
He notes, “The compelling reason why Muslims claim to be descendants of Abraham is a religious one. The Quran transfers the historical setting of the biblical patriarchs from Palestine to Mecca… If it were admitted that Abraham never lived in Mecca and thus the Arabs are not his descendants, then the Quran itself would be overturned. Yet the archaeological evidence is overwhelming that Abraham never lived in Mecca! He came from the city of Ur, which had been found in Iraq. He then moved west to Palestine from there.” (Pg. 24-25)
He recalls, “During a live phone-in radio program in Los Angeles in 1991, a Muslim claimed that the Arabic word translated ‘beat them’ only meant ‘to tap lightly on the wrist with a twig.’ I pointed out that the same Arabic word is used to describe the beating of camels and criminals! Who would… think that ‘tapping lightly…’ could control wild camels or punish violent criminals?” (Pg. 29)
He admits, “Christianity had already been introduced into southern Arabia and was flourishing there by the time Muhammed was born. But the Christianity that was present in Arabia was in an uneducated and garbled form and, worse yet, sometimes heretical in nature. Some of the heretical teachings of the Gnostics were present in pre-Islamic Arabia in such fraudulent gospels as the Gospel of Barnabas.” (Pg. 44)
He asserts, “In Arabia, the sun god was viewed as a female goddess and the moon as the male god… the moon god was called by various names, one of which was Allah. The name Alah was used as the ‘personal’ name of the moon god… The symbol of the worship of the moon god in Arabian culture and elsewhere throughout the Middle East was the crescent moon.” (Pg. 50-51)
He argues, ‘[Some] scholars suggest that perhaps Muhammed’s early visions were the result of a combination of epileptic seizures and an overactive imagination. Early Muslim tradition records the fact that when Muhammed was about the receive a revelation from Allah, he would often fall down to the ground, his body would begin to jerk… and he would perspire profusely… It was while Muhammed was in such a trancelike state that he would receive divine visitations… From the description of the bodily movements that were often connected with his trances, many scholars have stated that these were epileptic seizures.” (Pg. 71)
He explains, “In order to appease his pagan family members and the members of the Quraysh tribe, he decided that the best thing he could do was to admit that it was perfectly proper to pray to and worship the three daughters of Allah… This led to the famous ‘satanic verses’ in which Muhammed in a moment of weakness and supposedly under the inspiration of Satan (according to early Muslim authorities) succumbed to the temptation to appease the pagan mobs in Mecca (Sura 53:19)… The story of Muhammad’s temporary appeasement of the pagans by allowing them their polytheism cannot be ignored or denied. It is a fact of history that is supported by all Middle East scholars... We are aware that there are a few modern Muslim apologists who reject the story of the ‘satanic verses.’ But…Their objection is based solely on the grounds that Muhammad was sinless that therefore could not have done this!” (Pg. 78-79)
He observes, “During his lifetime, Jesus did many great and mighty miracles. He healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons, and even ruled the wind and the waves. But according to the Quran in dozens of places such as Sura 17:91-95, Muhammed never performed a single miracle. The only sign that Muhammed could point to was the existence of his revelations, the Suras, that made up the Quran… Muhammed did not miracles. He did not heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons, or rule the wind and the waves. He had no more power than any normal man.” (Pg. 94-95)
He states, “the Quran is arranged from the biggest down to the smallest Sura, irrespective of the chronology in which an individual Sura was given… This causes tremendous problems and confusion. In the Quran one will often find that what is clearly commanded in the first part of the Quran is ‘abrogated,’ that is, contradicted, by something that is written in the latter part of the Quran. To reconstruct the life and teaching of Muhammed in a chronological order, one must jump all over the Quran from one Sura to another.” (Pg. 112)
He contends, “Throughout his early ministry, Muhammed constantly appealed to the Old and New Testament Scriptures as the basis and standard by which his teachings should be judged… The principle that Muhammed used in the beginning was a valid one. The older revelation must be the judge of all so-called new revelations. Thus the Bible must be the standard which judges all new revelations including the Quran itself.” (Pg. 133)
He notes, “In countless encounters with Muslims, whenever the Quran contradicts some particular verse in the Bible, they have always said, ‘The Bible is corrupted at this point.’ When I ask for some kind of proof that the Hebrew or Greek text is corrupt, they respond by saying, ‘I do not have to prove it is corrupt. It has to be corrupt, otherwise it would agree with the holy Quran. For example, the Quran contradicts the Bible in that it denies that Jesus was crucified.” (Pg. 135)
In a separate chapter, he points out, “orthodox Islam does not want to be identified with the black Muslim movement in America, which it condemns as spurious and heretical… But given the inroads the black Muslims had made in the black community in America and the fact that they are now sending out missionaries to Africa to convert other blacks to their message, it would be unwise to ignore them.” (Pg. 161)
He points out of Malcolm X, “After 12 years of devoted service to the Nation of Islam, Malcolm woke up to Elijah’s many moral problems, such as his 13 illegitimate children, his greed and jealousy, and the constant strife which filled Elijah Muhammad’s life… It was during his pilgrimage to Mecca that… he clearly saw the heretical … nature of the black Muslim movement in America. They were not real Muslims at all… Malcolm publicly renounced the teachings of W.D. Fard and Elijah Muhammad and began to warn the black community… A black Muslim death squad assassinated Malcolm X in … 1965.” (Pg. 171-172)
Perhaps the most unique aspect of the book is the Appendix, ‘An Analysis of the Hadith.’ He uses the English translation of Al-Bukhari by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan. He documents his assertions such as “Muhammad was a white man.” (Pg. 181-183)
Morey often does not document his own assertions, which limits the value of the book. But the section on the Hadith is useful, and this book will interest Evangelicals seeking critiques of Islam.
Robert Morey (1946-2019) was a Christian apologist and pastor who wrote a number of theological books and pamphlets, such as ‘The Trinity,’ ‘Death and the Afterlife,’ How to Answer a Jehovah's Witness, How to Answer a Mormon, Reincarnation and Christianity, etc.
He wrote in the Introduction to this 1992 book, “It is our desire to inform Western people about the nature and claims of Islam and then to point out to them why Middle East scholarship has rejected those claims… I have collected a vast amount or Muslim literature which openly attacks the Bible and denies the Trinity, the deity of Christ… His death on the cross, His bodily resurrection… Since Muslims evidently have no problems whatsoever in openly criticizing other religions, why should they have a problem with those who for good and sufficient reasons criticize Islam?... The burden of proof for Muhammad’s call to be a prophet and for the inspiration of the Quran is upon the Muslims. Thus we will be examining the arguments given by Muslims to see if in fact they hold up under careful scientific scrutiny.” (Pg. 10-11)
He notes, “The compelling reason why Muslims claim to be descendants of Abraham is a religious one. The Quran transfers the historical setting of the biblical patriarchs from Palestine to Mecca… If it were admitted that Abraham never lived in Mecca and thus the Arabs are not his descendants, then the Quran itself would be overturned. Yet the archaeological evidence is overwhelming that Abraham never lived in Mecca! He came from the city of Ur, which had been found in Iraq. He then moved west to Palestine from there.” (Pg. 24-25)
He recalls, “During a live phone-in radio program in Los Angeles in 1991, a Muslim claimed that the Arabic word translated ‘beat them’ only meant ‘to tap lightly on the wrist with a twig.’ I pointed out that the same Arabic word is used to describe the beating of camels and criminals! Who would… think that ‘tapping lightly…’ could control wild camels or punish violent criminals?” (Pg. 29)
He admits, “Christianity had already been introduced into southern Arabia and was flourishing there by the time Muhammed was born. But the Christianity that was present in Arabia was in an uneducated and garbled form and, worse yet, sometimes heretical in nature. Some of the heretical teachings of the Gnostics were present in pre-Islamic Arabia in such fraudulent gospels as the Gospel of Barnabas.” (Pg. 44)
He asserts, “In Arabia, the sun god was viewed as a female goddess and the moon as the male god… the moon god was called by various names, one of which was Allah. The name Alah was used as the ‘personal’ name of the moon god… The symbol of the worship of the moon god in Arabian culture and elsewhere throughout the Middle East was the crescent moon.” (Pg. 50-51)
He argues, ‘[Some] scholars suggest that perhaps Muhammed’s early visions were the result of a combination of epileptic seizures and an overactive imagination. Early Muslim tradition records the fact that when Muhammed was about the receive a revelation from Allah, he would often fall down to the ground, his body would begin to jerk… and he would perspire profusely… It was while Muhammed was in such a trancelike state that he would receive divine visitations… From the description of the bodily movements that were often connected with his trances, many scholars have stated that these were epileptic seizures.” (Pg. 71)
He explains, “In order to appease his pagan family members and the members of the Quraysh tribe, he decided that the best thing he could do was to admit that it was perfectly proper to pray to and worship the three daughters of Allah… This led to the famous ‘satanic verses’ in which Muhammed in a moment of weakness and supposedly under the inspiration of Satan (according to early Muslim authorities) succumbed to the temptation to appease the pagan mobs in Mecca (Sura 53:19)… The story of Muhammad’s temporary appeasement of the pagans by allowing them their polytheism cannot be ignored or denied. It is a fact of history that is supported by all Middle East scholars... We are aware that there are a few modern Muslim apologists who reject the story of the ‘satanic verses.’ But…Their objection is based solely on the grounds that Muhammad was sinless that therefore could not have done this!” (Pg. 78-79)
He observes, “During his lifetime, Jesus did many great and mighty miracles. He healed the sick, raised the dead, cast out demons, and even ruled the wind and the waves. But according to the Quran in dozens of places such as Sura 17:91-95, Muhammed never performed a single miracle. The only sign that Muhammed could point to was the existence of his revelations, the Suras, that made up the Quran… Muhammed did not miracles. He did not heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons, or rule the wind and the waves. He had no more power than any normal man.” (Pg. 94-95)
He states, “the Quran is arranged from the biggest down to the smallest Sura, irrespective of the chronology in which an individual Sura was given… This causes tremendous problems and confusion. In the Quran one will often find that what is clearly commanded in the first part of the Quran is ‘abrogated,’ that is, contradicted, by something that is written in the latter part of the Quran. To reconstruct the life and teaching of Muhammed in a chronological order, one must jump all over the Quran from one Sura to another.” (Pg. 112)
He contends, “Throughout his early ministry, Muhammed constantly appealed to the Old and New Testament Scriptures as the basis and standard by which his teachings should be judged… The principle that Muhammed used in the beginning was a valid one. The older revelation must be the judge of all so-called new revelations. Thus the Bible must be the standard which judges all new revelations including the Quran itself.” (Pg. 133)
He notes, “In countless encounters with Muslims, whenever the Quran contradicts some particular verse in the Bible, they have always said, ‘The Bible is corrupted at this point.’ When I ask for some kind of proof that the Hebrew or Greek text is corrupt, they respond by saying, ‘I do not have to prove it is corrupt. It has to be corrupt, otherwise it would agree with the holy Quran. For example, the Quran contradicts the Bible in that it denies that Jesus was crucified.” (Pg. 135)
In a separate chapter, he points out, “orthodox Islam does not want to be identified with the black Muslim movement in America, which it condemns as spurious and heretical… But given the inroads the black Muslims had made in the black community in America and the fact that they are now sending out missionaries to Africa to convert other blacks to their message, it would be unwise to ignore them.” (Pg. 161)
He points out of Malcolm X, “After 12 years of devoted service to the Nation of Islam, Malcolm woke up to Elijah’s many moral problems, such as his 13 illegitimate children, his greed and jealousy, and the constant strife which filled Elijah Muhammad’s life… It was during his pilgrimage to Mecca that… he clearly saw the heretical … nature of the black Muslim movement in America. They were not real Muslims at all… Malcolm publicly renounced the teachings of W.D. Fard and Elijah Muhammad and began to warn the black community… A black Muslim death squad assassinated Malcolm X in … 1965.” (Pg. 171-172)
Perhaps the most unique aspect of the book is the Appendix, ‘An Analysis of the Hadith.’ He uses the English translation of Al-Bukhari by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan. He documents his assertions such as “Muhammad was a white man.” (Pg. 181-183)
Morey often does not document his own assertions, which limits the value of the book. But the section on the Hadith is useful, and this book will interest Evangelicals seeking critiques of Islam.
November 26, 2023
Well researched. Even if worldview is of a Christian, its a nice attempt.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews