Islam and the Cross: Selections from "the Apostle to Islam

Rating:
Summary: Short and simple; Christ-based; good initiation to topic
Review: "Islam and the Cross" was not exactly what I expected it to be, but I ended up appreciating it more for that reason. I was expecting more of a book on Christian answers to common Muslim challenges. Instead, I found myself reading a book that is simply an introduction to some areas of Islam and the Muslim world that any Christian (especially Western Christians) should know, yet a book that is very light on apologetics.

One of the things I really respected about this book was the obvious care and love Samuel Zwemer had for the souls of Muslims. Many Christians in the public forum today take an approach to Islam that is either too watered down in its Christian theology or one that seems to care for nothing but theological consistency but comes across as too cold. Zwemer's approach would be a great guide for either of these extremes as he had a great balance which he demonstrates in the writings that make up this book. Zwemer is respectful of Islam's beliefs and history without giving into them or exaggerating them (for good or bad) either. He acknowledges errors in Christianity's past (calling the Crusades "a collossal error on the part of Christendom"), yet makes no apologies for the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and what he has called Christians to do.

The major focus of the book is explaining to Christians what Islam teaches about Jesus Christ and which traits of Christianity and Jesus Christ that Muslims can relate to as well as which ones are their "stumbling blocks". One of the more interesting chapters of this book was the one discussing animism and how deeply it is ingrained in Islam and the various Muslim cultures around the world. As Zwemer puts it, "Islam, far from delivering heathendom from the toils of animism, is itself deeply involved in them. Animism emerges from its struggle for the soul of a people, elegantly tricked out and buttressed by theology. Often it is scarcely recognizable in its refined Arabian dress, but it continues as before to sway the people; it has received divine sanction." That is a fascinating but very clear way of explaining the difficulty in speaking theologically with a devout Muslim that any Christian who has done so will recognize. It's easy to see from Zwemer's explanations in this book that Western Christians are going to have to go before the Lord and pray that He will give us the wisdom to be able to understand and speak effectively to people that could have such beliefs, despite everything we in the West have come to take for granted about science, our world, and our God.

Any Christian following events of our times can easily see that the next big spiritual battle in this world will be between Islam and the remaining believers in Jesus Christ left in this world. I honestly believe we are the last possible hope to counter the evil running rampant in the Muslim world and spreading like wildfire even beyond its historical boundaries in the Middle East (i.e. into Western Africa, South Asia, etc.), and the American military, as great as it is and as much respect as I have for it, can only do so much. In this book Samuel Zwemer, years ahead of his time, laid out the situation that he correctly saw was coming, and addressed it perfectly, writing: "The sword destroys human life; the cross gives it priceless value. The sword deadens conscience; the cross awakens it. The sword ends in hatred, the cross in love. He who takes up the sword perishes by it. He who takes up the cross inherits eternal life. In winning Muslim lands for Christ, the call is for men and women who will today follow the way of the cross with the same courage and abandon with which soldiers served their countries."

Rating:
Summary: Short and simple; Christ-based; good initiation to topic
Review: "Islam and the Cross" was not exactly what I expected it to be, but I ended up appreciating it more for that reason. I was expecting more of a book on Christian answers to common Muslim challenges. Instead, I found myself reading a book that is simply an introduction to some areas of Islam and the Muslim world that any Christian (especially Western Christians) should know, yet a book that is very light on apologetics.

One of the things I really respected about this book was the obvious care and love Samuel Zwemer had for the souls of Muslims. Many Christians in the public forum today take an approach to Islam that is either too watered down in its Christian theology or one that seems to care for nothing but theological consistency but comes across as too cold. Zwemer's approach would be a great guide for either of these extremes as he had a great balance which he demonstrates in the writings that make up this book. Zwemer is respectful of Islam's beliefs and history without giving into them or exaggerating them (for good or bad) either. He acknowledges errors in Christianity's past (calling the Crusades "a collossal error on the part of Christendom"), yet makes no apologies for the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and what he has called Christians to do.

The major focus of the book is explaining to Christians what Islam teaches about Jesus Christ and which traits of Christianity and Jesus Christ that Muslims can relate to as well as which ones are their "stumbling blocks". One of the more interesting chapters of this book was the one discussing animism and how deeply it is ingrained in Islam and the various Muslim cultures around the world. As Zwemer puts it, "Islam, far from delivering heathendom from the toils of animism, is itself deeply involved in them. Animism emerges from its struggle for the soul of a people, elegantly tricked out and buttressed by theology. Often it is scarcely recognizable in its refined Arabian dress, but it continues as before to sway the people; it has received divine sanction." That is a fascinating but very clear way of explaining the difficulty in speaking theologically with a devout Muslim that any Christian who has done so will recognize. It's easy to see from Zwemer's explanations in this book that Western Christians are going to have to go before the Lord and pray that He will give us the wisdom to be able to understand and speak effectively to people that could have such beliefs, despite everything we in the West have come to take for granted about science, our world, and our God.

Any Christian following events of our times can easily see that the next big spiritual battle in this world will be between Islam and the remaining believers in Jesus Christ left in this world. I honestly believe we are the last possible hope to counter the evil running rampant in the Muslim world and spreading like wildfire even beyond its historical boundaries in the Middle East (i.e. into Western Africa, South Asia, etc.), and the American military, as great as it is and as much respect as I have for it, can only do so much. In this book Samuel Zwemer, years ahead of his time, laid out the situation that he correctly saw was coming, and addressed it perfectly, writing: "The sword destroys human life; the cross gives it priceless value. The sword deadens conscience; the cross awakens it. The sword ends in hatred, the cross in love. He who takes up the sword perishes by it. He who takes up the cross inherits eternal life. In winning Muslim lands for Christ, the call is for men and women who will today follow the way of the cross with the same courage and abandon with which soldiers served their countries."

Rating:
Summary: Zwemer's wisdom still sparkles.
Review: Samuel Marinus Zwemer (1867-1952), proclaimed the gospel in Muslim lands for almost 40 years before serving as professor of missions at Princeton Theological Seminary. Reformed and evangelical in his theology, Zwemer was also one of the greatest Islamic scholars of his day. He was an expert in Arabic and Arabic literature. He was thoroughly familiar with the Qur'an, the Traditions and the Commentaries. And having spent over twenty years in the Arabian Peninsula and almost twenty more based in Cairo, Egypt, was well acquainted with Muslims, their practices and their patterns of thought. Well-received amongst Muslims on account of his intellectual presentation of biblical Christianity and his always respectful treatment of Islam, Zwemer's writings are substantive, energetic and clear. They are also a tremendous asset to anyone wanting to understand Islam and for this reason I am glad to see this selection of them available once again.

Dr. Greenway, who also supplies a brief biographical introduction, is to be congratulated for choosing such useful and representative chapters from Zwemer's astounding corpus. I personally would like to have seen selections from his The Moslem Doctrine of God (Bahrain, 1905), but chapters on Christ, the cross, the Holy Spirit, evangelism and animism do make this a good source book and admirably fulfill the purpose for which this book was compiled (xi). As a Christian wanting to understand Islam two things are necessary. The first is to read the Qur'an and other principal Islamic texts. The second is to read Zwemer.