1.
Islamic Studies
Chrislam
MI
Dr. Robert Patton

2.
Chrislam = Syncretism
 We need to be culturally sensitive
 This is contextualization
 But we must avoid changing the
basic message, which is
syncretism

3.
Catholics & syncretism
 For many centuries, the Roman
Catholic church has practiced
syncretism
 Example: Chiapas, santeria
 Suriname – you can practice witchcraft
and also Catholic ceremonial things
 Infant baptism
 Worship of Mary & saints, etc.

4.
Insider movement
 Practiced about 30 years quietly
 Many others are unaware of it

5.
What is the problem?
 Muslims have many
misconceptions about Christianity
 Worship styles
 Trinity
 Deity of Christ
 The death penalty for apostacy
from Islam

6.
What has happened?
 In many cases, most of the
converts flee, leaving no stable
church or church leadership
 Often the missionary church is
viewed as foreign, often from “the
great Satan, America.”

7.
I. M. proposed solution
 Redefine Muslim converts as “followers
of Isa, but still Muslims.”
 Continue the Muslim practices – the
mosque, the prayers, Muslim names,
etc.
 Modify the terms in the Bible to create a
“Muslim friendly” Bible.

8.
Important points
 Islam cannot be adopted by Christians,
who hold the following:
 Allah is not Jehovah
 Isa is not Jesus
 Muhammad denies the deity of Christ and
the resurrection
 The Qur’an denies the truth of the Bible,
claiming it was changed; the Qur’an is true

9.
Allah
 Unknown and unknowable
 Sent messengers demanding
submission to his laws – sharia
 Transcendent but never immanent
 No revelation of his person but just his
will
 Relationship of master to slave as
shown in the Muslim – one who submits

10.
Participation in Islam?
 No Bible-believing Christian should
say the shahada
 No Bible-believing Christian should
pray the salat or participate in the
mosque
 No Bible-believing Christian should
make the hajj
 Bible-believing Christians should not
use the Qur’an as scripture replacing

11.
Insider Movement
 Focuses on the kingdom of God rather
than the church, and feels that Islam is
a part of the kingdom
 Forgets Jesus said: I will build my
church
 Forgets that the true Muslim does NOT
accept the Bible – believes that it has
been altered

12.
Muslim Meaning of Titles of
Jesus
 The Word of God – Jesus is a created
being, an apostle
 The Spirit of God = a spirit from Allah,
a created being
 Messiah – a title, but not anointed
savior of mankind
 Thus Isa is NOT the same as the
Jesus of the Bible

13.
IM and Forms
 IM starts with the basis that culture is
neutral
 Then they believe that the form of
worship, etc. can be infused with new
meanings
 But culture is NOT neutral, and
culture is a reflection of sinful
creatures.
 Thus the prayers and prostrations are

14.
IM downplays the church
 Jesus is building His church
 We need the fellowship, worship, etc of
the church
 By leaving the Muslim in the mosque,
he is separated from much of his growth

15.
What about CAMEL method
 This method, using verses in the Qur’an
3:42-55 to prove Christ
 It misuses the Qur’an to say what it does
NOT say, and leaves out critical points
 It specifically denies the trinity
 Breathing into someone is not producing
deity, because God did that with Adam too
 It is not recommended

16.
Problems with CAMEL
 You talk of Allah as if the same as the
God of the Bible, but they are different
 You accept redefinitions of Jesus – like
creating living birds from clay, etc.
 You assume ignorance on the part of
the Muslim

17.
What about translation?
 Major problems for Muslims:
 The Fatherhood of God
 The Sonship of Jesus
 The Holy Spirit as the third person of the
Trinity

18.
IM assumptions
 It is receptor-focused rather than
focusing on the author, God
 It assumes that the receptor
(reader) cannot change over time
 Remember that the primary
authority comes from the author

19.
IM translation problems
 Jesus calls for REPENTANCE =
change
 We must be willing to let scriptures
offend
 We are all sinners &rebels. The Bible
is offensive to the natural man, who
thinks that he is basically good but
weak

20.
IM translation problems
 The Word of God has power
 Jesus offended the Jews calling
Himself deity and therefore they killed
Him.
 The Muslims need to know that! The
Bible is very clear that Christ claimed
to be God, and was killed for shirk

21.
Pragmatism is wrong
 We must not use pragmatic methods
hoping to get a “quick result”
 We must have accuracy – the use of
dynamic equivalence method opens
the door to compromising clarity of
meaning when one compromises the
truth of the Word because it offends

22.
Examples of Muslim-
friendly translation
 Your father which is in heaven =
God, your supreme guardian
 The children of your Father which
is in heaven = guardians of God
 Son of God = messiah of the
Most High God, or messiah of
God

23.
Further substitutions
 Father, into your hands I commit my
spirit… = O Guardian, I commit my
spirit into your hands
 Lk. 11:2 When you pray, say: “Our
Father…= O our Guardian God
 The hour has come for the Son of Man
to be glorified – the time is already
come for the Prince of Flesh to be
glorified…

24.
Mallouhi translation
 Mt. 28:19 and cleanse them with
water in the name of God and His
Messiah and His Spirit
 Holy Father = my holy guardian
 My father = God; my Lord
 O Father, Father = O my Lord, O my
God

25.
Is adoption important??
 Our adoption is vital
 God takes care of us as His children,
and He is our Father
 We are united in Christ through our
adoption and participate in both His
suffering and His glory
 Remove adoption and we have another
gospel

26.
Jesus as Son of God
 God sent his own Son… = this points to
the pre-existence of the Son of God
 The Father-Son relationship is key to
understanding the Trinity
 Divine sonship is a prototype to
believers becoming also sons &
daughters of God

27.
Jesus is the Son of God
 His position as Son made it possible
for Him to rule over the entire earth
 The Holy Spirit is the spirit of
sonship
 It is the son that makes us free
 We are to be conformed to the Son in
eternity

28.
Common Ground
 Similar to Insiders Movement
 Looks for common ground
between Muslims and Christians
 Again – similar problems

29.
Common Word
 Dialogue with Muslims, but this
document does not allow the Trinity

30.
Common Word
 This document allows Islam to defend
itself, but not Christianity or Judaism
 The Qur’an is still the basis of truth for
them

31.
Allah does not = God
 For example, he commands the angels
to bow before Adam
 Difference in belief: Christ is not a
savior, and did not die and resurrect
 Difference in belief: Jesus is not
mediator between God & man

32.
Prophets
 In Islam, the perfect vessels to
receive a message from Allah
 In Christianity, sinners who God
uses

33.
The Shahada
 Direct contradiction with John 14:6
 Remember that many current Muslims
descended from Christians who
became Muslims by the sword
 The statement of Muhammad that the
earth is given to him directly opposes
the great commission

34.
Discriminary laws = dhimmi
 Gradual pressure often results in many
Christians abandoning their faith for
Islam
 We must not resort to taqiyya (lying)
 Historically those who blur the border
become Muslims, not Christians

35.
The bottom line line
 Let’s not rely on human reasoning, but
the power of the gospel to transform
lives
 Let us not compromise or deceive –
we have the truth