Southern Baptists and American Evangelicals
Southwestern Journal of Theology
Volume 65, No. 2 - Spring 2023
Managing Editor: Malcolm B. Yarnell III
By Matthew Aaron Bennett. Grand Rapids: Kregel Academic, 2022, 253pp., $19.99.
Christian laymen and scholars alike may have significant caution when it comes to the topic of the Qur’an. As the holy book of the Islamic faith there is a tendency to view it as completely opposed to the Bible and the Christian faith. Consequently, it should be avoided and condemned. Bennett provides a useful resource to address these concerns and goes a long way towards making a very complex issue understandable for non-Muslims. He is clear that this is an outsider/etic perspective that is trying to hear and understand the insider/emic perspective. As such throughout the book he does well to let the Islamic scholars speak and so give insight into the insider view. A positive is that Bennett does not leave the reader wondering where he stands on the issue but from the beginning shows that his purpose is to understand the insider perspective while clearly holding to a belief that the basic claims and beliefs of Islam are not compatible with biblical teaching.
In the opening chapters he explains how revelation in Islam is not God revealing Himself but rather revealing His will. This is useful in understanding the Islamic emphasis on God’s transcendence and the downplaying of God’s imminence with the resultant rejection of the Son of God who is God incarnate. It also points to the Islamic focus on deeds as a way for man to achieve God’s will contrasted with man’s need for a savior in Christianity due to man’s inability to achieve God’s will. In chapter four Bennett does well to explain how even though one can read about familiar biblical characters and events in the Qur’an, this does not mean that the Qur’an endorses the Bible. He points out how the Qur’an uses these for its own narrative and to fulfil its own purposes. Building on this in chapter five Bennett shows how ultimately the Qur’an does not portray Christians in a positive light but rather issues serious warnings and judgment.
Chapter six exposes the argument of how extra-Qur’anic material such as the Sunnah have impacted an objective interpretation of the Qur’an. This is a fascinating glimpse into the current state of Islamic scholarship where there are various approaches that are attempting to free the Qur’an from external influences on its interpretation. Chapter seven deals with a Christian’s reluctance to read the Qur’an and provides useful arguments and suggestions for how this could be done. There is the danger that this can be done uncritically and so in chapter eight there is a word of caution as what can be called bridging methods are evaluated. Two critical principles are addressed: firstly, the problem of eisegesis where Christian readers impose meaning on verses in the Qur’an that Muslims would not accept. Secondly that the Qur’an can be used by Christians in a way that even unknowingly elevates it to the level of valid scripture. This strong caution against hermeneutical creativity that contradicts the Qur’an’s own rules could have been strengthened by Bennett making direct reference to Islamic rules of interpretation such as those found in chapter three and verse seven of the Qur’an.
For those readers who are less familiar with Islam it would be useful to include more examples/application in certain areas such as the discussion of Islamic orthodoxy versus orthopraxy. That said, Bennett provides a helpful example of how to take a learner rather than debater posture in interactions with Muslims, so that instead of trying to win an argument the reader is equipped to open a gospel conversation. This book locates itself in Christian/Muslim dialogue and understanding as a valuable resource from an outsider perspective and would be complemented by those from an insider perspective. It is well researched and written and should be considered as a textbook in any course that takes a serious look at the Qur’an. It would be valuable to students at both a college and seminary level.
