Reaching Muslims

A one-stop guide for Christians

Nick Chatrath

• Publisher: Monarch Books
• Year: 2011
• eBook ISBN: 9780857210463
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Ministry

A fascinating introduction covering demography, theology, culture, politics, justice, and other aspects of Islamic identity. It is well illustrated with stories and examples. Nick considers what reasons a Muslim might have for thinking that Jesus is good news. What does the Qur'an say about Jesus? Why do we know that God loves Muslims? He then suggests thirteen 'No Regret Moves' to help build open-hearted friendships and to equip Christians to connect with Muslims, including: Pray in faith for open hearts; Foster curiosity; Show love in action; Invite others into The Story and your story. He deals with three theological hot potatoes - should Christians call God 'Allah'; should a convert from Islam be baptised; and should Christians eat halal meat? Detailed appendices provide sample talks for Muslim audiences, and offer seven specific ways to foster contact with the Muslim community.

Map-reading: What is Islam, and who are Muslims?

I moved house in 2005 to Oxford in the UK. I hardly knew the city, so when I received the keys to the house one of the first things I did was get a map. But what kind? A road map would have helped me find my way around. A tourist map would have pointed me to the colleges and museums. A map of bus or cycle routes would also have given me important information. Although the various maps have things in common, they are also quite different. And although each kind of map is accurate in its own way, none of them will tell you everything. (I ended up buying a road map, by the way.)

Similarly, although Muslims have much in common, the differences are also huge. Part 1 contains six maps, each of which introduces an aspect of Islam or Muslims. Taken together, the maps illustrate the extreme diversity to be found among Muslims. The maps are not exhaustive and their scopes overlap, in the same way that, for example, a street map may contain some, but not all, points of historical interest also contained in a tourist map.

Or to change the analogy, think about a precious jewel with many facets. Every Muslim is multifaceted, and this section will help you avoid reducing Islam or Muslims to any one of those facets, such as beliefs or practices.

I cannot underline enough the importance of getting to grips with maps like those in this section of the book. The value of what you will learn is not just in information gathering. These maps will help you ask good questions of Muslims, which will help you connect with them much more effectively. If we are excited about who Jesus is and what he has revealed (and as Christians we should be), surely the value of such connection is massive!

Before we proceed with these maps, two introductory points. First, a warning about generalizations. Many of us get most of our information about Islam from the media. But how accurate is what the media says about Christianity? None of us likes to be pigeon-holed. For example, in recent years the media has widely reported stories of child abuse associated with some members of the Roman Catholic Church, especially in the USA and Europe. Do Roman Catholic Christians, let alone other Christians, want to be tarred with this brush, as if all Christians acted like this and approved of it? Is this really representative of the behaviour of Catholics generally? Of course not. Similarly, we must resist most generalizations (good and bad) about Muslims, including cases where some hold views and have done things of which we would not approve. For this reason, each map that follows illustrates some things that are common among Muslims and some things that differ.

Second, the maps that follow describe aspects of Muslim worldviews. The Oxford English Dictionary defines “worldview” as a particular philosophy or view of life. Another way of thinking of a worldview is that it is a pair of glasses through which we view the world. Those glasses may include cultural, doctrinal, social, and other rules, but – and here’s the key – everyone has a worldview, and it affects how we behave. As we consider what the various maps tell us about Islam and Muslims, remember that a Muslim’s worldview will affect his or her behaviour. To put it another way, every one of the maps that follow affects what Muslims do.

Chapter 1

Stories and histories

What stories do Muslims tell? This chapter addresses two main kinds of story: ones about the past and, first, ones about the present. Here is a sample of stories that Muslims tell others and each other today:¹

• My family’s struggle. “You can’t imagine the war zones we fled from and the financial difficulties we have faced. It hasn’t been easy to make our way in life, or to be a Muslim, in such a non-Muslim society, especially one which is suspicious of us. The most important thing is to provide for our children and grandchildren, to give them a chance in life.”
• Family is everything. “Although we live across three apartments, all my extended family is close by – grandfather, grandmother, three uncles, two aunts, husband, four children, and one daughter-in-law. I have a lot of love in my life. Amid the turmoil of our nation and world, family is the stable centre of our lives.”²
• My parents just don’t get it. This is a common story among teenagers and those in their twenties. It can work in two very different ways. “Islam is too serious; I just want to have some fun.” Or, “My parents aren’t morally observant; I’m returning to a pure, proper form of Islam.” This last quote will come across as counter-intuitive to those who view teens and twenties as lazy, unfocused and apathetic. But a considerable number of young Muslims are fervent about their faith. For example, the influence of extremist student Islamic reform movements in some universities is very strong. A clear, purposeful call to teenagers to be serious about Islamic observance can seem inspiring to them, especially when presented in combination with the next two stories.
• Victim. “9/11 has really put pressure on us, not because we’re Pakistani, but as Muslims. Government’s always questioning everything we do these days: what goes on in mosques, in homes, in schools – everywhere. It’s like, as Muslims, we’re Public Enemy Number One. It gets to you. It’s bound to get to you. You try to shrug it off, but it keeps coming back at you, keeps getting worse.”³ In many cases the stories of Islam are against “the West” or “Western oppressors”. For many Muslims Western equals Christian. I have heard the language of victimhood (and expression of related feelings) from educated and less educated Muslims alike. Whether this is a real discrimination is not the point. When felt, the sense of being a victim is powerful. Add to this media reporting about Islamophobia and minority identity, and you have fuel on the fire of a sense of separateness. When beginning to get to know Muslims, remember that if you are a Westerner you may be in goodwill overdraft before you begin.
• Social glue. “I volunteer my time to Muslim Global Relief, get health advice from the Muslim Health Network, and make charitable donations to the Babylon Academy so that others can learn Arabic. My children go to Muslim schools along with many others on my street, and my son has a prayer timetable on his iPhone. Last month, shortly after my youngest was born, we conducted the shaving of the head ceremony, followed by having an animal sacrificed and distributed among friends, family, and the poor. Every now and then, I join my Muslim brothers to eat together in the community hall next to the mosque, especially in the evenings during Ramadan. Two of the most important meals we share together as a community are Eid al-Fitr and Eid al-Adha.”⁴
• Islam as power against evil. “The evil eye in my taxi keeps me safe. By placing a plaque with words from the Quran above the door of my house, I ensure my family is protected against demons.” For some Muslims, Islam functions as a more or less well defined protection mechanism.
• What a glorious past we have. “Stories of the Prophet Muhammad give me inspiration and guidance and give our community a sense of identity. The expansion of the Islamic empire in the decades following Muhammad’s death shows the power of Islam. The rich civilizations Muslims produced are proof of Islam’s greatness, which laid the foundations for the best of Western civilization today. Even amid the dark challenges of history such as the Crusades and the Mongol conquests, Muslims could not be kept down. We survived, flourished, and rose to positions of influence once more.”
• Power and confidence. “We are rich and have returned to the pure roots of our faith. The West is decadent, sexually promiscuous, and morally corrupt. Islam has always been strong enough to expand. We are here to stay, growing in numbers and influence.”
• I am part of a global community of believers. “I have a common bond with my Muslim brothers and sisters. When they were attacked in Bosnia, Sudan, Iraq, and Afghanistan, I felt their pain and suffering.” Muslims are generally very aware of stories relating to fellow Muslims in other parts of the world. The strength of solidarity between Western Muslims and non-Western ones can often surprise non-Muslims, and the umma (the Islamic term for the global community of believers) is a key part of the reason for that solidarity.

Some of these stories are whispered quietly. Others are shouted for all to hear. Whatever the volume, the impact of such stories is deafening. One of the delightful things about stories is that you can’t neatly put them in a box.⁵ Whether in closed communities or out in the open in the public sphere, narrative has a way of shaping and influencing us extremely strongly, often in ways we cannot predict.

In order to understand your Muslim neighbour, college friend, or work colleague well, ask about the stories that have shaped and currently shape his or her life. Don’t be afraid of doing this. We all have stories to tell. Say things like, “Tell me about your children,” or, “What do you think about how Muslims are perceived?” Muslims will not bite your head off. They are friendly, generous, hospitable, hurting, wonderful people – in short, in many ways just like you and me.

Many of the above stories are related to the stories of early Islam. (You might call this “histories of Islam”.) Although Islam is very varied, most versions of it flow from common roots relating to the Quran, Muhammad, and early Muslims.⁶ The stories of Muhammad and the early Muslims (see boxes) are extremely important to most Muslims.

Muhammad

The early life of Muhammad, born in Mecca (in what is now Saudi Arabia) in roughly AD 570, gave little clue to the impact he would have as founder of the Muslim faith. To the north, the competing Byzantine and Sasanian empires were slowly disintegrating. In his early twenties, Muhammad married the wealthy widow Khadija. When meditating at Mount Hira (this was not uncommon locally), Muhammad was said to have been summoned to his calling as a prophet by the Angel Gabriel. In the next twelve years (610–622), Muhammad was in Mecca, where, apart from among his family and close friends, there was little positive response to his preaching. Next, Muhammad moved to Medina (also in what is now Saudi Arabia), where he became a figure of significant influence in Arabia and where more people pledged allegiance to Muhammed and what he stood for, including some who came from Mecca. Muhammad lived in Medina until his death in 632.

Early Muslims

Muhammad’s death left his followers divided as...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Praise
• About the Author
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• Foreword by Dr R. T. Kendall
• Introduction
• Part 1 Map-reading: What is Islam, and who are Muslims?
• Part 2 Developing open-hearted friendships: Tips for connecting with Muslims
• Part 3 Seeing Jesus afresh: Outlines to help Muslims
• Part 4 Hot potatoes: Some questions arising for Christians on aspects of Islam
• Conclusion
• Glossary of terms
• 1: Study guides
• 2: Useful resources
• 3: Further guidance for preachers: Use stories and be mindful of non-Western perspectives
• 4: Further guidance for church leaders: Decide the level of priority that Muslim outreach has and will have in your church
• Notes