About the book

The introduction sets the scene for the book using quotations from various authors to illustrate the contrasting responses of various Evangelical Christians to the events and aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on New York in 2001. It then gives a brief history of Evangelical engagement with Muslims from the Protestant Reformation, through the Protestant missionary movement to the present day especially mentioning the lives and work of Henry Martyn, Karl Pfander, Temple Gairdner and Samuel Zwemer. The chapter then discusses the definition of Evangelicalism and gives a rationale for who is included in the book. This includes some who would not call themselves Evangelicals or who are even post-Evangelical. Yet the people in this book are included because they recognize one another as family. They talk to one another, write about each other and attack one another because it seems to matter. It is a sibling camaraderie – and rivalry. Intro video

The first section of the book provides the theoretical backdrop for the rest of the book, introducing the concept of the ‘micro public sphere’ that has developed amongst Evangelicals as they discuss Islam and some of the typologies that emerge.

Drawing on the work of Jürgen Habermas and Nancy Fraser this chapter discusses the concept of the ‘public sphere’ or ‘subaltern counterpublic’ as the site of public opinion formation in society. This is developed using ideas from John Keane and Gerard Hauser into the notion of ‘micro public spheres’ which are latticed together in networks. Each public sphere coalesces around issues of concern and attracts participants who circulate texts as part of rational debate. Evangelicals discussing Islam are an example of one such sphere. Within it, individuals and groups have coalesced around the topic of Islam and are concerned to influence others and form opinions. They publish books, write in magazines, post on the internet, speak at conferences, teach in colleges and visit churches. This sphere is certainly neither united nor uniform but the debates and conversations within it inevitably feed into the wider public sphere that affects us all. Ch.1 video

Various typologies have been constructed to explain the encounter between those of different faiths. This chapter looks at typologies created by Clinton Bennett, Martin Accad, Peter Berger, Ashlee Quosigk and Alan Race, several of which describe the extremes of conciliatory and irenic or confrontational and polemic responses to Islam. It particularly discusses the concept of Islamophobia and presents the open and closed views of Islam described by the original Runnymede report, ‘Islamophobia – a challenge to us all’ in 1997. The terminology developed in this chapter is used throughout the book to describe the opposing views and approaches of Evangelicals towards Muslims, from critical and confrontational to affirming and conciliatory. The chapter then explores some of the factors that lie behind different Evangelical responses and attitudes to Islam including political views (especially concerning immigration), social context, experience of Muslims and theology of religions. Ch.2 video

Each chapter in Part II addresses an important theme in relation to Evangelical views and approaches to Muslims. The issue is presented and the reactions of different participants in the sphere explored using quotations from published texts and online material. In each case there is a clear range of responses from the critical to the affirming. Each chapter concludes with a discussion of the implications of the different approaches for the future of Christian-Muslim relations.

‘Who is Allah?’ For many Evangelicals, there is no more fundamental question between the two faiths than whether they are worshiping the same God. The issue is firstly used as a worked example of how this religious micro-public sphere works using examples of how different Evangelicals react to one another’s texts. It then examines the presenting question drawing on etymology, linguistics, philosophy, analogy, history, theology – especially the Trinity and incarnation – phenomenology and missiology. Answers to it range from ‘yes, but he’s different’ through to ‘no, Allah is a demon’, an ‘idol’ represented by the crescent moon or a false god. These opposing answers put Evangelicals in two very different positions. Are Muslims on the same page as Christians? Or are they serving the enemy? The answer determines many of the debates in the chapters to come and has far reaching implications for our common life. Ch.3 video

‘Who was Muhammad?’ Of almost equal import to the identity of Allah is the character and inspiration of the Muslim prophet in the eyes of Evangelicals. Some seek to ‘unveil the true Muhammad’ as being womanising, warring and a false prophet. Others follow revisionist scholarship questioning his very historicity. Still others attempt a more positive assessment of the benefits Muhammad brought in his time and the way in which he pointed to the worship of one God. No Evangelical goes as far as to say that he was a true prophet or to concede that his coming was predicted by Jesus, as Muslims claim. Nothing is more inflammatory for Muslims than attacks on the person of Muhammad and Evangelical answers to this question go a long way to deciding the relationship between the two communities. However, there are important questions to consider around the limits of free speech and blasphemy. Ch.4 video

‘What is the Qur’an?’ In Muslim eyes, it is the unmediated word of God, yet closely associated with the person of Muhammad. An attack on the Qur’an is an attack on him – and vice versa. Many Evangelicals have indeed criticized or even physically desecrated it. Others, however, engage with it as a serious text, written with good intentions, and see it as a potential bridge to the Christian Gospel. Interpretation of revelation is of crucial importance and the chapter discusses abrogation and the occasions of revelation. It also looks at how some Evangelicals read the Qur’an alongside the Bible, often in the Scriptural Reasoning tradition. The chapter also deals with Evangelical views of the Hadith. All see the Hadith as problematic and an impediment to the modernization of Islam. Of particular concern is that genuine questioning of the texts should not be restricted by accusations of Orientalism. Ch.5 video

‘Is there a place for the Sharia today?’ Evangelicals have many concerns about what is often called ‘Islamic law’, not least those living in Muslim-majority societies. Whilst not uniform, its treatment of individual freedoms, women, slavery, apostasy – which is punished by the death penalty for men – and non-Muslims are frequently compared unfavourably with international norms such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). There are even concerns that the Sharia might be introduced by stealth in the West as part of a process of ‘Islamization’. Whilst not all Evangelicals are so alarmed, there are few that attempt a defence of the Sharia or who would be willing to see it incorporated into Western legal systems. Ch.6 video

‘How do we know who we are? How do we form our identity?’ Islam is a very visible religion. From halal food laws, adhan prayer call, speaking Arabic and wearing hijab or niqab to mosques, education and associations, Muslims form a distinctive ‘tribe’. Evangelicals, on the other hand, are not nearly so visible. To what degree do Evangelicals feel threatened by this visibility? In fact, is the proliferation of such symbols part of a Muslim conspiracy for the Islamization of the West? Many Evangelicals believe it is and they fear that the multiculturalist policies of western governments have allowed this process to go unchecked leading to the formation of ‘parallel communities’ segregated from the mainstream of society. Ch.7 video

‘How are Christian minorities and converts treated in Muslim contexts?’ Arguably, no other issue informs the impression of ordinary grassroots Evangelicals regarding Islam more than the reports of the ‘suffering church’, blasphemy laws being misused and horrifying stories of persecution, martyrs and even genocide, most of all involving those who have converted to Christianity from Islam. Many Evangelicals see the causes of such treatment as lying solely in the texts and laws of Islam, especially the treatment of dhimmi communities under the Pact of ‘Umar. Some, however, see political motivations and believe that the West must bear some of the blame, pointing to the poor treatment of Muslim minorities in some places. They stress that demands for reciprocity should include Christian advocacy concerning the suffering and Islamophobia faced by Muslims in western contexts and not just the case of Christian minorities. This is after all the Golden Rule. Ch.8 video

‘Is Islam inherently violent?’ Some Evangelicals find no shortage of texts in the Qur’an and Hadith, as well as examples from history and the life of Muhammad, to suggest that it is. They roll war, violence and jihad into one and see acts of terror and suicide bombings as mandated by Islam to achieve world domination. Other Evangelicals strongly disagree. They point out that, despite what the texts might say, not all Muslims are violent and they believe that Western policies have created global injustices that lie behind much of the violence. Of course, Christians themselves are no strangers to violence, as the Crusades and western colonialism attest. So, some Evangelicals who lean towards pacifism, are critical of Christian support for western wars in Muslim contexts and see the imposition of democracy and western hegemony by force as being hypocritical, self-interested, state-sponsored violence. Ch.9 video

‘How does the Israel-Palestine issue affect Evangelical views of Muslim?’ It has been an intractable issue on the world stage since 1948. Many Evangelicals have a particular interest in it because of their support for Zionism, the influence of dispensationalism or their focus on eschatology concerning the ‘Holy Land’. For them, the return of the Jews to the ‘Promised Land’ is a miracle presaging the return of Jesus as Messiah ushering in the End Times. Palestinian Muslims are clearly an obstacle in the way of this plan and Islam, which they believe teaches antisemitism, may even turn out to be the Beast of Revelation, with the Muslim Mahdi emerging as the Antichrist. Other Evangelicals are appalled by these views on the grounds of both their theology and focus on justice. Whilst seeking peace, they work to support the Palestinians and see Christian Zionism as a major hindrance to Muslims accepting the gospel. Ch.10 video

‘What is Islam?’ The final chapter of this section asks the question that inevitably arises from and underlies all the preceding issues. What do Evangelicals believe Islam to be? Is it a heresy, inspired by the devil with a demon god at its head? Is it a manmade ideology which employs taqiya and lying as part of a conspiracy to undermine democratic norms? Is there an essence of Islam and are there ‘real’ Muslims? Or, on the other hand, is there diversity with many different human manifestations of Islam which can be understood by employing the social sciences and especially anthropology? Are ‘folk Islam’ and Sufism valid forms of Islam or is Islamism the only true Islam? Again, the Evangelical public sphere is divided and on the answer to this question hangs much of what follows in the final section. Ch.11 video

The final part of the book gives an overview of how different Evangelicals approach Muslims in the light of the above beliefs and attitudes. They might believe that they all have the same mission but that is expressed in many ways. This overview will put us in a position to draw out the main characteristics and tensions of Evangelical responses, allowing us to propose a series of ‘ideal types’ illustrating different positions before moving on to a brief discussion of future implications.

All Evangelicals, by definition, are committed to evangelism and seek conversions. This requires Evangelicals to talk with Muslims, but the manner in which they do so varies enormously. All Evangelicals to some extent engage in preaching, befriending and sharing the gospel with Muslims. Some engage in formal inter-faith dialogue with Muslims but others see this as being a dangerous compromise and even consider that Muslims may not be honest in their dialogue and are practising taqiya. These Evangelicals tend to favour debate and polemics whereby they seek to undermine Islam. However, there is sharp disagreement amongst Evangelicals about how effective or desirable all these different strategies may be. Ch.12 video

The chapter begins with a brief presentation of signs that conversion to Christianity is taking place amongst Muslims in larger numbers than ever before and explores why this may be. Ever since the rise of the Protestant mission movement Evangelicals have travelled overseas to engage in mission amongst Muslims. This has involved contextualizing the gospel for other cultures. But are there limits to this contextualization? Some missionaries today encourage new Muslim followers of Jesus to remain within the Muslim community to form what are known as ‘Insider Movements’. Others are extremely concerned that this will lead to syncretism and what is known as ‘Chrislam’. The dispute is becoming increasingly bitter. However, some Evangelicals now have ethical concerns over the strategies that are used and emphasise the importance of integrity, peacemaking, reconciliation and seeking the common good. Others see this is a distraction from evangelism or even a capitulation to Islam. Ch.13 video

This is not a prose chapter but rather a graphic presentation of the tensions between Evangelicals in their responses to Islam that have been seen in the preceding chapters. Tables give a series of dyads or poles, representing the various views and approaches Evangelicals take to Islam and Muslims. At one end are those who are conciliatory, irenic or even progressive. At the other end are those who are confrontationist, polemic and reactionary. Between them lie the pragmatists who can see all sides of the argument. These dyads then provide a diagnostic tool to create a series of descriptions or types that represent different Evangelical responses to Islam.

The conclusion emphasizes again the divided nature of the Evangelical public sphere concerned with Islam and reprises the three elements of a public sphere: text, participants and issue. It briefly mentions some important topics not dealt with in the book including convert care, the growth of the church in the Global South, racism, colonialism, gender, sexuality and the environment. As the Evangelical public sphere discusses these issues in relation to Islam and in the presence of Muslims, there is much that the wider public sphere might learn from the debate. There is also a need for honest, rigorous research and education on all these issues including how Christians might offer Muslims and others ‘risky hospitality’ which requires ‘dangerous humility’. With both communities in different ways ‘at the crossroads’, will Evangelicals agree on what the ‘way of the cross’ means for them in relation to Muslims? Video coming soon