Guidelines on Muslim evangelism strategies

DRAFT FOR CONSULTATION

We encourage Christians to actively participate in Muslim evangelism. It brings us great joy to see God raising up laborers to enter into His harvest among the unreached Muslims throughout the world. At the same time, we also recognize the potential for dangerous misunderstandings to occur as a result of certain contextualization strategies. In view of problems that have emerged, we feel it necessary to articulate the following boundaries in Muslim evangelism to help Christian evangelists remain biblical in their approaches.

Statements of faith regarding Islam
- The Quran is not the inspired word of God. The Bible is the inspired word of God, and is the only authority for our beliefs, values and practices.
- Muhammad is not a genuine prophet of God.
- Islam is not the true way that may lead its believers and followers to heaven or to a relationship with the true God, or to salvation, or to forgiveness of sins.

Expression of core beliefs
Christians should not give the impression that the core beliefs of Christians and Muslims are the same, and must make clear the differences between these core beliefs in the following aspects:
• The attributes of God [2]
• The identity of Jesus [3]
• The status of the Quran [4]
• The identity of Muhammad [5]

Participation in Muslim religious practices [6]
• Christian evangelists should not convert to Islam in order to win Muslims to Jesus Christ.
• Christian evangelists should not participate, nor should they teach converts to continue participating, in the Muslim worship at the mosque.
• Christian evangelists should not recite, nor should they teach converts to continue reciting, the Muslim creed (Shahada): “There is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger”.
• If Christians participate in biblically permissible Muslim practices (e.g. fasting during Ramadan and avoiding pork and alcohol) they should communicate that it is not about earning salvific merit with God.

Self-identification
• Christian evangelists should not identify themselves as Muslims.
• Christian evangelists should not teach converts to continue identifying themselves as Muslims in terms of faith commitment.
• The identity of Christians should include identification with other followers of Jesus Christ around the world.

Bible Translations
• Christians should reject any Bible translations in any language that remove or replace the words “Father” and “Son” in relation to God the Father and Jesus Christ.

Integrity
• We reject any deception by saying things that we do not believe whatever the purpose.

[1] Notes for the guidelines: We are committed to work in ways that communicate respect for culture and mores as far as they are biblical and do not affirm adherence to Islam. Besides the statements of faith, most of the issues relate to what means are permissible without conveying meaning that is not intended and unbiblical. Just because a person has been genuinely saved, it does not follow that the means employed are desirable, reproducible, or to be emulated. Any number of conversions of Muslims by a strategy does not necessarily mean that the strategy is biblically permissible or that it is sustainable.
 
[2] There are major differences between the attributes of the God whom Christians worship and those of the God (Allah) whom Muslims worship.
[3] Jesus of the Bible is not the same as Isa of the Quran.
[4] The Quran was not divinely inspired and does not have equal nor higher authority than the Bible.
[5] Muhammad was not a genuine prophet of God following Biblical traditions.
[6] This is not to say that Muslim background Christians early in their conversion might not continue to participate in these temporarily. It is to say that Christian evangelists should not teach such participation.

Why the preachers were stopped. It was the Muslim cop!

The Daily Mail reports, on 02nd June 2008,"Two Christian preachers were stopped from handing out Bible extracts by police because they were in a Muslim area, it was claimed yesterday.

They say they were told by a Muslim police community support officer that they could not preach there and that attempting to convert Muslims to Christianity was a hate crime.

The community officer is also said to have told the two men: 'You have been warned. If you come back here and get beat up, well, you have been warned.'

A police constable who was present during the incident in the Alum Rock area of Birmingham is also alleged to have told the preachers not to return to the district.

It comes amid growing concern over the development of Islamic 'no-go areas'.

The preachers, Americans Arthur Cunningham and Joseph Abraham, are demanding an apology and compensation from West Midlands Police.

They say their treatment breaks the Human Rights Act, which guarantees freedom of religious expression.

The preachers, who have the backing of the Christian Institute pressure group, say they will take the force to court for breaching their human rights if they don't receive an apology.

They have accused the officer, PCSO Naeem Naguthney, of behaving in an 'aggressive and threatening' manner. A complaint by their lawyers said he interrupted as they spoke to Muslim youths about their beliefs.

Mr Abraham, 65, who was born a Muslim in Egypt and is a convert to Christianity, said: 'He told us we were trying to convert Muslims to Christianity and that that was a hate crime.

'He was very intimidating and it concerns me that somebody holding his views can become a police officer, albeit at PCSO level.'

Mr Cunningham, 48, a fellow American Baptist missionary, said: 'He realised we were Americans and then started ranting at us about George Bush and American foreign policy.

'He said we were in a Muslim area and were not allowed to spread our Christian message. He said he was going to take us to the police station.'

Mr Cunningham added: 'I am dumfounded that the police seem so nonchalant. They seem content not to make it clear that what we were doing was perfectly legal. This is a free country and to suggest we were guilty of a hate crime for spreading God's word is outrageous.'

According to a complaint by the men's lawyers, Mr Naguthney summoned two other officers in support, one of whom, a full constable, is said to have told the men not to return to the area.

Mr Naguthney, 30, was recruited as a community support officer last year after being unemployed for eight months.

Earlier this year, he had a prominent role at a conference to launch the West Midlands branch of the National Association of Muslim Police. He gave a reading from the Koran before the audience heard a recorded contribution from Gordon Brown, a speech from Home Office Minister Tony McNulty, and contributions from several chief constables.

Mr Naguthney declined to discuss the row.

His brother, Nadeem, said: 'Naeem is a community man, that is why he joined the police.'

The Alum Rock area was at the heart of a terrorism inquiry last year, which ended with the conviction of local resident Parviz Khan for plotting to kidnap and behead a British soldier.

A senior Church of England bishop, the Right Reverend Michael Nazir-Ali, warned recently that it is hard for non-Muslims to live and work in some areas where radicals and clerics are trying to impose an Islamic character.

A West Midlands Police spokesman said an investigation into the complaint had concluded that the PCSO had acted 'with the best of intentions' when he 'intervened to diffuse a heated argument between two groups of men'.

A statement added: 'Following this investigation, the PCSO has been offered guidance about what constitutes a hate crime and advice on communication style.'"

I hope they told him it is not shari'a law he is to enforce.

Evangelism- christiansquoting.org.uk

Our Presbyterian forefathers are good caretakers of our ancient fireplaces, but many of them haven't started a fire in quite some time. --Rice Brooks

"...if some are evangelists then is it their job to preach the gospel and be responsible for the work of evangelism rather than every Christian? I remember well when this idea first came to us. It was welcomed with open arms. Everyone immediately discovered they didn't have to bother unless they were 'evangelists'. They were equally certain that none of them was! It was the only time in the history of the country when we were left with no 'evangelists' - (except me, and I had to because I was the Director of the Department of Evangelism!). What a great foolishness it all was."--John Chapman

We are not sent to get galley-slaves for the oars, or a bear to the stake: but He sends us to woo you as spouses, to marry you to Christ. - WALTER CRADOCK

[Christ] feeds and gathers at once, and this gathering of souls is as sweetly refreshing and delightsome to our blessed Lord Jesus , as the plucking of the sweetest flower is to a man walking in a garden. And there is nothing more acceptable and welcome to him, than a seeking sinner....So long as our Lord Jesus has a church and ordinances in it, so he will continue to gather [his people], and he is not idle, but is still gathering; though at some times, and in some places, this may be more sensible and abundant than ordinary. - JAMES DURHAM

As the devil showed great skill in tempting men to perdition., equal skill ought to be shown in saving them. The devil studied the nature of each man, seized upon the traits of his soul, adjusted himself to them and insinuated himself gradually into his victims's confidence -- suggesting splendors to the ambitious, gain to the covetous, delight to the sensuous, and a false appearance of piety to the pious -- and a winner of souls ought to act in the same cautious and skillful way.
Ignatius Loyola (1491-1556)

Every generation of Christians has this problem of learning how to speak meaningfully to its own age. It cannot be solved without an understanding of the changing existential situation which it faces. If we are to communicate the Christian faith effectively, therefore, we must know and understand the thought forms of our own generation.--Francis A. Schaeffer (Escape From Reason, Introduction)

Books read in December 2007 (10)

1. Evangelicalism in Britain, 1935-95: A Personal Sketch by Oliver R. Barclay

Barclay starts with,"In the late 1920s, Hensley Henson, the then Bishop of Durham, famously described evangelicals as 'an army of illiterates generalled by octogenarians'. ... In the 1990s the situation is clearly very different." Reading this modern historical study of 60 years of growth of evangelicalism is most encouraging. It is easy, from a decent distance in time, to have a good perspective on the history of centuries before one's time, but being close to the history of one's own time, a view with real depth of perspective is more difficult. Barclay manages this well . he writes with personal knowledge of the people involved. his perspective is English and Anglican so coverage of the other UK countries is thinner as are comments on the charismatic movement where Barclay was not so involved. Ten years after this book was published, things have moved on. here you will find no New Perspective on Paul nor Emerging Church, but you will have a superb overview of how evangelical Christianity has developed and grown in the U.K. since its low point in the 1920s and you will get to know more about the characters involved . Here also is wise counsel on the strengths and weaknesses of the older and the more modern developments in evangelical belief and life. For example,
"Evangelicals are not good at the compromises that are a necessary part of practical politics, because they tend to want to fight for a totally Christian solution, and therefore often get nothing. The nineteenth century reformer such as Wilberforce and Shaftesbury knew how to get something rather than nothing and then how to build on that progressively, even though they were sometimes misunderstood as compromisers by their contemporaries. They also knew how to pitch their campaigns so as to win the support of many who would not be in agreement doctrinally."
Barclay also shows how the academics are often behind the times. After WWI, society was disillusioned with the previous optimism about human progress but the academics still clung on to an optimistic liberal theology. Their students though were increasingly coming to an evangelical faith still scorned by the academics.


2. A Delicious Slice of Johnners by Brian Johnston

I know of only one book funnier than this one, "1066 and All That". This book is autobiography, history of the BBC, a compendium of cricket history and stories plus a treasure trove of humour which will serve as an good resource for all after dinner speakers or any one who loves to relate a good joke or cricket tale. Th author was an Eton and Oxford man, who on demobilisation from the army after WWII, found, through his old boy network, employment in BBC radio outside broadcasts. The delightful world of the old BBC radio is related before the author goes on to fame as a cricket commentator. He enjoyed a happy family life with five children and he movingly relates the arrival of a daughter with Downs Syndrome. He writes in glowing terms of his local parish church though he was but a seasonal attender. If you ant to laugh out loud, their are few better treats than A Slice of Johnners. If you want great cricketing memories read this.


3. Without Roots: The West, Relativism, Christianity and Islam by Joseph Ratzinger and Marcello Pera

Pera is a philosopher and politician. He writes masterfully on Relaivism, Christianity and the West. He sees Europe as a culture demoralised by relativism. His critique is devastating. He sees little hope against a resurgent Islam. The Pope writes very well on The Spiritual Roots of Europe. Being who he is he is more restrained and certainly unlike, Pera, very quiet on Islam. Ratzinger shows a real understanding of Evangelicals and their message, much more so than the media critics of Bush. He would not agree with Pera on Iraq and later in the book disputes Pera's interesting idea of an established non-denominational Christianity as the civil religion of Europe. but then how could the Pope put his imprimatur on any church other than the Roman variety? After all is is the only true church is it not? Ratzinger gives a brilliant critique of secular muticulturalism and recalls Europe to Christian roots. He is a pope this Presbyterian can applaud.In the second half of the book the two men exchange one letter each. I wish it had been more and that an index had been added. An excellent book which should be read by all who care about the future of Europe.

4. Through Many Dangers: The Story of John Newton - Brian Edwards

I rarely pay a book the compliment of a second read but the opportunity to hear the author speak on Newton at Newton's old church in London prompted me to reread and i was not disappointed. This is not the up to date and scholarly work of Aitken but a good spiritual biography of a great and influential man whose life was turned around by that grace of God which newton praised in his famous hymn. The major shortcoming of this book is a lack of footnotes to source the quotes. Quotes are displayed in an unusual style and I did find one instance where they were opened and not closed. Minor factual criticism is over the contemporary use of tobacco. From Cowper's "Ode to TobaccO" which lauds its delights I cannot agree that Cowper considered pipe smoking as a foul practice or that he was derisive with his words, "Smoke-inhaling Bull". For two centuries Englishmen had enjoyed there pipes undisturbed except for the criticism of a certain king imported from Scotland. My only other dissent is a matter of taste over the architecture of St. Mary, Woolnoth. As Edwards is a pastor his biography does not give us the political depth of Aitken. But comparisons are odious. This is a biography written in a popular style which will be read to inform and will bless. I think you do get more of the words of Newton from this biographer.


5. Carey, Christ and Cultural Transformation by Ruth Mangalwadi, Vishal Mangalwadi

This brief excellent book is not so much a biography of Carey but rather a tribute to his vastly underestimated influence on modern India. It is all the better for being written by Indian Christians who share Carey's critique of Hinduism as the greatest problem which faces India. The book is as valuable for its explanation of Hinduism as for carey. I learned why this religion can have places for both pure wives and prostitutes, spirituality and sex manuals. This book is as much a critique of Hinduism as it is appreciation of the great missionary. Before I read this book I thought Carey the greatest missionary since Paul of Tarsus. This book confirms and strengthens my opinion. It starts with a quiz to bring out the wide effects of Carey's life and work. and earn him the accolade of the central character in the story of the modernization of India. His shortcomings are not glossed over both in the chapter about his first wife and the one describing him as a jar of clay. But this man plodded on despite all the adversities and trials which apart from physical torture and imprisonment, may exceed those of the great apostle himself. Carey is shown to be no mere preacher and translator but the man whose holistic view of the christian message did help transform India from the backward cash cow of the British Empire which it was on Carey's arrival. The copy I read was inscribed by the author, "For the regeneration of England". This tells how the Christian gospel, applied to all of life, is the only hope for real beneficial transformation in any culture. It also should squash any reader's appreciation of multiculturalism unless their view of this folly can encompass suttee and Juggernaut. I am left desiring more from the authors.

6. Manage Your Mood: Using Behavioural Activation to Manage Your Mood by David Veale , Rob Willson

Depression is a problem for many people. This book may well help. It gives good factual information on depression and how to help yourself overcome it. I only wish I could have read it more than thirty years ago. It tells you not to navel gaze when depressed. Do not seek to ascertain why you are depressed but instead do something to climb out of the slough of despond. if i have one criticism it would be that in doing so the authors fail to critique whether or not modern western society has wrong expectations of happiness. Some people need to start with the realisation that life is a bitch you have to live with. Doctors do not have panaceas to prescribe for all the trials of life. The help drugs may give, their limitations, problems and benefits are fairly related but what is strongly advocated is behavioral activation and cognitive behavioral therapy. Help is given to get the reader started. this is a book to give hope and help. If you are depressed, read and act. If you want to understand, help and counsel the depressed, this will be of benefit. The authors are not in any way religious but they have a holistic approach with a place for the spiritual. A professing Christian, skeptical of unbelieving psychiatry may read this book with benefit.

7. DICKIE BIRD: MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY by DICKIE BIRD

When one considers the nonentities who now get top honours one is left wondering why this greatest living Yorkshire-man is not Lord Bird of Barnsley. This book alone should have earned him a knighthood. It is a million times a better read than Rushdie who unlike Bird has brought no joy to Bradford. Bird soars. He is the sublime Yorkshire-man, the eccentric Englishman to perfection. To read him is to love him. Our greatest ever umpire and now a best-selling author too. Eee by gum. There's none to match him. Cricket history and funny stories here abound, all mixed with Yorkshire grit and common sense, an attribute sadly in short supply in our PC mad world. Fair and funny, a Bird to enrich the garden of life is Dickie.

8. Schott's Almanac 2008 by Ben Schott

I asked for this on my Christmas present list on the strength of an appealing advertisement on Classic FM. I was not disappointed. It is a traditional almanac with reviews of the past year and calendar information for the coming year. But it's delight is the esoteric lists it gives from past and present. One significant omission is a table for tax free day in different countries. I would also like some information on birth rates according to etnicity. This book is a mine of useless information and will be a great help to anyone wanting to compose a trivia quiz. I love it and may but it on myCchristmas list for the 2009 edition.

9. Scottish Life and Society: A Compendium of Scottish Ethnology: Scotland's Domestic Life v. 6 (Scottish Life & Society 6) by Susan Storrier

I got this book by mistake from the local library. I asked for the volume on religion but was sent this instead. however it proved to be a fascinating read on all aspects of Scottish domestic life with the possible exceptions of alcohol and tobacco which I think deserve inclusion. There is a comprehensive history here of all things domestic which will add to anyone's learning. Fof example I learned of Cromwell's tax on soap and Christmas banned in Scotland long before England's Commonwealth.

10. Absurd Adverts - Tobar Ltd.

Humourous ads, some deliberate, some by miatake. A goood laugh.

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A one sided view of conversion

While Muslims in the West make efforts to convert people to their faith, traditional Islamic countries have laws which prevent anyone trying to convert Muslims out of their faith. In Saudi Arabia and Malaysia, conversion of Muslims from their faith can lead to jail sentences.
In Algeria on March 15, the parliament introduced a bill which prevents anyone from apostasising from Islam to another faith. The bill was passed into law, and allows imprisonment of from two to five years and a fine of from $6,000 to $12,000 (US) for anyone "urging or forcing or tempting, to convert a Muslim to another religion."
Morocco has a similar law, which states that "anyone who employs incitements to shake the faith of a Muslim or to convert him to another religion" can be given a fine, and imprisoned for a maximum of six months.
Today, according to the Washington Post, Moroccan authorities state that a 64-year old German tourist has been jailed for six months and fined 500 dirhams ($60). The German man, Sadek Noshi Yassa, who is of Egyptian extraction, was sentenced on Tuesday evening at a court in Agadir on the southwestern coast.
The conviction came after news that some Christians had launched a secret campaign to convert thousands of Muslims to Christianity.
In neighboring Algeria, the March anti-conversion law had been introduced following an increase in Christian conversions in al-Qabayel in the east of Algeria. Before its independence in 1962, Algeria had hundreds of thousands of Christians, with 110 priests and 170 monks. Now less than 11,000 Christians live there.
In other news from Morocco, an imam was arrested on Monday in the northern city of Tetouan, accused of recruiting young men to become suicide bombers in Iraq, states Associated Press. The imam, named as Abdelilah, led prayers at a mosque in Mezouak, a slum on the outskirts of Tetouan city.
The interior ministry in Morocco has claimed on Monday that authorities have arrested 317 suspected Islamic radicals since August this year.
- Adrian Morgan, Spero News

Books read in November 2006 (2)

1. The Political Animal: An Anatomy by Jeremy Paxman

What makes for a politician? According to Paxo it is ambition, drive and liking to hear your own voice. To get to the top he unearths the surprising statistic that you most likely will have lost a parent, especially a father, when young. Paxman writes well in an entertaining fashion so he is a pleasure to read. He charts how one becomes an MP and the duties involved. It is not a family friendly life. Conformity is required, enforced by the whips. If one conforms one may rise to ministerial office and the ministerial life is surveyed all the way up to prime minister. Life beyond office or parliament is also examined. The treatment is both sympathetic and critical. Corruption is shown to be rare. What Paxo omits is the commoner, more hum drum life in local politics. Councillors are too dull beasts for the top journalist. Yet many who become MPs follow the local government route, even those from political dynasties like the Benn family.
I have experience of Paxo's subject. When a councillor I failed to get past the selection weekend and onto the Conservative's approved list of candidates. On reflection and reading Paxo I conclude I lacked ambition. It is the sine qua non, that and self confidence. I am not strong there too when it comes to new ventures. Nor am I a conformist. I am not sorry the Conservatives turned me down. Now I have returned the compliment. They are a New Labour tribute band

2. Simply Christian by Tom Wright

The publishers think this is the most thrilling attempt to re-express the heart of the Christian faith since C S Lewis. I am not so sure. There is much to commend in this book. This Bishop of Durham is thankfully a long way from his predecessor but one, Jenkins, the liberal mocker of biblical Christianity. Wright will be regarded as evangelical . But though he here attempts to reach non-Christians with the gospel by starting where he thinks they are longing for justice, relationships, and beauty I wonder how many non-Christians would take the time and make the effort to read this book. I think it is well written. it is not hard to read and grasp. he has a freshness of approach and some excellent illustrations. But it is a long wat removed from a simple presentation of the ABC of the gospel.
If I understand Wright's new perspective on Paul correctly, Wright has moved from a forensic understanding of justification to one of being included in the covenant community. This seems to be worked out in this book for the emphasis is more on being part of the covenant community, the church, than on sin borne by Christ in our place and God pronouncing us the recipients of Christ's righteousness.
The index gives us some idea of what Wright does not talk about. Sin gets three mentions starting 7/8 of the way through the book. To be fair, the index has missed at least two earlier uses but the fact remains, Wright is not dealing with man's rebellion against God. Where is grace? No-where except under means of grace. There is nothing on wrath, judgment or hell. So I ask is this not a watered down presentation of part of the Christian message to make it more palatable?
I would also take exception to his teaching on the Lord's Supper as it really plays down the differences between Rome and the Protestant churches. One might on the basis of this book aks if the bishop really believes what the 39 Articles of his church say, especially on the mass. Rome seems to have no blasphemous fables any more. He also divorces the sacrament from proclaiming the word of Scripture.
So, in conclusion, there is much that is very good indeed in this book. It is a great voice against Enlightenment rationalism and individualistic Christianity. But it has some omissions which make me sad. I think Wright is moving away from historic reformed Christianity, but he remains much better on the faith than your average bishop.


In over a year of reading, this has been my least read month. There are several reasons.
1. In winter I cannot sit outside and read while having a pipe in the garden
2. At least two lunchtimes in each week I have not been reading but visiting a housebound customer who lives on his own and has had multipe sclerosis for many years.
3.The other lunchtimes I have usually been sleepy. Katy tells me to go to the Quack and say I have sleep apnoea. I reply that is hearsay evidence only.
4. Evenings I have been researching the family genealogy. Over 500 in the family tree now.
5. I am working through a 700 plus page history.