A Brief Study and Critique on The Differences between the Bible and the Qur’an

Abstract

In this paper, the writer would like to address the issue of the sacred texts between Christianity and Islam for it is the matter of the doctrinal foundation of both world giant religions. The content will briefly focus on three areas of the sacred texts: The formation, the consistency, and the test of their validity and authority. The main purpose of the paper is aiming at critical explanation or clarification and affirmation of the credibility as well as authority of the Bible and the Qur’an. Also, the study of sacred texts can be used as a common ground for Christian-Islam dialogue. From the comparative survey on the key differences between the Qur’an and the Bible as briefly presented in this paper, some practical implications are drawn as follows: First, for the purpose of edification, Christian believers, at all ages, SHOULD, even MUST, take more time in biblical and theological training wherever and whenever possible. And surely this task is not preserved only for seminarians alone, rather, all local churches should design and carry out trainnings that consolidate Christian pure faith and doctrine for all of their church members. Second, for the purpose of apologetics, Christians not only preserve their faith and doctrine from within the church but also protect or defend their truth and cause against the fierce attacks from without. Until our Lord returns, the academic and polemic confrontation between Islam and Christianity constantly exists as an irresistible reality. Thus, more than ever, Christians scholars as well as ordinary believers need to equip themselves with foundational understanding of both Christian and Islamic doctrines. Third, for the purpose of Christian evangelism, the content of Qur’an offers a lot of texts or verses that can be effectively used as a starting point and common ground or bridge for the Christians to approach the Muslims.