EMQ » July–September 2023 » Volume 59 Issue 3
A Concise Guide to the Life of Muhammad
By Ayman S. Ibrahim
Baker Academic, 2022
218 pages
US$24.99
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Reviewed by David Cashin, professor of intercultural studies at Columbia International University, who served nine years in Bangladesh and is also the author of a book on the life of Muhammad, Muhammad and the People of the Book.
This volume is the latest book from Dr. Ayman S. Ibrahim, who is a professor at Southern Seminary and a well-published author on themes of Islam and Christian outreach to Muslims. I review as one who has published on the life of Muhammad. This is an excellent shorter work where the author focuses on 30 key questions relating to the life of Muhammad and the nature of his message in the Qur’an. Though relatively brief, Dr. Ibrahim brings solid scholarship and an easy-to-read style to his topic including new information that I found helpful.
Each chapter of the book is brief, 4–6 pages, dealing with a key question concerning the life of Muhammad and his message. He does a good job of illustrating critical historical issues in each chapter, and provides good follow-up sources for deeper study.
He introduces us to the aspects of Muhammad’s life that would be most important to Muslims. His brief chapters on the lack of a historical Mecca, the history of the black stone in the Ka’aba, and the veneration of Muhammad give a focus that Muslims would be deeply interested in. He does a remarkable job of illustrating the many contradictions in the Islamic sources regarding these topics.
For example, the idea that Muhammad was a perfect Muslim from the beginning is contradicted both by the Qur’an (where he is instructed to abandon idols) and the Hadith. Ibrahim’s mastery of these sources makes his book a disturbing read for a Muslim. His section on the “Satanic verses” is particularly helpful as is his discussion of the death of Muhammad. There is much in the Islamic sources that does not make sense, and he illustrates this well without a polemic tone. This would be a good book to share with a Muslim friend.
The final section of the book deals with Islamic doctrines. Dr. Ibrahim does an excellent job of illustrating the Muslim misunderstanding of the Christian doctrine of the Trinity and the nature of God (Allah) in Islamic thinking. His study of Muslim views of Jesus is a powerful apologetic and deals with many of the Islamic polemic points, such as Muhammad in the Bible. His chapter on Khutba or Islamic sermons is a jewel concerning an issue I had never thought of. He points out that Muhammad would have preached over 500 khutbas in Medina during his ten years there, yet not a single one is recorded anywhere in Islamic traditions.
This little volume has much to teach both the novice and expert. He introduces us to some of the debates going on inside of Islam, particularly the movement to reject Hadith as inventions of a later age. This book is a great starting point for those beginning their exploration of Islam, and its prophet.
EMQ, Volume 59, Issue 3. Copyright © 2023 by Missio Nexus. All rights reserved. Not to be reproduced or copied in any form without written permission from Missio Nexus. Email: EMQ@MissioNexus.org.
