The Dalit Background of South Asian Islam

It is well-known that Islam in South Asia has a structured caste system (there is even a Wikipedia article about it!). I contend that the caste issue in Islam is essential for those seeking to share the gospel with the Muslims of South Asia. In brief, it seems that lower-caste Muslims have been the most receptive to the message of Jesus. This blog post explores this phenomenon. This blog post describes three aspects of the Dalit background of South Asian Islam:

  1. Casteism in South Asia: Ashraf, Ajlaf, and Arzal.
  2. The conversion of Dalits to Islam during the Delhi Sultanate.
  3. Historic People Movements to Christ in South Asia.

Casteism in South Asian Islam

Casteism in South Asian Islam is a complex and multifaceted issue. I am providing only the broadest strokes here. South Asian Islam is broadly broken down into three categories:

  1. Ashraf are the descendants of foreign Muslims who emigrated to South Asia, such as Arabs, Persians, and Mongols. Ashraf Muslims are considered high-caste Muslims, with different ethnic backgrounds having higher and lower ranks. The highest caste in South Asia are the Sayyid, who claim descendency from the Qureshi tribe of Saudi Arabia. While Ashraf are only about 15% of Indian Muslims, they dominate the leadership in Muslim organizations, whether religious or secular. During Partition, more Ashraf had the financial capacity to emigrate to Pakistan, so the rate of Ashraf there is higher than in India. 
  2. Ajlaf are Hindu converts to Islam who are indigenous to South Asia. Historically, lower-caste Hindus more readily converted to Islam, so there are few Brahmans among the Ajlaf, but there are numerous Rajputs in certain areas. Together the Ajlaf and Arzal are about 85% of Indian Muslims. It is difficult to determine the percent difference between Ajlaf and Arzal, although the percentage of Arzal is much higher.
  3. Arzal are Dalit converts to Islam who are indigenous to South Asia. Historically, many Dalits have abandoned Hinduism to see if they could find favor in other religions. Many Dalits have converted to various religions in South Asian history. B.R. Ambedkar’s conversion to Buddhism in 1956 with 500,000 supporters is perhaps the most famous historical movement of Dalit conversion. Although it is difficult to find accurate historical data, I contend that Arzal Muslims are the most common Muslim community in many areas in South Asia.

The Conversion of Dalits to Islam during the Delhi Sultanate

The most considerable shift in South Asian history of conversions to Islam occurred during the Delhi Sultanate period from 1206-1526 AD. During this period, Muslim rulers from Central Asia dominated Pakistan and North India. Their rule created a period in which Sufi mystics could freely travel and propagate Islam. As they spread the message of Islam, the Islamic government in South Asia began policies that were favorable to conversion to Islam. 

For example, Muinuddin Chisthti (1143-1236 AD) journeyed to Ajmer to spread Islam in 1192 AD. Around that time, Afghani warlords conquered North India. Muinuddin Chisthti then formed the largest Sufi movement in South Asia. He is considered the seventeenth mystic in the Chishti silsila. During the Delhi Sultanate, the four most significant Sufi mystics in South Asian history lived and ministered. They are the seventeenth to twentieth figures in the Chishti silsila. 

  1. Moinuddin Chishti (1143-1236 AD), whose dargah is in Ajmer, Rajasthan, India.
  2. Qutubuddin Bakhtiar Kaki (1173-1235 AD), whose dargah is in Meherauli in Delhi, India. 
  3. Baba Farid (1173-1266 AD), whose dargah is in Pakpattan, Punja, Pakistan.
  4. Nizamuddin Auliya (1238-1325 AD), whose dargah is in Nizamuddin in Delhi, India. 

The modus operandi of these Sufis was to feed the poor through their langar (i.e., soup kitchens), live among the people as mystics, and proclaim Islam. The Islam proclaimed by these men was syncretized with Hinduism leading to disciples who were partially Muslim and partially Hindu. These men often clashed with the orthodox Muslims of their time regarding their theology and practice. For example, these men loved singing praises to Muhammad and Allah and using musical instruments, which orthodox Muslims condemned as haram. 

Nizamuddin Auliya is famous for developing 700 lieutenants who went and formed 700 langars across South Asia as points to practice and proclaim Sufi Islam. These Sufis focused on ministry to the poor, which would have made the Dalit population their primary focus. These men were quite successful in developing other leaders to follow their model. The combination of Muslim rule and Sufi preaching led many Dalits and Hindus to convert to Islam. 

The syncretized nature of the preaching of these Sufis is one reason folk Islam is so dominant in South Asia (more on folk Islam here – there are 12 linked articles on folk Islam). It was not until the reform movements of the 1800s that widespread efforts emerged to convert folk Muslims to a more orthodox brand of their faith. In fact, Maulana Muhammad Ilyas, the founder of the Tablighi Jamaat movement, is known for his rallying cry, “O Muslims, become Muslims!” By this, Ilyas meant that Muslims should abandon folk religion, study the Qur’an and Hadith, and practice Islam according to Hanafi tradition. Dr. Zakir Naik, a famous South Asian Muslim apologist, is likewise known for his attacks on folk Islam. However, his brand of Islam (Salafi) is also at odds with the Hanafi traditions of Tablighi Jamaat.

While most Muslims in South Asia gravitate towards folk Islam, the percentages are changing. Every year, more and more folk Muslims begin reading the Qur’an and reject South Asian traditional Islam. This conflict is famously described in the disputes between the Bareilvi and Deobandi reform movements. 

However, my point in this blog post is that vast areas exist today, especially in rural South Asia, where most Muslims are Arzal-background folk Muslims with little knowledge of the Qur’an and Hadith. Instead, they continue to practice Islam according to the folk Islamic traditions passed down. 

Historic People Movements to Christ in Asia

In 1933, J. Waksom Pickett wrote his seminal Christian Mass Movements in India (you can download a PDF here). He described how people groups had come to Christ in large numbers from particular people groups in South Asia in previous years. In 1979, Pickett’s disciple, Donald McGavran, wrote that “in only twenty-one of the more than three thousand ethnic groups of India do Christians form any considerable proportion of the total population… In more than 2900 castes and tribes there are practically no Christians at all” (Ethnic Realities and the Church, 28). According to Pickett and McGavran, these people movements had primarily been Dalit movements to Christ. 

The phenomenon of Dalits leaving Hinduism has been widely studied. These people are considered to be even below the caste system, being “untouchable.” Being untouchable meant Dalits have no hope or future in their religion. B.R. Ambedkar (d. 1956) was a Dalit political leader who wrote and argued along these lines. Shortly before his death, Ambedkar converted to Buddhism with 500,000 supporters. Throughout South Asian history, Dalits have left Hinduism for every other religion, hoping to find a better hope and a future elsewhere. 

Dalit form a large portion of South Asian populations. In India, Dalits are called “scheduled castes” and formed 16.6% of the population in the 2011 Census. However, the number should be considered higher because this 16.6% does not include Dalits who have left Hinduism to become Buddhist, Muslim Christian, or Sikh. The percentage of Dalits in Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan, and other South Asian countries is hard to determine. 

Returning to the point that many South Asian Christians are from Dalit backgrounds, Pakistan is a good case study. The vast majority of Pakistan’s more than four million Christians descend from the “Sialkot movement” that began in 1874 and swept through the Chamar caste, which is considered Dalit. Likewise, many “people movements” to Christ in South Asia have a high Dalit background. 

The result is that there are many places in South Asia where significant portions of Dalit-background Christians and Dalit-background Muslims live nearby. Culturally and linguistically, there are very few barriers between these communities. It seems likely that as these Christians grow strong in their faith that they will be evangelistically effective in impacting the Dalit-background Muslims in their proximity. Likewise, suppose the Muslim populations were to grow strong in Islam through the efforts of groups like Tablighi Jamaat. In that case, it seems likely that the Muslim people would effectively bring many of these Christians into the fold of Islam. 

To my mind, circumstances where large numbers of Dalit-background Christians and Dalit-background Muslims live in proximity provide the greatest evangelistic opportunity among Muslims in South Asia today. Opportunities like these abound. One goal should be to identify these opportunities and take advantage of them. Significant effort will be required, but significant potential exists. In these circumstances, it seems likely that Muslims will readily accept the gospel. Still, the most essential difficulties will be providing discipleship and church formation opportunities. 

While pursuing opportunities like these, we must acknowledge that these issues will be sensitive. Many Christians do not like discussing their Dalit history for good reasons! They left those things behind and were made royal priests in the kingdom of God. In our faith, we do not have a distinction of castes. We are all one. Therefore, some consider any discussion of these caste issues and dynamics a regression. While I agree with those concerns, an opportunity remains. 

The question is: How can we train movements to Christ in proximity to large groups of Muslims to cross over to their Muslim neighbors?

Ten Ancient Manuscripts of the Qur’an

Recent research indicates that the Qur’an has thousands of textual variants and changes. In fact, the Qur’an that is used today around the world does not seem to be based on the ancient manuscripts, but rather on oral transmission through Hafiz. The result is that the Qur’an that is used today has faced changes. If you want a primer on textual criticism of the Qur’an, I suggest this 21-minute video of Dr. Jay Smith discussing these issues: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52PEVUpJBtk

I have extensively studied New Testament textual criticism, which is a study and comparison of New Testament manuscripts. These studies have led me to have a curiosity about the ancient manuscripts of the Qur’an. Since I know Greek, I can easily access ancient copies of the New Testament, especially through the online portal of the Center for the Study of New Testament manuscripts. However, I am not aware of any such portal that exists for ancient copies of the Qur’an.

Today, I asked Google’s Bard AI program to develop a table of the fifty oldest manuscripts of the Qur’an. Bard was able to provide a table of ten such manuscripts. In contrast, we have details of thousands of ancient manuscripts of the New Testament. This contrast clearly demonstrates the differences in relative values of studying the most ancient copies of their holy books between the Muslim community and the Christian community.

Here is the table that Bard developed:

ManuscriptLocationDateFeatures
Birmingham Quran ManuscriptBirmingham University Library, UK568-645 ADWritten in Hijazi script, one of the oldest forms of Arabic script.
Sana’a ManuscriptNational Library of Yemen, Sana’a650-670 ADContains the oldest known variant readings of the Quran.
Leningrad Quran ManuscriptRussian National Library, Saint Petersburg700-750 ADOne of the most complete Quranic manuscripts.
Topkapi Quran ManuscriptTopkapi Palace Museum, Istanbul800-850 ADDecorated with gold and silver calligraphy.
Samarkand Kufic Quran ManuscriptState Museum of Oriental Art, Moscow900-950 ADWritten in Kufic script, an early form of Arabic calligraphy.
Gotthelf Bergsträßer ArchiveUniversity of Münster, Germany1000-1050 ADContains a variety of Quranic manuscripts, including fragments, codices, and amulets.
Mingana Quran ManuscriptChester Beatty Library, Dublin1100-1150 ADWritten on parchment, which is made from animal skin.
Dublin Quran ManuscriptChester Beatty Library, Dublin1200-1250 ADOne of the most complete Quranic manuscripts.
Mosque of the Prophet Quran ManuscriptMasjid al-Nabawi, Medina1300-1350 ADWritten on parchment, which is made from animal skin.
Mosque of Omar Quran ManuscriptAl-Aqsa Mosque, Jerusalem1400-1450 ADWritten on parchment, which is made from animal skin.
The ten most ancient copies of the Qur’an with details (developed by Bard)

Here are a few reflections on these manuscripts before delving in more fully.

  1. The lack of a more developed list shows the lack of value among Muslim scholars in studying ancient copies of the Qur’an. Instead, most Muslims depend on Hafiz (students who have memorized the Qur’an) to provide an accurate transmission of the Qur’an. Therefore, Muslims prefer to depend on oral, rather than written, transmission of the Qur’an.
  2. It is almost impossible to have intelligent conversations about Quranic textual criticism. Most Muslim scholars have chosen not to explore this data. Instead, they simply say, “The Qur’an has never changed.” The feeling is that if they repeat that mantra, and ignore any evidence, that the problem will go away.
  3. More and more people are looking at Quranic textual criticism. People are completing PhDs on this topic and books are being published, mostly by non-Muslims. In fact, it seems that a number of Christians are studying in this field because they have skill regarding textual criticism because of their studies of the Bible using this approach. However, it seems to me that most Muslims simply see that as an attack on their religion by outsiders rather than a genuine engagement with data.
  4. I believe that the narrative will change over the next 20 years and that it will be generally acknowledged soon that the Qur’an has a textual history. After all, even Sahih al-Bukhari acknowledges the textual history of the Qur’an by telling the story of Caliph Uthman having the Hafiz of his time make an authoritative version of the Qur’an, burning the ancient copies, and sending his authoritative version to each of the Muslim provinces. Many Muslims still argue that the Topkapi and Samarkand manuscripts are Uthmanic recensions, even though the field of Quranic textual criticism has not only debunked that statement but also shown that there are a great deal of textual variants between those two manuscripts.

In summary, the Qur’an has a textual history. While Muslim leaders continue to push their narrative that the Qur’an has been faithfully transmitted without any change of any kind, the evidence is clearly against them. It seems like that a generation of Muslim youth will be confronted with this data and begin to ask intelligent questions. It will be interesting to see how the Muslim world responds to widespread doubt about the origins of the Qur’an.

Details about a Few of these Quranic Manuscripts

Birmingham Quran Manuscript. The oldest manuscript of the Qur’an indicates many textual variants in the Qur’an. The Birmingham Quran Manuscript, also known as the Mingana Quran, is believed to be one of the oldest surviving copies of the Quran. The manuscript was discovered in 1932 by Alphonse Mingana, an Iraqi scholar, during his visit to the University of Birmingham’s Mingana Collection of Middle Eastern Manuscripts. It consists of two leaves of parchment, written in an early form of the Arabic script known as Hijazi. Radiocarbon dating conducted in 2015 placed its origin between 568 and 645 AD, making it potentially older than any other known Quranic manuscript (click here for data on this dating this manuscript). The online portal to the Birmingham Qur’an manuscript is available here. Dr. Alba Fedeli is one of the foremost scholars on this manuscript. Her conclusions are available here: https://etheses.bham.ac.uk/id/eprint/5864/ A cursory scan of Dr. Fedeli’s work shows that she spent well over a hundred pages of this work detailing textual variants in early manuscripts of the Qur’an.

The Sana’a Manuscript. The second oldest manuscript of the Qur’an indicates even more textual variants. The Sana’a Manuscript, also known as the Sana’a Palimpsest, is a significant collection of ancient Quranic fragments discovered in the Great Mosque of Sana’a, Yemen, in the 1970s. The Sana’a Manuscript consists of parchment sheets reused for writing purposes, resulting in a palimpsest. Underneath the visible text, scholars discovered a previous layer of text that had been erased and overwritten. This discovery has allowed researchers to study the evolution and variation of the Quranic text. The manuscript’s textual variants and orthographic features suggest that the Quranic text underwent changes and revisions during its early transmission. These variations challenge the traditional Islamic belief in the Quran’s textual preservation and the absence of any changes over time. There have been many videos made to help people understand that the Sana’a manuscript very clearly demonstrates that many textual variants in the ancient Qur’an. Here is one video that I have enjoyed on this subject: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvPMDyBlUPA

The Leningrad Qur’an Manuscript. The Leningrad Qur’an Manuscript, also known as the Leningrad Codex, is an important manuscript that contains the complete text of the Qur’an. It was probably copied in Cairo in the 9th century AD, during the Abbasid period of Islamic history. The manuscript was written in Arabic and is currently in Saint Petersburg, Russia. It seems that this manuscript has not been well studied since data on it is difficult to find.

The Topkapi Manuscript. The Topkapi Manuscript, also referred to as the Topkapi Codex, is believed to date back to the early 9th century AD, making it one of the oldest known Quranic manuscripts. The Topkapi Manuscript consists of 99 leaves and contains Surahs 17 to 36 of the Qur’an. It is written on parchment and utilizes the Kufic script, which was prevalent during that period. The manuscript’s text lacks diacritical marks and vowel indicators, typical of early Quranic manuscripts. One distinctive feature of the Topkapi Manuscript is that it includes various annotations and corrections, demonstrating the scribal practices and textual development of the Quran during that era. These annotations provide valuable insights into the early transmission and recording of the Quranic text. Many Muslims argue that this is the best and earliest of the Quranic texts. While a book has been written detailing the textual variants of this manuscript, most find the cost of that book prohibitive from purchasing it: https://www.ircica.org/publications/studies-on-the-holy-quran/al-mushaf-al-sharif-topkapi-palace-museum-library-madina-nr-1

The Samarkand Manuscript. The Samarkand Manuscript, also known as the Samarqand Mushaf, is named after the city of Samarkand in present-day Uzbekistan, where it is currently housed.The manuscript is believed to have been written in the 8th century CE and is attributed to the Umayyad period of Islamic history. It consists of two volumes, with Volume 1 containing 282 parchment leaves and Volume 2 containing 268 leaves. The Samarkand Manuscript is written in the Kufic script, which was a prevalent style of Arabic calligraphy during that time. Recent studies indicate that the Samarkand Manuscript has many more variants than the Topkapi manuscript.

86 Common Terms in Muselmani English

This blog post is a strange one! It is my first blog post that is me simply reporting a Chat GPT conversation. Lately, I have been using Chat GPT as one research tool. It can synthesize a great deal of information in a short period of time. Today, I asked Chat GPT a question, and I thought you all might appreciate the response.

My Question to Chat GPT: “I am trying to understand a new dialect of English that I call Muselmani English. My experience is that many Muslims insert a great deal of Arabic terms into English, especially when they are speaking about religious things. Could you provide a list of the 100 most common Arabic terms that English-speaking Muslims tend to insert into English?”

Chat GPT’s response is the rest of this blog post: Certainly! It’s important to note that the usage of Arabic terms in English can vary among English-speaking Muslims, and not all Muslims use these terms in their everyday conversations. However, I can provide you with a list of commonly used Arabic terms that some English-speaking Muslims may incorporate into their speech, particularly when discussing religious matters. Here are 100 such terms:

  1. Allah (God)
  2. Alhamdulillah (Praise be to Allah)
  3. InshaAllah (If Allah wills)
  4. SubhanAllah (Glory be to Allah)
  5. MashAllah (What Allah has willed)
  6. Astaghfirullah (I seek forgiveness from Allah)
  7. Salam (Peace)
  8. Assalamu Alaikum (Peace be upon you)
  9. JazakAllah Khair (May Allah reward you with goodness)
  10. MashaAllah (What Allah has willed)
  11. Allahu Akbar (Allah is the Greatest)
  12. Bismillah (In the name of Allah)
  13. Hadith (Sayings and actions of Prophet Muhammad)
  14. Sunnah (Prophetic tradition)
  15. Quran (The Islamic holy book)
  16. Sadaqah (Voluntary charity)
  17. Zakat (Obligatory charity)
  18. Fajr (Dawn prayer)
  19. Dhuhr (Midday prayer)
  20. Asr (Afternoon prayer)
  21. Maghrib (Evening prayer)
  22. Isha (Night prayer)
  23. Taraweeh (Nightly Ramadan prayer)
  24. Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca)
  25. Umrah (Minor pilgrimage)
  26. Eid (Religious festival)
  27. Shahada (Testimony of faith)
  28. Halal (Permissible according to Islamic law)
  29. Haram (Prohibited according to Islamic law)
  30. Wudu (Ablution)
  31. Sadaqah al-Fitr (Charity given at the end of Ramadan)
  32. Taqwa (God-consciousness)
  33. Tawhid (Monotheism)
  34. Shirk (Associating partners with Allah)
  35. Barakah (Divine blessing)
  36. Dua (Supplication)
  37. Imam (Religious leader)
  38. Madrasah (Islamic school)
  39. Muezzin (Person who calls to prayer)
  40. Qibla (Direction of the Kaaba in Mecca)
  41. Sira (Biography of Prophet Muhammad)
  42. Tafsir (Quranic interpretation)
  43. Hijab (Head covering)
  44. Niqab (Face covering)
  45. Ramadan (Islamic month of fasting)
  46. Iftar (Breaking the fast)
  47. Suhoor (Pre-dawn meal)
  48. Laylat al-Qadr (Night of Power)
  49. Qiyamah (Resurrection)
  50. Jannah (Paradise)
  51. Jahannam (Hell)
  52. Mahr (Dowry)
  53. Ameen (Amen)
  54. Fitnah (Trial or tribulation)
  55. Itikaf (Seclusion in the mosque)
  56. Khutbah (Sermon)
  57. Sadaqah Jariyah (Continuous charity)
  58. Taubah (Repentance)
  59. Zikr (Remembrance of Allah)
  60. Mufti (Islamic scholar)
  61. Ummah (Muslim community)
  62. Wali (Guardian or saint)
  63. Dawah (Propagation of Islam)
  64. Fatwa (Legal ruling)
  65. Halaqah (Religious study circle)
  66. Iman

(Faith) 67. Ihsan (Excellence in worship)

  1. Istikhara (Seeking guidance from Allah)
  2. Masjid (Mosque)
  3. Mubah (Permissible)
  4. Qadr (Divine decree)
  5. Sajdah (Prostration)
  6. Shura (Consultation)
  7. Tawakkul (Reliance on Allah)
  8. Ummi (Illiterate)
  9. Witr (Odd-numbered prayer)
  10. Ta’ala (Exalted)
  11. Sahaba (Companions of the Prophet)
  12. Sahih (Authentic)
  13. Bid’ah (Innovation)
  14. Khutbah (Friday sermon)
  15. Waliullah (Friend of Allah)
  16. Fard (Obligatory)
  17. Tawbah (Repentance)
  18. Azan (Call to prayer)
  19. Fitra (Charity given on Eid)

[Note that ChatGPT could only provide 86 terms, even though I asked for 100! Do you know of anything else that belongs on the list?]

Six Initial Reflections on the Urdu Common Version Translation of the New Testament

I recently encountered the Urdu Common Version translation by Biblica. You can find it here in the Apple store and here in the Google Play store. So, I distributed the app to a few friends and colleagues to begin getting feedback. Of course, people started asking for my feedback almost immediately. Unfortunately, I have only read Matthew 1-3 and flipped through other verses. As I read more, I may come and write another blog post as my understanding of this translation grows. 

Please note that I am transliterating phrases from the UCV into Roman Urdu here (with English glosses in parentheses). Some readers understand Urdu in the Nastaliq script, and others can only read it in Devnagri. Thankfully, the UCV is in both Nastaliq and Devnagri scripts! But I know that all the readers here understand Roman Urdu. 

So, I am writing to move the conversation forward. I honestly believe the UCV might become my translation of choice for work among South Asian Muslims.

I have six initial reflections on this new translation.

First, I like the contextualization of this translation. For example, here are a few of the translation decisions in the UCV.

  • “Isa” for “Jesus.” The name of Jesus usually has the tag “Hazoor” (Persian term for honor) attached, but sometimes “Hazrat” (another Persian term for honor) is used (See my note below on the inconsistent use of Hazrat in this translation). The translators of the UCV generally prefer Hazoor for Jesus over Hazrat to indicate that Jesus is worthy of more honor than any other prophet. I love that translation decision. It is something small, but I like the implications. 
  • “Al-Maseeh” for “Christ.” Many Urdu translations use “Maseeh,” which has a more Christian sound. Most of my Muslim friends prefer to add the prefix “al,” which is simply the Arabic for “the.” There is no shift in meaning, but this small change gives this a better contextualization flavor.
  • “Khuda” for “God.” Khuda is a Persian word for the almighty. Traditionally, most Urdu translations have used this term for God. Another Muselmani Urdu translation primarily uses Allah for God, which also has strengths. The only issue is that more and more Muslims in South Asia are switching from using Khuda to Allah. Some Muslims have come to believe that Khuda is now a Christianese term (a term that Christians rather than Muslims use). Therefore, many Muslims might find the word “Khuda” a foreign-sounding term. 
  • “Khudawand” is used for “Lord.” This choice is faithful to the intent of the original authors of the New Testament in the implications of the Lordship of Jesus. For example, in Romans 1:1, Khudawand Isa al-Maseeh is used for “Lord Jesus Christ.” I enjoy that this translation uses a term as strong as Khudawand for the Lordship of Jesus since this term implies His deity. 
  • The tag Hazrat is applied to various prophets/leaders of the Old Testament. In South Asia, most Muslims attach “Hazrat” before the name of a prophet and “alayhi salaam” (may the peace of Allah be upon him) after the name of the prophet. Many Muslims find it disrespectful of the prophets when we do not follow this custom. The translators of the UCV seem to have found a good balance here by using the “Hazrat” and omitting the “alayhi salaam.” I believe this will cause most Muslim readers to see that the prophets are being respected while not inserting too much into the text. From a contextualization standpoint, I love the insertion of “Hazrat” in this translation. However, my biblicist side hates seeing an extra term repeatedly inserted into the text. The UCV translators have done as well as can be expected to find a middle ground on these two poles. 
  • “Pak-Gusl” for “baptism.” Traditional Urdu translations transliterate the Greek word “baptismos” into Urdu as “baptisma” rather than translating this term. But “Baptisma” is an entirely foreign term and concept for Muslims. However, the ritual washings of gusl and wudu are common among Muslims. A “pak-gusl” (holy bath) clarifies that the text does not refer to the normal gusl used in Islam but something distinct. Therefore, “pak-gusl” is a great term to use for baptism.
  • “Yahya” for John the Baptist’s name. The UCV does a great job of using the Arabic names of prophets that will be familiar to Muslims. I was recently reading Matthew 3 with a Muslim-background believer. That translation used “Yahunna baptisma denewala.” This phrase meant nothing to my MBB friend. But my friend understood when I explained that it was about Hazrat Yahya, who gave a special pak-gusl for repentance. 
  • “Khuda ka beta” is used for “Son of God.” Muslim-friendly translations sometimes seek to obscure fundamental biblical truths, such as the fatherhood of God and the Sonship of Jesus. I am very thankful that the UCV provides the most precise and straightforward translation calling Jesus the Son of God. 

Second, there are a few areas where the contextualization of the UCV translation needs to be improved. Please note that the positives on contextualization are much higher than the negatives! Here are two areas I have noticed so far.

  • Naya Ahadnama instead of Injeel Shareef. I have only seen one paper copy of the New Testament UCV. On the cover, they used the term “Naya Ahadnama,” meaning “New Testament.” The issue with this term is that it bears no significance or meaning to a Muslim audience. If a Muslim sees a Naya Ahadnama, they see a book about which there is no meaning. If they know the term Naya Ahadnama, they understand it is a book for Christians rather than Muslims. Instead, Injeel Shareef is the common term Muslims use for the book of Jesus. When Muslims see the Injeel Shareef, they understand that this book is significant for their community. Therefore, it would be a better contextualization practice to use that term.
  • Allah for God. I understand that there are significant controversies around the word Allah. Half of me thinks that Khuda is the best term to use in a translation like this, and half think Allah is the best. In many contexts, especially in Muslim-majority areas, I fear this translation will fail to gain traction because of the use of Khuda over Allah. In South Asia, Muslims are beginning to trend away from using Khuda and towards Allah in their regular use. 

Third, I am overall pleased with the readability of the UCV, but I have noticed some Christianese remaining. By Christianese, I mean terms that Muslims will not understand but that Christians easily understand. In those cases, there are often better terms to utilize in the Muslim context. While I have found the UCV easy to read overall, here are a few areas where I would have appreciated improvement. 

  • Use of the term rastabaz for righteous. This term occurs in Mathew 1:19 as a description of Yusef/Joseph and in Matthew 3:15, when Jesus asked Yahya/John to baptize him to fulfill all righteousness. In my experience, Urdu-speaking Christians understand the term rastabaz Urdu-speaking Muslims do not. Other terms could be utilized, depending on how the term “righteous” is being used in context, such as the Urdu “nek” or “sadiq.” 
  • Use of “Aap.” An uncommon usage of the Urdu “aap” is to use it in a very respectful way in place of “us” or “un.” The issue is that this is not a very common way to use “aap.” Those who are educated will understand, while those with less education may have difficulty with this term. Let me give on example of how the UCV uses “Aap” in this way. In Matthew 1:6, “Hazrat Daud se Hazrat Suleiman paida hue, aap ki maa pehle Uriyah ki bivi ti.” While this usage is technically correct and highly respectful language, it slightly obscures the meaning. If we obscure too much in a text, the meaning becomes harder and harder for those of low education to understand. A perennial issue in translations in South Asia is a preference towards high language that many need help understanding. Translators should avoid high Urdu terms to make the text more accessible. 

Fourth, I always see weaknesses in the biblical accuracy of translations not done from the original language. Let me give a few indications that the translators did not do this translation from Greek.

  • The insertion of police in Matthew 2:16. The UCV reads that Herod “sipahi bhej kar” (sent police/constables) to kill the children two and under. The Greek text does not mention who was sent, just that Herod sent unnamed people to kill the children. However, the BSI/PBS translations say that Herod sent “admi” (men) to kill the children. While it cannot be conclusively shown from one or two examples, it appears likely that the translators of the UCV leaned heavily on other translations rather than going to the original Greek.
    • BSI means the Bible Society of India; PBS means the Pakistan Bible Society. 
  • The obliqueness of Matthew 1:6. The Greek text boldly declares that “David fathered Solomon by Uriah’s wife.” The Greek text seems to point out the offense of what had happened and the greatness of God that He worked through such a genealogy to bring for Jesus. However, the BSI/PBS translations sought to dull the offense of this passage by saying, “aur Daud se Suleman us aurat se paida hua jo pehle Uriyah ki bivi thi” (and David begot Solomon by that woman who was previously the wife of Uriah). The UCV follows the BSI/PBS very closely, while staying far from the clear Greek text. The UCV translates this as “Hazrat Daud se hazrat Suleiman paida hua, aap ki maa pehle Uriyah ki bivi thi” (Hazrat David fathered hazrat Solomon, whose mother was previously the wife of Uriah”). When I read these texts in parallel, it seems to me that the translators had the PBS and BSI translations in their hands rather than the Greek New Testament.

However, I have always been something of a biblicist. So, I may be too strict here. I dislike it when people obscure the Word of God. It is one of the reasons that I learned Greek because I wanted to see the Word of God without looking through the lens of a translator. Neither of these two examples changes the meaning of the text much. However, there is a danger of simply building new translations on top of old ones rather than returning to the sources. 

Fifth, I am still trying to figure out the inconsistent uses of Hazrat and Hazoor in the UCV. They may include an explanation somewhere. Here are a few of the most interesting examples for me:

  • It was odd that they use Hazrat al-Maseeh about Jesus in Matthew 2:4, when they consistently use Hazoor Isa elsewhere. They want to show the distinctiveness of Jesus by using a different term for him, so why the change in Matthew 2:4? 
  • They call the following unlikely people Hazrat in the genealogy of Matthew 1:2-17: Boaz (1:5), Obed (1:5), Jesse (1:6), Zerubabbel (1:13), Azor (1:14), and Jacob, the father of Joseph (1:16). By affixing Hazrat to these men, they are ascribing them as spiritual leaders or prophets of some type. Of these, I was most perplexed by Azor, about whom we know nothing. Why did they randomly ascribe this title to him? What was the reasoning?
  • At the same time, consider the omission of Hazrat before the following people: Jeremiah (Matt 2:17), Isaiah (Matt 3:3), the Twelve Apostles (Matt 10:2-4), Paul (Acts 13:13), and the Old Testament kings after Solomon (Matt 1:7-11). If the translators used the term Hazrat to show the prophetic nature of a person, surely Jeremiah and Isaiah deserve inclusion, right? The exclusion of the apostles is also striking since it reduces them below Old Testament figures.
  • But think for a moment, Hazrat Azor (Matt 1:14), but not Hazrat Isaiah? Hazrat Zerubabbel but not Hazrat Paul? It’s just strange to me.
  • Another strange example is that Joseph, Mary’s husband, is called Hazrat Yusef/Joseph (Matthew 1:18-25; 2:13, 19, 21). He heard directly from angels and from God in dreams in Matthew 1-2, which would make him a prophet according to Islam… but I have never heard a biblical teaching trying to defend him as a prophet. 

In the end, I would like to re-evaluate how the translators have chosen to utilize the term Hazrat or at least hear a better rationale for their usage of this term.

Sixth, I appreciate the footnotes of the UCV that provide helpful explanations of terms that Muslims would not understand. For example, Matthew 3:7 introduces the Pharisees. A footnote says, “Pharisi yaani yahudiyon ka ek tabka jo shariat ke aleem aur ustad the,” which accurately describes Pharisees as teachings and experts of the Law. It would have been helpful to say that they were experts of the Law of Moses. However, I am thankful for the inclusion of such footnotes. I am also grateful that the translators did not attempt to insert all their comments inside the text. They understood a healthy separation between translating the text and including helpful information in footnotes. 

Overall, I am pleased with the UCV translation. As I said, I need to read further, but it may become my translation of choice. If you want to discuss this translation further, please write to me at nocousinsleft@protonmail.com.

How to Learn Greek Without Seminary

Learning Greek is an important skill but will also take a great deal of time.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Over the years, I have had many people come to me and ask how to learn biblical Greek. Their purpose is to understand the New Testament better and thus honor God in their spiritual lives. 

However, learning a new language takes a lot of work. People usually go to seminary to learn Greek. In full disclosure, I learned most of my Greek at a seminary. However, I also learned that most seminary students fail to gain significant proficiency in biblical languages. Instead, seminary students learn enough to pass their Greek and Hebrew classes. They often desire to return later and brush up on Greek and Hebrew, but the pressures of ministry rarely leave them with the time to do so. 

When I went to seminary, I determined to learn Greek well enough to read the Greek New Testament devotionally. Since I did not have a suitable pathway for this, I decided to give an hour a day studying Greek or the New Testament in Greek for five years. While my seminary studies were a significant part of the first few years of this process, I continued my studies diligently during summer breaks and for years after my Greek classes finished. While I learned much of my Greek at seminary, I grew even more as a student of Greek outside of my classes. 

It took me about 4-5 years before I hit my goal of being able to read the Greek New Testament devotionally. My five years were roughly from 2006-2011. Twelve years later, my Greek skills are stronger than in 2011 because once you learn a language to that degree and can use it in your everyday life, your skill in the language continues to grow. 

So, the first thing you need to do to learn Greek is to decide to put in the hours. I probably logged over 2,000 hours in the Greek text over those five years, from 2006-2011. Since then, I have been in the Greek text for thousands more hours, as I have used it in regular Bible study. If you want to learn Greek, you need to put in the necessary time to do so.

The second thing you need is a pathway to learn Greek. It would be best if you had a way to use your hour a day well. Here is what I recommend.

A reader's Greek New Testament is helpful for students of Greek since it does not require that you know every Greek word. Instead, rarely used words are footnoted so you can gain fluency in reading.
  1. First, subscribe to Daily Dose of Greek. Daily Dose of Greek is a FREE daily video that walks through a verse of Scripture in Greek. It reads the text, translates it, and gives a few grammatical tips. Build a habit of watching these videos daily. Daily Dose of Greek will help you by sending a video to your e-mail inbox daily. https://dailydoseofgreek.com
  2. Second, get a handful of essential resources. You need a few things to help you learn Greek, which will cost some money. Invest the money in these resources. They are far cheaper than a seminary class.
    1. A Reader’s Greek New Testament. Reader’s Greek NTs are Greek New Testaments for beginners. They do a few things to make reading Greek text easier. First and foremost, they footnote any Greek word with a simple gloss (i.e., definition) used less than 30 times in the New Testament. These glosses make it so that someone with a basic understanding of Greek can begin reading without looking up every Greek word. Once you learn about 300 Greek words, you can start reading the New Testament.
      1. I recommend the UBS Reader’s Greek New Testament, which is $66.75 at Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/UBS-Revised-Greek-Testament-Readers/dp/3438051680/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1QIDIKF5YIKSL&keywords=readers+greek+new+testament&qid=1680653543&sprefix=readers+greek+new%2Caps%2C283&sr=8-3
      2. If that is too expensive, you can get Zondervan’s edition for a budget version for $37.49. https://www.amazon.com/Readers-Greek-New-Testament-Third/dp/0310516803/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1QIDIKF5YIKSL&keywords=readers+greek+new+testament&qid=1680653543&sprefix=readers+greek+new%2Caps%2C283&sr=8-1
    2. A basic Greek Grammar. I recommend https://www.amazon.com/Basics-Biblical-Greek-Grammar-Fourth/dp/0310537436/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2HKDCFM8A1ZJP&keywords=mounce+greek&qid=1681104793&sprefix=mounce+gree%2Caps%2C430&sr=8-1
    3. A workbook. The grammar text book above is paired with this workbook: https://www.amazon.com/Basics-Biblical-Greek-Workbook-Fourth/dp/0310537479/ref=d_bmx_dp_a136x8en_sccl_2_1/143-2372129-9606036?pd_rd_w=uRayN&content-id=amzn1.sym.0d1fa5f0-4888-492a-b542-cc9c7a30008b&pf_rd_p=0d1fa5f0-4888-492a-b542-cc9c7a30008b&pf_rd_r=8DM7QX2SKJJG0VV36CPB&pd_rd_wg=LoxdI&pd_rd_r=f4e4eb04-86dd-47c8-8a3c-d1ab94310542&pd_rd_i=0310537479&psc=1
      1. Long story short, if you only get the grammar and do not get the workbook, your chances of learning the language drop drastically.
    4. A lecture series. Here is a free lecture series by Bill Mounce, who wrote the grammar and workbook above, lecturing through those books. This course is a seminary-level education for free. If you buy those books, work through them, and take this free course, you will learn lots of Greek. https://www.biblicaltraining.org/learn/institute/nt201-biblical-greek/nt201-00-preview-biblical-greek
  3. Here are the competencies you need to develop in order:
    1. First, learn the Greek alphabet. Usually, the first chapter of your Greek Grammar will usually teach you the alphabet. If you cannot recognize the characters, you cannot move forward. I recommend using flash cards. It should take you only a short time to learn the alphabet. If you want to start this while getting other resources together, use this Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_alphabet
    2. Second, you need to undertake two simultaneous tasks:
      1. Learn Basic Grammar. You have two choices for learning Grammar: (1) learn from a textbook or (2) learn from videos. Some people may combine the two. See above for recommendations in the section on gathering resources. No matter what, you will need to work hard to learn.
      2. Memorize Greek vocabulary. Your goal should be to learn the 319 Greek words used at least 50 times in the NT. If you remember those 319 words, you will understand about 80% of the total words in the Greek NT (these 319 words account for 110,425 of the total 138,162 words in the NT!). A good Greek grammar book will help you to learn these words (For these stats, see William D. Mounce, Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar. Third Edition (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), 16). 
    3. Third, immerse yourself in the Greek New Testament. If you want to read the New Testament, try to read it from the beginning.
      1. Watching the Daily Dose of Greek videos is the easiest way to start reading the Greek NT. Make this part of your daily habit. Incorporate it into your quiet time. If you subscribe to that channel and watch their videos daily, you will move forward significantly in your ability to read biblical Greek.
      2. Begin reading through an easy book of the Greek NT. Read through it multiple times with a grammar in one hand and your NT in the other. I recommend using a Reader’s Greek NT so you can look up less vocab. Reading the Greek NT will initially seem frustrating and slow, but practice makes perfect. 
      3. Others have made good lists of which books you should read in what order. Here is my recommendation for the order of books you should try to read in the NT:
        1. 1 John – The most accessible book because of its relatively short length, easy vocabulary and grammar, and concrete statements.
        2. The Gospel of John – It is almost always easier to read narrative than epistles. John is much easier to read than the other gospels. 
        3. Philemon – Many of Paul’s books are also fairly easy to understand. Begin with Philemon since it is so short.
        4. Philippians or 1 Thessalonians – for Paul’s other short books, Philippians and 1 Thessalonians have relatively simple grammar and vocabulary.
        5. Mark – Mark is easier to read than Matthew or Luke, reading Mark will help you grow in your skills substantially.
        6. At this point, you can begin reading most books of the NT. You will still struggle with Luke, Acts, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, Jude, 2 Corinthians, and Hebrews until your Greek strengthens. Therefore, avoid reading those books in Greek until you become confident in other texts. 
Learning Greek requires that you work through numerous simple resources to gain fluency in the language. A workbook will help you with this process.

The tasks I have outlined above will take six months to a year, depending on your work. So, what next? Here are my recommended next steps:

  1. Be diligent to continue reading the Greek New Testament. Read the NT cover-to-cover over and over again. Go deep into a few books. Sometimes, do quick reads that gets through all of it. Other times, slow down and look up everything you do not understand.
    1. How do you look up what you do not understand? At this point, you may consider purchasing Bible software like Accordance. These programs are expensive, however. The cheaper way to do this is to use online tools like www.blueletterbible.org. Using the translation MGNT (Morphological Greek New Testament) on that site will break down every word and show you the lexical form, how it is parsed, etc. 
  2. Continue learning Greek vocabulary. At this point, continue learning Greek vocabulary primarily by reading the text, looking up words, and studying. If it is helpful, continue using flashcards and memorize more and more terms.
    1. At this point, you need to go beyond simple definitions of terms. Your next step is to buy an expensive book that is commonly called BDAG. While you may outgrow BDAG someday, it will become your most frequently used Greek book (along with Wallace below) for your next 5+ years of study. https://www.amazon.com/Greek-English-Lexicon-Testament-Christian-Literature/dp/0226039331/ref=sr_1_1?crid=EE7V8VI6EK7T&keywords=bdag&qid=1681104501&sprefix=bd%2Caps%2C629&sr=8-1
  3. Learn Intermediate Greek Grammar. Once you have learned basic grammar, you need to know syntax. In basic Greek grammar, you will have learned how to understand what cases nouns are using or what tense verbs are using. Syntax is the study of the different ways that these cases and tenses. For studying syntax, use Daniel Wallace’s Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics. https://www.amazon.com/Greek-Grammar-Beyond-Basics-Exegetical/dp/0310218950
    1. When you get this Wallace book, you will likely be intimidated. Again, flashcards are your friends. Just get out the flashcards and begin memorizing. Go ahead and memorize them. Slowly work through Wallace, memorizing everything. For example, Wallace gives 13 uses of the nominative case.
  4. Begin translating and working slowly through a book of the New Testament. I recommend one of Paul’s shorter letters, like Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, or Colossians. Again, you can use www.blueletterbible.com to make a printout. When you print it out, use lots of spacing between words. Above every word, you will want to put:
    1. The translation of that word,
    2. The words parsing/declension,
    3. The syntax of that word, and
    4. Other notes about the word/grammar.
    5. Also, leave tons of space in the margins, as you will have lots of other info you want to write down. You will do the deepest dive of an NT book in this process that you have ever done.
  5. Once you finish translating and working through one book, start another. Continue this process until you master the Greek New Testament. 
  6. Sentence diagramming will help you take your translation work even one level deeper. At this point, it will also be helpful for you to learn skills in sentence diagramming Greek sentences. My favorite book on this subject is out of print. At this point, you will need to begin googling some of these next steps.
Understanding the usage of Greek words is vital for growing in fluency in biblical Greek. BDAG will be your best friend in learning this skill.

After you master Wallace, read the Greek NT a few times, and translate/work deeply through several NT books, you have mastered the basics. At this point, continue your reading and studies. You can also begin studying other areas of Greek NT study. For example,

  • Advanced Greek Grammar
  • Discourse analysis
  • Textual criticism

If you have questions, feel free to write to be at nocousinsleft@protonmail.com. However, teaching Greek is not my focus. I have honestly written these things down since many people ask me how to learn Greek. So now, when anyone asks, I can point them to this blog with all the info and invite them to take this journey.

A New Process for Developing Muslim-Background Leaders

If we want to develop strong Muslim-background leaders, then we need a clear process.
Photo by Christina Morillo on Pexels.com

This morning, I am sifting through 40 evaluations of leaders we are developing for ministry among South Asian Muslims. More than 30 of these are for Muslim-background leaders at various stages of development. Some are very strong in their faith, while these evaluations have shown significant weaknesses in the faith of others.

Most ministering to Muslims do not have a robust leadership developing and tracking process.
Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

As the gospel has grown among South Asian Muslims, we have struggled with the term “leader.” We have regularly heard from local leaders, “I have 17 Muslim-background leaders” or “I have 22 Muslim-background leaders.” We have tried to coach local leaders on evaluating and developing these leaders, but we needed to standardize the process a bit more. 

mbb-leadership-development-tracking-Download

Attached above is the new leadership development tracking sheet we developed for this purpose. I translated it into English to share here. Press “Download” to get it. As you look at this sheet, you will realize that it has a lot of specific details we use in our work. Let me provide some information here.

If we desire to see movements of multiplying MBBs, we need a process for evaluating MBB leaders!
Nathan Shank’s diagram for his Five Levels of Movement Leaders.
  1. E1 is a demarkation we use for Muslim-background leaders who minister among their own people group. We take this from Ralph Winter’s writings on E0-E3 evangelism. You can see the relevant article here. In brief, for our context:
  2. Level 1-3 Leaders is a leadership development paradigm developed by Nathan Shank for developing movement leaders. You can see his article here. Shank uses five levels of leadership. For the time being, we want to focus primarily on the first three levels. Those familiar with Shank’s paradigm will understand. In brief:
    1. Level 1 Leaders are Seed Sowers. These individuals have become disciples of Jesus and are sharing the gospel with others, following up with them, and making disciples. We wanted to evaluate Level 1 Leaders based on their growth as disciples, evangelistic/ministry abilities, and their relationship with Islam.
    2. Level 2 Leaders are Church Planters. These individuals have led groups of Muslims to Christ, baptized them, and begun at least one church. We wanted to evaluate their character based on 1 Timothy 3:1-7, their teaching ability, and their church leadership ability. The most concrete way we could assess their church leadership ability was to evaluate the health of the church(es) they lead. 
    3. Level 3 Leaders are Multipliers. These individuals are leading their own church and developing other Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 leaders. This assessment process is a tool to help Level 3 leaders develop Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3 leaders in their ministries. 
  3. “Yellow Lights” is an evaluative term for evangelistic contacts. Green lights are individuals who repent and believe. Red lights are those who reject the message. Yellow lights are those who are ready to listen and learn more. We have a high degree of yellow lights among South Asian Muslims when we share the gospel. After learning to share the gospel, our next step is to train people to follow up with those who want to learn more. Click here to learn more about our processes.
  4. Five Unique Things about Jesus. These are five Bible studies we use from the Gospel of Matthew to show the uniqueness of Jesus to Muslims who want to learn more. Click here to learn more.
  5. 8 Commands of Jesus. We use eight Bible studies after the Five Unique Things study to teach yellow/green lights what it means to follow Jesus. As I write this blog post, I am realizing that I have not blogged about our discipleship process!
  6. The Three Transitions. We expect that a healthy Muslim-background believer will:
    1. Leave Muhammad and cleave to Jesus.
    2. Leave the Qur’an and cleave to the Bible.
    3. Leave namaaz/salaat prayer and cleave to the church.
    4. We have typically seen that Muslim-background believers only make these transitions when they believe that Jesus is fully God.
    5. The Three Transitions process is complex and is not always linear. Click here to learn more about my thoughts.
  7. I hope that the rest of the sheet is self-explanatory.

This evaluation aims to create a customized plan of three growth areas for that leader. Then after six months, re-evaluate the leader, see what progress has occurred, and create a new growth plan. I hope this leadership development process will lead to significant growth in many of these Muslim-background leaders! 

Developing strong MBB leaders is a key for sustained ministry to Muslims.
Photo by Anna Tarazevich on Pexels.com

If you have any suggestions for this process, please feel free to write me at nocousinsleft@protonmail.com.

Subscribe to No Cousins Left to get our blog posts to your inbox!

Folk Islamic Ritual #12: Taziah and Muhurram

This blog post is the ninth in a series on South Asian folk Islam and its rituals. Click here to go to the first of these articles. Understanding the rituals of Folk Islam provides insight into the beliefs and practices of folk Muslims. This understanding helps us to make disciples of folk Muslims.

Bara Imambara in Lucknow, India. This Imambara is the most famous in the world. By Sachin Yaduvanshi1 – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=72237985

In the previous lesson, we began to look at folk Islamic beliefs and practices among Shia Muslims in South Asia. Because there are so many Shia in South Asia, we must explore the worldview of this segment of Muslims to engage them with the gospel. Here, we will look at Shia’s perspectives on taziah and Muhurram. Before beginning, we need to recognize that there is significant diversity in Shia Islam worldwide. While these rituals and beliefs are common, not every Shia Muslim you meet follows the practices precisely described here.

Taziah are replicas of the tomb of Hussein that are housed in imambaras. Imambaras are houses of worship for Shia Muslims, which are unique to South Asia. The purpose of an imambara is to serve as a house of mourning for Hussein and the seventy martyrs of Karbala (the site of Hussein’s tomb). Plaques or writings on the wall often give the names of each of the seventy martyrs who died in 680 AD at Karbala, which is in modern Iraq. The martyrdom of Hussein was the definitive split between Sunnis and Shias. Some Shias say that one pilgrimage to Karbala is worth 1,000 Hajj to Mecca.

Some Shia hold to folk beliefs about taziah. They say that the taziah is a conduit of the blessing and power of Hussein’s tomb from Karbala. While Hussein’s power is more concentrated in Karbala, Shias can also bring their prayers and needs to these replicas. The panjtan pak (“five holy people”) of Shia Islam form one family. Muhammad’s daughter, Fatima, married Ali, who was a relative of Muhammad. Ali served as the fourth Caliph after the death of Muhammad from 656-661 AD. The two sons of Fatima and Ali were Hasan and Hussein.  

One common phrase among South Asian Shias is, “Live like Ali; die like Hussein.” South Asian Shias often use the Nahjul Balaghah, a collection of sermons, letters, and sayings from Ali. For the Shia, it is vital to study Ali’s life so they can follow his example. They see the lives of Muhammad and Ali as being in perfect synchrony, so following Ali’s example also means following Muhammad’s life. To die like Hussein goes to the heart of the most important Shia festival, Muhurram.

Muhurram is the first month of the lunar calendar in Islam and is the month for remembering the death of Hussein. During this month, Shias will undertake various rituals to remember the sacrifice of Hussein. Especially important is the tenth day of Muhurram, which is called Ashura. Ashura marks the day of Hussein’s death, which is understood sacrificially as if he gave his life for the Shia community. Shias reenact plays to remember Hussein’s life and death, wear black clothes to signify mourning, and even scourge themselves to remember Hussein and the other martyrs. One ritual in South Asia is that some Shias, especially in Lucknow, make taziah and submerse them in lakes and rivers. Historically, this ritual has led to significant conflict between the Sunni and Shia communities in Lucknow since the Sunnis believe that Shias borrow this ritual from the Hindu Durga Puja festival.

One gospel bridge with Shias is to find an opportunity to share the sacrifice of Christ when they share about the martyrdom of Hussein. Shias believe that the death of Hussein as a martyr was for their whole community. When hearing Shia stories about the death of Hussein, a Christian can take the opportunity to share the story of how Jesus also died as a sacrifice for His community. This can open up a dialogue where Shias can understand the gospel. In the same way that Hussein died for his community, Christ died for the world. 

If you found this article helpful, click below to read all of my articles on Folk Islamic rituals. https://nocousinsleft.com/2022/10/18/folk-islamic-rituals/

Subscribe to No Cousins Left below!

Folk Islamic Ritual #11: The Hand of Fatima

This blog post is the eleventh in a series on South Asian folk Islam and its rituals. Click here to go to the first of these articles. Understanding the rituals of Folk Islam provides insight into the beliefs and practices of folk Muslims. This understanding helps us to make disciples of folk Muslims.

The names of Muhammad, Fatima, Ali, Hasan, and Hussein with the Arabic “Allah” at the center.

In each lesson, we have learned about a different ritual or practice of folk Muslims and discussed how that ritual or tradition reveals their worldview. This exercise aims to gain insight into how to make disciples better among folk Muslims in South Asia. The first ten lessons have focused on folk Islam in Sunni Islam. These last two lessons shift to Shias. India and Pakistan are home to massive Shia populations, with more than twenty million in each country. These are the second and third largest Shia populations globally after Iran (Iraq has a similar population). Pray for the Shias of South Asia, as few have focused on them for gospel ministry.

I want to begin with a story from a visit to the dargah of Abdullah Shah Ghazi in Karachi, Pakistan, a Shia Sufi. This dargah is one of the most beautiful I have ever visited. My first impression was that the complex was massive and elaborate. Thousands and thousands of visitors poured in and out. There were restaurants, games, rides, and even a Ferris Wheel! At the center was the grave of the Sufi. My friends and I went up the staircase to the area that held this tomb and found that hundreds of people were also crowded in that area. A group of men sat down to the side, so I greeted them with asalaamu alykum and asked if I could sit with them. As we talked, it became clear that these men were Sunni. I was surprised that Sunnis would go to the tomb of a Shia, so I asked them about it. One of the men replied, “It does not matter if he was Sunni or Shia; he was Sayyid!”

The Sayyid are those Muslims who descend from Muhammad through Ali and Fatima’s sons, Hussein and Hasan. There are around 7-8 million Sayyid in each India and Pakistan today. They are considered to be of the highest Muslim caste in both countries. Because Shias place great importance on Muhammad’s descendants, many Sayyid are Shia. 

            Throughout the world, Shias give great honor to five individuals – Muhammad, Fatima, Ali, Hussein, and Hasan. These five names are on the wall of Shia imambaras, places of worship that house taziah. Imambaras are unique places of worship to South Asia. The word taziah also has different meanings in South Asia than in Iran. In South Asia, taziah are replicas of the tomb of Hussein in Karbala. In Iran, taziah is a reference to plays that depict the martyrdom of Hussein.

The names of Muhammad, Fatima, Ali, Hasan, and Hussein occur on a symbol throughout the Muslim world called hamsa (or “the hand of Fatima”). Muslims use this symbol as a ward against the evil eye. 

In South Asia, the hamsa represents these five exceptional individuals as the hand of Allah. I was once at Shia dargah Hazrat Abbas in Lucknow with a friend who followed Jesus from a Sunni background. My Sunni friend sought to initiate a spiritual conversation with a young man in the dargah by asking, “Who created the world?” My friend was shocked at this young man’s reply, “Muhammad, Fatima, Ali, Hasan, and Hussein.” The young man replied that Allah is spirit, and thus he created the world through his hand, meaning these five individuals.  

This young Shia man believed that these five were sinless and were with Allah before the world’s creation. His opinion about them was similar to a Christian view about the pre-existence of Christ and His incarnation into the world. South Asian Shias often refer to these five individuals as the panjtan pak (“the five holy people”). In South Asia, the hamsa is often seen as a symbol of the panjtan pak, even though that is not true throughout the Muslim world. Shias see the panjtan pak as holy, sinless, and those closest to Allah. Therefore, they become the ideal mediators for many South Asian folk Muslims.

Thankfully, many Shia Muslims have been open to the gospel. It is less common for Shias to argue that the Injeel (“New Testament”) has been corrupted, making many more Shias open to reading the Bible. For example, once, when I was sharing with the leaders of a Shia madrassah (school for Islamic instruction), they requested copies of the Injeel for each student. I happily complied. As we share the gospel with Shias, we need to know that they are comparing Jesus with Muhammad and Fatima, Ali, Hasan, and Hussein. 

If you found this article helpful, click below to read all of my articles on Folk Islamic rituals. https://nocousinsleft.com/2022/10/18/folk-islamic-rituals/

To learn more about sharing Jesus with Shia Muslims, click here.

Subscribe to No Cousins Left below!

Folk Islamic Ritual #10: 786 and Bismallah

This blog post is the tenth in a series on South Asian folk Islam and its rituals. Click here to go to the first of these articles. Understanding the rituals of Folk Islam provides insight into the beliefs and practices of folk Muslims. This understanding helps us to make disciples of folk Muslims.

Abjad is a system, often used by Muslim mystics, to assign numerical values to various Arabic or Persian letters. South Asian Sufis are known to use this system. Here is the assignment of numbers to different Urdu characters.

The Abjad system. From Mehr Afshan Farooqi, “The Secret of Letters: Chronograms in Urdu Literary Culture.” Edebiyat: Journal of Middle Eastern Literatures 13.2 (2002): 158.

Therefore, 786 represents bismillahir rahmanir rahim (“in the name of Allah, most gracious, most merciful). See the assignment of the abjad numbers below. The sum of these numbers is 786.

The abjad system applied to the Arabic text of the bismallah.

In South Asia, 786 is one of the most common formulas among Muslims to attain good fortune or avoid difficulties. Some Muslim students will write 786 on their exams, hoping for a good grade. Muslim truck or rickshaw drivers paint 786 on their vehicles, hoping for safety from accidents. Some Muslim truck drivers place a variety of images, Qur’anic verses, and other religious iconography on their trucks for protection and barkat. Some Muslims feel that they will be blessed if they have 786 in their phone number or on the number plate of their car. In Muslim areas in North India, the number 786 is ubiquitous. I have asked numerous Muslims what the meaning of 786 is, and many do not know its meaning. They have simply understood that 786 means good luck and protection.

There has been some debate among South Asian Muslims if it is appropriate to use 786, the Deobandis support the use of this number for bismillah, while Salafis, like Zakir Naik, tend to discourage its usage. The use of 786 in South Asia is a testimony to the Islamic folk use of the phrase bismillah. Many Muslims believe that every act should be accompanied by bismillah. If they take a bite of food, it should be eaten with bismillah. If they drive their car or motorbike, they should begin with bismillah. As they walk down the road, they should say bismillah. The meaning behind saying this phrase depends on the theological belief of the speaker. Some use this phrase from an orthodox perspective to simply remember Allah and to give him honor in whatever they do. Others use this phrase as a means of protection and blessing.

Every Surah of the Qur’an (except Surah 9), begins with bismillah. Bismillah is a customary phrase to begin dua prayers in Islam. When praying for Muslims in South Asia, we need to be aware of the bismillah’s ubiquity. Muslims often expect that we will pray with our hands open, palms upward, and open eyes. For them, prayers begin with bismillah. Instead of praying in the name of Allah, we pray in the name of Hazrat Isa al-Masih. Before praying for Muslims, I always explain to them that I am a follower of Jesus and that I will pray for them in the manner that Jesus taught His disciples. I usually pray with my eyes open and palms upward, but then I simply pray in the way that Jesus taught. There is power in our prayers for Muslims. Muslims are often surprised by our relationship with God as we pray for them. When ministering to folk Muslims, we should take every possible opportunity to pray for them in Jesus’ name.

If you found this article helpful, click below to read all of my articles on Folk Islamic rituals. https://nocousinsleft.com/2022/10/18/folk-islamic-rituals/

Subscribe to No Cousins Left below!

The Person of Christ

By Peter Schumacher (pseudonym), November 2022

Note from David Paul. Peter Schumacher (pseudonym) is a friend and colleague who serves among the Muslims of South Asia. He and I have been discussing the importance of the doctrine of the Person of Christ for discipling Muslim-background believers (MBBs). So, Peter took some time and wrote this out to help himself and others teach this doctrine to MBBs. This doctrine is perhaps the most important of all for bringing MBBs into a strong faith in Jesus. Since Peter wanted to make this article accessible for Muslim-background believers, He uses the contextualized Isa al-Masih for Jesus. This is the first of hopefully many quest writings on No Cousins Left!

Photo by Yannick Pulver on Unsplash

Hazrat Isa al-Masih stands as the center of the faith for His followers. Therefore, understanding who He is and being able to explain who He is are vital. In South Asia, we have seen that followers of Isa al-Masih from Muslim backgrounds often have difficulty understanding the nature of Isa al-Masih. 

In Islam, Isa al-Masih is given the title Kalimatullah which means the Word of God. This title is an excellent place to start describing the person of Jesus because the Injeel Sharif (Urdu for New Testament) also calls Isa al-Masih the Word of God. But what does it mean that Isa al-Masih is the Word of God? John 1:1-3 teaches the meaning of this title. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.” 

In this passage, we see “the Word was God.” The Kalimatullah, Isa al-Masih, is God! Isa al-Masih existed in the beginning. He was with God, and all things were made through Him. 

John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” So, this verse tells us that Isa al-Masih, as the Kalumatullah, “became flesh and dwelt among us.” Isa al-Masih became human! What an amazing truth that God came among us and lived as a human! How great that Isa al-Masih loved us enough to come and save us in this way. 

When we consider the deity and humanity of Hazrat Isa al-Masih, three questions should come to our minds.

  1. To what extent is Isa al-Masih human? 
  2. To what extent is Isa al-Masih God? 
  3. And why is this important? 

Question #1: To What Extent is Isa al-Masih Human?

John 1:14 says that Isa al-Masih “became flesh,” meaning he took the form of a human. He had a body just like we do. 

Read Luke 2:1-7:

“In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.”

This passage is about the birth of Isa al-Masih. Isa al-Masih was carried in the womb by his mother. He entered the world as a human by being born of a human mother. After his birth, He was wrapped in clothes and laid in the only shelter they could find. This implies that, just like us, 

Hazrat Isa al-Masih was vulnerable to the elements and required protection. 

To emphasize this point, Isa al-Masih became hungry, thirsty, tired, and needed to sleep. We see His humanity in these verses:

Matthew 4:2: “And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.”

John 19:28: “After this, Isa, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the Scripture), ‘I thirst.'”

John 4:6: “Jacob’s well was there; so Isa, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.” 

Matthew 8:24: “And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep.”

As Isa al-Masih lived, He experienced everything it meant to have the physical body of a man. All the frailty of humanity was a part of his life. He lived as we live, requiring food, water, rest, and shelter. But the greatest example of His human weakness was His death. God doesn’t die, but Isa al-Masih died on the cross. Read in Luke 23:46, “Then Isa, calling out with a loud voice, said, ‘Father, into your hands I commit my spirit!”‘And having said this he breathed his last.” Death, the greatest of human weaknesses, was experienced by Isa al-Masih. 

We see through Scripture that Isa’s body was human, but what about his mind? Luke 2:52 says, “And Isa increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.” Isa al-Masih “increased in wisdom” meaning as he grew older in body, he also learned new things. God knows all things and from him is all wisdom. If Isa al-Masih’s mind was the mind of God, he would not learn and grow as we do. 

Likewise, Isa al-Masih was like us regarding temptation. Hebrews 4:15 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” According to this passage, Isa a-Masih understands us because He also experienced temptation. Matthew 4:1-11 shares how Satan came to Isa al-Masih to tempt him. Isa al-Masih resisted Satan by quoting Scripture. This story is an excellent example of how to resist Satan’s temptations. We were given a great example because He faced the same spiritual warfare that we experience. Temptation is a uniquely human experience. As we read in James 1:13, God cannot be tempted. As a man, Hazrat Isa al-Masih was tempted. 

Hazrat Isa al-MAsih also experienced emotions. We see His emotions in the following verses. 

John 11:5-6: “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when he heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was.”

John 11:17-35: “Now when Jesus came, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb four days. Bethany was near Jerusalem, about two miles off, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them concerning their brother. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, but Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.’ When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in private, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’ And when she heard it, she rose quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come into the village, but was still in the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary rise quickly and go out, they followed her, supposing that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Now when Mary came to where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet, saying to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in his spirit and greatly troubled. And he said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus wept.”

Isa al-Masih had a unique bond with Lazarus. He had a close friendship with Lazarus that we can all relate to. Even Isa al-Masih, having the power to bring Lazarus back to life, wept when he saw his dead friend. 

Regarding the emotions of Isa al-Masih, let’s look at how He reacted to the reality of dying on the cross. “And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, ‘Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.’ And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground” (Luke 22:41-44).

Isa al-Masih, like us, was driven to prayer when faced with a massive trial. Even the least spiritual of us can be driven to prayer when facing a trial such as this. Isa al-Masih’s spirit drove him to speak to the Father in prayer. Also, in the passage above, we see that Isa al-Masih had such anxiety that he began to sweat drops of blood! If Isa al-Masih was God alone (and not human also), He would never experience such anxiety. But since He became flesh, He felt the same emotions we would feel in that situation.

Isa al-Masih is human in body, mind, and spirit. This means that He is fully human. Everything common amongst man was common with Jesus, except sin. He remains human even now after his death and resurrection. Before ascending to heaven, his disciples felt Him and knew He was not a spirit but man (Luke 24:39). Let’s move on to consider the deity of Hazrat Isa al-Masih.

Question #2: To What Extent Is Hazrat Isa al-Masih God?

Scripture makes clear that Hazrat Isa al-Masih is fully God. As we read in John 1:1-3 Isa al-Masih is called God. However, Muslims often argue that Isa al-Masih never claimed to be God. However, many passages of Scripture demonstrate that Isa al-Masih is God.

Let’s start by considering John 5:16-23, “And this was why the Jews were persecuting Isa, because he was doing these things on the Sabbath. But Isa answered them, ‘My Father is working until now, and I am working.’ This was why the Jews were seeking all the more to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was even calling God his own Father, making himself equal with God. So Jesus said to them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of his own accord, but only what he sees the Father doing. For whatever the Father does, that the Son does likewise. For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. And greater works than these will he show him, so that you may marvel. For as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whom he will. For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.'”

In this passage, the Jewish people were angry with Isa al-Masih for healing on the Sabbath. In response, Isa al-Masih said, “My Father is working,” and so He was also working. In this phrasing, Isa al-Masih claimed to be the Son of God in a way that others were not. The Jewish people recognized that Isa al-Masih was claiming equality with God. They were so surprised that they wanted to kill Isa al-Masih for what He had done. 

The disciples of Isa al-Masih also recognized Him as God. Look at these passages.

John 20:28: “Thomas answered him, ‘My Lord and my God!'”

Matthew 28:9: “And behold, Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him.” It is evident that only God should receive worship! Yet, in this passage, the disciples of Isa al-Masih are worshipping Him. Therefore, by their worship, they acknowledged the deity of Isa al-Masih. Isa al-Masih acknowledged His own deity by receiving their worship! 

Matthew 16:16: “Simon Peter replied, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.'”

2 Peter 1:1: “Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ.”

Scripture makes clear that Isa al-Masih is God. But if Isa al-Masih was fully man, to what extent is He God? For that, lets look at Colossians 2:8-10: “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ. For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.”

The Bible clearly states that the fullnesss of deity dwells in Isa al-Masih. Isa al-Masih is fully God! This is who Hazrat Isa al-Masih is. He is fully God and fully man. So, let’s finally put it together and see why this is important.

Three False Teachings about the Deity and Humanity of Isa al-Masih

Let’s talk about three false teachings from history to avoid making the same mistakes that have often been made in the past.

First, one false teaching explained the person of Isa al-Masih by saying He consisted of two parts. One part was his humanity, and the other part was his deity. This false teaching argued that Isa al-Masih was physically human but mentally and spiritually divine.

However, in the first part of this study above, we saw that Isa al-Masih did not only have a human body but also a human mind (see Luke 2:52, Hebrews 4:15, Matthew 4:1-11, John 11:5-35, and Luke 22:41-44). Isa al-Masih is fully God and fully man.

Second, Another false teaching was that Isa al-Masih existed in two persons: human and deity. One person said that the humanity of Isa al-Masih was like a drop in the ocean of His humanity.

However, we see no evidence of this. In fact, this teaching denies that Isa al-Masih is fully man. It reduces His humanity to a great degree. Isa al-Masih always refers to himself in the singular. He was not two people in one body. In John 14:23, Isa al-Masih referred to two persons of the Trinity, the Father and the Son, as “we.” Still, He always referred to himself as “I.” Isa al-Masih is consistently presented as a single person throughout Scripture. 

Third, another false teaching was that the divine and human natures of Christ mixed to become a new nature. This false teaching, however, would make Isa al-Masih neither fully man nor fully God. If He were not fully God, then we could not worship Him (Matthew 28:9). If He were not fully man, He could not relate to our weaknesses (Hebrews 4:15). 

Instead, the Scriptures teach that Isa al-Masih is God and has always existed. He came to earth born of a virgin. He lived and experienced all that it means to be human. He is fully God and fully man. 

Question #3: Why Is it Important that Isa al-Masih is Fully God and Fully Man? First, we will look at seven reasons that the full humanity of Isa al-Masih is essential.

1. Isa al-Masih’s obedience makes us righteous. Romans 5:18-19 says, 

“Therefore, as one trespass led to condemnation for all men, so one act of righteousness leads to justification and life for all men. For as by the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man’s obedience the many will be made righteous.” If Isa al-Masih wasn’t fully man, then his obedience would not be able to make man righteous.

2. Isa al-Masih’s sacrifice on the cross only applies since He is fully man. Hebrews 2:17 says, “Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.” This passage shows that Isa al-Masih needed to be made like us so that He could become a sacrifice (propitiation) for our sins.

3. Isa al-Masih needed to be human to become a perfect mediator between God and humanity. 1 Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” In this passage, Paul emphasized Isa al-Masih’s humanity by saying, “the man Christ Jesus.” This emphasis on “the man” affirms that being fully human was necessary for Isa al-Masih to be our mediator.

4. The humanity of Isa al-Masih fulfilled God’s design for man to rule over creation. Genesis 1:28 says, “And God blessed them. And God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.'” In this passage, God commanded man to subdue the earth and have dominion over everything on the earth. Matthew 28:18 says that Jesus had this authority. “And Jesus came and said to them, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.'” Isa al-Masih declared that He had been given authority over everything.

5. Isa al-Masih is our example of how to live a holy life. 1 John 2:6 says, “whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” This passage affirms Christ as our example of holy living. We would only have a clear model for our lives since Christ was fully man.

6. Isa al-Masih’s resurrection is a picture of our future resurrection. In Luke 24:39 Isa al-Masih said, “See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” Isa al-Masih still had a human body after his resurrection. In the same way, we will also experience a physical resurrection.

7. Isa al-Masih can completely relate to us as our High Priest. Hebrew 2:18 says, “For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.” Then Hebrews 4:15-16 says, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” By being fully man, Isa al-Masih experienced all it means to be human and can perfectly relate and sympathize with us as our High Priest. 

Now let’s consider three reasons that the full deity of Isa al-Masih is essential.

1. To be our Savior, Isa al-Masih had to be God. Psalm 3:8 says, “Salvation belongs to the Lord; your blessing be on your people!” Scripture says that God is the one who saves us. For Isa al-Masih to be our Savior, He must be fully God.

2. Since He is fully God, Isa al-Masih is the perfect mediator between man and God. No one can advocate for us to God the Father other than God the son.

3. Since Isa is fully God, He is worthy of worship. Matthew 28:9 says, “And behold, Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ And they came up and took hold of his feet and worshiped him.” The Bible is clear that only God should be worshipped. Humankind should not worship men nor creatures nor idols. Since Isa al-Masih received worship, He is fully God.

Understanding the nature of Hazrat Isa al-Masih is essential for our faith. He is fully God and fully man. While our finite minds cannot fully understand all the intricacies of these mysteries, the Bible has clarified many things about the humanity and deity of Isa al-Masih. Let us not attempt to explain this union of man and God in any way the Bible doesn’t clarify. Most false teachings are brought about by trying to explain things that the Scriptures do not make clear. Let us reject those false teachings and stand firmly in the truth that Hazrat Isa al-Masih is fully God and fully man.

Subscribe to No Cousins Left to get an update every time we post content!