Will you answer the claims related to the Quran, the Gospel and Islamic contradictions?

THE QURAN, THE GOSPEL AND ISLAMIC CONTRADICTIONS

CLAIMS:

The Quran states the following in the chapter of al-Ankabut (29/46):
“And dispute ye not with the People of the Book, except with means better (than mere disputation), unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury): but say, ‘We believe in the revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you; Our Allah and your Allah is one; and it is to Him we bow (in Islam).’”
However, the majority of Muslims says something quite different to Christians: “We do not believe in your book because it has been distorted. And your deity is wrong.”
Why do Muslims say they do not believe in the only product of revelation that came down to us though they are ordered to believe what came down to us?  
Why do Muslims say that our deity is wrong though they are ordered to say our God and their God is one?
According to the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20), God is Trinity. The first one is in nature or spirit but essentially three: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (John, 1:1-14) Christ died on the cross for sins. (Mark 10:32-34,45) Then, he rose. (Luke 24)
The Quran denies all of them. Therefore, a Muslim cannot say that he believes in the Gospel and that the Allah he believes in is the same God as the God mentioned in the Gospel.
Muslims have to reject the Gospel.
For, the Gospel contradicts the Quran.
However, there is a problem here for Muslims.
The Quran declares that the Torah and the Gospel were sent down by Allah.
The following is stated in the chapter of Aal-i Imran (3:3):
“It is He Who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the criterion (of judgment between right and wrong).”
That is, Allah sent down the Torah and the Gospel as a guide.
However, Muslims say Allah could not protect the Torah and the Gospel and according to them, both books were distorted by people.
That is, the book that Allah sent as a guide later turned out to make people deviate and they try to persuade Christians by saying, God is trinity and Christ died on the cross for sins.
When Muslims says that the Torah and the Bible were distorted, we should definitely be surprised because the Quran states that none can change Allah’s words.
The following is stated in the chapter of al-Kahf (18:27): And recite (and teach) what has been revealed to thee of the Book of thy Lord: none can change His Words, and none wilt thou find as a refuge other than Him.
Muslims can say that this verse means only the Quran cannot be changed but the verse does not say the Quran cannot be changed by anybody. The verse says, “none can change His Words.” According to the Quran, the Torah and the Bible are Allah’s words.
However, despite the clear expression that “none change Allah’s Words”, many Muslims claim that the Bible was distorted by the disciple Paul or the Christians that came later.   
If the Bible was distorted, why did the Quran say the Christians had the Bible during the period of Muhammad?
The following is stated in the chapter of al-Araf (7:157): “Those who follow the messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures),- in the law and the Gospel… it is they who will prosper.” How will Christians find the Prophet Muhammad in the Gospel, which they claim to have been distorted centuries ago? 
Does Allah tell us to find the Prophet Muhammad in our distorted holy books?
We do not find the Prophet Muhammad in our holy books but we find the part about general warning telling us to keep away from fake prophets.
If we found the Prophet Muhammad in our holy books, how could we be sure that it was not among that parts that had been distorted?
If our holy books contradict Islam, why does Allah show it as proof for the trueness of Islam?
However, Allah says even more. He tells Christians to judge by the Gospel.  
The following is stated in the chapter of al-Maida (5:47): “Let the people of the Gospel judge by what Allah hath revealed therein. If any do fail to judge by (the light of) what Allah hath revealed, they are (no better than) those who rebel.”
Why does Allah want us to judge by a book that has been distorted?
The Gospel, which is the only book we have, contradicts Islam. Therefore, if we want to obey Allah’s order, we have to judge based on the Gospel and we conclude that Islam is wrong.  
Allah states the following later in the chapter of al-Maida (5:68): Say: «O People of the Book! Ye have no ground to stand upon unless ye stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord.»
Why does Allah tell us we will not be on the true path unless we obey a distorted book?
If the Gospel has been distorted, why does Allah not tell us to keep away from it and to believe in the Quran?
The Quran clearly states here that the Gospel is reliable for Christians.
It becomes significant only in the following case: The person who brought the Quran (its writer) believes that Christians have divine word. 
The Gospel is reliable not only for Christians but also for the Prophet Muhammad and Muslims.
Once, the Prophet Muhammad felt doubtful about revelations. Thereupon, Allah ordered him to go to the People of the Book. He was ordered to apply to Jews and Christians for confirmation.
The chapter of Yunus verse 96 (10:94) “(O Prophet!) If thou wert in doubt as to what We have revealed unto thee, then ask those who have been reading the Book from before thee: the Truth hath indeed come to thee from thy Lord: so be in no wise of those in doubt.”
The Muslims living today hold the view that the Quran decrees that the Gospel is wrong. For, the Gospel contradicts the Quran. Therefore, the Gospel has to be rejected. However, it is just the opposite in the Quran. In fact, the Gospel decrees against the Quran. When Muhammad doubts about the revelations that come to him, he can get rid of this doubt only through the sacred texts that the People of the Book have.  
However, Muhammad was busy with spreading Islam; therefore, he never took this method seriously. If he had gone to the People of the Book to confirm, he would have had to reject the Quran. For, the Quran puts Muslims in a dilemma that they cannot cope with.
We, Christians, have or do not have God’s word, which is a product of revelation, protected and reliable. There are only two alternatives.   
If we, Christians, have God’s word, which is a product of revelation, protected and reliable, the religion of Islam is wrong. For, the religion of Islam contradicts the books we have.  
If we, Christians, do not have God’s word, which is a product of revelation, protected and reliable, the religion of Islam is still wrong. For, the Quran confirms that the book we have is a product of revelation, protected and reliable. 
In conclusion, if the Gospel is God’s word, the religion of Islam is wrong. If the Gospel is not God’s word, the religion of Islam is wrong. Islam is wrong in both cases.
Islam destroys itself since it confirms the sacred texts that contradict its basic doctrine. Therefore, Muslims should find a new religion.
We advise our Muslim brothers to obey the order of their religion and follow the Gospel. 

Dear Brother / Sister,

Those claims and slanders are the gift of the gab. We will write each claim first and try to answer them one by one.

Claim:
The Quran states the following in the chapter of al-Ankabut (29/46):
“And dispute ye not with the People of the Book, except with means better (than mere disputation), unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury): but say, ‘We believe in the revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you; Our Allah and your Allah is one; and it is to Him we bow (in Islam).’”
However, the majority of Muslims says something quite different to Christians: “We do not believe in your book because it has been distorted. And your deity is wrong.”
Why do Muslims say they do not believe in the only product of revelation that came down to us though they are ordered to believe what came down to us?  
Why do Muslims say that our deity is wrong though they are ordered to say our God and their God is one?

Answer:

The verse in the chapter of al-Ankabut:  

-  The Quran accepts that the Torah and the Gospel are revelations sent down by Allah. There is no Muslim who says that the Torah and the Gospel are not products of revelations. A Muslim who says so exits the religion of Islam.   

- Besides, there are very fine points and signs in the verse:

a. The phrase “unless it be with those of them who inflict wrong (and injury)” in the verse shows that there are some people who inflict wrong and injury among the People of the Book.

It is definite that this wrongdoing includes the deeds and acts that are contrary to the orders of the Torah and the Gospel. Since Allah’s orders and prohibitions are just, what is wrong is the ones contrary to them. Those contrary deeds include both injustice against people and distortions based on words and/or interpretations related to the books that were sent down. 

In addition, the reason why some of the People of the Book were described as “wrongdoers” might be their associating a child to Allah and falling into shirk by defending the creed of trinity. For, the following is stated in the Quran: “…For false worship (shirk) is indeed the highest wrong-doing.” (Luqman, 31/13)

As the tafsir scholar Razi states, the people who stick to the creed trinity are described as polytheists (mushriks) and wrongdoers (zalims) in the verse.

Besides, it is emphasized in the verse that follows that there are some people among the People of the Book who believe in the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and some who do not believe in him and that the latter are unbelievers. (cf. Razi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

b. “Say, ‘We believe in the revelation which has come down to us and in that which came down to you.” In the part of the verse above, the phrase “We believe in the Torah and the Gospel you have” is not used but “We believe in the revelation which has come down to you” is used. This indicates that what the believers should believe in are the original books sent down by Allah, not the books that people distorted by their hands afterwards.

c. “Our God and your God is one; and it is to Him we bow (in Islam).” The statement above in the verse has subtle meanings: The inclusion of “our God” in the verse aims to express that the god mentioned here is the God Hz. Muhammad (pbuh) introduced and to express “real oneness (tawhid), which emphasizes Allah’s oneness, His being free from all kinds of polytheism and trinity, and no rabbi, priest and scholar can share His lordship.”

d. “Our God and your God is one.” The word “one” included in this statement emphasizes the fact that “our deity, creator and god is the same” on the one hand and rejects the creed of trinity on the other hand, indicating that Allah is “one”

Claim:
According to the Gospel (Matthew 28:18-20), God is Trinity. The first one is in nature or spirit but essentially three: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us (John, 1:1-14) Christ died on the cross for sins. (Mark 10:32-34,45) Then, he rose. (Luke 24)
The Quran denies all of them. Therefore, a Muslim cannot say that he believes in the Gospel and that Allah he believes in is the same God as the God mentioned in the Gospel.
Muslims have to reject the Gospel.
For, the Gospel contradicts the Quran.

Answer:

The Book of the Gospel

There is no view that the Gospel was revealed to Hz. Isa (Jesus) but this exists in Islam.

However, it is certain that we do not have a Gospel that existed when Hz. Isa was alive. The recognition of four famous Gospels among the gospels written by more than one hundred writers occurred about 300 hundred years after Hz. Isa.  

According to what historians state, the belief of “Trinity” was introduced to Christianity by Paul, who was not among the writers of the Gospels.

- It should not be forgotten that hundreds of thousands of people from the People of the Book accepted the religion of Islam by searching in history. There are almost no Muslims who exited the religion of Islam and accepted Christianity or Judaism as a result of scientific research and reasoning. 

Very few Muslims accepted Christianity or Judaism as a result of the misuse of their poverty and ignorance.

Besides, if a Muslim exits the religion of Islam, he will not believe in any religion. For, he has learned about all prophets including Hz. Isa in Islam.

Moreover, neither the Torah nor the Gospel is miraculous like the text of the Quran. Therefore, it is very difficult for a person who abandons the Quran, which has been proved to be a miracle in forty aspects, to believe in other books.

In addition, a person who believes in Hz. Muhammad (pbuh) has to believe in all prophets including Hz. Musa (Moses) and Hz. Isa. However, the People of the Book do not believe in Hz. Muhammad (pbuh).

Therefore, if a person does not believe in the religion of Islam, he will never believe in the other religions.

- The belief of trinity do not satisfy many Christian clergymen today. I have witnessed confessions about it. I personally heard it from a priest who gave doctorate decree courses at a university in the USA.  

Not to accept the belief of trinity, which has no logical aspects, does not indicate any incompleteness about the Quran; on the contrary, it clearly indicates that is Allah’s word.

Claim:
However, there is a problem here for Muslims.
The Quran declares that the Torah and the Gospel were sent down by Allah.
The following is stated in the chapter of Aal-i Imran (3:3):
“It is He Who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the criterion (of judgment between right and wrong).”
That is, Allah sent down the Torah and the Gospel as a guide.
However, Muslims say Allah could not protect the Torah and the Gospel and according to them, both books were distorted by people.
That is, the book that Allah sent as a guide later turned out to make people deviate and they try to persuade Christians by saying, God is trinity and Christ died on the cross for sins.
When Muslims says that the Torah and the Bible were distorted, we should definitely be surprised because the Quran states that none can change Allah’s words.
The following is stated in the chapter of al-Kahf (18:27)
And recite (and teach) what has been revealed to thee of the Book of thy Lord: none can change His Words, and none wilt thou find as a refuge other than Him.

Answer:

Aal-i Imran, 3:

There is no contradiction between the Quran’s confirming the previous books and abrogating some of their decrees, and stating that they had been distorted.

For,

a. When the Quran says the Torah and the Gospel are revelations sent down by Allah, it shows their real divine identities. This belief (belief in divine religions) is one of the basic principles of belief for Muslims.

b. When the Quran says they are guides, it does not say that they continue functioning as guides after the revelation of the Quran. On the contrary, it indicates that those two books were divine revelations that showed people the true path in the period when they were sent down as revelations.

c. Investigative Muslims never say there is no truth in the Torah and the Gospel when they deal with the issue of the distortion of the Torah and the Gospel. For, despite some extractions, addition and changes, there is a lot of true information based on revelation.

As a matter of fact, Abu Hurayra stated the following (see Bukhari, I’tisam, 25):

"The People of the Book used to read the Torah in Hebrew and explain it in Arabic to the Muslims. The Messenger of Allah (pbuh) addressed his Companions as follows regarding the issue: 

Do not approve or deny the words of the People of the Book but say,

"We believe in Allah, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Isma´il, Isaac, Jacob, and the Tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to (all) prophets from their Lord: We make no difference between one and another of them: And we bow to Allah (in Islam)." (al-Baqara, 2/136)

Al-Kahf, 27:

“And recite (and teach) what has been revealed to thee of the Book of thy Lord: none can change His Words, and none wilt thou find as a refuge other than Him.”

There are different interpretations of the Islamic scholars related to this verse:

a. What is meant by “His words” in the verse is not the Quran or the words in the other books of revelation. What is meant by the words are the decrees Allah mentions in the Quran with His words. One of them is the threats against those who deny the Quran. Nobody can change them. (see Tabari, Maturidi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

b. What is meant by “Allah’s unchanging words” is Allah’s promise called Sunnatullah, declaring “salvation and the reward of Paradise for those who believe in Allah and destruction and burning in Hell for deniers”. (see Maturidi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

c. What is meant by it is the evidences in the Quran that prove the trueness of the religion of Islam. Nobody can change and refute those evidences. (Maturidi, ibid)

d. What is meant by those words is the Quran. The Quran does not accept any changes; it cannot be changed, increased or decreased. (Maturidi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

e. “But when Our Clear Signs are rehearsed unto them, those who rest not their hope on their meeting with Us, Say: "Bring us a reading other than this, or change this," Say: "It is not for me, of my own accord, to change it: I follow naught but what is revealed unto me: if I were to disobey my Lord, I should myself fear the penalty of a Great Day (to come).” (Yunus, 10/15) As it is stated in the verse above, the polytheists wanted the Prophet (pbuh) to change the Quran. They wanted him to exclude the things that they did not like and include those they liked. This verse and verse 27 of the chapter of al-Kahf give answers to them. (see Zamakhshari, the interpretation of the verse in question)

 f. Another issue shown as the reason for the revelation of the verse in question is as follows:

As the Prophet (pbuh) answered the questions of the polytheists, they asked new questions and demanded new things. As a matter of fact, he answered their questions about Ashab al-Kahf and Dhul-Qarnayn.

They told the Prophet (pbuh) to make some changes in the Quran that would support their and their ancestors’ customs and faith if he wanted them to accept his call. The verse in question was sent down to reject those demands of the polytheists and the Messenger of Allah was ordered to read and to obey what was sent down to him.

Thus, he was informed about the following issue:

The Prophet is responsible for reading what is revealed to him and act accordingly. He has no right to change Allah’s words. If he does not act in accordance with revelation, he cannot find any place to take refuge from Allah’s penalty. (see Kur'an Yolu Tefsiri Volume: 3 Page: 549)

Claim:
The following is stated in the chapter of al-Araf (7:157): “Those who follow the messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures),- in the law and the Gospel… it is they who will prosper.”

How will Christians find the Prophet Muhammad in the Gospel, which they claim to have been distorted centuries ago? 
Does Allah tell us to find the Prophet Muhammad in our distorted holy books?
We do not find the Prophet Muhammad in our holy books but we find the part about general warning telling us to keep away from fake prophets.
If we found the Prophet Muhammad in our holy books, how could we be sure that it was not among that parts that had been distorted?
If our holy books contradict Islam, why does Allah show it as proof for the trueness of Islam?
….

Answer:

Al-Araf, 157:

“Those who follow the messenger, the unlettered Prophet, whom they find mentioned in their own (scriptures),- in the law and the Gospel;- …it is they who will prosper.” It is particularly emphasized in the verse above that the attributes of Hz. Muhammad (pbuh) are written in the Torah and the Gospel.

If it had not been true, the hatred of those two groups of the People of the Book against Islam would have increased. Would Hz. Muhammad (pbuh), who was a very clever and intelligent person, have insisted on an issue contrary to the truth in the face of his biggest opponents? How would Abdullah b. Salam, who was a great Jewish scholar, have accepted Islam as soon as Hz. Muhammad (pbuh) arrived in Madinah?

- In addition, it is stated in the verse below that the People of the Book knew the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) very well since they knew his attributes in their books: “The people of the Book know this (the Prophet Muhammad) as they know their own sons.” (al-Baqara, 2/146)

If it had not been true, would so many Jewish and Christian scholars believed in the Prophet and the Quran during the Era of Bliss (when the Prophet lived)?

- As a matter of fact, Hz. Umar asked Abdullah b. Salam, who became a Muslim after this verse was sent down, “How do you know the Prophet?” Abdullah gave the following interesting answer:

“I know Hz. Muhammad better than my children as a prophet. For, I have no doubt about the prophethood of Hz. Muhammad (pbuh). However, I cannot know what the mother of my children did.” (see Zamakhshari, Razi)

Al-Maida, 68:

The verse in question is as follows: “(O Messenger!) Say: « O People of the Book! Ye have no ground to stand upon unless ye stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord…» “

They regarded this statement (…unless ye stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord…) in the verse as evidence that those two books were true, were not abrogated and were not distorted in their claim. 

In fact, according to what Ibn Abbas states, a group of Jews came to Hz. Muhammad and said, “Do you agree that the Torah is a true book?” He said, “Yes, I do.”

Thereupon, they said, “We believe only in the Torah; we do not believe in anything else.”

Thereupon, the verse in question was sent down. (see Razi, Qurtubi, the interpretation of the verse in question)

Let us read that verse again:

Say: "O People of the Book! Ye have no ground to stand upon unless ye stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord." It is the revelation that cometh to thee from thy Lord, that increaseth in most of them their obstinate rebellion and blasphemy. But sorrow thou not over (these) people without Faith. 

They are asked to believe in the Quran in particular; otherwise, they will not be regarded as followers of a religion.

Standing fast by the Torah and the Gospel is the prophethood of Hz. Muhammad, which is mentioned in them, and the news given in them about him. If they do not accept it and do not believe in it, it means they have no place in any religion.  (see Baydawi, Hazin, the interpretation of the verse in question)

Finally, we will quote the statement of Badiuzzaman Said Nursi to see and accept the truth:

“The words of the Torah, the Bible, and the Psalms do not have the miraculousness of those of the Qur’an. They have also been translated again and again, and a great many alien words have become intermingled with them.

Also, the words of commentators and their false interpretations have been confused with their verses.

In addition, the distortions of the ignorant and the hostile have been incorporated into them.

In these ways, the corruptions and alterations have multiplied in those Books.

In fact, Shaikh Rahmatullah al-Hindi, the well-known scholar, proved to Jewish and Christian scholars and priests thousands of corruptions in them, and silenced them.

Nevertheless, despite these corruptions, in our times the celebrated Husain Jisri (May God have mercy on him) found one hundred and fourteen allusions to the prophethood of Muhammad (UWBP), and included them in his al-Risala al-Hamidiya. This was translated into Turkish by the late İsmail Hakkı of Manastır; whoever wishes may refer to it.” (Mektubat, 163)

Questions on Islam