Journal: Southern Baptist Journal of Theology
Volume: SBJT 26:2 (Summer 2022)
Article: Book Reviews
Author: Anonymous

SBJT 26:2 (Summer 2022) p. 134

Book Reviews

The Qur’an and the Christian: An In-Depth Look into the Book of Islam for Followers of Jesus. By Matthew Aaron Bennett. Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2022, 256 pp., $19.99 paper.

Matthew Aaron Bennett serves as assistant professor of missions and theology at Cedarville University and received his PhD from The Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He has contributed to the Christian study of Islam in Narratives in Conflict: Atonement in Hebrews and the Qur’an (2019) and 40 Questions About Islam (2020). In his most recent work The Qur’an and the Christian (2022), Bennett argues that “it is crucial for a Christian disciple-maker to understand the Qur’an in order to effectively communicate biblical truths and the gospel to their Muslim friends and neighbors” (17). He seeks to help Christians understand the Qur’an through the combination of three views of this text: traditional Islamic, critical scholarship, and Christian witness. As Bennett hones in on each of these perceptions of the Qur’an, he presents a timely depiction of the Qur’an which interacts with recent scholarship and missiological movements. He dialogues with other recent works in this field including The Qur’an and the Bible (2018) by Gabriel Said Reynolds, The Quran with Christian Commentary (2020) by Gordon D. Nickel, and A Concise Guide to the Qur’an (2020) by Ayman S. Ibrahim.

Any Christian reading the Qur’an must consider how far to press common ground between Islam and Christianity. From the preface, Bennett presents his view with charity as he writes, “While some might contend that exposing areas of presumed common ground as superficial is detrimental to the cause of loving our Muslim neighbors, I beg to differ” (9). In contrast to missiological attempts to read Christianity into the Qur’an, Bennett seeks to present an understanding of the Qur’an which recognizes differences. This book is divided into three sections which cover the traditional Islamic, academic, and Christian understanding of the Qur’an.

The first section (chapters 1–3) sets out the narrative of the reception and teaching of the Qur’an in traditional Islamic teaching. The Qur’an is perceived to be the “final and incorruptible communication of the divine will to humanity” (22). After surveying the life of Mohammad, Bennett focuses on the teaching

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of Al-Fatiha–the first chapter and preface to the Qur’an. Bennett progresses through Al-Fatiha phrase-by-phrase and contrasts its conception of revelation and ethics with a biblical understanding. He concludes this first section with a presentation of the key beliefs and prac...