ShabirAllyRebuttal2

Shabir Ally and the Demand for Evidence

An authority that is going to blow Shabir Ali right out of the water. He cannot argue with this person, because I'm going to quote Shabir Ali. 2005, in Glasgow, Shabir Ali said the following words to Ani Shorouf, I believe that Dr. Shorouf wants to prove by one way or another that the Prophet Muhammad learned from others.

And so if you can suppose a lot of things, in the Da Vinci Code, you can suppose that Jesus went along with Mary and had a child, and the bloodline survives in France or wherever. You can suppose a lot of things, but as the New Testament scholar Bart Ehrman puts it nicely in his book on this, one has to have real facts and evidence.

You cannot quote a 13th century book, like Sir al-Halabiya. You have to go to the original documents, Dr. Shorouf, to find out what was Muraqa ibn Nafl, not the suppositions of others that agree with your own supposition.

Using the Same Method Against the Quran and the Bible

And then earlier, he said to Dr. Robert Morey in a debate, listen carefully. What surprises me, however, is that some Christians feel they can attack the Quran in this particular way, and they don't realize that it is shooting themselves in the foot when they use this method, because the same method also disproves, and Shabir said the Quran, but I think he meant the Bible.

However, Dr. Morey, you have an interesting way of going about this, because when Dr. Morey uses this particular method, Dr. Morey says that he is a Western scholar, but he forgets for the moment that he is also a Christian.

Does he wear two hats, once as a Western scholar and then as a Christian? I would like Dr. Morey to wear one hat, so we can pin him down and say, this is what you should believe in. If you say that this is your method, then believe neither in the Quran nor the Bible.

Miracles, Context, and the Consistency of Revelation

We have already seen, too, that Dr. Morey disparages the miracles, for example, camels coming out of the rock. No, that's foolish. But do we disparage the miracles that are mentioned in the Bible, too?

If we believe that miracles are true, then we should find some different way, some other way of denying that a certain miracle took place or not. Not that we disparage a miracle. So we have to make up our minds.

If we are believers in God, we cannot deny that these things are true, and we cannot use that particular method by which Western scholars disbelieve in both the Quran and the Bible. And shortly after, Shabir criticized Morey for using an argument used by atheists, and a moment later, he criticized Morey for not reading the Quran in its full context.

Repeating Shabir Ally's Own Standard Back to Him

So allow me to take Shabir's own words and repeat them back to you. Mr. Ali, you have an interesting way of going about this, but when you argue against the New Testament, you argue as a Western scholar.

But you forget for the moment that you are also a Muslim. Do you wear two hats, one that says Western scholar and one that says Muslim? I would like Shabir to wear one hat, so we can pin him down and say, this is what you should believe in.

If you say the method of crossing, or aramid, or ground, or any of the others quoted this evening, bulwark, whatever it might be, then we'll leave neither in the Quran nor the Bible, just like them. We have already seen, Shabir Ali, the spirit, the inspiration, and consistency of the Bible.

But if we believe that God has revealed the scriptures, then we should find some other way of denying the inspiration of the Bible. So we have to make up our minds. If we are believers in God, we cannot deny that these things are true, and we cannot use that particular method by which Western scholars disbelieve in both the Quran and the Bible.

Scripture, Scholarship, and the Search for Consistency

You must allow the Bible to speak as a whole. You cannot ignore its context and rip it apart, just to fit your preconceived conclusions. One has to have real facts and evidence. You have to go to the original documents, Shabir, not the suppositions of others that agree with your own suppositions.

I truly believe that what we've been listening to this evening, the constant reference to foreign criticism, redaction criticism, scholars see this, scholars see that. When I challenge those scholars upon what basis, it's always, well, you know, I start with the assumption that, you know, the miracles didn't take place.

And so when I read a text that talks about miracles, then it must be mistaken. It must be something other than that. Isn't that what they do in Quran? Every single person you rely on, and every time this Christian scholarship tells us, he's not talking about Christian scholars that are actually consistent Christians who actually believe in revelation, who actually believe there's such a thing as what Jesus taught in regards to the word of God.

He can't quote them because they're not going to be supportive of this position. And so what I've been saying from the beginning, I'm looking for the consistent Muslim. Haven't found them. Haven't found them.