# Apologetics against Islam

Islam revolves around several major religious linchpins:

1. The Qu'ran, written by Muhammad
   - Its Surahs are ordered by smallest to largest, so *not* chronological order.
   - It is *only* considered Scripture in Arabic, and all translations are considered *not* Scripture.
2. The life of Muhammad himself.
   1. He first went to Mecca and tried to convert Jews and Christians peaceably ("the People of the Book").
   2. Later, he went to Medina and declared Jews and Christians as heretics and to be subdued and enslaved.
   3. He gained power, but lost power later in life and attested that Muslims should coexist peacefully with them.
3. Arabic culture that carried his views further.
   - They broke off into Sunni and Shia Islam, with Sunni being ~90% of them.
   - They instituted caliphates designed to subdue Jews and Christians for centuries afterward, and modern-day Arabic politics are still influenced by their culture.

There is a basic theological principle that Islam must abide by:

1. Christianity and Judaism have been corrupted.
2. Muhammad, the Prophet, gave the truth.
3. Everyone must believe the Prophet to follow the truth.
4. Anyone who doesn't will receive a truly awful condemnation.

However, there are some discrepancies with Islam compared to *both* Judaism and Christianity.

- Judaism's tenets, along with Christianity, promote peace, while Islam promotes some form of violence ("jihad").
  - Even Christianity's admonition toward violence against the flesh is about self-violence.
  - The Qu'ran, however, advances a *lot* of violence against heretics and infidels.

There is also a clear philosophical contradiction present within Islam.

1. The Qu'ran affirms the Torah and Gospel as having truth (Surah 3:3-4).
2. The Qu'ran rejects that the Torah and Gospel were written and copied correctly (Surah 2:79).
3. Essentially, it posits a very narrow window that asserts that the Torah and Gospel are true, but that nobody rightly wrote it down.
4. The Qu'ran then asserts itself as the truth to fill that void, but anyone who wishes to can read the Bible for themselves.