“The true Furqan”

[reepicheep]

<b>wel_mel_2 wrote: ...the challenge of Allah: “If you are in doubt about it, bring a book like it”</b>



I don't know of any such challenge in the koran, although it may be in there somewhere. Verse 17:88 does state that the combined efforts of all the people and jinn would be unable to write a book like the koran, but there is nothing in that verse about a challenge.


But there are some other verses which talk about a challenge. Verse 11:13 challenges people to write ten suras. And, verses 2:23 and 10:38 challenge people to write one sura.


This discrepancy leads to the following interesting question:


<i><b>How many suras does a non-muslim have to write, before the challenge is met?</b></i>


If, for example, I wrote 5 suras just as good as the suras in the koran, then verses 2:23 and 10:38 could be used to show that I have met and exceeded the challenge. But, at the same time, according to verse 11:13 I would not have met the challenge.


Personally, I think it should be sufficient to write a single Arabic phrase which is just as beautiful as the words of the koran. For, if I can write one phrase, then I can write several phrases and combined them together into a verse. And, if I can complete a single verse, then I could write many verses and combine them together into a sura. And, if I could write one sura, then I could write many suras and combine them together into a book.


So, then, what have the Christian writers of "The True Furqan" done? They weren't content with writing one sura or ten suras. They wrote 77 suras, and a Blessing and an Epilogue, and combined them together into a book. In fact, by calling the book "The True Furqan", they are leaving no doubt that they wrote the book in response to the challenges in the koran. They have even gone so far as to give some of their suras the same names as the suras in the koran.


For example, sura 24 in "The True Furqan" is named Al-Nisa (Women), the same as sura 4 in the koran. In doing so, the writers of "The True Furqan" are challenging muslims to compare the two suras to see which is more beautiful. More importantly, they are claiming that the treatment of women as described in the bible is better than the treatment of women as described in the koran.


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My observations about the various comments muslims have made about "The True Furqan" within this thread:


(1) The koran clearly challenges non-muslims to write suras. I find it interesting that muslims would show such outrage that some christians have taken up the challenge.


(2) Any muslim who is "fooled" into thinking that "The True Furqan" is the book revealed by Mohammad certainly doesn't know very much about Islam.