This post is written in response to someone who had a passage from Christian scripture that spoke to him so clearly and yet as a new Muslim he felt the need to find the equivalent from the Quran and to leave that Christian scripture behind.
As a Christian I was drawn to Islam over some 15 years. It was the parallels and shared beliefs that felt so natural. So eventually I simply became Muslim – in my Iman’s words “I was Muslim already” … there was no struggle for me or any need to abandon my Christian background.*
Many reverts however feel a need to leave their past behind them as they enter the Islamic faith. In some cases this may well be wise and yet in others unnecessary.
The Quran speaks positively on many occasions about the people of the book (Ahl al Kitab) the people of the shared scripture. The Quran does not refer to them as people of the false book.
The Quran speaks critically on many occasions around how some people have strayed from those messages. See Surah 2 Al-Baqara verse 92 for example, but that’s a different discussion to the scripture itself and for another day.
Returning to Christian scripture the Quran clearly states …
“let the People of the Gospel judge by what God has revealed therein.”
Surah 5 Al-Maaida Verse 47
Mohamed (pbuh) was instructed by God that if he was doubt about the revelations made to him he was to ask the readers of the previous scriptures, the Jews and the Christians to confirm and asks us not to doubt our Lord.
“So if you are in doubt about that which We have revealed to you, then ask those who have been reading the Scripture before you. The truth has certainly come to you from your Lord, so never be among the doubters.”
Surah 10 Yunus Verse 94
So who are we to doubt Gods word.
So my advice is hold onto your scriptures and the guidance within as you also embrace the Quran and grow further. You will over time find other passages that speak to you as significantly but you might also never leave your past soul behind.
Most importantly you don’t need to find an alternative quote for what has already been given to you.
* As a note here is it important to understand that like many Christians over the centuries I did not hold a Trinitarian belief and simply prayed to God as my sole source of salvation. I will endeavour to explore this further in a future post.