The Qur'an in Context - by Mark Robert Anderson (Paperback)

About the Book

Mark Anderson explores the world of seventh-century Arabia as the context in which the Qur'an arose. After carefully exploring key facets of the Qur'anic worldview, he offers a nuanced understanding of how Jesus fits within it. His careful Christian response opens up a mutually respectful and informed place of dialogue between Christians and Muslims.

Book Synopsis

For most Westerners, the Qur'an is a deeply foreign book. Christians who venture within this sacred scripture of Islam encounter a world where echoes of biblical figures and themes resound. But the Qur'an speaks in accents and forms that defy our expectations. For it captures an oral recitation of an open-ended drama, one rooted in seventh-century Arabia. Its context of people, events and ideas strikes us not only as poetically allusive but as enigmatic. And yet the Qur'an and its contested interpretations scroll in shadowed text between the headlines of our daily news. In The Qur'an in Context Mark Anderson offers a gateway into the original world and worldview of the Qur'an. With keen attention to the Qur'an's character, reception and theology, he opens up a hermeneutical space for Christians and others to engage its fabric of religious claims. The Qur'an's theology, anthropology, soteriology, spirituality as well as its portrayal of Jesus are all carefully examined. Finally, the Qur'an's claim to be the Bible's sequel is probed and evaluated. Forthright in Christian conviction and yet sympathetically open to dialogue, The Qur'an in Context is a reliable guide for those who want to explore the holy book of Islam in its varied facets.

Review Quotes

"As well as providing a well-informed and nuanced introduction to the current scholarly debate over Islamic origins, The Qur'an in Context offers a substantial, theologically serious and at points provocative discussion on the Qur'an in its interface with the Bible and the core themes of the Christian faith. This lucid and thought-provoking study makes a significant contribution from an Evangelical and Reformed perspective to the wider field of Christian engagement with the scripture at the heart of Islam."

"This is a theological and academic evaluation of the Qur'an and its teachings. It's a scholarly but worthwhile read. Recommend to missionaries, evangelism and apologetics professors, and laypeople serving Muslim peoples."

About the Author

Mark Anderson studied theology at Westminster Theological Seminary and has an MA in Islamic Studies from McGill University. For nearly a decade he lived, studied, and taught in Egypt and Jordan. He writes and lectures on Islam and the Qur?an and is the author of Faithsongs: Ancient Psalms for Today (2010).