Has Mohammed misquoted the Bible?

Prompted by a tweet promoting a book called: 'Misquoting Muhammad', I tweeted: 'Mohammed misquoted the Bible in the first place, so what is the problem?'
One dr Aman (@mnaseba) replied: 'where? when? how?'

I decided to answer her by means of a blogpost. The 140 characters of a tweet are not enough to answer her short but excellent questions in the manner they deserve. So here it comes.

Dear dr Aman,
I could just point at the numerous and well known discrepancies between the Bible and the Koran. I will address some points in detail later on but first of all I want to say this:
Pushing all religious notions aside, let us say for the sake of the argument that Mohammed is the author of the Koran.

The Bible (the Old Testament and the New Testament combined) is much older than the Koran. The Koran contains various elements clearly borrowed from the Bible. But they differ sometimes. Mohammed must have misquoted them or the people who have written the Koran years later, from memory, reciting what they have heard from Mohammed himself or from others who heard him saying it, must inadvertently have corrupted the original oral version. Let's go back to the assumption that Mohammed is the author of the Koran; isn't it logical to say that Mohammed misquoted the Bible?

For Christians and Jews the Koran is totally irrelevant. Not so for Muslims and the Bible, the Koran refers to the Bible and they have to explain the differences.

Islamic scholars have a rather strange explanation for these differences. The Jews and the Christians corrupted the Bible.

Why should they have done that? Were they aware of the future content of the Koran and therefore corrupted the Bible with the intention to disqualify the Koran even before it was written? This allegation is really absurd.

Now some discrepancies between the Bible and the Koran:

1. In Sura 3:53 The disciples of Jesus say that they are Muslims. There is no such statement in the New Testament. The word Muslim cannot be found in the Bible.
2. The Koran denies the crucifixion of Jesus (Sura 4: 157). The crucifixion is described in detail in the New Testament. The historian Flavius Josephus mentioned the crucifixion as an historical fact. He also mentions the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist.
3. In Sura 4:172 it is said that the Trinity consists of God, Jesus and Maria. Christian doctrine says that the Holy Trinity consists of God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. 1 John 5:7 - 5:8, Matthew 3:16 - 3:17, John 10:30 - 10:36.
4. The birth of John the Baptist, of which Luke writes elaborately in the first chapter of his Gospel, is also mentioned in the Koran, Sura 3:38. Mohammed got it completely wrong here. For instance, the wife of Zacharias is called Elisabeth. Mohammed mixed her up with Maria, the mother of Jesus. Furthermore he adds rather mythical details not mentioned by Luke. Where did he get them from?
5. The Koran claims that Mohammed is the last prophet, Sura 33:41. The Bible doesn't mention a last prophet, on the contrary. Joel 2:28-29, Acts 2:16-18.
6. In Sura 5:117 it is said that Christians worship Maria as a deity. No such thing in the New Testament.

I use a Dutch translation of the Koran. I noticed that the numbering of the verses differs slightly from the English translation.

A final remark about the Koran. Who says the Koran is true? Mohammed does. Who says that Mohammed tells the truth? The Koran. All we have is the supposed revelation of Mohammed. Is there any evidence that Mohammed really had a revelation? In legal terms it is all hearsay.

I wrote this blogpost specially for you, to answer your questions. It is not at all my intention to insult you (assuming you are a Muslim) nor any other Muslim. I just wanted to express myself clearly.

Kind regards,

John Zuyderduyn

Transforming yourself

Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.

I found this icon here

Although the title of this paragraph is a quotation from the Bible, this article is not of a religious nature and can even be read by atheists without giving the slightest offense. The words were written by the Apostle Paul in his epistle to the Romans (12:2). The idea of renewing the mind can be found in many of Paul's writings. The objective is to change one's thinking for the better. Thinking positively and acquiring a kind and friendly disposition that is what Paul means. (I deliberately omit the religious objectives of Paul, if you are interested you can find them in his writings in the New Testament). In his letter to the Philippians (4:8), he sums it up in these inspiring words: Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things.

What is to be gained by such a renewing of the mind?
Happiness and unhappiness depend on the circumstances you are in, that is true for many people. But is this an absolute truth? Certainly not. It is your reaction to circumstances that makes you either happy or unhappy. If you react without thinking on what is happening around you, then you are governed by circumstances. Controlling your thoughts whatever the circumstances you find yourself in is of the utmost importance. Being in control of your thoughts enables you to make choices. For instance: someone insults you; there are several options open to you. Ignore the insult, answer in a kind manner or give a sharp reply. The first two reactions will probably ease the situation, the latter can lead to a bitter row and before you know it you might be prodded into arguments beyond your control.
The first two reactions are the result of positive thinking, the last one is most likely the result of negative thinking. Which one would you choose?
Positive thinking, as described by Paul in his letter to the Philippians, leads to a calmness of mind enabling you to feel happy even in times of adversity.

How does one renew the mind?
It is not easy to begin with. It requires a kind of spiritual struggle but the rewards are great. It consists of overcoming negative thinking. Every time a negative thought enters your mind you must reject it and replace it by its positive opponent. For instance: instead of fretting about the possibility of losing your job, think of how you can do your job better or start looking for a an other job.
If reading newspapers or watching the news on TV makes you anxious why don't you stop reading disturbing news? Read good books instead or watch informative documentaries. Don't be afraid that you would be intellectually isolated. Really important news will reach you.
A good way of overcoming negative moods is to think of things you can be grateful for, your health, your family or anything else that makes you happy. Being grateful is a perfect barrier against negative thoughts. Gratitude and negative thoughts cannot occupy the mind at the same time.
Gratitude is not a mood exclusively for religious believers. If you are an atheist are you therefor barred from feeling grateful? I think not, however if your answer is yes than you really need a renewing of the mind.