With all due respect, I believe that Muhammad of Islam is a false prophet, the Quran is man-made and many of the earliest sources are questionable. These statements are my opinions based on my studies and not for the purpose of hatred criticism because, in the same way, my Muslim friends would say that Jesus Christ is not the divine Son of God, the Bible has been changed and it was the Apostle Paul who invented Christianity. They would passionately disagree with me and I would strongly disagree with them. But in the end, we would still be going to have dinner together. Religious tolerance is not about accepting everyone’s beliefs but the willingness to tolerant one another amidst our differences. Our real enemies are not those who disagree with us (I hope so) but our real enemies are those who pretend to agree with us while stabbed us behind our back. We called them pretenders and traitors. These people are not fit to be our friends. Goodbye!
Having shared my opinions, I would like to say with the same boldness that I somewhat enjoy listening to this audiobook. I once saw the physical book in the state library (Malay translation) and I’m interested in the subject but having no desire to read it. Discovering this book in the form of audio in English, however, bring gladness to me because I don’t need to borrow or own it to read it (P.s: I’m currently reading a powerful book by the late Sir Ken Robinson. Can’t wait to write the review!). There are three (3) main reasons why I would recommend this book as an introduction to anyone - Muslims and non-Muslims alike - who are interested to know more not just about the life of Muhammad but the important events in the history of Islam: 1) Martin Lings, a Muslim convert, although he was a scholar and a philosopher, writes with simplicity and easy to understand format. There are 85 short chapters in all and it is written chronologically. So it feels like reading or listening to a novel; 2) The narration begins from the story of Abraham to Ishmael to the Arabs, the religious background before the official coming of Muhammad as the prophet and after that, and how people react negatively and respond positively to his message. These accounts are important in order to understand the birth* of Islam; and 3) Although I’ve noticed that some of the controversial stories about Muhammad in the earliest sources are omitted, much to Martin Lings’ credits, he did include the child marriage, the non-peaceful execution of the enemies and the ownership of slaves. And to be honest, minus the bogus claim to be “the seal of the prophets,” Muhammad is a skilled military leader and very systematic religious founder. One thing that I admire about Islam is the brotherhood of the believers. This book unintentionally making the case.
On the other hand, true to its title, this book doesn’t discuss the theology and teachings of Islam per se but mostly focuses on the life of its founder. And because the author is a practice Muslim and believes faithfully in the narratives of the early sources, so there is no serious argument with the authenticity and validity of its. To be fair, yes Martin Lings was a scholar, but he is not writing a scholarly book. The book is popular exactly because it is accessible to all. Other things crossed my mind while listening to the audiobook while I'm cycling but I couldn’t remember them now (those dates, names, and places. Huh!). By the way, Sean Barrett, the narrator of this audiobook, has done a very good job! He makes 6 hours and 3 minutes bearable - and somewhat enjoyable. Thank you sir! ������☕
#ServeToLead #LeadersAreReaders #GrowingLeaders #TheLifeOfMuhammad #LearnOtherReligion #ReligionOfIslam #LetsMakeReadingCoolAgain
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